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As regular readers of the Torn City Times are aware, this paper takes a dim view of those who seek to harass our citizens through excessive bountying. Newcomers to Torn are often burdened, bothered and brutalised in this way by grudge-obsessed establishment figures, with the end result being a notable decrease in the number of migrants retained by the city.
Many have speculated on why these people feel justified, nay, obliged to harass others with assault by proxy, but in an effort to foster greater unity between the people of Torn, I reached out to some of our most infamous bountiers for a series of interviews, and some of their responses may just surprise you.
Most citizens incorrectly believe Dekloren to be the cruellest and most frequent bountier in Torn, but as you can see from the above ranking taken earlier today, he has actually vacated the top 10 due to his relative inactivity. If the rumours are to be believed, it seems Dekloren's commitment to bountying is equal to his love of equality, compassion and rational thought; something indicated by his response to my request for an interview.
As regards the rest, some responded, others didnt. I admittedly failed to approach Maxheadroom for comment, out of fear that the banality of his answers may cause me to suffer some form of colonic haemorrhage. But one person who did reply was Collete; Torn's fearsome matriarch and a woman who makes herself known very quickly should the city's newcomers step out of line.
Collete provided a somewhat harsh introduction to me upon my own arrival into Torn, so obviously, my first duty was to find out why.
"My wife didn't like your articles good enough reason for me."
Harsh, and brief, but fair. So what of the others? Collete has over twelve thousand bounties to her name, and I was keen to find out if there was a consistent reason for the aggressive behaviour displayed by herself and others. Here are some of the interesting reasons bountiers gave in response:
"I despise beggars, scammers and frankly stupid people. I do my best to remove 1 waste of space from the game per month, 3 is a good month." - Collete
"Talking in global, asking a dumb question, asking a question again in a different way hoping for a different answer, begging, generally acting like a pleb in chat. In my case I used bounties generally for self-policing, people break rules which take a while to actually affect them so bounties are a general good tool for that" - Mat-Senpai
"A message to newbies everywhere... Don't be a d**k... and avoid global if you are." - Bogie
"Most common reason is because of the mouth on some players. Second is poaching players I'm mugging and also if someone hosps me when I'm gambling. that really chafes my willy" - Unknown Element
"I am an equal opportunity bountier, I'll bounty a high level just as easy as a low level. I give new players a bit more leeway than established players though. I see newbs in global asking for this and that, someone usually points out to them it's not the done thing. Most get the hint and drop it. Others carry on and usually end up with someone hitting them with 10 bounties." - Sharkiefive
Attributing the mass-bounty phenomenon to the attention-seeking antics of newcomers could be construed as victim-blaming, but equally, it could be seen as a necessary baptism of fire for those who wish to survive here. Regardless of your opinion on the matter, it is interesting to note that many of the aforementioned bounty leaders have now taken a different path.
Mat-Senpai claims to have been clean of mass bountying for the better part of three to four years, and from our interview it is clear he regrets the actions of his past.
"I used to play a game with others called the next game, simply type next in chat, the next person to message anything...bam 10 bounties. It was good fun and earned me my 200+ enemies I imagine but I quit for 2 years and grew up. I once placed 1,000 bounties in one day, I've moved on from those days."
8th placed Bogie has also beaten his addiction to mass-bountying, yet for him the spectre of his former self still looms large.
"I was a different man back then, a colder and harsher man...a past that still haunts me even to this day. People being bountied out of the game is why I stopped. I won't anymore bounty a player out of the game, this is my biggest concern with bounties, and it upsets me at times to see new players so harshly treated. It was a point at which people were talking about bounties being used as a tool for making new players quit, and I was bragging about how I had done that in the past...It's one of the few times I've stopped and reflected on what I had just said to the point where I realised it wasn't healthy and it had to stop."
"If Jesus had come uninvited to my dreams he probably would have left with bounties."
