Cadet-Captain Mike's Guide to Basic Piracy
Part 3: Keywords and Abilities

• Schooner: this ship can pivot on its stern after moving. I've never found the need to use this ability. There are multiple possibilities for it - you can turn to bring more cannons into range for a shoot action, or swing your ship's side into the bow of an enemy to board and fire without letting it ram you. But a fast ship (S+L or better) almost always can get into any desired position just by moving. Fortunately, this doesn't seem to be an expensive keyword, so it's no big deal if if you never use it.

• Ghost ship: a ship that turns Ghostly cannot ram or be rammed, cannot board or be boarded, cannot dock, and can pass through anything on the map as it moves. It can still be shot, though, so this ability isn't much use for a fighter. But a gold-runner that can take shortcuts through islands has a big advantage. This tends to be an expensive keyword, so don't take unnecessary risks with it, but use it wisely and it can win the game for you.

• Broadside Attack: In my humble opinion, this ability is overrated. It's nice to be able to do one hit more than your ship's cannons are normally capable of, and it's a lot of fun when it works. But there are two problems with this ability. One is that you're gambling your ship's entire attack on one roll of the die, which has to count as a hit for the worst cannon on your ship. The other problem is that you don't control how many hits you score; if your 3-masted ship faces another 3-masted ship, a broadside hit will sink it, and if you wanted to explore it or tow it home, too bad. The one good thing about Broadside is that it ignores many defensive abilities, like the dreaded two-hits-to-remove-one-mast ability.

• Galley: This keyword is used exclusively by the Barbary Corsairs, and by a few of their ships that have been captured by other nations. Such a ship cannot pin or be pinned, does not remove a mast when it rams, gets the benefit of the Schooner keyword, and has a built-in Oarsman. This ability is useful only on a ship that does a lot of boarding. The fact that you can't be pinned means you can ram and board, then back off the next turn and do it again, or run for home with your gold. But it's hard to make money by boarding when the enemy chooses which treasure you get, and the inability to knock down a mast takes the fun out of ramming. This keyword gives with one hand and takes away with the other; it can actually be a handicap if you don't tailor your tactics to play to its strengths and avoid its weaknesses.

• Junk: This keyword means that your own masts don't block your line of fire. Normally, ships maneuver to fire all their cannons on the broadside; this ability means you don't have to do that, as long as all your cannons are in range. But if you're end-on to an enemy, chances are that your stern cannons will be out of range, so you don't gain much. One strong benefit is if your ship is pinned after ramming someone; most ships can fire only their foremost gun in such cases, but a Junk can blaze away with everything she's got.

• Turtle Ship: Turtle ships were a Korean invention, and the rules in this game do them justice. A turtle ship can't be boarded or lose a mast while one or more of its turtle panels are still in place; it also gets the same benefits as the Schooner keyword. This ability is defensive in nature. They tend to be fast, so they make good gold runners if you don't mind the small cargo capacity. You could put a Captain on one and use it as a secondary fighter, since they usually have good cannons and useful special abilities, but one cannon doesn't make much of a fighter. Their value is that, because they're so hard to hurt, the enemy will have to either ignore it or tie up ships far in excess of the turtle ship's point value in order to deal with it, which can only leave him weaker elsewhere on the battlefield.

• Fear: This is a really nasty ability if it works, because it can affect more than one enemy ship at once. It has a 33% chance of succeeding, but since a fighting ship will close to S range in most cases anyway, it greatly increases the power of that fighting ship, either by shutting down all of the target ship's crew or by reducing its move. But since it will fail two times out of three, it's definitely not something to bet all your gold on.

• Black Mark: If you use this crew's ability, it changes its faction, and the faction of the ship it's on, to the Cursed, and runs up its point cost by 1. This brings other ships into the Cursed fold, which is good for the Cursed, because they still don't have many ships to choose from. No other faction has this ability at this time; the closest they come is the "[faction] crew can serve on this ship" ability.

• Marine: This is one of the most powerful crew available, and for a cost of 7 points, it had better be good. You can place it on a ship to gain a 2S cannon, which is good. Better yet, it stacks with a Musketeer, so you can add 2 cannons to a ship if you're so inclined. Alternately, you can leave a Marine on an island, where it can use its cannon from any point on the island; as such, it serves as a mini-fort. It is now equivalent to a fort with a 2S cannon and the "two hits in the same shoot action are required to remove one of this ship's masts" ability. It's a decent value for the points, but if you leave it on an island, it will probably become a "fire magnet" for the enemy. The best use of Marines is if you expect the enemy to use ships from the faction that the Marine hates (almost every Marine hates somebody in this game), so you get a +1 bonus on its cannon rolls.

