Games PC PIRATES GOLD-THE CAPITAN S BROADSHEET User Manual

INSTRUCTION

®

MANUAL

STRATEGY

®

THE CAPTAIN’S BROADSHEET

THE TECHNICAL SUPPLEMENT FOR IBM AND

COMPATIBLE COMPUTERS

HOW TO USE THE BROADSHEET

The

Captain's Broadsheet

the “Technical Supplement;” it describes how
loaded and run on your machine. The second part, “Playing

Pirates! Gold

ALL PLAYERS SHOULD READ THE “TECHNICAL SUPPLEMENT”
BEFORE LOADING PIRATES! GOLD.

,” describes how to play the game on your machine.

is divided into two parts: the first part is

Pirates! Gold

PART I: TECHNICAL SUPPLEMENT

REQUIRED EQUIPMENT

COMPUTER

This program requires an IBM 386, 16 MHz, or better, or a com­puter 100% compatible with one of these models. The computer
must use an 80386 microprocessor or better.

DISPLAY

This program requires a color monitor with an IBM VGA or
SVGA graphics system. If you are using a compatible graphics
card or monitor, it must be 100% compatible with the above.

We have attempted to make the installation and running of this
game as “user friendly” as possible, requiring little or no work from
you; however, given the wide multitude of machines, peripherals

is

and software in operation, this software might conflict with certain
systems or configurations of systems. Fortunately, this is rare, and it
is usually quite easy to fix.

The second section, “Playing
face” for the game — that is, how the game's controls work. Read
this while you are reading “Book I” of the Instruction Manual.

Pirates! Gold

” describes the “inter-

CONTROLS

The program can be run entirely from keyboard, though we

highly recommend that you employ a mouse.

DISK DRIVES

Pirates! Gold must be loaded onto a hard disk. It requires

around 18-20 MBs of free space.

DOS

You must have IBM PC-DOS or Microsoft MS-DOS, version

3.1 or higher.

i

MEMORY REQUIREMENTS

Pirates! Gold

required for its high-resolution graphics. The program requires
about 2 Mb of available memory of any type.

For more details on DOS extenders, see “Advanced Technical

Information,” below.

uses a “DOS extender” to access the memory

INSTALLATION OPTIONS

When you install
you certain questions, such as what type of sound you prefer.
After installation, you are not required to answer the questions
again; your configuration is automatically loaded when you run
the program.

However, if you later want to modify the configuration
(say, if you upgrade your sound system), you must go to the
MPS\PIRATES subdirectory and type “INSTALL” followed
by Return/Enter. This allows you to modify the configuration
as desired.

SOUND OPTIONS

During installation, the program will offer you the following
sound choices:

No Sound: This turns off all sound throughout the game.

IBM Internal Speaker: This setting supports the internal speak-

er standard on most IBM and compatible computers.

AdLib: Use this option if you have an AdLib or compatible
sound card installed in your computer.

Covox: Use this option if you have a Covox or compatible
sound card installed.

Sound Blaster (original): Use this option if you have an origi­nal Sound Blaster or compatible sound card.

Sound Blaster Pro (early): Use this option if you have a
Sound Blaster Pro (early model) or compatible sound card in
your computer.

Sound Blaster Pro (later): Use this option if you have a Sound
Blaster Pro (later model) or compatible sound card in your computer.

Pirates! Gold

, the installation program asks

Pro Audio Spectrum: Use this option if you have a Pro Audio

Spectrum or compatible sound card in your computer.

Pro Audio Spectrum Plus or 16: Use this option if you have a

Pro Audio Spectrum Plus or 16 sound card or compatible sound
card in your computer.

Gold Sound Standard: Use this option if you have a Gold

Sound Standard or compatible sound card in your computer.

Roland MT-32/CM-23L Synthesizer: Use this option if you

have a Roland MT-32 or compatible MIDI module. (Note: These
synthesizers have been designed to work with an MPU-401 or
compatible MIDI interface.)

Roland LAPC-1 Midi Board: Use this option if you have a

Roland LAPC-1 or compatible sound card installed.

VIDEO OPTIONS

Pirates! Gold

mats: standard VGA format and Super VGA (SVGA) format.
During installation, the program will attempt to determine which
is the most appropriate of the two formats to install.

Super VGA mode presents the pictures with more colors – 256
colors versus 16 colors for standard VGA. However, you need
special equipment to access SVGA graphics. To play

in SVGA mode, you need a SVGA monitor and SVGA

Gold

video card, and possibly a VESA driver. If the install program
detects these things, it will automatically install the game in
SVGA mode. If it cannot find an SVGA card, it will alert you and
ask you if you wish to install in VGA or SVGA mode. If you have
the necessary equipment and programs, by all means choose
SVGA mode. If not, choose VGA mode.

For more details on VGA and SVGA modes, see “Advanced
Technical Information,” below.

will install and run in either of two video for-

Pirates!

ii

COPY PROTECTION

Pirates! Gold

can install the game files from the original disks to a hard disk,
without the need to access the original disks. These files are nor­mal in all respects, and should not cause problems when back­ing up, restoring, or optimizing a hard disk.

However, during play, the program asks you a question to
ensure ownership of the manuals. During an early voyage, you
are asked to identify a pirate flag, and must compare the on­screen illustration with the illustrations in the latter half of the

Pirates! Gold

rapidly become unplayable.

MicroProse regrets that continuing casual and organized soft­ware piracy requires that we maintain this minimal form of copy
protection. We have done our best to design the copy protection
to minimize intrusion upon legitimate owners.

has no on-disk copy protection. This means you

manual. If you are unsuccessful, the game will

LOADING AND RUNNING PIRATES!

GOLD

1. Boot Your Machine: Turn on your machine and wait until
the “>” prompt appears. If you are planning to run this game in
SVGA mode, make sure that you have a VESA driver loaded as
well if necessary -- see the section “Video Options” above for
more details.

2. Load the Program: Go to the MPS directory with the ”CD“ DOS
command (normally, “CD\MPS” does this). Then type “PIRATESG”
followed by Return/Enter. The program will begin to load.

ADVANCED TECHNICAL INFORMATION

The following information may be useful if you have trouble
loading or running
program's memory requirements; the second section deals with
video cards and drivers.

For more technical information, see the “README.TXT” files
on the game-disks.

Pirates! Gold

. The first section deals with the

MEMORY REQUIREMENTS AND DOS EXTENDERS

Pirates! Gold

required for its high resolution graphics. A DOS extender com­bines all DOS memories (conventional, EMS or XMS) into a
common pool for programs to use. Usually a computer with 3
Mb or more of total memory (RAM) will have sufficient memory
available to run
is being used for RAM disks or disk caches, you will have to
reconfigure your machine to have 2 Mb of memory available for

Pirates! Gold

cache program from your “config.sys”, thus freeing up the mem­ory it was using for use by

uses a “DOS extender” to access the memory

Pirates! Gold

to run. (For example, you could remove your disk

. However, if a lot of your memory

Pirates! Gold

.)

