Interview with BadKarma: The Hunt and Marathon for St. Jude
BORDERLANDS NEWS
Borderlands’ Community has Raised $423,020.07 for St. Jude!
The Borderlands community is known for its passion and dedication, and especially for causes bigger than the game itself. Two community events demonstrate the commitment to give back, The Hunt and The Marathon. These two charity events bring players together for a great cause: to raise money and awareness for St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
Let’s learn more about these events with Levi, also known as BadKarma, the current organizer of these charity events.

What Are the Hunt and the Marathon?
The Hunt and The Marathon are two borderlands community events. During these events, players stream their run, and viewers can donate money “Both are charity events with a focus on supporting and raising awareness for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital” says Levi.
- • The Hunt is a community-organized scavenger hunt, where players race to collect rare in-game gears
- • The Marathon is a race where players play every Borderlands game back-to-back as fast as possible
How It All Began
The Hunt began in 2013 with Gearbox’s Legendary Hunt event in Borderlands 2. When Gearbox decided not to host another Hunt event, a community member named Ganza stepped up to organize his own version.
Ganza explains “This was right after Gearbox’s $100,000 Loot Hunt and people were looking for things to do after the event ended. I ended up having a list of all the legendary guns and wanted to try and farm them all. It caught on with other Borderlands streamers at the time, and thus the first event was born.” Ganza interview.
After Ganza, the torch was passed to Joltzdude139 and Ki11erSix, and that’s when Levi joined the team “Ki11erSix ran several events and I joined to assist with the fundraising efforts for St Jude on Tiltify.” explains Levi.

Meanwhile, The Marathon originated as a solo challenge in 2017, where Levi streamed all Borderlands campaigns back-to-back in a 48-hour session marathon. After 6 successful Marathon events, other streamers joined the adventure and it’s now a week-long event with multiple creators involved.
For Charity: St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
For Levi, the choice of St. Jude is deeply personal: “When I was seven, a local children’s hospital saved my life. I’ve always admired St. Jude for their tireless work and global impact. Seeing creators like Professor Broman, Dr. Lupo, and Gothalion support them was the final push I needed to get involved back in 2017—and I’ve never looked back.”

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is a special hospital in the United States focused on treating and researching childhood diseases, especially cancer. It’s known for offering families free care, so they never have to worry about paying for treatments, travel, housing, or food while their child receives care.
Their goal is to make sure children with tough illnesses have the best chance at recovery, and they share their research worldwide so others can benefit too.
“Treatments developed at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to more than 80% since it opened more than 60 years ago.” https://www.stjude.org
Behind the Scenes: Organizing The Hunt and The Marathon
Levi currently leads the organization of these events, which involves a lot of planning each year. “We need to finalize the rules, ensure the item list is updated, manage the website, set up the charity campaign, and keep the community informed and excited” Levi says. One of the biggest challenges, however, is setting the event date. Next year’s timing is especially uncertain with the release of Borderlands 4, making it difficult to lock in a date.
Fortunately, Levi has a remarkable team to help execute these events:
- PilotPlaysGames: Creative director, social media strategist, and artist
- Chob and Frieza: Website, registration and leaderboards managers
- Pirek: Community and Discord manager, and emote designer
- SpeakingLion: Expert in marketing and sponsorships
- Ki11erSix: Former organizer who remains a passionate spokesperson
Ongoing Support
Even though Gearbox has passed the torch, their support remains strong through Gearbox Gives. They donate prizes like Funko Pops, customized mugs, and other goodies, as well as direct financial contributions. “Gearbox and 2K have been long-time supporters, contributing in various ways throughout the years, even donating $25,000 directly to the campaign during one of the events! We’re always grateful for their involvement.” Levi says.

As Levi highlights, “the real heroes are the 192 members of our fundraising team. Without them, none of this would be possible.”
The Latest Hunt Edition
During the latest Hunt event, which took place in Borderlands 3 from September 13 to September 22, 2024, 106 players joined this amazing treasure hunt adventure! The total amount raised for this edition was $64,855!
Since 2021, it’s $423,020.07 raised for St. Jude!