• Sea Monster: Frankly, most of these critters are overrated. But they're so cool, who can resist using them? The ability to move submerged, immune to all attacks, is a joyous thing (but the Mysterious Islands set includes ships that can attack underwater, which will spoil much of that joy). Because you can't put a Captain on them or repair damage to them, their primary use is ramming and boarding isolated ships that can't shoot back. Some have interesting special abilities, but many are way too slow to get into the battle, unless the battle comes to them.

• Submarine: They look neat, they can run under water, and they can ram while submerged. They are ramming machines with a secondary role of gold runners. They force an enemy to use at least one ship or crew that can shoot submerged ships, thus using up points that could be better spent on other things. In overall effect, they're like sea monsters - they do more harm by looking threatening than by actually hurting the enemy. Their size (2 or 3 masts) limits their combat ability, but unlike sea monsters, you can give them crew and repair battle damage, so they're more flexible overall.

• Longship: This keyword is full of attributes - two shots for each mast, a built-in Oarsman, the Schooner ability, +1 on boarding rolls, and the no-pin ability of Galleys. No one should be surprised that a Longship's point cost is high. They carry no more than three masts, so they aren't very durable in battle. You'll have to use them offensively to get your points' worth out of them; don't hold them back unless their special ability makes it worthwhile.

• Icebreaker: These ships are ugly, but they play a useful role in the battle. That is, they're useful if there are bunches of icebergs in the game. If not, the icebreaker will have to chase all over the map to find bergs to break. The ability to ignore other terrain is nice, but not useful in most circumstances. Try to use one that has a decent special ability, so she'll still be useful once all the nearby icebergs are gone.

• Titan: At present, this keyword applies only to giant crabs, which are certainly titanic - if you ram a ship with one outside claw, the ship will be out of range of some of its other claws. Their great size obscures the fact that titans are basically four-masted ships that can't repair battle damage. They can walk on islands, which can be fun; they can't turn in the middle of a move, which can be a handicap. As with sea monsters, it's the "cool" factor that counts the most.

• Sea Dragon: These are expensive, but they might be the ultimate snipers, with their go-anywhere move. Like sea monsters, they can't carry crew or do repair actions, so hand-to-hand fighting is not their style. The swoop attack does double damage if you can find a chance to use it. But, like a sea monster, their body parts will go down quickly under fire, and there goes 20 points' worth of ship.

• Catamaran: This keyword may come in handy for ships that expect to be attacked a lot; it can negate a cannon hit, and it protects against ramming and boarding. It's not much good for a fighting ship, because catamarans have only 2-3 masts, which isn't enough for a Grade-A fighter.

• Windcatcher: Ships with this keyword benefit from turning a lot - the greater the angle they turn, the faster they go, until a 180° turn gives a move of nearly L+L. It's easy to misuse such ships, however. Their super-long hull can make you forget that they have only three masts, and if you pick on someone bigger than you are, the Windcatcher won't help you.

• Flotilla: These are portable mini-forts with double-range cannons and fair resistance to damage. They're also cheap. Trouble is, they can't move without help, and they slow down any ship that's towing them, so it may be hard to get them into a useful position before the battle is over.

• Scorpion: This is a close-combat ability that knocks down a mast without having to ram. It looks ugly as sin, but if you like hand-to-hand combat with your ships, it can be a lot of fun.

• Switchblade: This looks even goofier than the Scorpion, and is more expensive. It lets you ram multiple foes without being pinned. Again, it's strictly for close-quarters work.

• Bombardier: Now this one, I like. You can either define it to be a double-range cannon, or the equivalent of a Firepot Specialist; both have their uses. The drawback is that, as soon as you roll a 1, the gun jams until you can repair it.

• Offensive Abilities
• Remove two masts with one hit: Who wouldn't want a ship that hits for double damage every time? This may be the ultimate fighting ability, and its cost is usually in line with what you get. Remember that your masts are just as vulnerable as any other ship's masts. Expect this ship to be ganged-up on. Get the first shot, and run for home if you start losing masts; you're worth much more alive than dead. If your cannons aren't at least 3-rank, you'll definitely want a Cannoneer or a "world-hater" crew (see below) to enhance your marksmanship; such crew are especially valuable on ships with this ability.

• +1 cannon rolls against [faction] ships: This ability's value depends on the faction it hates, and the enemies who use that faction. +1 against Pirates is probably the best, since everybody uses Pirate ships. A bonus against other factions will be worth it if you know your enemy and expect him/her to use ships from that faction, and if your ship can get into battle with those ships. This isn't an expensive ability, and is often useful.

• +1 cannon rolls against all non-[faction] ships: This one is called a "world-hater," it usually costs 4 points, and it's worth every penny if you put it on the right ship. That means a ship with many cannons (at least 4), so the crew's benefit shows up in as many cannon rolls as possible. If you can afford it, it will certainly repay its cost in battle.