Clearly both Mat-Senpai and Bogie have much to dwell on, and one can imagine they face a period of guilty introspection similar to that endured by reformed murderers in their later years. As the stark reality of their crimes finally hits home, many hardened criminals only ever find respite via the barrel of a gun, with that self-inflicted bullet to the brain the only thing capable of silencing their newly-acquired sense of empathy.
But what of those who feel no guilt - bountiers who still believe their actions are justified, and who continue to bounty others into oblivion to this day? Collete is one such individual, and I was curious to find out if her own introduction to Torn shaped her current world view.
"When I first joined Torn I was quiet as a mouse as I watched global chat and stored medical kits. I saw some much older ladies post how they were queen bitches of global and I thought no they are not so I made it my goal to outdo them and I did."
Collete has spent some considerable time and effort establishing her role as Torn's femme fatale enforcer, and while she blatantly enjoys using her power to educate simpletons, she also acts as a mother figure to many of the city's downtrodden women. It is well-known that females are frequently bountied or harassed for refusing marriage proposals in Torn, but Collete has a useful piece of advice for those who suffer such abuse.
"I've told several ladies to just tell the guy they are fat that seems to work well or I just beat the s**t out of the guy and make him apologize to the lady in question that's always fun to do."
However, sometimes this altruism comes at a heavy price, even for those as strong as Collete.
"I pointed out to a guy his sexy teen wife was really a teen boy using him to stay in his island with him and he got angry and wasted 140m in bounties on me in 3 days before he gave up."
Collete feels her bountying exploits are balanced by both her selfless acts and the idiocy of her victims; a mentality she shares with the city's top-ranked bountier Sharkeyfive, who apparently combines his daily bounty routine with frequent charitable ventures.
"I do a lot of good deeds in Torn that many people don't see. When people get close to me they see that side of mehelping all the newbs that ask for help. The ones with the bounties I usually mail and explain where they went wrong. If they are polite and listen I send them meds or cash. The ones that don't listen I let them carry on doing as they want, then laugh as they get more."
"For many years I had a little faction that I kept purely for "strays" if they were polite and honest I helped them by putting them in the faction and helping them in all ways I could."
It may seem odd to describe new players as if they were abandoned pets left wandering the streets, but having seen some of the grotesque messages Sharkeyfive has been sent, the comparison to feral creatures may not be too wide of the mark.
Nevertheless, it is still hard to discern whether these acts of kindness are genuine, or merely an attempt to assuage guilt, akin to a major oil company building a playground for disabled children to compensate for pumping a thousand tonnes of oil into the ocean. Reformed bountiers may attract your sympathy, and I shall leave it to my readers to judge the likes of Collete and Sharkeyfive, but there can be no doubt that those who bounty apathetically are the most difficult to forgive.
Unknown_Element currently sits fourth in the all-time bounty table, and for him, the idea of bountying for a reason almost seems laughable.
"I don't really think about it much when I bounty people. It's become very routine to me, especially since I have a couple people who I bounty long term. Usually a week or so and I'll let someone off the hook, unless they beg for mercy."
"I did bounty the whole staff page one day with 2 million dollar bounties just for laughs. Needless to say some of them weren't too happy about it. lol. I also have had many players scared to bounty other players ask me to bounty people for them."
I wondered if such behaviour meant that Unknown Element has become something of an outsider in Torn, and upon further probing, it seems my suspicions were true.
"It's better to have respect than love. Not many to love in Torn anyhow lol. I wouldn't consider myself an outsider, more like a lone wolf, a one man wolfpack. I'm the zack galifinakis of torn, I am the drop of rain in a desert, I am a zika carrying mosquito, I am the ebola virus, the plague, the monkey who started the aids virus. I am a cultural icon and an american hero...I AM LEGION, I AM THE ILLUMINATI..."
"lol sorry bout that disjointed answer.. im really high atm lol."
It became obvious at this point that I was dealing with a severely unhinged individual, and I feared for my own safety, despite the fact I'd never seen nor met my interviewee. But Unknown Element's responses were nevertheless illuminating, especially when you sensed his guard was beginning to drop.