DOS EXTENDER COMPATIBILITY PROBLEMS

DOS extenders are compatible with a wide array of DOS
memory managers (HiMem, EMM386, QEMM386 or 386MAX)
and their config switches. However, there are a few specific con­figurations that can cause problems. These are identified below,
along with a suggested fix.

QEMM with NOEMS: replace NOEMS with FRAME=NONE

386MAX with NOFRAME: replace NOFRAME with EMS=0

Refer to the README.TXT file in the installation program for
the latest information on configuration problems and solutions.

VIDEO CARDS AND VESA DRIVERS

Pirates! Gold

present its artwork as richly as possible. It will run in either 256
color mode (SVGA) or 16 color mode (VGA), depending upon
your video adapter. Normally, the install program will automati­cally select the correct mode for you. However, if you run into
problems, the following information may be helpful.

Of the two modes, the SVGA 256-color mode is to be pre­ferred, as it allows more graceful shadings with up to 256 colors
in a single picture. The game is shipped with 256-color art and
the install program will attempt to configure the game for this
mode on your computer. However, this mode requires a Super
VGA video card.

uses high-resolution graphics (640 by 480) to

iii

If instead you have a VGA video card,
16-color mode. The install program will detect the VGA card
and at install time convert all of the artwork to 16-color art. This
can take some time – up to an hour on some computers. The
conversion of artwork is a one-way process. Should you later
upgrade your video system to SVGA, you must reinstall the game
from the distribution disks to switch to the 256-color mode.

Pirates! Gold

For
to identify your SVGA card.
the popular SVGA cards on the market, and will automatically
run on those systems. Should you own a video card that we do
not support, or for some reason the program cannot identify,
there is still hope.
the VESA standard.

to run in the 256-color mode, it must be able

Pirates! Gold

Pirates! Gold

Pirates! Gold

will recognize most of

is also programmed to support

will run in

VESA DRIVERS

VESA is a standard format for programming SVGA cards. It
requires that a “VESA driver” be loaded on your system before
using any of the high-resolution SVGA modes. Each different
SVGA card requires a custom VESA driver which is usually
shipped on the diskette that came with your SVGA card. If you
can't find a VESA driver for your SVGA card, contact either your
SVGA card manufacturer or your computer supplier.

To find out what brand SVGA card you have, reboot your com­puter and note the screen display. Almost all SVGA cards will
identify themselves at the beginning of a reboot. Check the
“README.TXT” file for a list of SVGA card manufacturers and
phone numbers. For your convenience, following is a list of many
popular SVGA card brands and their VESA driver file names:

SVGA CARDS VESA FILE NAMES

APPIAN apvesa.exe
ATI vvesa.com
C&T vesa452.com
CIRRUS crusvesa.com
EVEREX vesa.com
GENOA vesa.com
OAK 67vesa.com
ORCHID orchdvsa.com
PARADISE vesa.exe
SIGMA sigvesa.com
STB stb-vesa.com
TECMAR vgavesa.com
TRIDENT vesa.exe
VIDEO7 v7vesa.com

To load a VESA driver, first copy it from your video diskette into
some convenient subdirectory in your path. Then type in its name,
followed by Return/Enter -- same as you would for any other com­mand or program name. The VESA driver is now loaded until you
reboot your computer. As a convenience, you could add this VESA
command to your “autoexec.bat” so that it would be automatically
loaded each time you reboot. For example, if you had a Video7
video card, just enter “v7vesa” on a separate line of your “autoex­ec.bat,” AFTER your path command.

If you have an SVGA card that
nize and you don't have a VESA driver, you can still run the
game in 16 color mode. Just say YES when the install program
asks if you want to run in 16 color mode. This will use one of
the standard VGA video modes that your SVGA card supports.
If you later acquire a VESA driver, you can reinstall the pro­gram in 256-color mode.

Pirates! Gold

does not recog-

iv

PART II: GAME CONTROLS

You can play

Pirates! Gold

using a keyboard or a mouse in conjunction with a keyboard (we recommend the latter).

GAME CONTROLS

KEY

ESC = Escape
LMB = left mouse button
RMB = right mouse button
MB = either mouse button
RET = RETURN/ENTER key

ARROWs = ARROW keys

GENERAL CONTROLS

Pause/End Pause........................................................P key

Quit to DOS.............................................................Q key

Change sound ..........................................................V key

(switch between full sound, sound effects only,
and no sound)

Go to Captain's Cabin........................................Space Bar

Exit a Screen ................................................................ESC

MENU CONTROLS

Move Cursor/Highlight...........................ARROWs; mouse

Make Selection...................................................RET; LMB

MAIN MENU

Load Game Screen

Pick load game slot ....................Up and Down ARROWs

and press RET; click on

slot with mouse

FENCING

Pick a sword ..........................................ARROWS, mouse

Mouse Control Numeric Pad

789

High

Medium

456

123

Low

Attack Parry Parry Attack Parry Parry

& Retreat & Retreat

Mouse Controls

Advance ......Choose an attack line (low, medium or high)

and press LMB or RMB

Thrust......................Choose an attack line and press RMB

Slash........................Choose an attack line and press LMB

Parry ..............Choose a parry line and press LMB or RMB

Parry and Retreat...............Choose a parry and retreat line

and press LMB or RMB

Flee the battle ..........................Parry and retreat until your

pirate reaches the far right

edge of the screen

v

Cursor Controls

The cursor controls work best if you have a numeric keypad

on your computer (see illustration, above).

Advance.......................................Press an attack number:

7 (high), 4 (medium), 1 (low)

Thrust................................Press an attack number: 7, 4, 1

Slash ............................................Press Shift and an attack

number: 7, 4, 1

Parry.....................................Press a parry number: 8, 5, 2

Parry and Retreat.............................Press a parry & retreat

number: 9, 6, 3

Flee the battle ..........................Parry and retreat until your

pirate reaches the far right

edge of the screen

IN TOWN

Enter a Building...........................ARROWs and RET; LMB

Leave town

By sea...........................Pick ship icon, hit RET or LMB

By land .................................Pick trail, hit RET or LMB

Check City Status ............Pick city name on top of screen,

hit RET or LMB

Visit Captain's Cabin..........................................Space Bar

Merchant/Plunder Screens

Select commodity ...............Up/Down ARROWs; click on

commodity's icon with mouse

Take/Buy commodity...........Right ARROW, click on right

pointer of Exchange Bar

with mouse

Leave/Sell commodity ....................Left ARROW, click on

left pointer of Exchange Bar

with mouse

Exchange commodity

quickly ...................................Hold down ARROW key or

hold-click mouse button

on left or right pointer

of Exchange bar

Exit Merchant/Plunder

Screen...............................Press ESC; Press Down ARROW

until “Done” is highlighted then

press RET; click mouse on “Done”

