How to be a Collector: A Professions Guide to Red Dead Online

Gold fever and the Wild West go hand in hand. And Red Dead Online fully embraces that connection with the Collector profession. Included in the Frontier Pursuits content update with the Bounty Hunter and the Trader professions, the Collector is the second-best specialty for players who want to make money. 

Instead of actually searching for gold bars, though, players in this role will find themselves searching obscure portions of the RDO map for old relics. Of course, these relics can be sold for big rewards, which is a great way to generate even more cash than some other specialties.

Below, you will find a complete tips and tricks guide on how to become a Collector, and how to make the most of this unusual business.

Getting Started as the Collector in Red Dead Online

Out of all three new professions, becoming a Collector is probably the hardest for any character. This method of play comes down to encountering Madam Nazar’s Caravan, which always moves around the map.

While hard to chart, it regularly appears on the map near Moonstone Pond and O’Creagh’s Run in the Grizzlies East region.

Once you’ve located Madam Nazar’s Caravan, here’s what you need to do to start finding treasure and other lootable items:

1. Talk to Madam Nazar
2. Purchase the Collector’s Bag for 15 gold
3. Open the Collector’s Bag to activate map markers

If you have collected all 54 cards in GTA Online, then you don’t need to pay for the Collector’s Bag. Your progress in Rockstar’s other popular action game will net you save you 15 gold. 

Deals, Skills, and Items

The first problem that you will face after becoming a Collector is that Madam Nazar will not give you all her map markers for free. First, you need to buy a few things from her:

• Buy Pennington Field Shovel. This should be your first purchase, as it will unlock other maps in her shop.
• Purchase all unlocked maps. Each map costs about $20, and it will unlock new map markers.
• Purchase other accessories. These include belt buckles, goggles, and gloves, which will all help you locate various treasures.

Besides these items, you will get a number of items and skills by default: 

Collecting Tips and Tricks

There are so many maps to unlock and so many items to find that you may easily get confused in the mess that is the Collector specialty. To help prevent that, follow these gameplay guidelines for the role whether by yourself or with friends: 

• Never open a new map until you’ve collected all the items from the first one. Otherwise, you will lose all the previous map markers even if you haven’t found the treasure yet.
• If you’ve made a mistake and accidentally opened a new map, then you need to go back to Madam Nazar and purchase it once again.
• Try to play with your gamepad vibration on, as it will help you locate hidden items.
• Use Eagle Eye vision for better visibility.
• Use the Metal Detector in hard-to-get-to places.

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That is all you need to know on how to become a successful Collector in solo or multiplayer. For more Red Dead Online guides, check out the list below:

• How to be a Bounty Hunter: A Professions Guide
• How to be a Trader: A Professions Guide
• How to Win Horse Races
• How to Make Money Super Fast
• How to Form a Posse and Play With Friends
• Infinite Money Exploit Guide

Red Dead Online is the online component of Red Dead Redemption 2. It is currently available for the PS4 and Xbox One.

RDO is free to those who own the RDR2 base game, though PlayStation 4 players must subscribe to PlayStation Plus to play online, while Xbox players must subscribe to Xbox Live. 

For more on Red Dead Redemption 2, be sure to head over to our official review of the game.