Red Dead Redemption 2’s world is a place in which lawlessness has overstayed its welcome in the changing Wild West. Outlaws are on their way out, and included in that is the Van Der Linde gang. As RDR2's Arthur Morgan himself says, “We’re thieves in a world that don’t want us no more.” The Pinkertons are on the hunt and hot on the trail of the gang, which means the Van der Lindes should be lying low. However, as fans of RDR2 already know, there’s always a need for more money.

With Dutch van der Linde at the helm, there’s always another job, another bank, and “always a goddamn train,” as Arthur puts it during the final train robbery. Throughout the course of Red Dead Redemption 2's story, there are multiple times in which the gang has to rob a train. While all of them erupt in a fit of violence between the gang and one of their adversaries, be it the hands of the law, the O’Driscolls, or Cornwall’s men, some robberies are a bit tamer than the others.

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Here are the train robberies of Red Dead Redemption 2, ranked in order from least to most violent.

Least Violent RDR2 Train Robbery

Arthur's hand holding Calloway's Revolver in Red Dead Redemption 2.

This first one is debatable, however, it does include robbery on a train and the least amount of violence. This “train robbery” is from a side mission to fight gunslingers. Arthur is told to seek out four old gunslingers and gather information about Jim “Boy” Calloway. In this side mission, Arthur is looking for a man named Billy Midnight.

Billy likes to drink away his troubles at the train bar, and when Arthur approaches him about his gunslinger past he immediately becomes terrified out and takes off through the train. The player must chase down the bumbling Billy Midnight and race through the train cars, eventually leading to a gunslinger duel atop the moving locomotive. In the end, Billy loses to Arthur. When the player goes to rob Billy of his belongings, they’ll discover a unique variant of Red Dead Redemption 2's Mauser Pistol. Is it a “train robbery” per se? Not really, but it is still robbery on a train.

2nd Least Violent Train Robbery In RDR2

Red Dead Redemption Train rdr2

The next least violent train robbery involves the surprisingly smart and levelheaded plan of John Marston, who players will get to see grow throughout Red Dead Redemption 2 after he recovers from the wolf attack. The gang needs more money, and John thinks he’s discovered an easy way to do it. Arthur, John, Sean, and Charles head out to block the tracks with a recently acquired oil drum cart. With the conductor coming to a full stop - as to not blow up - the gang proceeds to enter the train and threaten the passengers to put their belongings into a bag.

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This sequence, while probably terrifying for the passengers, is a relatively violence-free RDR2 robbery. Arthur keeps his gun pointed toward the roof of the car for the most part, only occasionally firing a shot to hurry up skittish or stubborn passengers. It isn’t until the back car is searched where things go awry and Arthur needs to save Sean, which results in four guards being shot. Shortly after, the law finds their way to the halted train, and thus begins s shootout with a couple of dozen lawmen. Once the lawmen need to recoup, the gang escapes on horseback.

2nd Most Violent Train Robbery In RDR2

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The second most violent train robbery in Red Dead Redemption 2 happens just before the gang’s transition from the ice-cold mountainside cabins to the lush and warm Horseshoe Overlook. Dutch has found some of the O’Driscolls' plans and decides to make them his own. This action ultimately leads to Dutch making an enemy of Cornwall.

After a failed attempt to blow up the tracks and halt the train from heading inside a tunnel, the gang must race across the snowy hills to the backside and hop down onto the moving train as it leaves the opening. It's then that Arthur and Lenny traverse their way across the train cars in a shootout with Cornwall’s guards as they head for the engine to stop the train. After shooting through the guards and putting a stop to the train, more guards emerge from the back of the train and in the surrounding hills. A massive shootout between the gang and the scores of Cornwall’s men erupts until there are no guards left standing. At the end of the mission, after blowing up the sealed metal doors with dynamite, Arthur also has the option to spare or kill the last of Cornwall’s men. This decision is solely up to whichever side of honor the player is shooting for.

RDR2's Most Violent Train Robbery

A train passes through in Red Dead Redemption 2

The last, and most chaotic, train robbery of Red Dead Redemption 2 comes at the end of the game. The gang is broken and members have gone their separate ways, but Dutch has one more job to pull. When the train doesn’t stop in Saint Denis as planned, the remaining gang members chase it down on horseback, resulting in the player jumping from horse to train and vice versa multiple times as they trek along the train tracks in an explosive shootout.

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As Arthur and John race to the front cars, they’re met with heavy resistance. Train cars erupt in fiery explosions, causing them to derail and fly off the tracks. During a break in the fighting, Arthur and John discover and mount up a Gatling gun just as dozens of lawmen race in next to the train on horseback. Right before the gun is ready, a guard sneaks up and shoots John in the shoulder and causes him to fall off the train.

The gang continues to run, with Dutch leaving John for dead. It’s then that Arthur mounts up on the Gatling gun and beings mowing down scores of lawmen. Unfortunately, with the inaccuracy of the Gatling gun it's just as easy to hit the Lawmen’s horse as it is them. As the train continues to move, eventually the lawmen can no longer follow, which gives the gang the time they need to finish the robbery before they get to the blown-up bridge the players had destroyed in a prior mission. They quickly blow through the tightly sealed door, grab the cash, and jump off the train just before it crashes over the cliffside into the rocks below.

Red Dead Redemption 2 has its fair share of train robberies amongst its many bank heists and other various jobs. Maybe it's because train robberies are a staple of the old west that they’re used so often, but nevertheless RDR2 makes each train robbery feel different and keeps them spread apart enough so that the player can enjoy their time with the mission instead of it feeling like it’s the same mission repeatedly. If there's ever a RDR3, Rockstar can always up the ante and improve upon the train robberies to add an even better variety.

Next: Red Dead Redemption 2’s Most Memorable Missions