Best Red Dead Redemption What if scenario?
What if Dutch died in Blackwater and Hosea and Arthur led the gang?
What if Arthur never got TB?
What if Eliza and Isaac lived and lived with Arthur and the gang?
What if RDR was canon and Red Harlow hunted the VDL gang?
What if Sadie, Trewlany, Charles, Lenny and Kieran went to Blackwater?
What if Mac Calander met Arthur and Jack instead of Milton
What if Micah killed Arthur and John and kidnapped/brainwashed Jack to be like h
What if Arthur ran away with Mary
What if John never returned to the gang, ran into Bonnie and married her
What if no one died and with Sadie and Charles, they side with Arthur/John
What if it was Arthur pursuing the ex gang members on RDR1
Context.
Scenario 1. We take Landon Rickets in Blackwater more serious and Landon saw what Dutch did and when he has the opening, Landon shoots Dutch dead. Hosea and Arthur gather everyone and lead them on a path to get lost in the west, gather their strength. Hosea makes the complete opposite of Dutch's decisions throughout the game and the gang is better off for it.
Scenario 2. Arthur arrives very late and sees Thomas Downes is having a coughing fit and collapses and figures that this debt isn't worth it. So Arthur never catches TB. He has his same character arc because he sees that Dutch is losing it and Micah is...Micah. Differences is. Arthur easily overpowers Milton and Arthur kills Micah.
Scenario 3. Arthur takes it upon himself to take responsibility and care for Eliza and Isaac. Turns out Eliza can contribute to the gang. She has a history of pickpocketing when tips as a waitress were low or nonexistent and under Hosea's tutelage, she's a damned good con artist. Isaac takes a liking to "Grandpa Hosea" and "Ol Dutch" the girls adore Isaac and the gang are protective of him. When Jack comes around, Isaac is like an older brother to Jack and Abigail adores him and when the Braithewaites try to steal Jack, Isaac fires a warning shot and everyone comes running to Jack's aid. Because of his family, Arthur chooses not to go after Downes and doesn't get TB. One day, Micah makes a pass at Eliza and makes an offhand comment about Isaac. And Arthur proceeds to beat the shit out of him "You come near my family again, and I'll kill you" Arthur puts his family first and chooses to get out when the writing is on the wall. When they go to free John from Piska, Abigail, Jack, Eliza and Isaac are all waiting and they leave and never look back,
Scenario 4. I know timeline wise this can't work, but it's a fun thought. Basically after Blackwater, Red is on the hunt. He is the "super bounty hunter" Trelawny warned the gang about. The Gang at first doesn't take the threat seriously, but suddenly members of the gang go missing and are delivered to the Pinkertons. Near the end, he sees the humanity in Arthur, John and his family, Charles and Sadie and helps them. Red shoots Micah dead and takes Dutch in. Arthur and John split the money and live in peace
Scenario 5.
Sadie (after chapter 3), Kieran (with his head intact), Charles Smith and Lenny. Josiah Trelawny as the heist leader.
Send the team to Blackwater, their mission is to retrieve the money.
Reasoning:
Sadie, new member of the team, no one know her as VDL gang, no big bounty yet, able to do Gun Fight.
Kieran, Horse gateaway duty. No one know him, he can be the spy to make sure that Colm team doesn't interrupt at all.
Charles, Bodyguard, gunsmith, considered safe bet, he was not in the big heist. Charles is also natural for stealth approach
Lenny, Sniper. Watching the team from the distance (from the camping spot where Arthur and co preparing to save Sean). He is also the one who can run quick back to main camp if anything happen
Josiah. The magician, the mastermind. He can safely travel anywhere, to make it a great decoy in Blackwater.
Arthur + Dutch + The rest of the gang can camping safely outside the border waiting for Lenny to come back
Scenario 6. Just a thought I had. What if Mac returned instead of Milton. But completely changed. After Blackwater and Davey's death, Mac goes through a similar journey as Arthur had and sacrifices himself so Arthur and John can escape
Scenario 7. Just had to include the absolute worst scenario possible. Micah orders Cleet and Joe to go back for Tilly and Jack. When Arthur and John are on the run, Micah yells out that he has Abigail and Jack and if the two of them don't show up to Beaver's Hollow in the next 10 minutes, then he'll kill them both. At first they don't believe him until he hears Abigail yell out for John. John rushes towards his family and is shot dead. And Arthur fights him to the death. The TB kills him and John's family is left at Micah's mercy. The trauma Jack witnesses causes amnesia. And Micah sees the opportunity to do what his father did to him. Take him under his wing and make Jack the deadliest outlaw in the world and as a final insult to Arthur and John. Jack Marston, is now Micah Bell IV
Scenario 8. After seeing how far Dutch has fallen with Micah poisoning his mind. Arthur contacts Mary and leaves with her. He asks Sadie and Charles to help John and his family and to help the girls, Pearson and Uncle leave. Mary takes Arthur away to the right climate and makes a full recovery. Eventually John, Abigail and Jack contact him. Charles and Sadie would join them shortly after helping the Wapiti tribe escape. Arthur advises them all. "Leave Micah. Revenge is a fool's game. All he did was reveal who Dutch truly is, eventually they'll both be caught or killed. Leave it all behind and don't look back." Arthur and Mary build a farm for themselves and a family and get the life Arthur always wanted with Mary. They help John and his family on Beecher's hope and all is well with the Morgans and the Marstons.