"The one thing about bounties I have learnedthat they only effect you if you let them bother you. Everyone should try bountying, all the cool kids do it nowadays, I actually don't feel much when i bounty peoplebut I get withdrawals when I don't do itI will wake up in a cold sweat at night if I think someone's bounties have ran out. I think I need an intervention, or a hug and a role model."
In the days which followed my interviews with these bountiers, several of them engaged me in further conversation on a number of topics regarding Torn City Life. I was told of issues I had no prior knowledge of, I was informed that new users were banding together and fighting back, and Sharkeyfive even enquired as to why I myself had suddenly been hit with a rash of bounties.
When he learnt that an individual known as Chibs had repeatedly bountied me in opposition to my work he promised to get involved, and since then my abuser's attentions have waned. I was obviously grateful, but I feel I had already begun to understand the role of mass bountiers well before this act of kindness.
My high-profile role in the city attracts bounties from those who dislike my work, whom I call out in my articles, or who merely enjoy the attention hitting a public target brings. But, at the risk of inviting further attention, do these bounties also keep me in line? Do they help to keep newcomers in line too? It certainly seems the case, and while many do often overstep the mark and take bountying to the extreme, it would be a shame to see such a worthwhile element of Torn life made impotent by measures used to control its worst proponents.
No. If changes are to come, they must be enacted by the citizens, not the powers that be. If you feel you have been unfairly bountied it seems you have a choice; band together with others and fight back, or analyse your own actions and attempt to negotiate a solution. Many of those who I have interviewed for this paper have complained of unfair treatment, and in most cases I would agree they were harshly punished for minor infractions.
But it now seems clear that these incidents are part and parcel of living in Torn, and the aggrieved can either continue to be hit; or make a stance and strike back. As we've seen from Duke's recent attacks on Bodybagger, these people are all humans, no matter how strong they appear to be. And far from being the monsters I assumed them to be, Torn's bounty barons and its baroness are actually fulfilling an incredibly important role within our city, and I fear it would be a far worse place without them.
Except Unknown Element, he frightens me to the very core of my being.
Many have speculated on why these people feel justified, nay, obliged to harass others with assault by proxy, but in an effort to foster greater unity between the people of Torn, I reached out to some of our most infamous bountiers for a series of interviews, and some of their responses may just surprise you.
Most citizens incorrectly believe Dekloren to be the cruellest and most frequent bountier in Torn, but as you can see from the above ranking taken earlier today, he has actually vacated the top 10 due to his relative inactivity. If the rumours are to be believed, it seems Dekloren's commitment to bountying is equal to his love of equality, compassion and rational thought; something indicated by his response to my request for an interview.
As regards the rest, some responded, others didnt. I admittedly failed to approach Maxheadroom for comment, out of fear that the banality of his answers may cause me to suffer some form of colonic haemorrhage. But one person who did reply was Collete; Torn's fearsome matriarch and a woman who makes herself known very quickly should the city's newcomers step out of line.
Collete provided a somewhat harsh introduction to me upon my own arrival into Torn, so obviously, my first duty was to find out why.
"My wife didn't like your articles good enough reason for me."
Harsh, and brief, but fair. So what of the others? Collete has over twelve thousand bounties to her name, and I was keen to find out if there was a consistent reason for the aggressive behaviour displayed by herself and others. Here are some of the interesting reasons bountiers gave in response:
"I despise beggars, scammers and frankly stupid people. I do my best to remove 1 waste of space from the game per month, 3 is a good month." - Collete
"Talking in global, asking a dumb question, asking a question again in a different way hoping for a different answer, begging, generally acting like a pleb in chat. In my case I used bounties generally for self-policing, people break rules which take a while to actually affect them so bounties are a general good tool for that" - Mat-Senpai
"A message to newbies everywhere... Don't be a d**k... and avoid global if you are." - Bogie
"Most common reason is because of the mouth on some players. Second is poaching players I'm mugging and also if someone hosps me when I'm gambling. that really chafes my willy" - Unknown Element
"I am an equal opportunity bountier, I'll bounty a high level just as easy as a low level. I give new players a bit more leeway than established players though. I see newbs in global asking for this and that, someone usually points out to them it's not the done thing. Most get the hint and drop it. Others carry on and usually end up with someone hitting them with 10 bounties." - Sharkiefive
Attributing the mass-bounty phenomenon to the attention-seeking antics of newcomers could be construed as victim-blaming, but equally, it could be seen as a necessary baptism of fire for those who wish to survive here. Regardless of your opinion on the matter, it is interesting to note that many of the aforementioned bounty leaders have now taken a different path.
