TRAVELLING EFFICIENTLY

When you need to reach a destination quickly, there are ways to optimize or shorten your journey.

MAP READING

Learning to read your map is a critical skill that you should try to develop early in the story. Before you set off on a long journey, studying the map in advance can help you to shave seconds or even entire minutes from your travel time.

Whenever a mission requires you to reach a location that you have previously visited, the game automatically shows you a recommended path to follow (in the form of a dynamic line on your map) as long as you are riding a horse. The recommended path also appears when you manually place a waypoint, even if you’re on foot. While this always defines a reliable route, it is not necessarily the most efficient or fastest option. If you take the time to look at your map, and pay attention to your surroundings as you travel, you’ll gradually acquire the ability to take shortcuts and skip areas that might slow your progress significantly.

One important factor to consider is that your map is topographic: it gives a clear sense of the exact elevation of each area of terrain by showing not only surface features, but also a representation of relief with contour lines that connect places of identical elevation.

If your route takes you through flat plains, chances are you will be able to move in a straight line, heading directly for your objective. Should you move through mountains or canyons, the only path available will probably be winding and potentially treacherous in places. Paying attention to the precise topology will also reveal vantage points or tactically-advantageous features that you can make the most of while completing objectives.

FAST TRAVEL

Certain camp upgrades (see page 143) will give you access to a special map near your bed. If you examine it with Triangle/Y, this opens a Fast Travel menu in which you can choose to jump to key locations that you have visited so far – primarily the main towns and a few other landmarks. Select any of these entries and you will automatically reach the destination in question after a brief cutscene.

As you complete specific story missions early on in the adventure, you will also unlock the possibility to use trains and stagecoaches to be transported almost instantly to any town that you have previously visited: ticket prices vary in accordance with the distance traveled. These features are particularly helpful when you are engaged in travel intensive activities, such as treasure hunting or resource gathering.