Events and Seasonal Content
Hunt: Showdown layers seasonal events on top of the core Bounty Hunt loop, adding temporary objectives, consumables, and hazards. The current cycle is Road to Hell, rolled out in three chapters: Strongholds and Caged Boss Targets in Chapter 1, Cargo Balloons in Chapter 2, and the Crashed Balloon point of interest in Chapter 3. Together those systems create several competing bounty and loot sources in one match, which spreads PvP across the map instead of concentrating it at a single lair.
Hunt: Showdown runs seasonal events that layer temporary mechanics on top of the core Bounty Hunt loop. These events add new objectives, consumables, and environmental hazards that change how matches play out. The current event cycle is Road to Hell, which arrived with Update 2.8 on June 9, 2026 and introduced Strongholds, Caged Boss Targets, and Cargo Balloons.
This guide covers the event-specific systems. For core boss encounters, check the Maps and Bosses guide. For base game mechanics, check the Getting Started guide.
Strongholds
Strongholds are fortified zones that spawn on the map during event matches, built as 26th Regiment sites. Every Stronghold is a 26th Regiment site, so this is the layout and not the most common one among several.
A Stronghold has three main areas: the trenches, the camp, and the fortified building. The camp holds a mess tent with a Scouting Map, sealed boons, and Tarot Cards. The fortified building holds the Caged Boss Target, the Maxim M1895, and the Sealed Explosives Box.
What makes Strongholds different from normal compounds:
- A Sealed Explosives Box in the fortified building. It costs 1 Pledge Mark to open and spawns 3 different explosives.
- A Caged Boss Target (see below).
- Cargo Balloons and Cargo Crates (see below).
- Higher AI density with more aggressive enemy compositions.
- Fortified entry points that create natural chokepoints for defenders.
How to approach Strongholds:
- Stronghold placement is not fixed. It draws from a location pool the same way other points of interest do, and Road to Hell Chapter 2 added a second possible location. Check your map instead of assuming last match's spot.
- Rushing the Stronghold early gives you first access to the Caged Boss and supply crates before other teams arrive.
- If you are not interested in the event objectives, avoid Strongholds entirely. They attract aggressive players and produce noisy, extended fights.
Caged Boss Targets
Caged Boss Targets are a simplified bounty source found exclusively inside Stronghold compounds. They do not work like normal bosses.
Key differences from normal bosses:
- No kill phase. The target arrives banish-ready, so you skip the fight and go straight to banishing.
- The banish itself is still a timed channel, not instant. It runs a progress bar like any other banish, so you are still committed and still exposed for its duration.
- Yields exactly 1 Bounty Token.
- No clue tracking required. The location is visible on your map from mission start.
- The banishment still broadcasts your position to the entire server.
- Whisper is active before you banish one, so you can detect nearby players while you decide whether to commit.
For the duration of Road to Hell a Caged Boss Target is guaranteed in every mission. That drops the number of normal Boss Targets in those missions to one, with a Wild Target still possible on top.
What this means for match flow:
A single match can now generate up to three distinct bounty sources:
| Source | Location | Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Normal Boss | Standard boss lair compound | Kill, banish, and extract. Full combat phase. |
| Wild Target (Hellborn/Rotjaw) | Roaming the map surface or water | Kill, banish, and extract. Combat required. |
| Caged Boss Target | Inside a Stronghold | Interact and banish instantly. No combat. |
This fragments the server population. Some teams rush the Stronghold for a fast bounty. Others go for the normal boss. A few will hunt the Wild Target. With bounties split three ways, matches often have less concentrated PvP around any single objective.
If you want a fast, low-risk bounty, rush the Stronghold at match start. Grab the Caged Boss token and extract before the teams fighting the normal boss finish their banishment. You skip the boss fight entirely.
Cargo Balloons
Cargo Balloons are a second extraction route added in Chapter 2, and they get loot off the map without you carrying it to an exit. They spawn at Strongholds and can lift both Cargo Crates and a Bounty Token.
Inflating one. Each balloon connects to three hydrogen gas tanks through a network of hoses. Interacting with a tank's valve opens the flow and contributes to inflation, and the speed depends on how many valves are open:
| Valves open | Inflation time |
|---|---|
| 1 | 12 minutes |
| 2 | 6 minutes |
| 3 | 4 minutes |
The hose junction gives off a distinct hiss at 50 percent and again at 100 percent. Both are audible to anyone nearby, so opening all three valves buys you speed and costs you surprise.
Loading and launching. You can load a balloon at any time by interacting with it while carrying eligible cargo. Each one takes up to 4 Cargo Crates plus 1 Bounty Token in a dedicated Bounty Canister. Releasing the balloon extracts everything on it, and you have to be empty-handed to trigger that release.
Loading cargo does not reserve it for you. The rewards go to whichever team releases the balloon, so a fully loaded balloon you spent six minutes inflating pays out to whoever pushes you off it at minute five. Never load a balloon you cannot hold.