Select Ship Screen

(Sell or repair ship at shipwright; select ship

for battle; select ship to abandon)

Select Ship ............Pick ship with ARROW keys and press

RET; click on ship with mouse

Exit Screen.............Press ESC; Press ARROW until pointer

in lower right of screen is highlighted then

press RET; click mouse on pointer

CAPTAIN'S CABIN

Go to Captain's Cabin.........................From most screens,

press Space Bar

Exit Captain's Cabin...............Press ESC; choose the boots

Choose a feature...........Left and Right ARROWs and RET;

click on a feature with LMB

Exit from a feature.....Press ESC; click on “Exit” or “Done”

Map of the Caribbean

Pick city on map.........................Click on city with mouse

Pick city on city-list..............Up and Down ARROWs and

press RET; Click on city-name

with mouse

Exit Screen ............................Press ESC; click on “DONE”

Save Game Screen

Pick save game slot..............Up and Down ARROWs and

press RET; click on slot

with mouse

Assign Name........................Type in any save game name

you want, press RET

Exit without saving..............................................Press ESC

vi

AT SEA

Turn left......................................Left ARROW key or LMB

Turn right ................................Right ARROW key or RMB

Raise sails ................................................Up ARROW key

Lower sails..........................................Down ARROW key

Visit Captain's Cabin..........................................Space Bar

Pause game ...............................................................P key

Turbo mode...............................................................T key

Ship Battles

Turn left......................................Left ARROW key or LMB

Turn right ................................Right ARROW key or RMB

Raise sails ................................................Up ARROW key

Lower sails..........................................Down ARROW key

Fire Cannon ...............................................RET, Space Bar

Pause game ...............................................................P key

ON LAND

Move character ...............................ARROW keys, mouse

Search for treasure/lost relative..................................S key

Visit Captain's Cabin..........................................Space Bar

Turbo mode...............................................................T key

LAND COMBAT SCREEN

Select unit to move ..................................TAB key, mouse

Select all units...............................A key; TAB key until all

are highlighted

Move unit ........................................ARROW keys, mouse

SPECIFIC CONTROL NOTES

THE OPENING SEQUENCE

Title Screens and Credits:

Press a mouse button or RET to quit the opening sequence and

go directly to the Main Menu.

Character Creation Screen:

To choose a nationality, pick one of the flags at the top of the

screen (use either your mouse or ARROW keys).

To pick a special ability, pick one of the icons at the bottom

edge of the screen.

To pick a difficulty level, use your mouse to click on the name
of the difficulty displayed, or cycle through the difficulty levels
with the ARROW keys.

To assign your pirate a name, type in the name on the key­board. Hit RET when you are finished.

FENCING

Novice players may want to fence using the keyboard controls
rather than the mouse, as the keyboard controls are somewhat
easier to master.

TURBO MODE

Turbo mode is a special feature allowing you to sail and
march more rapidly than you do normally.

If you are sailing a long distance through relatively clear water
(ocean with few shoals, that is), you can press the “T” button to
go into Turbo mode. In Turbo mode, the entire game speeds up:
your ship moves faster, clouds move faster, time passes rapidly.
Your ship is harder to control, so be wary about going into
Turbo mode if you're sailing through dangerous waters.

If you get a ship encounter, enter a city, get a report from the
Sailing Master, or go to the Captain's Cabin, Turbo mode turns
off automatically. You can't go into Turbo mode during battle.

If you have a party moving on land, you also use Turbo mode
to move (and make time pass) more rapidly.

vii

PROBLEMS?

The latest notes regarding this program and problems with
“compatibles” can be found on disk, in an ASCII file named
“README.TXT” You can read this file by using a text editor or
standard DOS commands such as “TYPE README.TXT.”

If the program does not load or run correctly, turn off your
entire machine and restart it. Make sure DOS and
are the only programs loading into memory (except for mouse
drivers, EMS handlers, disk caches, or RAM disks).

If you continue to have trouble, your copy may be bad; try rein-

Pirates! Gold

stalling
this disk to boot your computer “clean.”

If the game doesn’t work, try installing the
another computer. If the game works in another computer, then
your computer has compatibility problems (i.e., some aspect is
not entirely IBM compatible). You may also try a different
machine speed, or a keyboard, or a sound option. Sometimes an
alternate configuration works.

; make a boot disk while you‘re at it, and use

Pirates! Gold

Pirates! Gold

in

viii

PIRATES! GOLD – RULES OF PLAY

WELCOME TO PIRATES! GOLD

The stars of new Kings and Emperors are rising in Europe. New
opportunities abound for the ambitious man. There are reputa­tions to be made, fortunes to be won, beautiful women to wed,
and with royal favor, you may even gain a patent of nobility!
“Duke of the Realm” has a fine sound to it, does it not? These are
days when glory and fame can come from a humble beginning.

Nowhere are the opportunities greater than in the Spanish
Main — the Caribbean Sea — the crossroads of the Atlantic.
Here, the Great Powers engage in an unending struggle for
dominance of these strategic waters. Here, the displaced of
the Old World seek to wrest a living from the New. Here, the

THE INSTRUCTIONS

THE CAPTAIN’S BROADSHEET

The

Captain’s Broadsheet

loading instructions for

Pirates! Gold

how
play-hints, and answers to commonly asked questions about
this game.

operates on your machine. It also contains

is a separate booklet contains

Pirates! Gold

. In addition, it describes

seas are filled with rich merchantmen, ungainly cargo fluytes,
and — the greatest prize of all — Spanish galleons, slow and
fat, heavily-laden with Spanish gold!

TO BEGIN

To begin your adventure, load your game according to
the instructions in the
is loading, read the “Game Controls” section of the

Broadsheet

your machine.

for instructions on how

Captain’s Broadsheet

Pirates Gold!

. While the game

operates on

THIS MANUAL

This manual is divided into four sections:

Book I provides comprehensive information on how to
play, as well as some historical background.

Book II provides more details on the various events which
take place during a voyage. It also discusses your goals and the
treasures awaiting a heroic and lucky Captain in the Caribbean.

Book III provides specific details on the ships of the period,
the famous pirate expeditions, and the political and economic
situation in each of the six eras.

The City Gazetteer lists and describes the cities of

Pirates! Gold.

2

BOOK I: INSTRUCTIONS TO CAPTAINS

3

A WORD ABOUT YOUR GOALS

From humble beginnings, you are seeking to make your fortune in the West Indies. Eventually, you hope to retire to a life of wealth,
ease, and high status. When you retire, your status is determined by your personal fortune, your rank, your lands, your reputation, the
wife you marry (if any), and whatever especially pleasing events befall you during the course of your adventures.

