Burning Springs: Head Hunts
- Duchess Flame
- 4 hours ago
- 5 min read
Image Credit: Bethesda
***Subject to change pending porting to live servers***
How to start Head Hunts
You need a Wanted Poster to start a Head Hunt. Posters can be obtained in two ways: either by buying one from The Ghoul or by earning one as a reward from Grunt Hunts.
You start the Head Hunt itself by taking the poster to the Bounty Board and pinning it. Pinning the poster will trigger the public event notification in the top left corner of your screen, confirming that the Head Hunt has begun.
1. Buying a Wanted Poster
Fast travel to Highway Town and make your way to the Bounty Board.
Highway Town > Bounty Board
From there, turn left toward The Last Resort. Head inside the saloon and face north, where you’ll see The Ghoul standing at the back wall.
Interact with The Ghoul and choose the "Give me a premium target" dialogue option.
After paying the 5000 cap fee, he will hand you a Wanted Poster.
Take the poster back outside and pin it to the Bounty Board, which will officially start the Head Hunt.
2. Using a Wanted Poster from Grunt Hunts
Wanted Posters can drop as rewards from Grunt Hunts, which lets you start Head Hunts without paying the 5000 caps. They have a set chance to appear every 3 to 6 Grunt Hunts, and there is also a built-in developer toggle that can be turned on during special events to increase how often they drop from Grunt Hunts.
When you receive a poster, take it to the Bounty Board and pin it the same way you would if it had come from The Ghoul.
Pinning the poster will trigger the public event notification in the top left corner of your screen, confirming that the Head Hunt has begun.
Once the event begins, your quest tracker will point you toward the Head Hunt location...or you know, check the map for the big yellow Public Event marker.
When you arrive, there will be a short delay of 45 seconds before you can launch the flare. This brief wait allows other players time to fast travel in before the encounter starts.
You will have five minutes to launch the flare once the event has begun.
After the flare is active, you will have 5 minutes to locate the Bounty Boss in the marked area.
Followed by a 20-minute timer to defeat them once they have been found.
Only one Head Hunt can be active per server, but you can continue to start additional ones by returning to The Ghoul and paying again or by using another Wanted Poster.
The Ghoul will not allow you to buy a new Wanted Poster if you already have one in your inventory, so you may need to store any extras before speaking with him.
Grunt Hunts can run at the same time as a Head Hunt, and occasionally, both will send you to the same location, which can make things a little chaotic.
Head Hunts count towards the Over Rank 100 Complete 3 Public Events for Score Challenge.
On the Hunt XP Bonus
Effect
Gains +50% XP from Head Hunts for 20 minutes
Notes
The effect activates when you start a Head Hunt, lasts 20 minutes, and stays active even if you leave the area. It does not stack on itself. If you start another Head Hunt, the duration simply refreshes.
The bonus applies to all XP you earn during the 20 minutes, including XP from the Head Hunt event and its enemies.
Locations
The game keeps a short memory of where your last three Head Hunts took place. Those locations are temporarily taken out of rotation so you don’t get sent back to the same spots over and over. Your next Head Hunt will be chosen at random from the remaining locations.
For example, if your last three Head Hunts were at Railroad Service Yard, The Chop Shop, and Ash Cave, those three will sit out for the next roll. Once you finish a hunt at a new location, the oldest one on the list is added back into the pool.
List of all possible Head Hunt locations
• Ash Cave
• Fort Steuben
• Railroad Service Yard
• Super Duper Mart
• The Chop Shop
Enemies
Bounty Boss
Bosses are sorted into groups. When a Head Hunt starts, the game picks a random group number, then selects one boss at random from inside that group.
After that fight, the entire group gets added to a short “hold list”. The game keeps track of the last three groups you fought, and those three groups are removed from the rotation. It won’t pull any bosses from those groups until they fall off the list. This keeps the fights feeling fresh and stops the same boss type from showing up over and over.
There are a lot of bounty bosses with unique attacks and weapons, so their breakdown will be in a separate guide.
Side-Kick Groups
Side-kick groups are tied directly to each bounty boss and follow the same theme. Every side-kick is a legendary variant, and most of them share similar attacks, weapons, or status effects with their boss. Some copy the boss’s signature trick, others just lean into the same theme. Either way, they’re designed to feel like a matched crew rather than random adds, and they help reinforce each boss’s identity while you fight through the chaos.
List of possible Bounty Bosses and their Side-Kicks:
Group 1
Bounty Boss | Side Kick Group |
The Black Horseman | Ravenous Gluttons |
The Pale Horseman | Killer Reapers |
The Red Rider | Brutal Combatants |
The White Horseman | Burning Stingwings |
Group 2
Bounty Boss | Side Kick Group |
Anna the-Nuka Queen | Soda Junkies |
Cletus Brimstone | Ghoul Hunters |
Irene the Irradiated | Irradiated Raiders |
The Cleaner | Clean-up Crewmembers |
The Malpractitioner | Crazed Physicians |
Group 3
Bounty Boss | Side Kick Group |
Ragtime Randy | Out-of-Tune Musicians |
The Ace | Loyal Wingmen |
The Chief Researcher | Science School Dropouts |
The Proletariat Punisher | Aspiring Commies |
The Space Ranger | Lost Astronauts |
Group 4
Bounty Boss | Side Kick Group |
Baron Boris Wazie | Posh Socialites |
Chief Engineer Lewis | Assaultron Interns |
Corporal Jane | Patriotic Soldiers |
Tincan Toni | Raging Robots |
Group 5
Bounty Boss | Side Kick Group |
Becca The Heavyweight | Boxers |
Charlie Half-Cocked | Vicious Snipers |
Cowgirl Janine | Gunslingers |
Richie Finesse | Gatling Gunsmiths |
Group 6
Bounty Boss | Side Kick Group |
Colt the Bolt | Deranged Hunters |
Granny Dolores | Enraged Old Ladies |
The Devil of Defiance | White Wolves |
Vito "The Vic" Bronco | Indebted Gamblers |
Group 7
Bounty Boss | Side Kick Group |
Amadi the Piranha | Hostile Fishermen |
Gentle Gary | Brutal Bashers |
Scout Leader Karen | Pioneer Posers |
The Foreman | Disgruntled Miners |
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