Counter-play. Shooting an open gas tank valve forces it closed and stops the hydrogen flow from that tank. Three players hitting three valves can stall an inflation almost indefinitely, and a balloon stuck at one open valve takes 12 minutes. If an enemy team is committed to a balloon, the valves are a cheaper target than the team.
Tarot Cards
Tarot Cards are consumables that fill Equipment Slots, capped at 4 of a type like other consumables. Update 2.8 also made them harder to pick up in-world: a Supply Point now has only a chance of spawning a single Tarot Card, down from 2 guaranteed, and the pool it draws from is loosely themed to that Supply Point. They are not a Road to Hell addition. They arrived in Update 2.5, "Web of the Empress", well before this event, and there are 14 of them: The Chariot, The Devil, The Empress, The Fool, The Garden, The Hanged Man, The High Priestess, Judgement, The Magician, The Moon, The Pathfinder, The Sun, The Tower, and The World.
Active Tarot Cards
| Card | Effect | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| The Chariot | Swaps which extraction points are locked and unlocked. Bounty Hunt only. | Costs you 1 Health Chunk to play. 5 minute global cooldown. |
| The Tower | Kills Monsters and Wild Targets and damages Boss Targets within 65m. | Self-ignites you, so plan for the burn. It does not mark players. |
| The Fool | Copies the last Tarot Card you used this mission. | Its value depends entirely on what you played before it. |
| The Empress | Grants the Catalyst trait, the Necromancer trait, and one random Burn or Scarce trait. | A trait windfall, not a battlefield effect. |
Three of these four cards are widely misdescribed online. The Tower is often said to mark all players, The Fool to create a false bounty signal, and The Empress to spawn AI hazards. None of that is what they do. Playing The Tower expecting intel will instead set you on fire.
The Chariot Counter-Play
The Chariot card is the most impactful and most frustrating Tarot Card in the current meta. When an enemy plays The Chariot:
- Your current extraction point locks and previously locked ones open in its place.
- The 5 minute cooldown is global, so no second Chariot can fire during it.
- Remember the card costs the player 1 Health Chunk, so an opponent who plays it has just weakened themselves.
How to handle it:
- Always identify at least two extraction routes before picking up a bounty. If your primary extraction locks, pivot immediately to your backup.
- Do not stand at the extraction point waiting. If The Chariot fires while you are mid-countdown, you have wasted 20+ seconds and now need to run to a new exit.
- If you are the one playing The Chariot, time it when the enemy bounty carrier is committed to an extraction. The maximum value is locking their exit while your team is already set up at an alternative extraction they are forced to use.
The Chariot's 5-minute cooldown is global. Once one Chariot is played, no other Chariot can activate for 5 minutes, regardless of which team played it. Do not carry two Chariot cards. One is enough per match.
Supply Points and Cargo Crates
Update 2.8 added two supply point types, and Chapter 2 added a separate family of Cargo Crates scattered across the whole Stronghold. The Medical Supply and the Military Supply are each their own point of interest, separate from the Stronghold, though Crytek has noted the three can occasionally spawn close together.
| Supply Type | Contents | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Military Supply Point | A Sealed Scarce Weapon Box, a Scouting Map, a Sealed Full Ammo and Tools Restock Box, a guaranteed un-sealed Catalyst Trait Spur, and an assortment of ammo crates and tool boxes. This one returned in 2.8 instead of debuting, having been teased in the final weeks of Update 2.7 | Its own point of interest, visible on the map by default |
| Medical Supply Point | A Full Health Restoration Kit, a Scouting Map, a Four Shot Boon, a random assortment of Shots, a chance of a Tarot Card, and medical packs. Genuinely new in 2.8 | Its own point of interest, visible on the map by default |
These crates contain guaranteed sealed rewards, unlike standard supply points that only restock tools. They are worth diverting for if your loadout is running low, but they are also bait. Other teams know the supply points exist and may camp them.
Cargo Crates are the balloon payload, and there are three types: Scarce Ammo, Hunt Dollar, and Weapon. Each appears in either a Standard or a Worn variant, and the condition drives the quality of what you get out of it. A Worn crate is still worth loading when you have the space.
Chapter 3 added a fourth type. The Confiscated Cargo Crate pays random rewards on extraction, working the way Dark Tribute does. It has a chance of spawning at the Stronghold, with a raised chance on the Chapter 3 event weekends, and one is guaranteed at every Crashed Balloon.
