Hosea Matthews

## Description

Born Roughly In 1844, Hosea Claims To Have Been "Raised In The Mountains" During His Younger Days. Hosea's Father Lived A Life Of Sin And Debauchery But Loved Him Despite Only Seeing His Father Three Times In His Life.

Hosea Was Once Caught Stealing A Chicken By "Some Hill Country Sheriff" Who Decided To Hang Hosea As A Punishment. Fortunately, For Matthews, A Riot Erupted At The Hanging When A Group Of People Believed His Punishment Was Unfair. An Unknown Man Came To Hosea's Assistance By Shooting The Rope, Thereby Freeing Him. In The End, The Sheriff Was Hanged And Hosea Got Away With What He Described As "Nothing More Than A Sore Neck".

At Some Point In The Mid-1870s, Hosea Met Another Outlaw Hunter Named Dutch Van Der Linde And Tried To Con Him. After Finding Out The Two Had Robbed Each Other, They Became Best Friends And Partners For Life. The Two Then Continued Their Work As Outlaws, Robbing Banks And Giving The Earnings To The Poor As Well As Keeping A Fair Amount To Survive Off Of.

The Pair Once Found Themselves In Kettering Ohio Where They Found A Young 14-Year-Old Boy Named Arthur Morgan, The Duo Decided To Take Him Under Their Wing And Show Him How To Survive On The Frontier. Hosea Would Become A Father-Figure To Arthur Alongside Dutch.

At Some Stage, Hosea Met And Fell In Love With A Lady Named Bessie, Whom He Later Married. He Later Left The Gang For A Time To Be With Her, But He Slowly Drifted Back Into His Old Ways Over Time. Despite This, Bessie Understood Who Hosea Was And The Two Stayed Together, Although She Died At Some Point Before 1899. Hosea Says That He Was Drunk For A Year After Bessie's Death.

In 1887, The Gang Committed Their First Robbery And Received $5,000 Dollars In Gold And Gave The Riches To The Poor. Further Establishing The Gang's Robin-Hood-Like Nature.

As of 1899, Hosea Is The Oldest Member Of The Gang And Undoubtedly The Wisest Within The Bunch. During The Gang's Last Year, Hosea Favoured Peaceful Methods Over Violent Ones And Opposed Plans That Would Result In Unnecessary Deaths.

Hosea Is Accompanied By Dutch In A Wagon Not Long After The Failed Blackwater Heist. Hosea Appears Surprised By The Sudden Blizzard And Reveals If They Do Not Rest, They Will All Be Dying. Once Settled In An Abandoned Mining Town, Hosea Convinced Arthur And Javier To Look For John. Once John Is Returned To Camp, Hosea Reveals To Arthur That In Order To Get To Safety, The Gang Will Have To Flee East And Find Further Work, Hosea Also Reveals The West Is Where Things Are Worse.

Along with Charles Smith, Hosea stays behind at camp while the majority of the other gang members are attacking a nearby O'Driscoll hideout. He later voices his opposition of robbing the Cornwall train that Dutch has set his sights on, and is absent from the robbery. He is then seen a few days later loading up the wagons, preparing to leave. Upon arriving in New Hanover, Hosea and Arthur hang back to fix the broken wagon with the help of Charles. Hosea then points out the Native Americans positioned atop the ridge and tells Arthur and Charles about their history, which leads to a discussion about Charles and later, Arthur's upbringings. He later hands Arthur a Ginseng Elixir before reaching the new camp.

After Setting Up In Horseshoe Overlook, Hosea And Arthur Go Hunting For A Thousand-Pound Grizzly Bear. Hosea Informs Arthur How To Craft Some Bait Should They Need It. Once Hosea Finds The Tracks, Arthur Begins Tracking The Bear And The Duo Find What Was Left Of The Bear's Lunch And Some Bear Dung. The Duo Soon Find That The Tracks Come To An End And Decide To Split Off And Look For The Monster. When Hosea Searches One Side Of The Forest, He Finds The Beast And Shoots His Rifle Before Making A Run For It. Once Arthur Reaches The Two, He Puts Some Shots In The Bear Before It Runs Off. Arthur Helps Hosea Up And The Duo Ride Back To Camp.

Not Long Afterwards, Hosea Travels To Emerald Ranch And Awaits For Arthur To Arrive. Once The Prodigal Son Arrives, Hosea Reveals He May Have Found A Business Venture. Hosea And Arthur Agree To Steal A Stagecoach From The Fence Owner's Cousin-By-Marriage. The Duo Succeed And Are Paid $300 Dollars Plus The Valuables From The House. Hosea And Arthur Ride Back To Camp Shortly After.

