In Days Gone you will encounter so-called Hordes. They are the biggest groups of Freakers in the game. Taking down such a large group can be a challenge so this guide will show you the best ways to kill hordes.
Easiest Way to Kill Hordes
- Use the Chicago Chopper gun, purchased at the 5th Camp “Wizard Island” in Crater Lake Region. It’s basically a Tommy Gun (submachine gun) that kills Freakers in a single bullet. It has high rate of fire and lots of ammo. With the “Up The Ante” ranged skill you can carry 275 ammo for it. That’s 275 kills. Spray a full clip into the Horde, when they get close roll to dodge and build some distance, then repeat.
- Use Explosives. You can buy Grenades from camps that you have high trust with. You can also craft throwables in the weapon wheel. A well-placed grenade will take out 20-30 Freakers.
- Buy the saddlebags upgrade for your bike. It lets you buy ammo reserves in advance that go on your bike. While you’re out chasing hordes you can refill ammo at your bike without returning to camp. So you have 200+ bullets that all deal instant kills and can refill ammo multiple times. Even the biggest hordes won’t stand a chance.
If you combine these 3 tactics the hordes won’t stand a chance. The Chicago Chopper is crazy overpowered as it deals the damage of a shotgun while having the fire rate and mag size of an assault rifle.
Of course in the early game you won’t have access to this gun yet. In that case, buy whatever weapons you can. At the 2nd camp (Belknap region) is the first opportunity to buy better guns. Try what suits your playstyle (you can also make a manual save before buying the gun and if you don’t like the purchase reload). In the early game Shotguns are generally better because they are most likely to do 1-hit kills while running away from a horde. It’s all the more important you use explosives to weaken the horde then. When only 10-15% are left it’s easier to pick them off one by one with a shotgun.
Horde Behavior
A quick word on how hordes behave: At day they will hide inside caves. They always go back to the same cave. When it gets dark they come out and roam near their cave at night. They like to seek out feeding grounds and bodies of water to drink. It’s easier to attack them at day because you don’t have to deal with other Freakers. If you attack them at night the noise will attract more Freakers that are nearby.
Also keep in mind you must kill every single Freaker in the horde to eradicate the horde. If only one of them wandered off it won’t count as a having killed a Horde. This is another reason why it’s better to attack them in their cave at day – because it’s easier to track them.
Hordes also get stronger with every region. Region 1-2 have small hordes. Region 3 has medium-sized hordes. Region 5-6 have the biggest hordes consisting of hundreds of Freakers.
Endgame Hordes
After the story all Hordes get automatically marked on your world map. Finishing all Hordes is basically the endgame. This is perfect to reach trust level 3 with all camps and unlock all 45 skills because you get a lot of XP and trust from killing the hordes. Bigger hordes give more XP and Trust.
For all Horde Locations see this: Days Gone All Horde Locations.
Thx
If you only kill 80% of a horde cause you run out of ammo, does the horde regenerate at all by the time you come back?
No, my technique is luring them out and burn them then escape on my bike and return later, sometimes I sleep when night comes and my progress is the same when I wake up
A way to know that is marking the horde on your map so you can see the banner of how much is left of them
Chicago Chopper is a machine gun, not an assault rifle… it’s based on the Thompson Machine Gun.
Actually looks like it’s neither assault rifle nor MG… the Thompson is classified as a submachine gun. And you’re right, the Chicago Chopper is definitely based on that. I think submachine gun is correct. In gameplay it feels a bit more like an assault rifle but it’s a weird mixed weapon that has the best of all worlds… the accuracy of an AR, mag size of MG, fire rate of SMG.
Actually it’s a sub-machinegun
My best loadout was Pup w/extended mag which you don’t get until after you’ve done in a few hordes. BFG with extended mag, Eliminator sidearm. Prior to getting the Pup, I was using the second Auto Shotgun (the one with the circular magazine). High ammo capacity and lethality is the combo you want to go for. Perk up so you can load during sprinting, Perk to make twice as many throwables, Perk up you Stamina first, Focus second, and Health last. Make the best Melee weapon you can manage and carry at least some scrap in addition to trying to go in with a full loadout. I was using the Talon for a while but the slower reload rate was annoying compared to the BFG.
Another couple fine points that don’t get a lot of mention. Perk the bike saddlebags up to 3X and be very mindful about where you park it. Essentially you want it far enough away to be able to sprint to it, but not so close that you’ll have the whole horde closing in on you. Also, make sure it’s pointed away from the horde.
Use the terrain to your advantage. Water, and choke points aren’t always available, but when they are. Proximity and Remote Detonation devices are good, but don’t expect them to do your work for you. Use up easily replenished throwables first like Frags and Molotovs.
Suppressors on all guns make it easier once you’ve strung the horde out to follow them back and pick off the stragglers. Just because it’s an automatic weapon, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go for the one shot kill. Don’t underestimate the boot knife either in picking off the stragglers as a means of conserving ammo. Different hordes use different tactics, and are different sizes. Sometimes you can whittle a lot of the horde down by stalking them and then running back through a choke point. A couple of the hordes I took out this way with small arms and a few throwables alone.
Some hordes are hella aggressive and persistent about chasing. I had the Chemult CC horde chase me almost back to the North Gate of Wizard Island and it was pretty intense as they didn’t string out until way after my stamina was depleted. Note that I didn’t use cocktails or attractors at all, but on a re-do I totally would. The more you whittle down the horde though, the less aggressive they seem to become. Watch for flanking maneuvers. Sometimes a group will break off and try to get to one side. Always have an idea what direction is a good one for falling back.
Also keep the bike handy if you can. A few of the hordes I went through all three reloads. Basically leading the main body of the horde away, then circling back once they got strung out. Don’t forget about unlooted cop cars either. A few times these saved my bacon. When you get back to the bike, Quick Save if you can. That way if you get swarmed, you won’t lose your progress.
Big locations particularly the Sawmill and nearby Nero Facility, are good for resupply runs in between hordes. It takes a while for the item finds to reset, but once it has you should be able to make a run through the Nero Camp, Sawmill and nearby Rail tunnel and come out with a full load of crafted throwables, bombs, and enough raw materials to craft replacements on the run.
Happy Horde Hunting.
Thank you livedeht that was amazingly helpful
I kited a bear in the one east of the 1st zone.
This is where I’m at with the game now. Got all Trophies apart from the one for 45 skills although I’m on 44 now, so I’m close, and done about 35% of the hordes. Farming hordes now to get those last EXP points for the final Trophy and Platinum. They’re quite easy once you get into the rhythm, I find dropping frag grenades at my feet as I’m sprinting away is a good tactic for taking out a large chunk of swarmers if they’re right on my tail, just remember to keep sprinting or you’ll get caught in the blast yourself. Apart from that it’s all napalm molotovs, pipe bombs and normal molotovs, along with trusty Chicago Chopper. Don’t like using placed charges as it’s a bit hit and miss that the horde go where you place them.