Scenario 9.
During the year that John left the gang. What if John somehow found his way to New Austin. He finds himself drifting and just thinking Abigail and the kid would be better off without him. One day he finds himself on the MacFarlane ranch. Bonnie asks for his help stopping some rustlers stealing their horses. John decides to stay and help the MacFarlanes out and somehow he finds the peace he's never had with Abigail. One thing leads to another and John falls in love with Bonnie and marries her. Meanwhile, Arthur helps Abigail take care of Jack and John's absence brings them together and they leave the gang after Molly is killed.
Scenario 10.
Hosea, Lenny, Kieran and Sean survive. Arthur convinces Molly to leave during the Saint Denis chapter and that Dutch doesn't love her and it's best if she left. Sadie and Charles return in time. Everyone stands with Arthur and they end Dutch, Micah. With half the gang against Dutch, Bill and Javier see sense and side with Arthur and John. Everyone splits the money and separates.
Scenario 11.
Arthur lives and helps John set everything up. He leaves with Sadie and kills Micah. Arthur chooses to hunt down Bill, Javier and Dutch in exchange for the Marstons freedom.
Arthur kills Bill at Fort Mercer. Arthur stealthily infiltrates Fort Mercer just like Fort Wallace. Kills Bill's gang one by one, until all that's left is Bill. "Hello Bill" "Arthur??" "I'll give you a choice come quietly or we can end this the good old fashioned way" Bill grabs his gun and Arthur shoots him dead “You were always a weak minded fool.”
Arthur hunts down Javier in Mexico. However, Arthur does not play both sides. He sees how desperate the people of Nuevo Paraíso have become. He even meets an old friend, Sister Calderon, now Mother Superior. He asks what side is right and she tells him to help Luisa and Mr Ricketts, they will help him in return.
One conversation with Reyes and Arthur sees right through him. He's nothing but a self-absorbed coward who uses the people of Mexico for his own ambitions. Instead of helping Reyes, Arthur is helping Luisa see sense and one day, Arthur and Luisa catches Reyes having an affair and Luisa kills him. The official story is Javier snuck into Reye's quarters and killed him and his mistress. Reyes Rebellion, now becomes Luisa's Rebellion.
Luisa fulfills her promise and helps Arthur find Javier.
"Well, well, well. Hello old friend." "Hello brother." "Oh, I'm your brother now, am I? "Arthur, I always loved you. I was always on your side." "Loyalty never meant that much when you stood by Dutch's side." "So what, you're taking the governments orders now?" "Look who's talking. From a revolutionary to Allende's lapdog." “Colonel Allende promised me a full pardon, all that mattered was returning home.” Arthur gets the best of Javier, lasso's him and delivers him to Ross and Fordham. Javier condemns Arthur and John. Arthur parts Javier telling him he was nothing more than a blind fool clinging to one master to another.
Arthur kills Dutch. He looks at him with disgust. “Hello Arthur, my son.” “Oh, I’m your son, am I? That didn’t mean a damned thing to you all those years ago when you chose the rat over me.” “I….I did no such thing, you and John BETRAYED ME and now you’re working for them.” “It’s either work with them to kill you or I die” and look at you, using another tribe of Indians like you used Eagle Flies. You’re pathetic.“ "If it’s all the same to you,I’d rather kill you Dutch.” During the shootout on the mountains, Arthur is mocking him for allowing the once great man to be reduced to his shell of his former self. Dutch telling Arthur he should have left him on the streets to die. Arthur mocking his lack of plan and just telling Dutch to “have some goddamn faith” When he has him on the cliff of Coachinay, Arthur just mocks him. “The great Dutch van der Linde, the man with a plan!” For the first time in his life, Dutch shows an ounce of humility and takes responsibility. “Arthur, I let him damn us all. If I had just listened to you, Hosea and John, we would’ve made it.” “If I had just let him hang, we would be in Tahiti” and Dutch falls to his death. At the end of the mountain, Arthur and Ross are by Dutch’s corpse. Arthur demanding to know if he’s finally free. Ross tells him one more mission. Kill John Marston and before Ross can say anything more, Arthur grabs Dutch’s gun and kills Ross. Fordham sees what transpires and mocks Ross “Oh trust me, it’ll look better in the report” Fordham telling Arthur what makes him think they won’t kill him. “You know why? I know too much. See, I know why you used me. Your governor Nate Johns election is coming up and he needed you and you needed me to clean up the state. Lets just say I told some folk and if word gets out I’m dead, then mr Johns won’t get reelected. You leave me and John Marston and his family alone and no one talks." And just like that, Arthur and John live.