After The Shootout In Valentine, Hosea Strongly Opposes Dutch's Idea Of Moving East, Arguing That The West Is Where They Should Be Going. Despite Hosea's Opposition, Dutch Still Goes Ahead With The Plan To Move East, Much To Hosea's Dismay.

After Arriving At Clemens Point, Hosea, Dutch, And Arthur Ride Out To A Fishing Spot But Soon Encounter A Prison Wagon Holding Josiah Trelawney. After The Prisoners Break Out, Arthur Chases After Them While The Sheriff, Dutch, And Hosea Ride Back To Town To Negotiate For Trelawney's Freedom. The Pair Do End Up Going Fishing Afterwards And Reminisce On The Past.

Later, Hosea And Arthur Try To Sell The Moonshine Arthur And Bill Had Stolen From The Braithwaites As Hosea Revealed He Had No Market For Such A Product. Hosea And Arthur Meet Catherine Braithwaite And Her Sons And Attempt To Strike A Deal. However, The Braithwaite Orders The Duo To Take The Moonshine Into The Rhodes Saloon And Give It Out For Free In An Effort To Annoy The Grays.

Hosea Continues Bartering For Jobs From The Braithwaite And Eventually Has Arthur And Sean Burn Down The Gray's Tobacco Fields Using the Braithwaite's Moonshine. After The Shootout In Rhodes, Hosea And The Rest Of The Gang Storm Over To Braithwaite Manor To Get Jack, Who Had Been Kidnapped, Back. After Searching The Manor, Hosea Reveals Jack Is Not Inside And Interrogates Catherine Briathwaite, Slightly Revealing His Wicked Side During The Conversation.

Soon After Settling In Shady Belle, Hosea, Dutch, Bill, And Arthur Are Invited To The Mayors Mansion And Go Looking For Leads While Arthur And Dutch Speak To Angelo Bronte For Work. Hosea Later Reveals He Has Found A Bank, One With A Lot Of Money.

Later, Hosea Begins Planning The Saint Denis Bank Job With The Help Of Karen, Abigail, And Mary-Beth. Once All The Planning Has Been Done, Hosea Believes It Is Time For The Gang To Hit The Bank. Once The Gang Leave Shady Belle, Hosea And Abigail Split Off To Set Up Their Distraction. During The Heist, Hosea Is Captured And Murdered By Agent Milton, Angering Both Dutch And Arthur.

## Personality

Hosea Is A Wise And Level-Headed Conman With An Intelligence That Helps With Making The Most Of His Work. Hosea Expresses Great Remorse For His Past Actions And Mistakes. Hosea Is Shown To Be A Kind-Hearted Gentlemen Who Means Well But Also Has A More Sinister Side Which Can Be Seen When He Mocks Catherine Braithwaite And Nearly Killing Bill When The Latter Annoys Him.

## Powers And Abilities

Hosea Possesses A Number Of Capabilities That Lead To His Survival.

**Great Intelligence** - Hosea Is Very Wise And Very Intelligent And Gives Advice To Many Members Of The Gang.

**Excellent Leadership** - Hosea Is The Co-Leader Of The Van Der Linde Gang And Offers His Wisdom And Strategies To Dutch During Heists Or Big Jobs.

**Marksmanship** - Life As An Outlaw And A Hunter Has Made Hosea Into A Better Accurate Shot.

**High Charisma** - Hosea Can Talk Himself Into Any Situation And Convince People Of Nearly Anything.

**Wisdom** - Hosea Has Experienced A Lot In His Life And Has Advice To Give Around The Campire.

**High Accuracy** - Hosea Is An Exceptional Shot.

**Good Moral Code** - Despite The Bitterness Inside Him, Hosea Has Good Intentions And Will Stick To His Word To Keep The One's He Loves Safe.

**Basic Survival Skills** - Hosea Was Raised In The Mountains And Knows Just How To Survive And Make Do With What He Has Access To.

**Great Hunting Abilities** - Hosea Was Quite The Hunter In His Day And Knows How To Use Nature To His Advantage.

## Weapons

* **Dual Custom Cattleman Revolvers** - Hosea Uses These Revolvers When In Firefights Or In Dangerous Situations.

* **Semi-Auto Shotgun** - A Shotgun Used In Tough Situations, Hosea Keeps This Weapon In Handy.

## Appearance

Hosea Wears Black Trousers, A White Shirt, Red Neckerchief, Blue Vest, And Brown Boots. Hosea's Hair Is Cut Short And His Face Is Clean Shaven.

## Family

Unnamed Father (Deceased)

Unnamed Mother (Unknown)

Bessie Matthews (Wife, Deceased)

Dutch Van Der Linde (Best Friend)

Arthur Morgan (Adoptive Son)

John Marston (Adoptive Son)