Tomahawk

For the Red Dead Redemption 2 variant, see Tomahawk (RDR 2).

Tomahawk
Statistics
Type	Projectile
Power	High
Range	Short
Rate of Fire	Medium
Ammo Capacity	1

“Small hand-axe, which is usable in melee or thrown. A good throw can take down a target quietly.”

–In-game description

The Tomahawk is a weapon featured in the Red Dead Redemption Legends and Killers DLC pack.

Acquisition

Single Player

• Tomahawks can be purchased for $10 each in the Manzanita Post general store, if the player has purchased and downloaded the Legends and Killers downloadable content. They can now start the second part of the Tomahawk Mastery challenge.

Multiplayer

• After purchasing and downloading the Legends and Killers pack, once the player starts up multiplayer, they will have the Tomahawk in their weapons menu regardless of what their level is.
• Players can also obtain the Tomahawk by killing a player holding one.

Undead Nightmare

• The player will receive the Tomahawk after saving Manzanita Post from being overrun by the undead, though the player must have the DLC first.

Characteristics

The Tomahawk is a thrown weapon that is similar to the Throwing Knife with a few exceptions. When engaging a far away enemy, when throwing the Tomahawk, the player will have to compensate for gravity by aiming the appropriate height above the target. Another difference is that thrown Tomahawks are much more powerful than the Throwing Knife. Finally, the player can also melee close targets like with the Hunting Knife or the Torch. Executions are also possible but are much faster and will not trigger a cinematic camera view.

Tips & Tricks

• When the player is aiming at an enemy from far away, the player needs to aim a little higher up to compensate for the gravity.
• If the player throws a Tomahawk into a lake or pond, the Tomahawk will rebound back at over 4 times the speed of which the player threw it.
• If the player throws a Tomahawk into someone's back and they don't die, the Tomahawk will become lodged in the person's back. If the player manages to throw another Tomahawk exactly at the one in their back the person will explode.
• It is possible to disarm an enemy with the Tomahawk, but it sometimes ends up glitching the game with Tomahawk looking weapons.
• If the player stands next to an enemy they can use the Tomahawk as a melee weapon.
• Tomahawks can be a very effective melee weapon in Undead Nightmare, due to it not wasting any ammo, the fact that it can attack faster than the torch and its one hit kill ability.

Trivia

• Unlike the Throwing Knife, when used as a melee weapon against NPCs in Single Player, it does not initiate an execution. It will, however, cause the player to perform a melee against the NPC with the tomahawk.
• In Multiplayer, the damage caused by a Tomahawk seems erratic, on occasion even headshots do not result in an instant death, and players have carried on playing with the Tomahawk lodged deep in their skull.
• A golden Tomahawk will revert to it's normal form when thrown.
• In Single Player, if the player loots the bodies killed with a Tomahawk, he will retrieve said Tomahawk and it will be returned to his inventory. However, if the player looks back at the body, the Tomahawk will still be in the corpse.
• In Multiplayer, if a player is killed wielding the Tomahawk, another player can pick it up and use it regardless of if the player has the DLC, but the player can only carry one.
• Like the Throwing Knife, a Tomahawk will stick into a wall when thrown at.
• In Undead Nightmare, this weapon is extremely effective for killing undead hordes quickly whilst conserving ammo, simply melee attack with the weapon by pressing R2/RT close to the zombie and Marston will then slash into the throat thus killing them in one or two hits.
• The Tomahawk is one of the only thrown weapons the player cannot find in Mexico, aside from Undead Bait, which is exclusive to Undead Nightmare.
• Shadow Wolf, a playable character in the Legends and Killers DLC, can throw the Tomahawk straight, however there is still drop factor to the weapon.
• On rare occasions, a Tomahawk has the ability to ricochet off water. The player does, however, need to be almost on top of the water for this to work.
• Throwing a Tomahawk into a cactus causes it to disappear, with no damage to the said cactus.
• As stated above, because the Tomahawk has a greater mass, it will hit lower areas on targets. Example: a Throwing Knife might catch a target in the chest or stomach, while throwing a Tomahawk in the same area will cause it to hit the hip, thigh, shin, or on rare occasions, the feet.
• It is possible to get a headshot with a Tomahawk. This gives no bonuses, and one must either get close enough to the target (a good 1 or 2 yards) or above an enemy.
• This is the most inaccurate weapon in Red Dead Redemption, to where in some cases it will miss from a distance of a yard or two away. This notoriously noticed to those who attempt to gain the Hail Mary achievement, where it will launch far right or left despite correcting. When firing from cover without aiming, however, any lateral inaccuracy is negated (always flies straight). However, Shadow Wolf is not affected with this.
• If the player continually keeps throwing Tomahawks by clicking the shoot button rapidly, it is possible to throw a Tomahawk or two without the Tomahawk count noticing.
• If a Tomahawk is thrown at an animal and then skinned, the player will not get the tomahawk back after the animal is skinned, similar to the Throwing Knife.
• Six Tomahawks will kill an Undead when thrown at the body, and not in the head.
• Sometimes, when throwing a Tomahawk at the limb of an Undead (lower arm/leg), the Tomahawk won't always lodge into the Undead and may simply fall or bounce off, but the Undead will still be injured.
• When striking a lone gang member with a Tomahawk melee attack inside a town (for instance, in Armadillo's saloon), civilians will not respond by fleeing as they would if a firearm or knife was used.
• Throwing a Tomahawk at a tent will cause it to disappear even though the sound of it lodging into the tent can be heard.

Gallery

The Tomahawk's in-game stats.

The Tomahawk is not always a one-hit kill, as seen by the one lodged in the opponent's back.

A Tomahawk in mid-air.

Buffalo Soldier and Shadow Wolf, both wielding the deadly Tomahawk.

Shadow Wolf grasping the Tomahawk, poised to strike.

Lawman Heath Michaels about to throw a Tomahawk with deadly accuracy.

Shadow Wolf wielding a golden Tomahawk.

A player wielding the Tomahawk, aiming at a wolf, whilst riding horseback.

Achievements/Trophies

The following Trophies/Achievementsrequire the Tomahawk:

	HAIL MARY 10 gamerscore Bronze bronze Get a kill greater than 35 yards with a Tomahawk.

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	AXE MASTER 10 gamerscore Bronze bronze Complete all Tomahawk challenges in singleplayer.