• Ships within S get +1 on their cannon rolls: This is a very expensive ability, whether it's part of a ship or a crew. It's hard to get full value out of it; you'd have to stay very close to your fighting ship(s), which means they're bunched up in a group instead of spreading out to create the most mayhem possible. It also means the +1-giving ship never shoots or gathers gold; its only role is as a fleet auxiliary, and a darned costly one at that. The ability is good, but it's way overpriced.

• Double cannon range (6 to hit): I see this ability used on a ship that isn't set up as a fighter, taking a potshot at the enemy when he thought he was out of range. Most such ships have only a few masts, so the chance of a hit is slim, and the chance of significantly hurting the enemy slimmer still. But it isn't an expensive ability, so if you buy it and don't use it, you haven't lost much.

• +1 cannon rolls if it has a Captain: This ability is kind of a freebie; you'd probably use a Captain anyway, and you get a bonus for doing it. Thanks to WizKids' changing of the official rules, any crew that gives a move/shoot counts as a Captain and gives you the bonus.

• Once per turn, one hit kills a crew: If you do much fighting, you want this. Period. The point cost is low, and the value is very high. The only drawback is that the enemy chooses which crew gets killed, but chances are, any crew losses at all will hurt him big-time. This is one of the best values in the game.

• Defensive Abilities
• Two hits from the same shoot action to remove one mast: If you expect to get shot at, this is a surefire winner. It also makes Shipwrights useful, since one repair wipes out the effects of two hits. But it's expensive, and ships with this ability tend to be very slow. If you buy a ship with this ability, make sure it gets into battle and stays there, soaking up damage while it, and your other fighters, deal out damage in return.

• Ignore the first hit each turn as long as you have all masts: On a small ship, this is almost as good as the previous ability, and it costs less and doesn't slow its ship down. Again, a Shipwright can earn his keep on a ship like this.

• Cannons cannot be eliminated unless derelict: On a small ship, this ability is probably useless; a ship that loses a mast should run for home instead of getting off one more shot and then probably getting sunk. On a big ship, it's better, but it quickly becomes expensive. The ultimate example is the grotesquely expensive HMS Dreadnought, at 26 points. But you don't dare leave even one mast standing on the Dreadnought, or she'll hit back with all five cannons. Ouch.

• Cannot be shot by L cannons: This sounds better than it is. Immunity to cannons is good, make no mistake. But more than half of the cannons in the game are S range, so, depending on your enemy's choice of ships, you may get no benefit at all from this ability. It's also no good against S cannons that have been boosted to L range by another ability. It's good against the many big ships that carry only L cannons, and it's great if you want to go toe-to-toe with most forts.

• Cannot be shot within S range: On the other hand, this ability is wonderful. You can gain immunity from any cannon, just by snuggling up against it. Ramming and boarding become much safer, because you won't take the enemy's cannons in your face in retaliation. Best of all, only a minority of the cannons in the game can hurt you, and only within the narrow band between S range and L range. This ability isn't cheap, but it's a superb value for a fighter or a boarder.

• Moving Abilities
• Rob enemy home island: When you steal the enemy's treasure, you not only make yourself richer, you make the enemy poorer. What's not to love about an ability like this? The main problem is that most enemy home islands have lots of enemy ships in their neighborhood, and chances are you won't make it back alive. Another problem is that most ships with this ability are too slow to pull it off. Finally, if you do succeed, your enemy will be on guard, so you won't succeed at this caper more than once. This sounds like a fine ability, but in practice, it isn't that great.

• Move after shooting: The official WizKids ruling is that such a ship, with a Captain on board, can move and shoot, or shoot and move, but not both in the same turn. This makes the ability grossly overpriced, but that's the rule. Without the Captain, it's a lot more limited, since there may not always be something to shoot at that will give you the free move action. But, for example, you can use it to shoot down an enemy's masts, then use the move to ram and board him in his weakened state. It's not quite as good as a Captain, but a clever player will find uses for it.

• Boarding Abilities
• +1 on boarding rolls: You may find this useful, or you may not. It lets a small ship fight boarding actions on even terms with slightly larger ships, or turns an even battle into one that's slanted your way; these are good. The trouble is that you typically get so little out of a boarding action that it isn't worth trying. An oddity in the rules is that this ability's cost varies by faction. The English crew (Lynch's Noose) costs 2 points, the Pirate crew (Bloody Jake) costs 3, and the American crew (Carl Smith) costs 4. What's up with this? 2 points is a fair price; 4 is excessive.

