The camp ledger arrives during Chapter 2 after Money Lending and Other Sins II. It presents Arthur with several pages of medicine, food, ammunition, lodging, and equipment upgrades without explaining which purchases change the game and which ones add a small convenience.
Early money is limited, so the order should follow permanent benefits. Pearson's Leather Working Tools open better satchels. The lodging path opens fast travel. Supply tiers matter when they unlock satchel recipes or match items you use often. The boat, chicken coop, and final lodging upgrade can wait.
Best Camp Upgrade Order
- 1. Leather Working Tools - $225
- 2. Dutch's lodging upgrade - $220
- 3. Arthur's lodging and fast-travel map - $325
- 4. Medicine wagon Tier 2 and Tier 3 - $30 and $50
- 5. Provisions wagon Tier 2 and Tier 3 - $30 and $45
- 6. Horse Station - $300, if you regularly rotate horses
- 7. Everything else when the camp is comfortable and Arthur has spare money
That core route costs $925 before the horse station. It opens the two largest quality-of-life improvements and removes the ledger requirements that block the Tonics and Provisions satchels. Gold bars or a completed treasure hunt can cover it early without turning every story reward into camp money.
Buy Leather Working Tools First
Pearson cannot craft satchel upgrades until the Leather Working Tools are purchased for $225. Satchels permanently increase how many provisions, tonics, valuables, materials, ingredients, and kit items Arthur can carry. Crafting all six basic upgrades opens the Legend of the East Satchel, which raises capacity across every category.
The tools also unlock decorative camp crafting, but the satchels are the important part. Start donating perfect pelts to Pearson after buying the tools and choose Donate for Crafting when the item is meant for a recipe. Selling the same pelt to the Trapper does not place it in Pearson's inventory.
Players who rarely fast travel may still feel the satchel benefit every few minutes. More room means fewer discarded tonics, fewer forced shop stops, and less time deciding which valuable to leave behind. For a new save, that is a stronger return than any supply refill.
Fast Travel Costs $545, Not $325
The fast-travel map is listed under Arthur's lodging for $325, but it is locked behind the $220 upgrade to Dutch's tent. Buy First Things First, then Next in Line. The full price is $545.
Dutch's upgrade encourages the gang to donate more, but those donations are small and should not be treated as an investment plan. Its main value is opening the next page. Arthur's upgrade places the travel map at his lodging and, on updated versions of Story Mode, also enables fast travel after setting up a wilderness camp.
Fast travel works with destinations Arthur has already discovered. It is one-way from the camp or wilderness setup, so trains, stagecoaches, and the horse still matter. The upgrade saves the most time when a guide sends Arthur back across regions he has already explored.
Medicine and Provisions Have a Satchel Job
The medicine wagon begins with basic items. Tier 2 costs $30, Tier 3 costs $50, and the final tier costs $75. The third tier adds stronger supplies and is also required before Pearson can craft the Tonics Satchel. Buy through Tier 3 for that recipe; the final $75 tier is optional.
The provisions wagon follows the same idea. Tier 2 costs $30, Tier 3 costs $45, and Tier 4 costs $55. Reaching Tier 3 unlocks the Provisions Satchel recipe. Food is easy to loot, buy, hunt, and cook, so the last provision tier is difficult to justify before the permanent upgrades are done.
Upgrading a wagon changes what appears at camp, but the icons can still turn red when supplies run out. Restocking costs money. A higher tier does not create an endless supply, which is why players who loot every building may get little value from filling every wagon early.
Ammunition Is Convenient, Not Essential
The ammunition wagon costs $60 for Tier 2, $90 for Tier 3, and $110 for Tier 4. Higher tiers add repeater rounds, arrows, rifle cartridges, shotgun shells, throwing knives, fire bottles, and some upgraded ammunition. None of these tiers is required for a Pearson satchel.
Enemies, gunsmiths, and ordinary looting keep most players supplied. Upgrade the wagon if you return to camp before every mission and enjoy collecting ammunition there. Otherwise, the full $260 path can wait until the money no longer competes with fast travel, satchels, weapons, and horse care.
Horse Station: Good for Players With Several Horses
The Horse Station costs $300 and adds hitching posts that can recall Arthur's main horse to camp and access other owned horses. It is convenient when a horse was left far away or when different mounts have different jobs.
Stables already handle horse storage and switching, so this is not a mandatory early purchase. Buy it after the core upgrades if horse collecting is part of the playthrough. A player who uses one bonded horse for the entire story will barely touch it.
Chicken Coop, Camp Boat, and Final Lodging
Chicken Coop - $175
The coop improves Pearson's stew so it also restores Dead Eye core. That is pleasant before a mission, but seasoned Big Game Meat and other food already handle cores well. Buy it for camp atmosphere or frequent stew use, not because Arthur needs it to survive.
Camp Boat - $450
The boat becomes available in Chapter 3 and gives the gang a canoe at camp. It is useful for fishing and exploring Flat Iron Lake from Clemens Point. It is also one of the most expensive ledger purchases and loses value when the camp moves away from easy water access.
Everyone Else's Lodging - $300
The final lodging tier improves camp mood, encourages more donations, and slows supply use. It makes the camp feel more complete, but the practical return is modest. Finish it when Arthur is wealthy or when improving camp life is part of the role-play.
Ledger Upgrades and Pearson Decorations Are Different
The ledger uses money. Pearson's crafting table uses donated animal parts and perfect pelts. After buying Leather Working Tools, his menu includes satchels and visual upgrades such as rugs, skulls, seat covers, and table coverings.
The decorations do not improve stats. They make the gang's home look lived in and give hunting trips a purpose, which is enough reason for many players. Just finish the satchels first when inventory space is the goal. A perfect cougar pelt has more practical value in a recipe than it does on a chest.
What to Skip on a Tight Budget
- Skip ammunition tiers if looting and gunsmith stops already keep the weapon wheel full.
- Stop medicine and provisions at Tier 3 after their satchel requirements are cleared.
- Delay the Horse Station when Arthur uses one horse.
- Delay the Chicken Coop when cooked food already covers Dead Eye core.
- Treat the Camp Boat and final lodging tier as later comforts.
A strong camp does not need every ledger page completed in Chapter 2. Buy Pearson's tools, unlock the fast-travel map, clear the two supply requirements tied to satchels, and let the rest follow Arthur's habits. The camp will still feel like home without spending the last dollar on canned fruit and a canoe.
