Bandit loot not spawning

[Ceir]

As near as I can tell, the coins and scalps dropping from bandits are part of a script that triggers with the "coin purse spills out..." echo after they die.

There's a minor issue with this script, namely it doesn't trigger if the bandit bleeds out before anyone can land the deathblow. Mind, this has only happened to me once after dozens of dead bandits, so it can't be terribly common, but it does look like a bug.

Your pierce nearly bisects a bandit's left leg.
A bandit's severed left leg falls to the ground!
A bandit is mortally wounded, and will die soon, if not aided.
A bandit is DEAD!
You see nothing in the corpse of a bandit.

[Harroghty]

This is not a bug.

The program which creates coins on a dead bandit is called a death program. These activate upon the death of a mobile according to the builder lesson, but really only activate upon the slaying of the mobile. i.e. when someone kills the mobile.

As you said, it's not really a big deal; you get paid when you kill the bandit, not when it dies on its own. The issue does not seem worth the effort despite the fact that there are a few ways to work around the technicality of the death program. They each create their own issues.

[Ceir]

Huh. That might be a hole if the justice system in your game's help files is still active.

"You killed him!"
"I did not, he just bled to death after I stabbed him repeatedly."
"I've heard enough--Not Guilty!"

[Mele]

If someone were to deliberately do that it would be code abuse.

However, unluckily for that idea the justice system will jail you for hits alone when witnessed. :)