Hunting is a huge part of Red Dead Redemption 2, and like pretty much everything else in the game, it’s an impressively complex mechanic. Each animal you kill will earn you a pelt or hide, but for certain crafting recipes you’ll be asked to secure a perfect pelt. Doing so requires a bit more than simply hunting your target, so it’s vital you learn how to master the process. In this guide we’ll teach you how to get perfect pelts, hides and skins in Red Dead Redemption 2.
How to get Perfect Pelts, Hides and Skins
There are a number of factors that come into play during hunting that will affect your pelt quality, so it’s important to learn them all. First of all, certain crafting recipes require specific animal pelts, so make sure you know which creature you’re after before you start. Beyond that, the criteria that need to be met are as follows:
- Find a three star animal
- Use the correct weapon
- Make a Clean Kill
When it comes to finding a three star animal, you’re unfortunately relying on a healthy dose of luck. Before you spend your time hunting any creature, inspect it with your binoculars from afar and choose to Study it. This will reveal a rating from one to three stars. You may need to spend a while looking around before you find a three star rated animal, but keep your head up and you'll find one eventually, cowboy!
When you’ve found a target, the next step is to make sure you’re using the right weapon for the job. After you’ve studied an animal, you can look it up in your Compendium for further details including which weapon and ammo is best suited for hunting it. Using a shotgun on a bear might seem sensible, but it’s almost guaranteed to ruin the pelt. When you’re ready to take the shot, you need to target the critical parts of the animal to earn a Clean Kill. Most of the time this will be the heart, but some animals offer other targets to hit. Dead Eye is extremely useful to this end, letting you take the time to line up and ideally kill your target in a single shot.
As you’re now aware, it’s important to take your time when hunting if you want to reap the rewards of a perfect pelt. Any time you spot a three star animal, plan your approach to ensure you make a clean kill with the right weapon and you’ll be rewarded with a perfect pelt or skin for crafting or selling. For further details on hunting, read our comprehensive guide!
While you’re here, take a look at some of our other Red Dead Redemption 2 guides. Here’s where you can find all 14 Legendary Fish in the game, and over here you can read up on where to get the best horse.