You can retire — and end the game — at a bank in a city after you divide up the plunder from the current voyage. At this point
you’ll learn how well you did in the game. If you are dissatisfied with your success and your health permits, you can leave retirement
and take up adventuring again. As you play, you may wish to make a few “trial retirements” to see how this works. See “Book II” for
more information on retirement.

THE MAIN MENU

To begin playing Pirates! Gold, install and run the game according to the instructions in the
number of opening screens. These will be followed by the “Main Menu” screen which contains the following options: “Start a New
Career,” “Continue a Saved Game,” “Command a Famous Expedition” and ”Return to DOS“.These options are described below.

CONTINUE A SAVED GAME

This option allows you to resume any game in progress. See

Captain’s Broadsheet

the
save games.

COMMAND A FAMOUS EXPEDITION

A famous expedition is a “short game” where you command
just one expedition. In a famous expedition you often start large,
with many men and ships under your command; however, the
expedition ends when you divide the plunder.

Each expedition recreates the exploits of a famous — or infa­mous — historical pirate. They are not for the novice or the faint
of heart: doing as well as the historical model can be a very chal­lenging task indeed! Don’t choose this option for your first few
games; instead, you should start a new career.

START A NEW CAREER

This begins a complete adventure, from your arrival in the
New World to your well-earned retirement. This is the “standard”
game, and can continue for quite some time.

When you first play

Pirates! Gold

, you should start a new career.

The famous expeditions and the events upon which they are based

are described in the “Famous Expeditions” section of this manual.

Captain’s Broadsheet

for instructions on how to load and

. If all is well, you’ll see a

4

SELECTING AN HISTORICAL TIME PERIOD

After you have chosen a new career on the Main Menu, a new menu appears. On the “Select an Historical Time Period” menu, you

choose when your pirate’s career will begin. (For your first game, choose “The Buccaneer Heroes — 1660.”)

The historical time period has a large effect upon the game. The Caribbean and the
Spanish Main were a changing environment. As military and economic power waxed
and waned, new colonies appeared and old cities declined. The region gradually
changed from total Spanish dominion in the 1560s to a wild frontier for European colo­nization in the early 1600s, and, by the arrival of the 18th Century, to a cosmopolitan
nexus in a global economy.

This menu appears only when you begin a new career. It doesn’t appear when you
play a famous expedition; in an expedition, the time period is already set. When you
continue a saved game, you have already chosen the time period.

Each of these historical periods is described briefly below; for more detailed descrip­tions, see the section “The Historical Periods.”

THE SILVER EMPIRE — 1560

This is the earliest period in the game. In this era, the Spanish
Empire is at its peak. All the colonies in the Caribbean — with
one lone exception — are Spanish. All the major ports and trade
are controlled by Spain. However, Spain’s profit has been so
great that other Europeans are attracted to steal and plunder
whatever Spain cannot protect.

Because of Spain’s great power, this is an extremely challeng­ing era, and should not be attempted by novices.

MERCHANTS AND SMUGGLERS — 1600

This era is very similar to “The Silver Empire,” but Spain is slight­ly weaker. A few abortive non-Spanish colonial ventures have
begun, but the Caribbean remains essentially Spanish. Another
change is the predominance of the Dutch smuggling trade.

Like the 1560s, this era is extremely challenging and should
not be attempted by novices.

THE NEW COLONISTS — 1620

This era sees the first successful colonies founded by the enemies
of Spain, while Spanish power continues to decline. With these
colonies, prospects for piracy and privateering are improved.

Life is fairly challenging for would-be pirates and privateers.

WAR FOR PROFIT — 1640

This era is the heyday for small, independent buccaneers. The
Spanish military and economy are at their nadir, while new
European colonies are blooming throughout the Antilles.

This period is a Golden Age — literally! — for the independent
and resourceful sailor. It is an enjoyable era for players of all skills.

THE BUCCANEER HEROES — 1660

These decades are the peak of swashbuckling adventure in the
Caribbean. Spanish wealth is reappearing, but their military power
remains a joke. European colonies and ports abound, fortune­hunting sailors crowd the taverns, searching for lucky Captains.

This classic age makes piracy a pleasure for players of every skill
level. It is the suggested level for your first games of

Pirates! Gold

.

PIRATES’ SUNSET — 1680

This era is the last for Caribbean pirate adventuring. European
nations now take seriously events in the Caribbee. Navy war­ships are on patrol, Letters of Marque are harder to find, gover­nors are less tolerant. Enjoy this era while you can, for it is the
end of an age.

This period is somewhat tougher than the previous eras. It may
be a bit too difficult for novices, but other players will find it
quite interesting and challenging.

5

CREATING YOUR CHARACTER

After you select a historical period for your game, you then create your character, deciding upon name, nationality and special profi­ciency. In addition, you must set the difficulty of the game itself.

CHOOSING YOUR NATIONALITY

In most scenarios, you can choose one of four nationalities:
English, French, Dutch, and Spanish. The choice of nationality has
important effects upon play: where you start, what ship(s) you have,
the size of your crew, your initial wealth and reputation, and so forth.

Your nationality also helps determine your relations with the
various cities of the Spanish Main — if you are English, for
instance, and England goes to war with Spain, Spanish towns
will tend to be wary of you.

However, your actions during your career speak louder than
your nationality: if you please a nation, a governor may reward
you. If you anger a governor — even a governor of your own
nationality — he may order his harbor forts to fire on you!

Finally, note that your nationality does not require you to support
that nation during your career — many of France’s admirals during
the 1680s were Dutch buccaneers!

SPECIAL SCENARIO NOTES

The Dutch nationality is not available in 1560. At that time,
the Dutch were still a part of the Spanish Empire.

Your nationality is pre-chosen when you play an historical sce­nario. That is, if you play the “Battle of San Juan de Ulua,” you will
be English, like the actual historical figure, John Hawkins.

NATIONALITIES

English

English is often a useful nationality. This nation supports privateers
in the 16th Century, and is just as generous in the 17th.

There are few friendly bases for you in early scenarios, but in later
scenarios England has a number of fine ports, particularly Port Royale
in Jamaica and St. Kitts in the Caribbee Islands (Lesser Antilles).

French

French is the classic nationality for pirates. Although this
nation provides less support to its sons overseas, it also gives
them more independence, more freedom of action.

France has a number of tiny settlements on Florida and in the
Bahamas in early scenarios; during middle and later scenarios,
cities on west Hispaniola and Tortuga are ideal pirate bases.

Dutch

This is an exciting and different nationality. Except in the
1620s, the Dutch sailed as traders to the Caribbean, not as war­riors. Of course, once in the Caribbean, more than a few supple­mented their earnings in legitimate activities with more violent
and profitable pursuits. As a rule, Dutch traders tried to stay on
the good side of England and France, although this was not
always possible.

