Bounty[]
The bounty system allows players to place credits into a pool, one for each player. Pirates will then choose the player with the highest bounty added against them and attack that player. With just two players it's merely how much you do or do not want to spend and who has the most credits as to who the pirates attack. Of course, with more players in a large multiplayer game, it's a economic battle to see who gets stuck with all the bounty on their head.
Not having the most bounty on your head is a good thing. If you are the chosen target due to having the greatest bounty on your head, the pirates will likely attack a system you own nearest their base. More often than not, these assault fleets are dangerous, but far from impossible to defeat if you have a capital ship and some static defenses.
Whenever a ship is destroyed, a part of the bounty on the owner player is awarded to the player that destroyed it, relative to the worth of the ship. Therefore, if someone has a large bounty on their head, it may be advantageous to attack them to earn their bounty.
Related Research[]
- The Advent have the civic research Persuasive Offers that adds a percentage bonus to bounty you place. For example, if you pay 500 credits to the bounty pot and have researched an 8% increase, 540 credits is actually applied to the pot.
- The Vasari have the civic research Expert Bounty Hunting that can add up to 25% (2 levels) to the credits you earn when collecting bounty.