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  1. Heilbronn II
  3. Lore

Bounties

In Heilbronn, bounties are not merely rewards but instruments of statecraft, vendetta, and economic warfare. They represent the monetization of death—the precise value one places on another's suffering.

The Nature of Bounties

  • Public Contracts: Officially sanctioned kills or captures posted on kingdom bulletin boards

  • Blood Writs: Noble-issued documents authorizing legal murder with promised payment

  • Silent Prices: Unofficially circulated offers for discreet problems that need solving

  • Collection Marks: Debts transformed into hunting licenses when traditional collection fails

  • Trophy Bounties: Rewards for specific monster parts needed for alchemy or status symbols

Issuers of Death Prices

  • The Crown: Official bounties for traitors, rebels, or convenient political eliminations

  • Noble Houses: Family-sanctioned hunts for those who've damaged honor or interests

  • Merchant Guilds: Economic bounties on competitors or those who've breached contracts

  • Religious Orders: Heretic hunts disguised as spiritual cleansing

  • Private Vendettas: Personal wealth converted to another's suffering

Bounty Mechanisms

  • The Registry System: Central bounty offices in major cities where hunters verify completed contracts

  • Proof Requirements: Specific body parts (heads, hands, unique marks) required as evidence

  • The Verification Mage: Specialist wizards who confirm identity through magical means

  • Payment Protocols: Elaborate security measures to prevent bounty office robberies

  • Hunter Protection Laws: Limited immunity for registered bounty hunters while pursuing targets

The Hunter Culture

  • Guild Affiliations: Professional hunters operate under structured organizations with codes

  • Freelance Killers: Unaffiliated hunters who accept higher-risk bounties with greater rewards

  • Reputation Economy: The value of a hunter's word determines quality of contracts offered

  • Hunter Marks: Tattoos or brands indicating specialization and confirmed kills

  • The Collection Ritual: Formalized procedures for claiming rewards without betrayal

Remember: In Heilbronn, a bounty is a complex social contract. The price reveals not just the target's threat but their connection to power. High bounties on seemingly insignificant targets often expose hidden political machinations, while insultingly low bounties on dangerous quarry reveal attempts to solve problems cheaply through expendable hunters.

The wisest players in Heilbronn understand that placing a bounty is sometimes more revealing than the secret one sought to protect by issuing it.