Character Creation Screen

English Flag

Fencing Wit & Charm Navigation

French Flag

Difficulty Level

Spanish Flag

Gunnery Medicine

Dutch Flag

6

You cannot choose Dutch as your nationality in the 1560s. In
other early periods, the city of Curacao, off the coast of South
America, is a major Dutch port. In later scenarios, the Dutch
have possessions scattered across the islands of the Caribbean;
St. Martin and St. Eustatius, two particularly wealthy cities, lie on
the northern boundary of the Lesser Antilles.

Spanish

This is the most difficult nationality to play. As a Spanish rene­gade, you start in a weak position, although in 1680 you can
play the interesting role of a Costa Guarda — the Spanish
Caribbean coast guard who often acted like pirates themselves!

YOUR NAME

Use any name you wish.

SPECIAL ABILITIES

This choice determines your special skill. This doesn’t much
matter in Apprentice level, where all tasks are rather easy; how­ever, at the higher levels, you will want to be proficient in the
area which gives you the most trouble.

Fencing

You are well trained and have great reflexes, making your
opponents seem slow and unskilled by comparison.

Navigation

Your fine grasp of sea and sail makes your ship travel smoothly
and rapidly across the often-treacherous Caribbean.

Gunnery

You are highly-skilled with a cannon, and you’ve passed some of
that skill onto your crew. Your ship’s broadsides are more likely to
hit their target.

Wit and Charm

Your dashing good looks and smooth tongue make you quite
popular with the townsmen (and women!).

Medicine

You are trained in the latest techniques in the healing arts —
leeches, cupping, branding, and the like. You are thus likely to
remain healthy longer, and to suffer less from injuries. As a
result, your career as an active pirate can last longer.

DIFFICULTY LEVEL

There are four difficulty levels in
easiest), Journeyman, Adventurer, and Swashbuckler (the hard­est). For your first game, choose Apprentice.

The difficulty level you choose determines the difficulty of each
major aspect of play. At lower levels, your fencing opponents will
be weaker and easier to defeat; cities will be less likely to fire on
your ships when they enter the harbor; your men will need less
treasure to be happy; the weather will be milder; and so on. On
the other hand, your share of any plunder gained will be smaller.
To gain the greatest success possible in
to attempt the more difficult levels.

Apprentice

At this level, you get the most aid from subordinate officers on
the ship: they’ll tell you whose waters you are sailing in, keep
you posted on your crew’s morale, and so forth. This makes play
easier, but whenever you divide the loot, all those experts take
rather large shares, leaving little for you.

Journeyman

This level is moderately easy. Your subordinates are less expert
(but still good), but your share of the plunder is larger.

Adventurer

The adventurer level is moderately difficult. Weather begins to
be a large concern, and your opponents become quite deadly
with the blade. Your subordinates are mediocre, but your share
of the booty is quite large.

Swashbuckler

This level is difficult. The weather is extremely realistic (and
quite often terrible), your enemies are powerful and universally
hostile, your crew is unruly, and your officers are wretched
scum. On the bright side, if you do survive, your share of the
loot is the largest possible.

Pirates! Gold

Pirates! Gold

: Apprentice (the

, you need

YOUR STARTING TALE

Once you have finished creating your pirate, the scene
changes to an important event in your early life, and you’ll learn
how you came to join the “Brotherhood of the Sea.” Then you
face your first opponent in single combat. When he is defeated,
you are on your way to adventure on the High Seas!

7

FENCING AND SWORDPLAY

In the 16th and 17th Centuries, the world was a violent and dangerous place. The European man met that violence with his blade.
You discouraged thieves, righted injustice, protected your family, and maintained your honor with a sword. Whether challenged to a
duel, or fighting your way through a tavern brawl, skill with cold steel was simple survival.

CONTROLLING YOUR PIRATE

The

Captain’s Broadsheet

describes how to control your pirate

and his weapon.

CHOOSING YOUR WEAPON

In battle, you have three different weapons available: rapier,
cutlass or longsword. Each has its own strengths and weakness­es. As you play Pirates! Gold, you’ll learn which blade suits your
particular level of skill and style of swordsmanship.

The Rapier

The rapier is a long, thin, flexible weapon with a sharp point
but no real edge. It can be maneuvered easily, and thrust into a
target with accuracy. It has a longer reach than any other

Fencing Screen

Your Opponent

Opponent's Moral Opponent's Men

You

Attack Lines

Parry Lines
Parry and Retreat Lines

Your Men Your Moral

weapon, but its strikes do the least damage. The rapier is a gen­tleman’s weapon.

The Cutlass

The cutlass is a heavy, curved cleaver with a sharp edge but
short reach. When it hits, a cutlass does far more damage than a
rapier. Cutlasses are popular with buccaneers, cutthroats, and
other untutored fighters. They are mean weapons.

The Longsword

The longsword is a classic weapon of medium length — short­er than a rapier, longer than a cutlass. It has a heavy blade, and
its blows do more damage than a rapier. The longsword is a fine
weapon for a soldier.

THE PRINCIPLES OF FENCING

Combinations

Like all active men of your time, you are a trained swordsman.
Attacking and defensive movements, including wrist, arm, body,
and footwork are as automatic as throwing or kicking a ball. Put
together, these motions form “combinations” that allow you to
attack, defend, or retreat in various ways.

In combat, victory depends on selecting the best combination.
If you recognize an attacking combination fast enough, you can
block it with a defensive combination, or counterattack with a
combination which exploits your opponent’s attack.

The attacking combinations are thrust and slash; the defensive
combinations are called parries. Any combination can be car­ried out low, medium, or high: that is, you can thrust high, parry
medium, slash low, and so forth.

Hits

You hit your opponent when he fails to successfully parry your
attacking combination. Each hit weakens your opponent. If you
are leading your men in combat against a group of opponents,
each of your hits also lowers the morale of the opposing force
(the enemy is dismayed to see you strike their leader!).

8

Conversely, when your opponent hits you, you are weakened

and your men demoralized.

Retreat

Retreat is easy. Simply move off the edge of the screen. Of course,
you lose whatever you were fighting over and your reputation suf­fers. On the other hand, retreat is usually preferable to surrender...

Surrender

Surrender occurs when one fighter is being badly beaten by
the other. Over the course of the battle, the losing fighter’s
morale, represented by the flags on the screen, declines as the
winning fighter’s morale improves. When a fighter’s morale gets
too low, any blow may force him to surrender.

In massed combat, each man’s morale is deeply affected by
how his side is doing. If your force is taking terrible losses, your
morale will fall. On the other hand, if your men are beating the
enemy, your

opponent’s

morale will crumble.

In any case, the side with more men has a significant advan­tage. When your enemy outnumbers you greatly, you had better
seek to defeat their captain quickly before sheer weight of num­bers gives him the victory.

