Zarn
Force Spirit
Joined: 17 Jun 2014
Posts: 698
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 Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2016 7:48 am Post subject: |
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I'm currently devising some random tables. Here's a preamble.
Bounty Hunters:
The term evokes images of mysterious, armored and blaster-wielding aliens, men, and women (and the occasional droid) that goes on daring-and-violent-but-honorable-hunts to capture the villainous scum of the Galaxy. The problem is, of course, that this idea of bounty hunters as a sort of not-quite-official law enforcement agent is usually quite wrong. Not the armor (most bounty hunters have at least one suit), or the weaponry (rare is the unarmed bounty hunter), but the rest. Often, it is difficult to see the difference between bounty hunters and the scum they're hunting. And every now and then, an 'innocent' (such as it is) has a bounty placed on them - or, of course, that an overly zealous and violent bounty hunter causes immense collateral damage while they're hunting some bounty.
Official sources:
The system suggested here is not harmonized with the existing sources of information on bounties and bounty hunting in the Star Wars EU canon. There's several - there's for instance the Bounty Hunter Code, GG10: Bounty Hunters, Wanted by Cracken, and No Disintegrations. Some of these go into much more detail about the intricacies about jurisdiction, bounty hunting, allowable methods, and so on. This is basically an attempt to build a more comprehensive system as an answer to the general call for a system to (randomly) generate bounties.
What's a bounty anyways?
Bounty hunters hunt bounties. But what's a bounty anyways? Strictly speaking, a bounty is part of a contract - open or closed - that basically says that "I want this person (or part of an organization), and I'm willing to pay for it". In this context, a bounty is either open (open for all takers) or closed (there's requirements before one can reasonably expect that a bounty is honored).
Oddly enough from what is often a violent thug with little sense of decorum, a bounty hunter will usually not be willing to act as an assassin per se - but can be perfectly willing to kill in the pursuit of a bounty. Whether by peer pressure, a sense of tradition, or sense of self-preservation, most bounty hunters tend to adhere to a code or creed of some kind. This includes trying to minimize collateral damage, to never attack or sabotage a fellow bounty hunter, and to act 'honorably' (staying committed to the contract rather than allowing a mark to buy their way out of capture) while on the hunt. Of course, this cuts both ways - someone that places bounties regularly that are rarely if ever honored, can expect both passive pushback (noone willing to accept their contracts) and active pushback (waking up dead because someone put a thermal detonator in your pillow). One is dealing with armed and armored individuals quite accustomed to violence, after all.
So, basically, a bounty is a contract for a 'finder's fee' of sorts for some individual or identifiable part of an organization that is delivered to the poster of the bounty, often over some timeframe. So that's the what. But why?
Why a bounty?
A bounty is placed by someone that posts a fee. The reasons why vary a lot. For some, it's a matter of vanity - the person or organization with a bounty has offended the poster, stolen from them, or otherwise transgressed. This is often the case for bounties posted by criminal cartels, such as a Hutt Cartel. Other times, a bounty is an extra incentive to capture or kill individuals that have done acts that have offended a state - such as treason, trafficking in state secrets, destruction of vital facilities and other acts of terrorism, and so on. This is often the case of Imperial or Galactic Republic bounties, where the offender is either outside the jurisdiction of the state or at an unknown location.
Sometimes, bounties are posted by private parties because of completely different reasons - deadbeat spouses or ex-spouses that owe significant credits, insane (but wealthy) individuals laboring under the delusion that they have a relationship with some famous person or other, and so on.
But, seriously, why a bounty - and not law enforcement? The issue of jurisdiction:
Most sapients have the idea that the target of a bounty hunter's hunt is a criminal. Though this is often the case, it is by no means an universal truth. Key to this, is the concept of jurisdiction. Strictly speaking, it is the practical authority granted to a legal body to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility. And it's the 'area of responsibility' that is key here.
What is illegal in one place, may be legal in another. The use of glitterstim, for instance, is perfectly legal on Ryloth. However, using it on Coruscant is a criminal offense. And on other worlds, it might be legal in one context - but illegal while piloting a speeder, for instance.
Most law enforcement officers have a very limited jurisdiction - they can work to uphold the law within a precinct, a city, or perhaps on a planet. Sector Rangers, of course, can operate within a larger are. And Imperial Inquisitors have, essentially, unlimited access to the New Order's area of space - but would usually be in trouble if they stepped outside their boundaries. Prosecuting someone for an offense committed in one jurisdiction while the individual is residing outside the jurisdiction is difficult at best, and impossible at worst.
Which leaves bounty hunters.
Being a bounty hunter is, quite simply, illegal in many jurisdictions - while on the hunt, a bounty hunter tends to use illegal means to find their bounty, subdue their bounty, and transport them to wherever the bounty was posted. However, posting a bounty is often legal, and a bounty hunter may enjoy extra privileges inside a jurisdiction if they're officially recognized as such - in particular, the New Order requires a bounty hunter license for owning certain types of armaments and armor, as well as even being able to pursue certain bounties.
Nevertheless, bounty hunters with certain reputations may find that even though they officially have no jurisdiction or rights, certain law enforcement officers and organizations may turn a blind eye - or even help! - when certain carbonite slabs with living cargo come floating to the spacedock. |
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