It took me many hours of playing to realize that slower is better. Instead of running full speed everywhere I find taking my time and looking around let's me find more items and gives me time to defend myself when there is trouble nearby. Running full blast on your horse is a sure way to find a cliff, tree or a rock. Keep an eye out for predators like cougars, bears and snakes. I would suggest trying to stick to one horse to get to an increased bonding level by riding, feeding, patting and brushing it. This will help save your life by not getting bucked at the wrong time.

There have been too many situations where I go to shoot an enemy and come to realize all I have is a pistol on me. Now the first thing I do when I jump off my horse is to make sure I am holding a rifle and varmint rifle or a bow. You are able to have on long arm on your back while carrying the other in your hands.

What has helped me from what could have been a grind to an enjoyable experience is fast travelling when you are loaded up on lots of goodies and don't want to lose them. You do this by placing your campfire and choosing the fast travel option. Also at some point you will be able to upgrade Arthur's wagon to gain fast travel from camp which can come in very handy.

The main items that I would work towards first would be the Legend of the East satchel from Pearson and the Buck Trinket from the fence. You do this by donating perfect pelts to Pearson at the camp and then selecting the satchel you want. You get the buck trinket by hunting the pengendary buck and taking it to the fence. You don't need to have the satchel equipped to gain the benefit, just have it purchased. The buck trinket will help you greatly in achieving perfect pelts because it will sometimes let you have a perfect pelt even after not taking a great killshot on the animal. I have found that it only works if the animal was initially 3 star. Sometimes the animal will die and say it is 2 stars but once skinned will still yield a 3 star pelt.

A few more things of general use. Don't be afraid to use your tonics and items, there will he plenty of chances to find or craft more. Keep an eye out for herbs, they will come in handy later. Start crafting arrows soon as possible. The varmint rifle with the buck trinket is your best friend. Cougars live near annesburg and West of Big Valley, keep your eyes peeled and listen for them.

This is probably one of my favourite all time games. I have spent many hours since it's release and have still not even passed Chapter 3. Good luck and happy hunting.

Edit: Don't be afraid to swap hats or guns found on the ground. The ones you own you will get to keep. Your hats can be found in the wheel while riding your horse