If a squad member earns the hatred of a powerful Contact, that Contact may hire Head Hunters to bring the squad down.
Head Hunters are unique enemy squads that have a percentage chance to appear mid-mission and try to terminate the Mission team. They are independent from other enemies on the map and will quite happily cut through them to get to the team, potentially throwing the heist into chaos and setting off security Escalations that add to the team's difficulties. The distraction may give an opportunity to quickly wrap up objectives and get out, but Head Hunters are relentless in pursuit of their targets and will only try again on some future heist.
Contracts[edit | edit source]
Head Hunters are hired by Contacts who have a grudge against the squad. An Influence Limit Break will allow a Contact to send a Head Hunter after their enemies. The contract is with a specific Head Hunter; this Head Hunter will try to intercept the merc squad during a Mission. A non-zero percentage will be added to the Famous Head Hunters display in the top bar of the Safehouse screen.
If the Head Hunter fails to kill the Cyber Knight after several attempts, the Contact will cancel the contract. The probability for Famous Head Hunters will drop; if no other Head Hunters are seeking the Cyber Knight's squad, probability will be eliminated.
[Note: as of this time, the only way to trigger Head Hunters is retaliation in the Syndicate Debts Storyline. One or both Head Hunters contracted in that Storyline can be averted by player decisions.]
Head Hunter Attacks[edit | edit source]
The top bar of the Safehouse screen shows the probability of Famous Head Hunters. This probability will be applied to every Mission that the squad takes. High heat increases the probability of Head Hunters showing up. If Head Hunters are tracking the team, the minimum probability (at 0 Heat) is 15%. At 100 Heat, the maximum probability is 40%.
If a random roll succeeds against the current probability of Famous Head Hunters, a Head Hunter squad will appear in the middle of a Mission. The Head Hunter squad will spawn like normal reinforcements and will start searching for the merc squad. The Head Hunter is not friendly with the local defense forces; local defenses will attack the Head Hunter and his team. If the Head Hunter squad is heard firing guns, spotted by guards, or detected by security devices, reports to the AI will raise security tally as it would for any other intruder.
Head Hunters can appear in most types of missions, but will not spawn during solo hacking missions, Raids, or Battle Strike missions.
There are two ways to stop a Head Hunter - kill their leader or avoid them enough times that the Contact cancels the bounty. If the Head Hunter is taken down, their second-in-command and other henchmen will still fight on for the rest of the Mission, but it will end the threat of ambushes from them on future jobs and will burn the Contact that hired them with additional Exposure as well. If the merc squad instead flees, they may be able to escape the Head Hunter a few times and end the bounty without being forced into a high-stakes battle.
Famous Head Hunters[edit | edit source]
| Baby Jack | Leading a company of ex-special ops milsec soldiers who are out to make a living, Baby Jack doesn't take anything too seriously except the tactics. His squad is a balanced mix of weapons, armor and abilities that forms a cohesive unit, capable of fighting in a wide range of configurations and ranges. Baby Jack likes to have a laugh and brag about his kills. |  |
| Macha Gold | Two highly trained sniper teammates cover Macha Gold and his second, Ostrek, while they advance to close-range so they can corner and kill their bounties personally. Relying on Cybersword techniques, Aegis Shield and a powerful cocktail of combat drugs mixed up for their team by Ostrek, these Head Hunters close quickly, mixing long and short range death. Arrogant, in love with his name, and sure that he is the top of the heap, Macha Gold loves to talk trash. |  |
| Razorback & Armistice | The roar of shotguns follow Razorback and Armistice wherever they lead. The two were corporate soldiers in the Pacific Rim during the Quiet Wars and have continued their career in the private head-taking sector. Backed by Gego and Sledge, this 4-member team is extremely fast moving and all carry assault shotguns, ready to lay waste to their enemies' armor and health. Ex-corporate, these two are buttoned up, serious and grim. They aren't having any fun but they're making bank. |  |