The Road to Hell Chapters
Road to Hell shipped in three chapters between June and August 2026, and each one changed what is on the map. Knowing which chapter you are in tells you what you can expect to find.
| Chapter | Live | What it added |
|---|---|---|
| Chapter 1 | June 9, 2026 (Update 2.8) | The Stronghold compound, Caged Boss Targets, the Maxim M1895, Military and Medical Supply Points, and the Inventory Slot Rework |
| Chapter 2 | July 2, 2026, the day after Update 2.8.1 | Cargo Balloons, the Scarce Ammo, Hunt Dollar, and Weapon Cargo Crates, and a second possible Stronghold location |
| Chapter 3 | August 5, 2026 | The Crashed Balloon point of interest, the Confiscated Cargo Crate, Strongholds in Bounty Clash, and the Fog of War community event |
Chapter 3 in detail
The Crashed Balloon is the one to learn. It spawns randomly across the map and does not appear on your mini map, so the only way to find one is to look. Every Crashed Balloon carries a random free Scarce Weapon, another random weapon, Hunt Dollar Purses, a guaranteed Confiscated Cargo Crate, and a random Ammo Box for swaps.
That free Scarce Weapon matters more than it sounds. Scarce weapons like the Homestead 78 and the Wildland unlock permanently into your own arsenal the first time you find one, so a Crashed Balloon can hand you a lasting unlock for the cost of a detour. See the Weapons and Loadouts guide for how Scarce unlocking works.
Strongholds came to Bounty Clash for the duration of Chapter 3, bringing the Caged Boss Target, the Maxim M1895, and the event items into the small-map mode.
Fog of War is the Chapter 3 community event. It raises the frequency of fog and other low-visibility weather and pays 100 percent more Hunt Dollars in missions while it runs. Heavier fog cuts both ways: your long-ammo rifle loses most of its reach, and so does theirs, so shotgun and mid-range loadouts get better while it is up.
Event Progression
Update 2.8 shipped a free Story Challenge called Let the Gunshots Ring, built around onboarding and narrated by John Victor. It runs four chapters with one reward each:
| Chapter | Reward |
|---|---|
| 1 | Vanguard (Pax Legendary Skin) |
| 2 | Hedera Mortiferum (Conversion Chain Pistol Legendary Skin) |
| 3 | Bear's Tooth (Mosin-Nagant Legendary Skin) |
| 4 | Initiate (Player Title) |
Chapter 2 then added two more Story Challenges, both of them permanent with no completion deadline: The Regiment's Last Stand (free, four chapters, 8 rewards, narrated by Ambrose Hazen) and Let Us Prey (premium, four chapters, 11 rewards, built around the hunter Marrow Hawk).
Chapter 3 added the Desolation's Call Legacy Chronicle, a permanent 1250 Blood Bond track of 4 chapters and 21 rewards. Legacy Chronicles pay out in Sigils, a currency you spend freely across unlocked reward pages, so they work differently from a fixed Story Challenge order.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a Stronghold in Hunt: Showdown?
A fortified 26th Regiment site that spawns during event matches, split into trenches, a camp, and a fortified building. It carries Military and Medical Supply Points with unique sealed loot, a Caged Boss Target, the Maxim M1895, and higher AI density than a normal compound. Its location is drawn from a pool instead of being fixed, so check your map each match.
How do Caged Boss Targets work?
They arrive banish-ready, so you skip the kill phase entirely and go straight to banishing for exactly 1 Bounty Token, with the location visible on your map from mission start. The banish itself is still a timed channel and not instant, so you remain committed and exposed while it runs.
Who gets the loot from a Cargo Balloon?
Whichever team releases the balloon, and nobody else. Loading crates and a Bounty Token onto it reserves nothing, so a team that pushes you off a fully loaded balloon at the last moment takes everything you spent minutes inflating it for. Never load a balloon you cannot hold.
How long does a Cargo Balloon take to inflate?
Twelve minutes on one open gas valve, six on two, and four on all three. The hose junction hisses audibly at 50 percent and again at 100 percent, so opening all three valves buys speed at the cost of surprise. Shooting an open valve forces it closed and stalls the inflation.
What did Road to Hell Chapter 3 add?
The Crashed Balloon point of interest, which spawns randomly and never shows on the mini map, carrying a free Scarce Weapon and a guaranteed Confiscated Cargo Crate. It also brought Strongholds to Bounty Clash and the Fog of War community event, which raises low-visibility weather and pays 100 percent more Hunt Dollars.
How many Tarot Cards are there and when were they added?
Fourteen, added in Update 2.5 Web of the Empress and not with Road to Hell. They are consumables capped at 4 of a type. Be careful with online descriptions of them, since The Tower, The Fool and The Empress are all widely misdescribed. The Tower actually kills monsters within 65m and sets you on fire, The Fool copies your last used card, and The Empress grants traits.
Are Stronghold supply points worth the detour?
They contain guaranteed sealed rewards instead of the tool restocks you get from standard supply points, so they are worth it when your loadout is thin. They are also bait, because other teams know exactly where they are and may camp them.
What to Read Next
- Maps and Bosses. Where event content overlays the base maps.
- Weapons and Loadouts. How Scarce weapon unlocks work when a Crashed Balloon hands you one.
- Hunter Traits and Progression. Event progression rewards.
- PvP and Strategy. How events change engagement density.
- Tips and Tricks. Tarot cards the internet gets wrong, and how caged bosses differ.