Bounty Hunting

*Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Scum and Villainy*

*See also: Fringe Campaigns, Bounty Generator*

The galaxy might be full of scummy characters, which means one can always find work rounding up and disposing of them. Although it is not always cost-effective to be a bounty hunter- especially when the tools required to locate and capture the target might cost more than the actual bounty- it is steady work, and affords one with plenty of opportunity for travel.

## Bounty Hunting Guilds

To ensure that hunters do their work in a professional fashion, groups of like-minded bounty hunters have formed guilds, such as the House of Benelex, Qulok's Fist, and the Granse Confederacy, although the most famous is The Bounty Hunters' Guild. Organizations such as these police their membership to ensure that hunters behave in a professional and more or less responsible fashion (avoiding collateral damage whenever possible), and they serve as go-betweens for those who wish to hire a hunter or two. They also represent the bounty hunting community politically, ensuring that bounty hunters retain suitable incentives to ply their trade- and that the authorities do not interfere overmuch.

Joining a bounty hunting guild requires only signing up- but that includes an agreement to tithe 10% of every bounty collected to the guild. (For more information on bounty hunting guilds, see FUCG Organizations).

### Contracting Bounties

Bounties appear on The HoloNet all the time, and worlds that provide planetary information channels (usually as alerts for incoming space traffic) frequently list advisories for wanted criminals who might be on the planet. Even though these bounties are not hidden, the very topic is considered seamy, and news of rewards is buried along with the crime blotters and classified advertisements. Finding a bounty this way requires a DC 10 Use Computer check and access to The HoloNet or a planetary information channel- though such bounties are often for petty criminals with low rewards, at best.

Instead, those offering bounties prefer to spread news of the postings by word-of-mouth, reaching out to the kind of bounty hunters who operate a little outside the law to get the job done. Finding a bounty in this fashion requires a DC 20 Gather Information check, and failing the check by 5 or more means that the hunter is misinformed- perhaps being informed of an out-of-date reward, being set up for the local authorities, or even being sent to capture the person who originally posted the bounty!

Bounty hunting guilds make it easier for licensed hunters to acquire work. Those offering rewards for the capture of criminals and the like could contact a bounty hunters' guild directly, with offers of work, and leave it up to the head of the guild's house to assign the contract. In such cases, the head of the house offers the job to members with the highest Organization Score modifier first, working his way down the list until someone agrees to take the job. Obviously, freelancers and novice members are at the bottom of the pecking order, and so cannot expect choice bounties until they have earned the respect and trust of the guild house.

### License to Hunt

Bounty hunting requires an IPKC license (the license has a different designation during non-Imperial eras). To discourage amateurs from getting in the way, the guilds have pushed legislation that requires a bounty hunter to present a permit to receive the full reward for the capture of a bounty.

This form, the IPKC permit, requires a one-time 1,000 credit fee (paid to any government licensing bureau), and allows the hunter to collect full price on bounties delivered to authorized agents of that government. Thus, a bounty hunter might have a IPKC permit that's valid anywhere in the Empire, and another that's valid only in The Chiss Ascendancy.

Without an IPKC permit, the reward for delivering a bounty is only 50% of the posted amount.

## Hunting Bounties

Once a hunter has chosen to pursue a bounty, they still have to know where to look, and what sort of resistance they are likely to encounter in the apprehension of their target. Those with bounties on their heads have strong incentives to run, hide, and surround themselves with loyal guards, and a good bounty hunter has to know how to deal with targets willing to go to any length to remain free.

### Tracking Targets

One efficient way of locating the target of a bounty involves starting the search in a broad area, and narrowing it down more and more until only a limited number of possible places remain. This process usually begins with finding out where in the galaxy the target was last seen.

The Use Computer skill can guide the hunter in the right direction. A DC 15 Use Computer check lets the hunter know if (and where) the target accesses their accounts. This can be as specific as a single planet (for example, "The planet Tralus"), though it is usually more general (for example, "Hutt Space").

Once the hunter knows which planet to search, they can use Gather Information to find the target within that general area. A DC 15 check reveals the general area (e.g., "The industrial sector"), or a more specific location (such as a particular hangout, or even the target's current address) with a DC 20 check. These DCs increase by 10 if the target is aware of the bounty on him and is actively trying to hide.

**Example:** Lesk Hisshar is trying to locate a Duros customs official wanted for murder. He has a good idea that the Duros is on Nar Shaddaa somewhere, but the Smuggler's Moon is a big place, so he has to ask around. He makes a Gather Information check and gets an 18, so he learns that the Duros has been seen in the vicinity of the Palace Casino. Lesk tries again, hoping for a more specific address, but rolls only an 11; the Gamemaster rules that Lesk not only fails, but one of the people he questions informs the Duros, who goes into hiding. If Lesk tries again, the DC for learning the Duros's specific location increases to 30.

Conversely, when the target is away from civilization, the bounty hunter might need to track the target's physical signs. A successful Survival check lets the hunter know if someone has been in the area the hunter is searching, and might give the hunter an idea of how long ago- and which direction they went when they left.

Finally, if the target tries to escape aboard a Starship, the hunter can take a Full-Round Action to make a DC 25 Use Computer check to detect and analyze the departing ship's Cronau radiation signature. This signature lets the hunter determine the point and angle of departure of a ship that has entered Hyperspace, and can give the hunter a good idea of the ship's likely destination. For each hour that has passed since the ship made the jump to lightspeed, the DC of the Use Computer check increases by 5.

### Capturing Targets

Contrary to popular belief, most rewards are limited to captured targets- not dead ones. Obviously, accidents happen when the blaster bolts start flying, but the authorities want justice to be served: criminals are supposed to stand trial and go to prison. Crime lords are sometimes more open-minded about the bounties they post- but, even then, a crime lord would rather spend a little time gloating over their enemies, making sure they suffer a bit before the crime lord is done.

As a consequence, bounties being sought by the authorities are more willing to give up without a fight (though that doesn't stop them from running), but those being sought by crime lords and other less civilized types would rather die than be captured alive. In either case, a target who has a little extra money to spend is usually willing to hire a few bodyguards to put between them and bounty hunters, or offer the hunter a nice fat bribe- or both, if they have the means.

## Additional Claiming Bounties

*Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Force Unleashed Campaign Guide*

Though no solid rules govern how much a bounty is worth (because a number of factors, including the desperation of the person posting the bounty, can influence its final value), some guidelines can be used to determine the correct payout. As a rule of thumb, a bounty should be worth credits equal to roughly 1,000 x the CL of the target of the bounty. Each target should have his or her own bounty payout.