Save the date: April 4th–13th
Levi and his team are continuously exploring new ways to grow the events and reach more people. “We’re excited for what’s coming in 2025! There are so many new ideas on the table, and while we won’t be able to execute on all of them, there’s a lot to look forward to.” Levi teased.
As the Borderlands community continues to rally for St. Jude, Levi’s team proves just how much of an impact gamers can make. For the Kids!
If you’re interested in these events and want to be part of this amazing adventure, don’t miss the next Hunt event from April 4th–13th! Visit their official website for more details.
The Hunt and Marathon for St. Jude – 10/25/2024
Before we dive into the event, could you tell us a little about yourself?
Hi, I’m Levi, but I am known online as BadKarma, or just Karma. I’m a partnered streamer on Twitch and have been creating content for 9 years, focusing mostly on looter RPGs like Destiny, Borderlands, Diablo, and Path of Exile.
For those unfamiliar, could you explain what ‘The Hunt’ and ‘The Marathon’ are?
‘The Hunt’ is a community-driven scavenger hunt within the Borderlands franchise, while ‘The Borderlands Marathon’ is an event aimed at celebrating the Borderlands games. Both are charity events with a focus on supporting and raising awareness for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
How have these events started? What inspired you to start ‘The Hunt’ and ‘The Marathon’?
I wasn’t the original creator of ‘The Hunt’—it started with Gearbox’s ‘Legendary Hunt’ event back in Borderlands 2. When they decided not to repeat the event, Ganza, a community leader, stepped up and organized his own version. He brought on influential figures like King Gothalion and Professor Broman, whose love for charity work really resonated with the community. Joltzdude139 and Ki11erSix took the mantle and raised the bar with more Borderlands 2 events and even added events for Borderlands 3!
As for ‘The Borderlands Marathon,’ it started as a solo challenge in 2017 where I streamed all the Borderlands campaigns back-to-back, completing them in a single 48 hour stream session. It quickly became a fan favorite, and over time, I turned it into a charity event for St. Jude.
How have ‘The Hunt’ and ‘The Marathon’ evolved since? Were there any major changes in format, rules or community involvement over the years?
Ki11erSix ran several events and I joined to assist with the fundraising efforts for St Jude on Tiltify. PilotPlaysGames also joined and did a wonderful job with the artwork for the events. Together as a team we’ve refined the rules, expanded item lists, and most importantly, made it a focal point for charity fundraising. In the past four years alone, we’ve raised over $440,000 for St. Jude! What started as a competition has shifted to a community event driven by a common goal: giving back.
For ‘The Borderlands Marathon,’ after six solo events, I decided to bring in other creators from the Borderlands community. Now, it’s a week-long charity stream with multiple creators involved, all rallying together to raise funds for St. Jude.
Can you walk us through the process of organizing such events? What challenges do you face each year?
Organizing ‘The Hunt’ is a massive effort. We need to finalize the rules, ensure the item list is updated, manage the website, set up the charity campaign, and keep the community informed and excited. One of our biggest yearly challenges is simply setting the date—especially for next year’s events with the uncertainty around Borderlands 4’s release.
Luckily, I have an incredible team working with me to produce fun events. PilotPlaysGames, our creative director, handles the social media and all of the wonderful artwork; Chob and Frieza manage the website, event registration, and leaderboards; Pirek is an awesome community manager and has does an amazing job establishing our Discord server/community and also creates fun emotes for everyone to use; and SpeakingLion is a powerhouse when it comes to marketing and sponsorships. Ki11erSix may have passed the torch, but he spends a ton of time and energy helping us with these events; K6 is the perfect spokesperson for The Hunt event! He has incredible reach and is beloved among the community and makes it so easy to get others onboard.
What’s the most surprising or memorable moment you’ve experienced during these events?
I am always amazed at the selflessness of this Borderlands community. We set ambitious goals, and every year, this community surpasses them. To have raised over $440k for St Jude in just four years is something I’m incredibly proud of. These people work extremely hard and give up so much of their time and energy to earn the money they donate to this great cause that it is easy to see how much they care.
Looking ahead, where do you see ‘The Hunt’ and ‘The Marathon’ going in the future? Any plans for expansion or changes?
We’re excited for what’s coming in 2025! There are so many new ideas on the table, and while we won’t be able to execute on all of them, there’s a lot to look forward to.
Are there any notable collaborations or contributions from the community that have really made an impact on these events?
Absolutely. 2K and Gearbox have been supportive, and this year Beacn provided a care package for an awesome giveaway. But the real heroes are the 192 members of our fundraising team. Without them, none of this would be possible.
How has Gearbox supported or interacted with these events over time?
Gearbox and 2K have been long-time supporters, contributing in various ways throughout the years, even donating $25,000 directly to the campaign during one of the events! We’re always grateful for their involvement.
What does participation look like during the events? Have you seen growth in player numbers or community engagement?
Every year, we see more creators, more donations, and more viewers tuning in. The event continues to grow, which is amazing to witness.
What inspired you to choose St. Jude as the charity for these events?
St. Jude’s mission is deeply personal to me. When I was seven, a local children’s hospital saved my life. I’ve always admired St. Jude for their tireless work and global impact. Seeing creators like Professor Broman, Dr. Lupo, and Gothalion support them was the final push I needed to get involved back in 2017—and I’ve never looked back.
Since the beginning, how much have these events raised in total for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital?
Since 2021, the community has raised $442,727.64 for St. Jude. It’s an incredible achievement, and we’re not stopping anytime soon.
Can you tell us more about how the funds raised impact St. Jude Hospital What does the hospital do with the money to help children in need?
Every donation goes directly toward research, treatment, and ensuring that families never receive a bill for treatment, travel, housing, or food. St. Jude shares its discoveries with hospitals worldwide, so every breakthrough helps countless children globally.
What keeps you motivated to organize these events year after year?
The thought of how much impact we’re making. As a father of two, I empathize with parents who just want the best for their kids. Knowing we can bring hope to families going through unimaginably tough times keeps me going.
Do you think ‘The Hunt’ and ‘The Marathon’ are getting enough attention in the gaming community? What do you think could help them reach even more players?
There’s always room to grow, especially when it’s for a cause as important as this. We’re constantly looking for new ways to engage more players and viewers.
Any last words?
FOR THE KIDS!!!