Have you collected enough Harrietum Officinalis in Red Dead Online?
Harrietum Officinalis is a rare plant with a special mythical use that Harriet Davenport herself discovered and named after herself. This special plant lets you transform into different animals once you have obtained the specific Vitalism Studies pamphlet for it. Using Harrietum Officinalis, you can transform into a buck, rabbit, boar, and opossum.
Each pamphlet is earned in different stages of the Naturalist specialist role, so you still start with the buck, then rabbit, boar, and opossum in that order. Many players have grinded in the Naturalist role just to experience playing as an animal and attacking random animals or civilians.
If you are one of these people, check out our guide on where to find Harrietum Officinalis in Red Dead Online.
Naturalist Role
The Naturalist specialist role is one of the five currently available career paths in Red Dead Online. This career path is perfect for animal lovers and conservationists. Naturalists are tasked to track, study, and take samples of animals to complete your Animal Field Guide database.
To get started in this career path, look for an individual named Harriet Davenport in the town of Strawberry. You should find her at the town’s Welcome Center. Another character associated with the Naturalist career is the famous hunter Gus MacMillan. He is a rival of sorts from Harriet due to his career. Gus will ask you to hunt down legendary animals and give him the pelts and skins to craft into special clothing items that you can then buy.
If you are currently making progress in another career path, make sure it is not in conflict with the Naturalist specialist role. An example of this is the Trader specialist role, which requires you to hunt and transport animal pelts and carcasses for profit. Harriet will take exception to this activity and will chastise you for it. In some cases, she could even refuse to transact with you for a while.
The major database in the Naturalist specialist role is called the Animal Field Guide. This is Red Dead Online’s version of the compendium from Red Dead Redemption 2. Open up this book to see which animals you have yet to track, study, and take samples of. You can also check the Animal Field Guide to learn about the different habitats and specific locations of each animal in Red Dead Online.
Harrietum Officinalis
Harrietum Officinalis is a rare plant species in Red Dead Online. If you are planning to learn to transform into an animal, this is the ingredient that you should be looking for. Unlike most plants that are used for crafting tonics or cooking improved recipes, this particular plant only has this very specific purpose.
Discovered and named by Harriet Davenport herself, Harrietum Officinalis is an important step in the Naturalist specialist role. Once you get to Rank 5 in this Frontier Pursuit, Harriet will reward you with the Vitalism Studies pamphlets. These pamphlets come with instructions and field notes from Harriet on how to learn animal transformation. You will then need Harrietum Officinalis to complete the task.
Where to Find Harrietum Officinalis
For each animal transformation, you will need five pieces of Harrietum Officinalis. Finding this rare herb is not the most difficult task, but it will take some time and effort. After finding enough of this plant, you will have to go to another specific location where you can try out your transformation into a Boar, Buck, Rabbit, or Opossum.
After you have obtained the pamphlets from Harriet, begin looking for this herb in the West Elizabeth, Ambarino, and New Hanover regions. If you are around New Austin, look for these plants on the northern border of the state, particularly around Hennigan’s Stead. You can follow this area right up to the Grizzlies, but they will no longer spawn north of that.
In New Hanover, you can look for Harrietum Officinalis around the banks of the Kamassa River. Check around Roanoke Ridge and you should find a few plants that spawn regularly. They also usually spawn in clusters so you may even find enough for one or two transformations.
Another common area to find Harrietum Officinalis is Tall Trees and Big Valley in the West Elizabeth region. The plants do not grow in clusters here, but the area is wide enough that you may still find several of them. Like other special plants, Harrietum Officinalis only grows once a day in each area. Once you find them, take note of the location and come back the following day to collect more.
Learning to Transform Into Animals
To transform into animals, you need some Harrietum Officinalis as well as the right Vitalism Studies pamphlet for it. The first pamphlet, Vitalism Studies: Buck, is earned when you get to Rank 5. Once you have enough Harrietum Officinalis, go to the tree that is identified in the pamphlet. This is along Little Creek River in the Big Valley region.
When you find the correct tree, use Eagle Eye to see the golden scent from a dirt patch under it. Interact with this golden scent to transform into a buck for a few minutes. This will look similar to the scents or clues left by legendary animals when you use Eagle Eye. The rest of the pamphlets are also earned in Rank 5 of the Naturalist specialist role.
