Lucasfilm’s Emily Shkoukani, writing at StarWars.com, explores obscure facts about Star Wars lore and continuity, and in this installment she explores bounty hunters.
As the Client perfectly articulates in The Mandalorian, “bounty hunting is a complicated profession.” The Star Wars galaxy is full of both admirable and nefarious characters, but bounty hunters straddle a delicate line between good and evil. The tactics and skills of each bounty hunter often define them and their value to potential employers. The most rudimentary definition of a bounty hunter is a person who’s hired to capture or kill a target and receives payment upon completion of the job, although it’s almost never that simple.
Bounty hunting can be broken down into three primary factors: the client, the target, and the hunter. The client identifies the target and sets the parameters (wanted dead, alive, etc.) and the hunter tracks the target down for the client. In Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, Senator Padmé Amidala finds herself the target of two bounty hunters — Jango Fett and Zam Wesell. Hired by Nute Gunray of the Trade Federation, the Neimoidian clung to his grudge against Amidala following the Trade Federation’s defeat on Naboo and attempted to have her killed as part of his agreement to join the escalating Separatist movement. Fett and Wesell were unsuccessful, however.
The Guild
Bounty hunters have the option to conduct their business independently or as part of the formal Bounty Hunters Guild. The Guild is responsible for moderating, regulating, and distributing bounties to members of its organization. But while the Guild exists, it’s not required that a hunter be affiliated with it, nor is it necessary for a client to use the Guild’s services and members. Senator Amidala being a high-profile target meant Nute Gunray took precautions to avoid the intended assassination leading back to him; therefore, the use of independent hunters was necessary to carry out the kill discreetly. Some consider this type of job “assassin work.” but to reiterate the Client’s statement, bounty hunting is a complicated profession.
In Season 1 of The Mandalorian, Toro Calican seeks Guild membership and believes capturing wanted assassin Fennec Shand will prove his worth. On top of an impressive resume, joining the Guild can also require dues in order to obtain the benefits that the organization offers, such as exclusive bounties, tracking fobs, and job security.
After joining the guild, there are various ways a bounty hunter can check for bounty postings. Bounties can be posted on communications boards or found on bounty pucks, which are typically distributed by Guild contractors such as Greef Karga.
Bounty pucks, sometimes called holopucks, contain bounty information. The puck emits a hologram profile of the target including an image and name (if available). A puck will also list if the target is wanted dead, alive, or either, as well as the associated reward.
The return of tracking fobs issued by authorized Guild agents is sometimes part of the proof required to secure payment in addition to the bounty itself. These compact, short-range sensor units, keyed to a target’s unique identification, are usually provided to hunters by Guild agents or clients, and provide extra security to the client, who can be sure that the target brought in matches the information on the fob.
The Guild has established and enforced rules for its members such as delivering targets as stated in the bounty (dead, alive, etc.), maintaining any necessary confidentiality, and more. Although most hunters abide by these terms, the consequences for breaking them differs based on whether a hunter is a member of the Guild. Guild hunters could potentially lose their membership or face penalties and fees. Rule breakers who were unaffiliated could either get away with it or face other consequences that a client or crime syndicate might uphold, depending on who’s affected.
Going it Alone
It’s not required of a bounty hunter to be part of the Guild, and independent hunters are just as common as Guild hunters. Most, if not all bounty hunters start out independent and it’s entirely up to them whether they remain independent or join the Guild. While the Guild does offer perks such as exclusive bounties and flashy gadgets, the pros of being an independent bounty hunter is that there are no Guild dues or requirements to become a hunter, and generally a full cut of the bounty.
Independent bounty hunters rely on finding bounties through different means than what the Guild offers its members. However, these means are also available to Guild members, since they typically consist of public information. Bounties could be posted on bulletins and posters, through contractors, or they could be made verbally.
Bounties posted through bulletins and posters have various sources of origins. The bounty could be a local lawbreaker on the run or a big-time target that evaded capture (like Han Solo). These types of postings are usually found in bars or plastered on walls of towns where the bounty is wanted.
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