ATTACKS

As described above, each combination is a different swordfighting
maneuver. During battle, you select a combination and your body
automatically makes the moves. Each combination takes a different
amount of time to execute; each does a different amount of damage.

There are two types of attack: thrust and slash.

During a battle it is important to mix up your attacks: if you
continuously thrust high, for example, your opponent will learn
and take advantage of your predictability, perhaps by parrying
your attack and then launching a quicker counterattack before
you can respond!

The Slash

The slash is a brutal, heavy blow, with damage done by the
edge of the blade rather than the point. Since you’re using the
edge of your weapon, you must be closer to your opponent to
hit him. On the other hand, a successful slash can do an enor­mous amount of damage as you draw your entire blade-edge
across your enemy’s body.

Slashing High: This takes the longest time to execute, but has an
extra-long reach. If it succeeds, this combination does twice the
normal amount of damage

Slashing Mid-Level: This is a faster slash than the high slash, but
it is still slower than the thrust. This combination does twice the
damage of a normal attack.

Slashing Low: This is the fastest slash, but has a shorter reach.
This combination too does twice the damage of a thrust.

THE COMMON MAN AS WARRIOR

In this turbulent time, there are more clergymen than sheriffs! A
man protects his own property and person against thieves and
banditry — if he doesn’t, the kings and governors surely won’t! It
is the rare man who goes without some kind of weapon.

Noblemen settle disputes quietly in duels, rather than through
open warfare (a barbaric practice, frowned upon by the Crown,
for its detrimental affects upon the important business of trade
and taxation).

Unable to afford the high-quality blades of their “betters,” com­moners must be satisfied with staves, clubs, crude spears, large
knives and such homemade implements of carnage. When they
can get a weapon, the common-folk prefer the heavy cutlass, an
ideal weapon for a stout but untutored fighter.

9

THE THRUST

When you thrust, you are attacking your enemy with the point
of your blade rather than the edge. These attacks are faster than
slashes and typically have longer reach. On the other hand, they
do half the damage of a slash.

Thrusting High: This is a moderately fast attack with a longer
reach than low- or mid-level thrusts and slashes.

Thrusting Mid-Level: This is the second-fastest attack, with a
medium reach.

Thrusting Low: This is the fastest attack in the game, but it has a
short reach.

THE COLONIAL FRONTIER

The colonial frontier is even more unruly than in the home­land. This is especially true of the English and French colonies,
largely populated by convicts, fortune hunters, deadbeats, reli­gious fanatics, and other people the homeland was happy to ship
across the seas.

Furthermore, in the colonies the landowner might be absent or
nonexistent. In Europe, every square inch of the land is part of
some nobleman’s holdings, and he and his family usually live
right up the road, ready to enforce ancient feudal custom and
law. In the colonies, the strongest rule by the blade.

THE DEFENSE

In fencing, the defense is faster than the attack. The fencer
doesn’t have to extend his arm or body at all; he merely has to
move his wrist to bring his sword into line to block the
enemy’s attack.

Still, nobody ever won a battle by parrying; to beat your oppo­nent, you’ll have to go on the offensive some time. The best
fighter mixes parries with attacks.

Parrying High: This position counters high thrusts and slashes.
As high attacks are slow to develop, defensive fighters rarely
stand “on guard” in a high parry.

Parrying Mid-Level: This position counters any mid-level attack or
slash. This is the classic “on guard” position to which many swords­men return. A fencer can move from this position to any other posi­tion very quickly.

Parrying Low: This counters any low combination. Experienced
swordsmen periodically stand “on guard” in a low parry, since low
attacks can develop very quickly.

10

PARRYING AND RETREATING

You can parry while retreating. These maneuvers offer the
same protection as the normal parry; they also allow you to leave
the battle without getting stabbed in the back!

Parry High and Retreat: This is the same maneuver as Parry
High, except that you backpedal while parrying.

Parry Mid-Level and Retreat: This is the same maneuver as
Parry Mid-Level, except that you backpedal while parrying.

Parry Low and Retreat: This is the same maneuver as Parry
Low, except that you backpedal while parrying.

LEADERSHIP IN BATTLE

Only a few of your battles are man-to-man duels. Most of the
time you are leading your stalwart crew against the enemy. As you
duel the enemy leader, your crewmen are also fighting his men.

Morale

Your hits against the enemy leader, and his hits against you,
change the morale of each side in battle. As your morale
improves, his declines, and vice versa.

Your side’s morale is very important to your duel and to the
general melee: if your morale is low, any hit might cause you to
surrender; if your morale is high, your men will do far more dam­age to the enemy.

Number of Men

As you fight, your men and the enemy force will suffer casual­ties. The rate each side suffers casualties depends on their num­ber and their morale. If morale is fairly equal, a force with supe­rior numbers will inflict more casualties. However, an inferior
force with high morale can avoid casualties and inflict serious
losses on a larger force with very low morale. In the long run,
morale can be more important than numerical comparisons.

Retreat and Surrender

You can lead your men into retreat from a battle by retreating
yourself. Surrender occurs when you inflict enough hits on an
enemy with very low morale or a vastly inferior force. When
your opponent is down to one man, any successful hit will make
him surrender, regardless of morale. Of course, the same could
happen to you.

FIREARMS

Firearms exist in this era, but they’re newfangled weapons, of
slow speed and dubious reliability. Throughout the 1500s
firearms are fired with slow match. Reloading is a long, laborious
process that requires two minutes or more and is complicated by
the need to handle loose gunpowder while holding a lit match!

A better gun, the flintlock, is invented in 1615. It is mainly
used by hunters, sportsmen and buccaneers through the 1630s.
However, it is still too unreliable to carry into battle until the
‘70s. In a fight you might carry a loaded pistol or three, but you
still put most of your faith in your trusty blade, which can’t jam
or misfire, and which still works if you get it wet.

In Dumas’ Three Musketeers, set in the 1620s, the title charac­ters are members of the most elite firearms unit in the entire French
army. Still, they rely far more on their swords than their guns...

11

IN THE CITY

In the 16th and 17th Centuries, Europeans have a precarious toe­hold on the New World. The vast majority of North and South
America and the Caribbean is unexplored and unconquered.

The new land isn’t kind, either. Hostile Indians still control most
of the territory, and they have no love for the rapacious, murdering
white men who enslave them, steal their gold, and destroy their
great civilizations. The weather of the New World, from the frigid
cold of the North to the killing heat of the South, is treacherous.
Huge swathes of pestilential jungles and swamps lie filled with dis­eases for which the Europeans have no defense.

In these turbulent times, Europeans venture forth from their cities at
great peril.

CITY STATUS

Over the course of the 16th and 17th Centuries, cities grew, flour­ished, and declined across the Caribbean. The cities in
change dramatically from period to period. Therefore each period
offers different strategic challenges.

