Huntsman

The Huntsman is a boss in Clown Death Cvlt.

After the conclusion of the "survival training" quest, the Huntsman has a chance to stalk the player in most open-world regions. The Huntsman will set traps and ambushes for the player, and will be a continual thorn in their side until they can locate its lair and kill it.

## Gameplay

### Open-world encounters

There are several different styles of encounter with the Huntsman. If the player is able to damage the Huntsman enough, it will flee, and the player will enjoy a period of gameplay with no threat of being stalked and killed by it.

#### Stalking

When you are out in the open world for long enough, particularly if you are moving slowly, the Huntsman has a chance to pick up your trail and begin stalking you. If birdsong and animal noises in the area abruptly die down, this is a good sign that you are being stalked. Stalking events are most common around dawn and dusk.

Stalking events are split into several phases.

1. Tracking. The Huntsman follows your trail from some distance, gradually drawing closer to you. This stage is characterised by reduced birdsong and other animal noises.
2. Approach. Once the Huntsman is close enough to see you, it will move around your location, setting traps along the way, to find a good ambush point. This stage is characterised by a complete cessation of background animal noises, and the occasional rustle of bushes from the Huntsman moving.
3. Strike. After preparing traps and getting into a good striking position, the Huntsman will attack.
4. Pursuit. If you start moving rapidly away during the Approach phase, the Huntsman will break cover and pursue you.

#### Ambush

Ambushes are rare and dangerous. An ambush consists of some form of bait (a lost pack, rare animal, or similar) placed in one of a few specific areas. The Huntsman will ambush and attack you when you move towards the bait. Ambushes usually occur in clearings, hollows, or narrow ravines where there is little cover, and the surrounding area is usually full of web traps, making it difficult to flee.

Caution is essential, but don't be *too* cautious. Not every rare animal and lost pack found in a clearing or narrow valley is actually an ambush, and by ignoring these opportunities, you cheat yourself out of valuable resources.

If you wait around near a possible ambush site rather than going straight for the bait, an NPC has a chance to appear and take the bait themselves, likely being killed by the Huntsman. This can be an opportunity to get the drop on the Huntsman yourself, damaging it and causing it to flee.

#### Corpse ambush

The Huntsman will rarely set up an ambush on the corpse of your previous incarnation. Be especially careful when trying to retrieve your corpse in open-world environments, as dying to the Huntsman before you can retrieve the remains will result in much lost XP.

#### Interrupted hunt

You will rarely encounter a victim being stalked by the Huntsman, or find the tracks of the Huntsman itself while it stalks another victim. This is a good opportunity to injure it and remove it from the game for a while.

#### Aftermath

You will sometimes come across the remains of one of the Huntsman's former victims. There is no danger here, it simply serves as a reminder that the Huntsman is out there - and also as a source of free loot, so finishing the survival training quest isn't a pure drawback.

## Lore

There is very little lore about the Huntsman in the game. It is a completely unique creature, not resembling any other monster or NPC found in the world.