In FromSoftware’s Dark Souls 2 the main character is being hunted down by a powerful knight called the Pursuer. In Digital Extreme’s Warframe an assassin known as the Stalker targets the player in a random mission after killing a boss. And there are plenty of hunter style Uruks in Monolith’s Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor.
These antagonists are what I like to call hunters. Their function is simple; to seemingly randomly appear and fight the players during, after, or before certain milestones. I think more DMs should incorporate these styles of enemies into their games as they bring a myriad of bonuses and opportunities.
Hunters can serve as rivals to the party, a more intimate antagonist than the BBEG that will test the players’ abilities and draw out their strengths and weaknesses. They can also be a looming threat that will keep the party on their toes, knowing that the hunter can appear at any time.
A DM should be careful not to overuse the hunter nor underuse them. Too much and it feels contrived, too little and the players will grow complacent to their threat.
A fun bonus can also be making the hunters’ motives a mystery. Why are they hunting the party? Are they a bounty hunter or hired assassin? Maybe the party has something they want? Perhaps the hunter is a benevolent force that is simply testing the party? Whatever the case, a mysterious figure is always a fun threat.
Now a big hurdle may be how to ensure the hunter will be a recurring threat should the party defeat them. My method is that the rival should be encountered early and not be a fight the players are supposed to win. The players should heed the advice of Jack Sparrow and fight to run away. If the players eventually can fight back on a semi-level playing field then the hunter should, if defeated, have some method of returning. This could be them just running away, having something else intervene, or you can just resurrect the hunter later on if it makes sense for that hunter.
How strong should the hunter be? Ideally they should be stronger than the party to start off and the power disparity should shrink as the players get stronger. , the hunter must be a looming terror and it just a recurring Saturday morning cartoon villain of the week.
And, of course, when the players do finally and truly beat the hunter, it makes for a wonderful milestone in the characters’ journeys within the campaign.
So, next time you run your game, maybe have a hunter to keep the stakes high and the game a little more interesting.
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