Schedule 1: How to Start Cartel Content
If you are wondering how to start the Cartel storyline in Schedule 1, it isn’t something that unlocks right away. The Benzies don’t appear until you reach the right area, and once they do, you’re forced to choose how your empire will deal with them.
How to Unlock the Cartel
To unlock the Cartel in Schedule 1, you must first gain access to the Westville area of Hyland Point. Once unlocked, you will receive a text message from Thomas Benzies telling you to meet him in the Taco Ticklers parking lot. Look for a black SUV, and you’ll find Benzies inside waiting for the meeting.
The encounter gives you two paths. You can work with the Cartel and limit your growth, or you can reject them and declare war.
Working with the Cartel
If you accept the offer, you will be required to hand over product every week at a lower price than the market. You will also be restricted to selling only in Northtown and Westville. This choice keeps the Cartel from attacking you but slows your expansion across the map.
Declaring War on the Cartel
Refusing the deal declares war. The Benzies will send ambushes, try to steal from your dealers, and fight to hold control of Hyland Point. The advantage is you can keep expanding into new regions without restrictions, but the Cartel becomes an active enemy in every area.
Reducing Cartel Influence
No matter which path you choose, cartel influence must be lowered to progress into new areas. You can reduce their influence by:
Unlocking and selling to new customers
Disrupting Cartel deals in progress
Defeating Cartel ambushes
Spraying graffiti at marked locations
You can track cartel influence in each region by checking the Contacts app on your in-game phone.
The Role of Customers and Regions
Customers are tied directly to cartel influence. The more customers you unlock and maintain, the less control the Cartel has over the region. Fully unlocking a region’s customers and pushing sales automatically lowers influence enough to open new areas.
This system ties the Cartel questline directly into normal progression. You are forced to balance growth while battling or cooperating with the Benzies, making every decision impact your long-term control of Hyland Point.
Track progress with the phone
Open the Contacts app on your in game phone to see cartel influence by region. Use it to plan which area to push next.
When a region’s influence is low enough, the next region unlocks. The story continues as you move across the map.
Final Blurb
Starting the Cartel in Schedule 1 begins once you reach Westville and meet Thomas Benzies. From there, you choose to work under their rules or fight back against their control. Either way, lowering cartel influence through customers, ambushes, trades, and graffiti is the only way to keep unlocking new regions and eventually take down the Benzies.
FAQ
Where do you meet the Cartel in Schedule 1?
In Westville, at the Taco Ticklers parking lot, where Thomas Benzies waits in a black SUV.
What happens if you work for the Cartel?
You must deliver weekly product at reduced value and are limited to selling in Northtown and Westville.
What happens if you declare war on the Cartel?
The Benzies will ambush you, sabotage dealers, and try to control every region, but you can keep expanding.
How do you reduce Cartel influence in Schedule 1?
By unlocking new customers, beating ambushes, disrupting trades, and spraying graffiti.
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