Mat-Senpai claims to have been clean of mass bountying for the better part of three to four years, and from our interview it is clear he regrets the actions of his past.
"I used to play a game with others called the next game, simply type next in chat, the next person to message anything...bam 10 bounties. It was good fun and earned me my 200+ enemies I imagine but I quit for 2 years and grew up. I once placed 1,000 bounties in one day, I've moved on from those days."
8th placed Bogie has also beaten his addiction to mass-bountying, yet for him the spectre of his former self still looms large.
"I was a different man back then, a colder and harsher man...a past that still haunts me even to this day. People being bountied out of the game is why I stopped. I won't anymore bounty a player out of the game, this is my biggest concern with bounties, and it upsets me at times to see new players so harshly treated. It was a point at which people were talking about bounties being used as a tool for making new players quit, and I was bragging about how I had done that in the past...It's one of the few times I've stopped and reflected on what I had just said to the point where I realised it wasn't healthy and it had to stop."
"If Jesus had come uninvited to my dreams he probably would have left with bounties."
Clearly both Mat-Senpai and Bogie have much to dwell on, and one can imagine they face a period of guilty introspection similar to that endured by reformed murderers in their later years. As the stark reality of their crimes finally hits home, many hardened criminals only ever find respite via the barrel of a gun, with that self-inflicted bullet to the brain the only thing capable of silencing their newly-acquired sense of empathy.
But what of those who feel no guilt - bountiers who still believe their actions are justified, and who continue to bounty others into oblivion to this day? Collete is one such individual, and I was curious to find out if her own introduction to Torn shaped her current world view.
"When I first joined Torn I was quiet as a mouse as I watched global chat and stored medical kits. I saw some much older ladies post how they were queen bitches of global and I thought no they are not so I made it my goal to outdo them and I did."
Collete has spent some considerable time and effort establishing her role as Torn's femme fatale enforcer, and while she blatantly enjoys using her power to educate simpletons, she also acts as a mother figure to many of the city's downtrodden women. It is well-known that females are frequently bountied or harassed for refusing marriage proposals in Torn, but Collete has a useful piece of advice for those who suffer such abuse.
"I've told several ladies to just tell the guy they are fat that seems to work well or I just beat the s**t out of the guy and make him apologize to the lady in question that's always fun to do."
However, sometimes this altruism comes at a heavy price, even for those as strong as Collete.
"I pointed out to a guy his sexy teen wife was really a teen boy using him to stay in his island with him and he got angry and wasted 140m in bounties on me in 3 days before he gave up."
Collete feels her bountying exploits are balanced by both her selfless acts and the idiocy of her victims; a mentality she shares with the city's top-ranked bountier Sharkeyfive, who apparently combines his daily bounty routine with frequent charitable ventures.
"I do a lot of good deeds in Torn that many people don't see. When people get close to me they see that side of mehelping all the newbs that ask for help. The ones with the bounties I usually mail and explain where they went wrong. If they are polite and listen I send them meds or cash. The ones that don't listen I let them carry on doing as they want, then laugh as they get more."
"For many years I had a little faction that I kept purely for "strays" if they were polite and honest I helped them by putting them in the faction and helping them in all ways I could."
