The play is set in the time of our Prince Regent Luitpold, who years ago went hunting with the dignitaries of the community of Gombach. When a stately stag ran across their path, His Serene Highness put on his gun but missed the stag. The animal has been allowed to live ever since. To commemorate this hunting trip, the people of Gombach celebrate an annual festival at which the Prince Regent's target is shot. The Prince Regent never misses the chance to shoot in the competition and of course he wins every time. But the truth is that he is a lousy shot and the people of Gombach find it harder and harder not to beat him every year.