Cities in
strength, and political affiliation. Over the course of the game, a city
may grow larger or smaller, richer or poorer, weaker or stronger. Cities
are attacked by Indians, weakened by disease, and captured by war­ring nations. Occasionally, a city is sacked by bloodthirsty pirates.

Your reception in a city depends on the city’s present status.
One city may fire upon your ships when they arrive, another
might welcome you with open arms — a wise pirate will quickly
learn the difference.

Pirates! Gold

vary in size, defensive strength, economic

THE CITY GAZETTE

If you know a city’s status, it is recorded in the city gazette in
your cabin (see “The Map of the Caribbean” in the section “The
Captain’s Cabin”); if your information on a city is out of date,
your gazette is blank.

CITY NAME

A city’s name may differ from one historical time period to the
next. A city might have been captured by another power which
changed its name; alternatively, an older city might have van­ished completely and a new city established nearby.

Pirates! Gold

Take for an extreme example the island which is today known
as Santa Catalina, off of the coast of Honduras. In the early 1600s
the English started a colony named “Providence” on this island.
This colony was later captured by the Spanish, who renamed the
colony “Santa Catalina.” Shortly thereafter, the colony failed alto­gether. Thus, in the 1620 scenario of
English city named Providence on the island. In 1640, the city is
owned by Spain and is named Santa Catalina. In later scenarios,
there is no city on the island at all.

Pirates! Gold

, there is an

12

NATIONALITY

A city may change its allegiance during a scenario. This typi­cally occurs when enemy soldiers capture the city, but you may
also have an opportunity to change a city’s nationality after you
plunder it.

This doesn’t occur every time you plunder a city: you must
have a sizable crew under your command. The smaller the city’s
population and the larger your force, the greater the chance of
causing the city to change its flag.

Capturing an enemy city for your country is highly popular
with your king...

ECONOMIC STATUS

A city may be rich, poor or in-between. The city’s economic
status determines how many goods the merchant has to sell,
their price, and whether the city will trade with you at all (see
“Spanish Trade Restrictions,” below).

Your actions can affect a town’s economic status over the
course of a scenario. If you plunder a town or engage in piracy
outside its harbor, it becomes less prosperous. On the other
hand, if you trade regularly in a town, it becomes wealthier.

Struggling

Struggling towns are in economic difficulty. They trade with almost
anyone. Prices of goods are low, as are the quantities available.

Surviving

These towns have either small or depressed economies.
Surviving Spanish towns trade with foreigners whose local repu­tation is fairly decent. Prices and quantities are usually modest.

Prosperous

Prosperous towns have large, strong economies. Prosperous
Spanish towns will trade with you only if you are a Captain of
high repute. Prices of goods are fairly high, and goods are avail­able in reasonable quantity.

Wealthy

Wealthy towns are at the peak of the economic spectrum. With
very few exceptions, only old, rich Spanish towns reach this status;
these towns almost always follow the letter of the law. Only the very
best and most reputable Captains of any nationality are allowed to
trade in these towns. Prices are high and goods are plentiful.

Spanish Trade Restictions

In Spanish towns it is illegal to trade with anyone other than
Spanish merchants who sailed from Seville and are properly
accredited by the Spanish government. However, local governors
and merchants often ignored this tiresome legality, especially if
the economy is suffering. As a result, traders in towns sometimes
ignore what the national government says and instead develop
their own opinions, based on your reputation in that area.

FORTS

At constant risk from Indians, enemy powers and brigands,
many cities in the Caribbean are surrounded by a variety of
defensive works. These range from wooden stockades to exten­sive stone walls rivaling the great city-fortresses of Europe.

Pirates! Gold

In
ed by the number of forts. The higher the level, the stronger the
city’s defenses.

, there are many levels of fortifications, indicat-

SOLDIERS

The wealthier and larger a city, the more soldiers it has defend­ing it: rich cities may have hundreds of soldiers, while poor cities
may have none. When you attack a city from the sea, the city’s
soldiers operate its cannon; when you attack from the land, they
sally forth to meet you outside the city walls. When you finally
storm the fort itself, you fight the soldiers’ captain, while your
crew battle the remaining soldiers.

Needless to say, it is best to outnumber a city’s soldiers when
you attack it. You can beat a city’s soldiers with a smaller force,
but it’s not easy. (see the section “Leadership in Battle” in
“Fencing and Swordplay”).

CITIZENS

A city’s population rises and falls with the years. It may grow
with a new influx of colonists from the homeland; it may decline
as the result of Indian attack.

The more you trade with a city, the larger it will grow. This is use­ful because a city with fewer than 600 citizens isn’t important
enough to have a governor. The more friendly governors you know,
the more opportunities you have to get special assignments, meet
their lovely daughters, and receive land grants and promotions.

13

GOLD

Besides gaining your country’s gratitude when you capture an
enemy city, you also get some of the city’s wealth. The actual
amount varies with the length of the battle. Longer fights give the
citizens more time to hide their wealth. Thus, a head-on assault
might be bloodier than a long battle of feint and maneuver, but it
will also be more profitable.

KEEPING TRACK OF THE CITIES OF THE CARIBBEAN

All other things being equal, cities slowly prosper and grow,
gaining economic strength, which attracts population, who in
turn hoard wealth, which obliges the government to install
troops and forts to protect this wealth. Traders and smugglers
help this economic growth with their buying, selling, and trans­port of goods. Pirates, buccaneers and privateers taking ships
from waters near the colony will hurt its economic growth.

There is no profit in attacking a poor city and it’s dangerous to
attack a strong one. But, without spending long, tedious and
dangerous weeks visiting each city on the map, how are you to
know which is which? If you keep your ears open, you can get a
pretty good idea of the status of even far-off cities.

There are three ways to learn about cities:

Purchase Intelligence From Shady Characters in the Tavern

Taverns are filled with merchants and sailors who regularly
travel the cities of the Spanish Main. One of these travelers may
offer to sell you information on a city he recently visited. If you
meet his price, he provides you with the city’s current status.
This data is always correct at the time it is sold to you, though
subsequent events may shortly render it obsolete.

Listen to Tavern Gossip/Ask Passing Ships for News

Though you won’t get a city’s actual status this way, you can
learn about recent events in the Caribbean — Indian attacks,
gold mine discoveries, and the like, which have important
effects on cities.

Indian Attacks: Indian attacks deplete a city’s soldiers, but leave
the population and economy intact. Such cities are ripe for attack.

Pirate Raids: Pirates steal from a town whatever gold they can
find. These raids also damage a town’s economy. There’s little profit
in attacking a city which another pirate has already plundered...

Diseases: Malaria and other diseases reduce the troop garrison
of a city and its population. Disease can also slow or stop the
city’s economic growth.