It may seem odd to describe new players as if they were abandoned pets left wandering the streets, but having seen some of the grotesque messages Sharkeyfive has been sent, the comparison to feral creatures may not be too wide of the mark.
Nevertheless, it is still hard to discern whether these acts of kindness are genuine, or merely an attempt to assuage guilt, akin to a major oil company building a playground for disabled children to compensate for pumping a thousand tonnes of oil into the ocean. Reformed bountiers may attract your sympathy, and I shall leave it to my readers to judge the likes of Collete and Sharkeyfive, but there can be no doubt that those who bounty apathetically are the most difficult to forgive.
Unknown_Element currently sits fourth in the all-time bounty table, and for him, the idea of bountying for a reason almost seems laughable.
"I don't really think about it much when I bounty people. It's become very routine to me, especially since I have a couple people who I bounty long term. Usually a week or so and I'll let someone off the hook, unless they beg for mercy."
"I did bounty the whole staff page one day with 2 million dollar bounties just for laughs. Needless to say some of them weren't too happy about it. lol. I also have had many players scared to bounty other players ask me to bounty people for them."
I wondered if such behaviour meant that Unknown Element has become something of an outsider in Torn, and upon further probing, it seems my suspicions were true.
"It's better to have respect than love. Not many to love in Torn anyhow lol. I wouldn't consider myself an outsider, more like a lone wolf, a one man wolfpack. I'm the zack galifinakis of torn, I am the drop of rain in a desert, I am a zika carrying mosquito, I am the ebola virus, the plague, the monkey who started the aids virus. I am a cultural icon and an american hero...I AM LEGION, I AM THE ILLUMINATI..."
"lol sorry bout that disjointed answer.. im really high atm lol."
It became obvious at this point that I was dealing with a severely unhinged individual, and I feared for my own safety, despite the fact I'd never seen nor met my interviewee. But Unknown Element's responses were nevertheless illuminating, especially when you sensed his guard was beginning to drop.
"The one thing about bounties I have learnedthat they only effect you if you let them bother you. Everyone should try bountying, all the cool kids do it nowadays, I actually don't feel much when i bounty peoplebut I get withdrawals when I don't do itI will wake up in a cold sweat at night if I think someone's bounties have ran out. I think I need an intervention, or a hug and a role model."
In the days which followed my interviews with these bountiers, several of them engaged me in further conversation on a number of topics regarding Torn City Life. I was told of issues I had no prior knowledge of, I was informed that new users were banding together and fighting back, and Sharkeyfive even enquired as to why I myself had suddenly been hit with a rash of bounties.
When he learnt that an individual known as Chibs had repeatedly bountied me in opposition to my work he promised to get involved, and since then my abuser's attentions have waned. I was obviously grateful, but I feel I had already begun to understand the role of mass bountiers well before this act of kindness.
My high-profile role in the city attracts bounties from those who dislike my work, whom I call out in my articles, or who merely enjoy the attention hitting a public target brings. But, at the risk of inviting further attention, do these bounties also keep me in line? Do they help to keep newcomers in line too? It certainly seems the case, and while many do often overstep the mark and take bountying to the extreme, it would be a shame to see such a worthwhile element of Torn life made impotent by measures used to control its worst proponents.
No. If changes are to come, they must be enacted by the citizens, not the powers that be. If you feel you have been unfairly bountied it seems you have a choice; band together with others and fight back, or analyse your own actions and attempt to negotiate a solution. Many of those who I have interviewed for this paper have complained of unfair treatment, and in most cases I would agree they were harshly punished for minor infractions.
But it now seems clear that these incidents are part and parcel of living in Torn, and the aggrieved can either continue to be hit; or make a stance and strike back. As we've seen from Duke's recent attacks on Bodybagger, these people are all humans, no matter how strong they appear to be. And far from being the monsters I assumed them to be, Torn's bounty barons and its baroness are actually fulfilling an incredibly important role within our city, and I fear it would be a far worse place without them.
Except Unknown Element, he frightens me to the very core of my being.
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