Hare Hunt is a side quest in Kingdom Come: Deliverance. After receiving a tip-off from the innkeeper of Uzhitz or the innkeeper of Talmberg, Henry goes to Talmberg and speaks to Nicholas, the local huntsman, who has been having some trouble with poachers.
You will need a spade and possibly some lockpicks and up to 80 
for bribes.
This quest is intertwined with Sheep in Wolf's Clothing. It is not possible to successfully complete them both (though see "Notes" below). By completing Sheep in Wolf's Clothing, you can bypass much of this quest, as you'll get all the necessary information from Black Lukesh.
Synopsis[]
The Talmberg Huntsman Nicholas Angel asked me to help him track down some poachers who've been plundering the Talmberg woods recently.
Objectives[]
- (Optional) Find the Talmberg poachers.
- Ask around the village.
- Find out what Brada knows.
- (Optional) Find out what Blacksmith's Betty saw in the woods.
- Explore the clearing where it all went on.
- (Optional) Find out what Blacksmith's Betty saw in the woods.
- Listen to Olena's gossip.
- Speak to the innkeeper's wife, Martha.
- Talk to Jake Piper.
- (Optional) Find out what happened to Thomas from the bathhouse.
- Question Radan the charcoal-burner.
- Report back to Nicholas the Master Huntsman.
- Go to Captain Robard.
- Report back to Nicholas the Master Huntsman.
- Question Radan the charcoal-burner.
- Find out if Margaret knows something about Hanekin Hare.
- Find out what Brada knows.
- Check out the Inn in the Glade.
- Check out the hearsay about Thomas in the tavern.
- (Optional) Meet up with Hanekin Hare.
- (Optional) Catch up with Hanekin Hare.
- (Optional) Arrest Hanekin Hare.
- Look at Hanekin Hare's hand. (0/1)
- (Optional) Bring Hanekin Hare's ancestral ring to the Huntsman.
- Look at Hanekin Hare's hand. (0/1)
- (Optional) Arrest Hanekin Hare.
- (Optional) Catch up with Hanekin Hare.
Walkthrough[]
Nicholas recognizes you as Sir Radzig's man, someone who can be trusted. He tells you he has recently found evidence of poachers in the nearby forest and asks you to investigate. You ask why Nicholas is not conducting the investigation himself, but the huntsman responds that the local people are afraid of him and won't help him discover who is behind it all.
First, go to the Inn in the Glade and speak to the patrons, who will advise you to speak to Marta, the innkeeper's wife, Olena, the local gossip, Brada, the tanner, and Blacksmith's Betty. They will also pass on a rumor about Thomas of the Baths (known as "Tom"), who was drunkenly talking about going hunting. Then, search the cellars and unlock the Very Easy-locked door to find some fresh game hanging from hooks.
The illegal game in the inn's cellar
Before you leave the inn, speak to Andrew and ask him if he has any work for you. At first he will deny it, but convince him you can be trusted.
He'll mention the Talmberg fisherman often comes to sell game on behalf of the local poacher's gang. Accept the job and start Sheep in Wolf's Clothing, where you infiltrate the poacher's gang by doing jobs for Lukesh. If you have completed Masquerade, you won't need to convince Andrew or prove yourself by recovering his tankard and will instead be sent straight to Lukesh.
Henry talks to Andrew about the poachers
At this point, if you complete Sheep in Wolf's Clothing, you will be able to skip the remainder of Hare Hunt, as Lukesh has most of the information needed to find and catch the poachers. However, if you do so, you won't learn the full story.
To figure everything out, return to Talmberg and question the villagers the inn patrons indicated might have more information on Tom and the mysterious Hanekin Hare. Marta will tell you the poachers put a deer's head on Nicholas' house, taunting him for being unable to catch them. She will confirm Tom was recently at her inn, drunk and blathering about how he was going to bring the local girls some venison from the woods, and advises you to speak about it with her husband. She can also provide you with some information on Hare, who was the Master Huntsman before Nicholas. Apparently, Nicholas accused him of the murder of a guardsman, and when Hare escaped from custody and disappeared, Nicholas took his post and even married his betrothed, Margaret Angel.
Marta tells Henry about Tom and Hanekin Hare
To learn more about Tom's involvement, speak to Marta's husband, the innkeeper of Talmberg. The innkeeper scoffs at the idea that Hare could be responsible, but does confirm Tom and his best friend Jake Piper were drunkenly boasting they were going to go hunting.
Now, speak to Olena. She is convinced it's Hare, claiming he is a sorcerer who sold his soul for the unholy gift of marksmanship. According to Olena, Hare posed as the son of a nobleman in order to be awarded the office of Master Huntsman and secure betrothal to Margaret. She believes Hare snapped the neck of the guardsman, and using the power of the full moon, vanished without a trace. She will also advise you to ask Betty for details about unholy feasting in the woods.
Brada gives Henry more information about the poachers
Next, head to the tannery and talk to Brada, who will confirm he also heard Tom's bragging and pass on the rumor that Hare has returned. He reveals the poachers aren't just killing for food and are leaving the corpses of their prey all over the forest, which he suspects is a ploy to make Nicholas look bad. He also tells you Betty saw something in the woods, but he doesn't know what.
Betty whispers her suspicions to Henry
Finally, go talk to Betty and first ask her about what she saw. She tells you she saw a group of people singing, dancing, and playing a pipe near a fire, and she could smell roasting meat. Unfortunately, she did not recognize any voices. Moreover, she firmly believes the culprit is Hare, out to destroy Nicholas; after all, who else would leave antlers on his house, the sure sign of a cuckold? Betty suspects Margaret is having or at least considering an affair. You wonder why she's so confident it's Hare, and press her further.
