Red Dead Online Fear of the Dark guide - How to win as both Hunters and Night Stalkers

There are a great many different competitive PvP modes available in Red Dead Online, but few are as intriguing and unique as Fear of the Dark - a limited-time Halloween-themed mode which pits six Hunters against two supernaturally powerful Night Stalkers in an objective-infused deathmatch. Learn the ins and outs of how to play and win as both sides in the below Red Dead Online Fear of the Dark guide, and you'll need never fear the dark again.

• Red Dead Online Fear of the Dark mode (Overview)
• Tips for Hunters in Fear of the Dark
• Tips for Night Stalkers in Fear of the Dark

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Red Dead Online Fear of the Dark mode

Fear of the Dark is one of Red Dead Online's few asymmetric team-based modes. That is, depending on the team you're on, you'll have an entirely different experience, with different objectives and different abilities at your disposal.

The aim of the Hunters is (eventually) to eliminate the two Night Stalkers. But this is easier said than done, because not only are the Night Stalkers tremendously fast and strong, but they are also immortal - you can down them for a short time, but you can't kill them. So how do the Hunters win? By collecting the eight masks dotted about the playing area. With each mask collected, Hunters gain new guns and become more powerful, while the Night Stalkers grow weaker. Once the final mask is collected by the Hunters, the Night Stalkers become mortal and killable.

The aim of the Night Stalkers is to kill all the Hunters or to survive until the end of the round. But, again, this is easier said than done, because although Night Stalkers are very powerful, they're not unstoppable - and what's more, each mask collected by the Hunters also acts as an extra life that can be used up to bring back a Hunter from the dead. And seeing as the masks are all spread out and it's nearly impossible to defend all of them with just two players, it's very rare that the Night Stalkers are actually able to kill all the Hunters.

Tips for Hunters in Fear of the Dark

So let's say first of all that you're playing Red Dead Online's Fear of the Dark mode as the Hunters. What are some things to bear in mind to maximise your chances of victory?

• Try to avoid the Night Stalkers as much as possible. They are much more powerful than you are, particularly at the start of the game when all you're armed with is a knife. Your best bet is to run the other way the moment you see a Night Stalker nearby. It's often a strong tactic to go on a wide flank at the very start, and pick off masks where they aren't likely to expect it.
• If you need to fight them, do so with other Hunters around. While Night Stalkers are indeed powerful and, for the most part, unkillable, you can still down them for several seconds if you deal enough damage to them. This is difficult to do on your own, but with multiple Hunters around it's much easier, particularly if one of you focuses on tackling the Night Stalker while the other(s) shoot at it repeatedly.
• Keep track of how many masks have been stolen. Even after you've collected all of the masks, all the Night Stalkers need to do to become invulnerable once again is to kill a single Hunter. The moment this happens, a new mask spawns on the map and you'll have to collect it again before the Night Stalkers can be dealt any meaningful damage. So always keep track of the masks, even after you've collected them all.

Tips for Night Stalkers in Fear of the Dark

Now, let's look at Fear of the Dark from the Night Stalkers' perspective. Funnily enough, it's tougher for the Night Stalkers to achieve victory than the Hunters - but it's certainly possible, provided you bear the following tips in mind:

• You're not unstoppable. As you'll find out soon enough, Night Stalkers can feel very weak indeed when outnumbered by Hunters who know what they're doing. Don't let your supernatural powers go to your head - often the best choice is to run from a fight and head elsewhere.
• Stealth is your ally. Leading on from the previous point, it's not just Hunters that benefit from a stealthy approach. The very best playstyle for a Night Stalker to adopt is one of approaching individual, solitary Hunters from behind, tackling them, and killing them in one hit when they're down. Simple, effective, and a setback to the Hunters every time you do it.
• Be prepared to run (or jump) at a moment's notice. While you may be the true hunters for the majority of the match, the instant the final mask is collected, you're on the backfoot. You must keep track of how many masks have been captured by the Hunters so that you're ready to run at a moment's notice. Make use of your super-human jump ability if you find yourself in a tight spot, and if you see the Hunters ganging up on your teammate, use the opportunity to sneak up behind one and kill them before they know what's happening.

And with that, we'll conclude this Red Dead Online guide on the Fear of the Dark PvP mode. But that's not all! If you're interested in finding out about the many other PvP modes available to you, look no further than our Red Dead Online modes guide for full details and tips!