• Cannot be pinned: Obviously, this is only of value if your ship does a lot of ramming, with or without boarding. If the ship survives the enemy's gunfire, the ability to freely sail away may be useful. But the enemy may not cooperate by allowing your ship to do any ramming, or he/she may blow the snot out of you if you pick on the wrong ship. This isn't the most useful ability in the book, unless you plan to do a lot of ramming and boarding.

• Take one random treasure from any ship you touch: This is better, much better, than boarding. You run no risk of losing anything off your own ship, and the enemy doesn't get to dump his 1-point coins on you, since the treasure is chosen at random. The cost is a bit high, but one good stolen treasure will pay for it.

• Take over any derelict you explore: Towing a derelict home is a long, slow process that ties up your ship for many turns. But not with this ability; explore the derelict, and bang! You're both home. Ships with this ability tend to be slow and have poor cannons, so stealing derelicts is about all they're good for. And they need another ship to make the enemy derelict in the first place; you'll usually have to tailor your entire fleet and strategy around a ship like this if you want to use her. But stealing a ship from the enemy and making her your own, along with any crew she's carrying, is just too much fun not to try at least once. And if the ship was full of gold when you snatched her, ring the cash register and sail on - your ship probably just paid for itself.

• Set-Up Abilities
• 5 extra points to build your fleet: This crew has no drawbacks except the risk of giving an enemy 5 gold in ransom if he/she captures this crew's ship and tows it home. 5 points can buy some useful additions to your fleet - a Captain and a Helmsman, or a cheap ship for gold-running, or one of many named crew, just to give a few examples. If you have such a crew, by all means use it.

• Use another faction's crew: The value of this ability depends on the size of your collection. If you don't have many crew to choose from, the ability to cross-assign another faction's crew may be a life-saver. If you've collected 'em all, you'll probably have the crew you need for your chosen faction, and this ability won't be of much use. An exception is for ships from the not-so-popular factions like Barbary or Jade, who don't have a huge variety of crew available. These ships can always use an assist from another faction's crew list.

• Add a 2-point crew: You have to pay 3 points for a 2-point crew. Why would you want to do this? One word: flexibility. The ability to pull a Shipwright or a Cannoneer out of your hat at the opportune moment may save an expensive ship from a trip to the bottom, or turn an almost-victory into a complete one. Some named crew cost 2 points as well. This crew is something of a gamble that the right situation will arise, modified by the fact that any of several right situations will suffice.

• Reduce crew costs on this ship by 1: If you're looking to stuff a ship with crew and make it a killer, this crew is the way to go. It usually costs 2 points, so it's not worth doing if you don't put at least 3 more crew on the ship. It doesn't actually reduce the point cost of crew, it just lets you sidestep the limit on crew costs compared to ship cost.

• Other Abilities
• Sacrifice a crew to gain an extra action: People who use factions with these "sac captain" crew, love them. Instead of relying on the dice to give their ship an extra action, they take it whenever they want it, as long as they have a crew to kill. Clever players will throw a few Oarsmen on a ship with this captain, since they're cheap and the first one doesn't take up a cargo space. The point cost is reasonable, considering the flexibility you're getting.

• Reroll one die roll/turn: This is another very useful talent, but you have to pair it with another ability to gain its full usefulness. Examples are ships or crew with the SAT ability (see below). Another use for this ability is on a ship whose guns take out two masts with one hit; a second chance at a hit like that is worth whatever you spend on it. A ship that does a lot of boarding can probably benefit from a reroll as well. If you're just using it as a glorified Cannoneer, you're not getting your money's worth.

• Same action twice (SAT): This ability is great when it works, which is only 1/3 of the time with normal dice luck. It's most effective on a ship with a Captain; it lets you move, shoot, move, and shoot, all in one turn. A double move is good for a swift gold-runner, and a double repair can get you back into the battle in record time. But 2/3 of the time, it doesn't happen. If you can pair this ability with the ability to reroll one die roll each turn, now your odds are 50-50. This isn't great, but it's a lot better than it was. If it happens at the right time, it can turn the game around for you; if it doesn't, you've wasted points on nothing. Do you feel lucky? Well, do you, matey?

• Second action: this is even more flexible than the SAT, because the second action doesn't have to be the same as the first. For instance, a damaged ship could move away from the action, then use its second action to Repair with a Shipwright. The odds of success are the same as for the SAT, but the point cost is higher.

• Exchange treasure on a wild island: Swapping a 1-point gold coin for something better has to be a winning tactic. Of course, you might get another 1-pointer, so there are no guarantees. The official WizKids FAQ's say you can use this ability to get rid of a bad unique treasure, and even put it where someone else will find it; this would be a wonderfully dirty trick to play. A fighting ship, of course, will have no use for this ability; it's strictly for gold-running. This is a good ability to have.

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