She confirms Margaret has confided in her that Hare really is back, and she's even spoken to him (or perhaps more). However, she warns you not to tell Nicholas, as he would likely kill Margaret if he found out.
The clearing where the feast was held, with the patch where the carcass is buried at bottom right
Go investigate the clearing, which is just east of the fork in the road northwest of the herbalist's hut. East of the fire is a patch of dirt you'll need to dig up to find a buried animal carcass.
Things certainly seem suspicious, so go to the Baths of Talmberg and find Tom. Tom denies he's been anywhere near the woods and claims he and Jake were just drunk.
Next, find Jake Piper at the quarry. Jake at first denies he has anything to do with any poaching or the bonfire, claiming he was only bragging. However, you confront him with the fact that Betty heard someone playing a pipe.
Henry interrogates Jake
After successfully convincing or threatening him or confronting him about the carcass at the clearing, he confesses they did have a feast with the village girls, and Tom supplied the venison. Return to Tom and question him again. However, he still denies everything. You can bribe him, convince him, or threaten him to tell you the truth: he caught a poacher skinning the carcass and was given the meat in return for his silence. The poacher is a charcoal burner named Radan.
The shed where Tom hides his trophies
Alternatively, instead of talking to Jake, search in the shed at the north end of the baths to find deer trophies (and a copy of The Joy of Gutting III), and confront Tom about them. This will also cause him to tell you about Radan without the need to wrest the truth from Jake and Tom; however, the quest still expects you to find Jake.
Go to the charcoal kilns and confront Radan. Radan appears to be quite simple, and interrogating him is incredibly frustrating for you (but hilarious to watch). Bribe him with 20 (10 up front, then 10 more) or convince him to tell you the truth, and he will give you directions to the poachers' camp.
An exasperated Henry tries to reason with Radan
Before you go to confront the poachers or report their location to anyone hunting them, you should learn what the huntsman and his wife think about the situation. They're usually at the lodge. First, talk to Margaret. Initially, she does not want to talk about Hare.
Margaret denies the rumors of a love affair
After some convincing, she claims she never wanted to marry him, and talk of their love was only rumor. However, Hare evidently believes differently, as he showed up in the woods, told her he still loved her, and begged her to run away with him. If she agrees, she is to hang a garland on her house. However, Margaret is adamant that she wants to stay with Nicholas. Ask her to hang the garland anyway, and she will tell you where to meet Hare.
NOTE: This is your last chance to decide whether to complete this quest or Sheep in Wolf's Clothing. It is not possible to successfully complete them both (though see "Notes" below).
Henry makes his choice
If you go to Nicholas and tell him all you know, he claims Margaret never loved Hare, who thought the world owed him something because he was of noble blood (not that he had anything to show for it). He firmly believes Hare murdered the guardsman and was smuggled out of the dungeon by someone at the castle; there's nothing supernatural about him. You can also choose to betray Lukesh. Nicholas finally tells you to alert Sir Robard of what is about to happen. When you report to Sir Robard about the poachers, he will dispatch you and some of his guards to the poachers' location, and you will fail Sheep in Wolf's Clothing. Hare flees during the fight, and you will need to hunt him down. He goes to his hideout in a small cave northeast of Talmberg, but only remains there for a few minutes; if he leaves before you accost him, you will fail the quest.
Meeting with Hannekin Hare
Alternatively, if instead of reporting to Nicholas, you find Hare yourself at the location Margaret described (in the bushes just east of the turn in the road northeast of Talmberg), he will reveal he never thought she would show up; he expected Nicholas, but certainly not you. He asks that you hear him out.
After finding him in his hideout or at Margaret's meeting place, if you try to arrest him, he will attack. Kill him (causing you to fail Sheep in Wolf's Clothing if you hadn't already) and take his ring (you can also take Nicholas' testimony, but it will be useless after killing Hare), then bring the ring to Nicholas, who will give you 300 for your efforts. Alternatively, listening to him and believing his story will fail Hare Hunt, complete Sheep in Wolf's Clothing, begin Cherchez la Femme, and (only if you sided with the poachers against the Talmberg guards during Sheep in Wolf's Clothing) give you the option to speak to Lukesh to start Emergency Supply.
Either way, this quest is ended.
Notes[]
- It is technically possible to complete both Hare Hunt and Sheep in Wolf's Clothing. To do so, first start Hare Hunt then Sheep in Wolf's Clothing (it is not possible to start the former quest if the latter has already been started), and play through Hare Hunt to the point where you discover Margaret's and Hare's meeting place. Before reporting to Nicholas and Sir Robard, approach Hare at the meeting place, try to arrest him, and fist-fight him to victory. The scene will then shift to Talmberg, where Nicholas will thank you and Hare Hunt will complete. You can then continue and complete Sheep in Wolf's Clothing. However, following this approach will break Cherchez la Femme, as Nicholas will not have the dialogue option to sign the confession.
Bugs[]
- If you receive the objective to report to Sir Robard, but then approach Hare at Margaret's meeting spot, he will not speak with you, and will instead walk to a camp in the woods east of Talmberg (the same camp where the Cumans took Hans Capon captive during The Prey). On the way, he will walk through Talmberg and directly past the hunting lodge, eliciting no reactions from any NPCs. You will be unable to speak with him at the camp as well.
- If you speak with Jake before investigating the clearing where the feast took place and exhaust all dialogue options, he will deny everything, after which you will be unable to speak with him again even after gathering new evidence. If this is the case, you can still confront Tom about the deer trophies in the shed at the baths, as detailed in the walkthrough above.