Gold Mines: These cause a one-time upswing in the city’s
economy and dramatically increase the city’s disposable wealth
(ie, its gold). These finds are usually small, perhaps just a short­lived alluvial wash in a nearby stream or river, but they invari­ably generate a ”gold rush“ mentality in the town. These cities
are good to plunder. In addition, the price of everything will be
high, so they’re also fine places to sell goods.

New Governor: If a new governor is installed in a city, he
doesn’t necessarily have the same attitude toward you as his pre­decessor. You won’t know the new governor’s attitude until you
visit him.

14

THINGS TO DO AND SEE IN TOWN

The City Screen

Leave the Town

The Shipwright The Tavern

The Governor's House

The Merchant The Bank

THE GOVERNOR

Towns with a population greater than 600 citizens have a gov­ernor. His residence, the mansion on the hill, is the seat of gov­ernment and the center of news and intrigue for the colony.

A visit to the governor may be useful. He can tell you with whom
his nation wars and allies. He may make special offers or rewards.
With luck and sufficient prestige, you may meet his niece or even
daughter. However, the governor hasn’t much time to waste enter­taining coarse seadogs like you; once you have visited the governor
of a town, don’t expect to gain admittance again soon.

Towns with fewer than 600 citizens don’t have governors: the
mansion on the hill lies empty and vacant.

YOUR RELATIONS WITH THE GOVERNOR

A governor’s attitude toward you begins with the “official”
attitude of his nation toward your activities. However, any
particular favors you have done for him are remembered, as
well as any especially nasty things you have done to his city
(such as plundering it!).

You can curry favor with a governor by capturing a pirate in
waters near his port and then returning the pirate to him for pun­ishment. Conversely, a governor is dismayed if you capture his
nation’s ships in local waters, and is especially unhappy if you
have plundered his town.

When a governor is hostile to you, he will order any harbor
forts to fire upon your vessels as they sail in. In general, if the
governor’s nation is hostile toward you the forts usually fire. If
the nation is wary, the governor’s personal attitude and the size
of your force are the crucial factors.

TALKING WITH THE GOVERNOR

Political Situation

The governor may discuss the current political and military
situation with you, telling you whom his nation is allied with
and whom it is at war with. This is valuable information: on
future visits he may reward you if you have attacked enemy
ships and towns.

Be warned, however, that the political situation in the
Caribbean is volatile, to say the least. Nations switch alliances with
appalling frequency: a country‘s enemy one day may be its firm
ally the next. Don‘t expect to get rewarded for attacking a country‘s
new ally, even if they were bitter enemies when you did it!

15

Offer Amnesty

You may hear from tavern gossip or passing ships that a nation
is offering amnesty to former pirates. If so, the governor’s man­sion is the place to get it.

When a nation offers pirate amnesty, it is willing to forget its
former hostility toward pirates. Each governor is empowered to
offer former pirates a pardon for their activities, though some­times the pardon can be expensive.

Note that the amnesty covers only past transgressions. If you
purchase an amnesty and then go right out and attack a nation’s
shipping or cities, the amnesty will be rescinded before you can
say “hoist the black flag,” and your money will be wasted.

When seeking an amnesty, be careful about sailing into a hostile
harbor! Although the nation may be offering amnesty, a local gov­ernor may still distrust you enough to open fire. This is especially
likely if your force is large or you have made recent attacks in the
area. If you sneak into town you have a better chance of getting to
the governor and convincing him to provide the amnesty his
nation promises.

Purchase Letters of Marque

In the 16th and 17th Centuries, royal governments are desper­ately short of funds. Building and maintaining warships is incred­ibly expensive, and few ships can be spared from home waters
to patrol the far-off Caribbean.

During wartime, governments commission private ships into
their navies to supplement their scanty forces. These “privateers”
aren’t paid wages: instead, they are allowed to keep a large por­tion of whatever they capture. The official authorization for this
practice is called a “Letter of Marque.”

Holding a Letter of Marque makes your depredations on the
High Seas official, acts of war rather than simple piracy. You are
acting under orders of the nation’s king — sailing under the
nation’s flag, as it were. Unless you’ve been really nasty in their
home waters, that nation’s governors consider you an ally and
will reward you for services performed while holding a Letter.

Letters of Marque can be expensive. You’ll lose your Letter if
you attack the nation who issued it or if you attack that nation’s
allies. Purchasing a Letter of Marque can be a waste unless you
plan to remain on good terms with that nation for a while!

Perform a Special Mission

A governor may ask you to perform a special mission for him.
Standard assignments include bringing a secret message to a spy
in another city, rescuing a relative of the governor, or capturing
a notorious pirate who has been roaming the waters of the
Caribbean — a piece of cake for a sailor of your caliber!

If you decline the mission, no harm is done, except that your
relations with that particular governor decline slightly.

If you accept the mission, then the governor waits anxiously for
your successful return. If you return without completing the mission,
the governor loses faith in you and assigns someone more trust­worthy to the mission. Thus, if you plan to perform a mission for a
governor, don’t go back to his mansion until you’ve completed it!

When you complete a mission for a governor, remember to
visit him soon afterwards. The governor’s personal attitude
toward you will improve, and he may reward you in some more
tangible way.

GOVERNORS AND SITUATIONAL ETHICS

If you are quick on your feet and keep abreast of the ever­changing politics of the Caribbean, you can gain land and titles
from more than just one nationality.

For instance, if France and Spain are at war with England and
Holland and you studiously attack English and Dutch shipping
and cities, you may very well be rewarded with land and titles
by both the French and Spanish governors.

After you have achieved high rankings with those nationalities,
you might take advantage of an English offering of Pirate
Amnesty to repair your reputation with the English Crown.
Eventually, you might be offered a chance to purchase an
English Letter of Marque.

Then suppose England were still at war with France and Spain.
If you attacked Spanish and French shipping and towns for a
while, the English governor would be sure to reward you with
land and titles. Eventually, you might find it possible to ingratiate
yourself with the Dutch, as well.

This kind of success is difficult to carry off. But, with luck and
cunning, by the time you are ready to retire you might have
received hundreds of acres of land and patents of nobility from
all four nations!

16

Discuss Local Gossip

Everybody knows everybody in the small world of the
Caribbean. A governor may have information leading to the
location of your long-lost relatives!

Meet the Governor’s Daughter or Niece

If your reputation is impeccable (and you’ve bathed within the
last month), a governor may introduce you to a beautiful young
niece or daughter. The young ladies of the governor’s court have
unparalleled opportunities to overhear important news of the
goings-on in the Caribbean. If a lady becomes infatuated with
your dashing good looks and smooth style, she may become
your informant, passing on to you the secrets she learns from
other highly-placed admirers.

When you meet one of these young ladies, you choose whether
to make pleasant conversation with the young lass or to formally
propose marriage. If your propose and your status is high enough,
the lady might accept. Marriage to a highly-born woman is a sign
of success (and worth many “Pirate Points” to boot). For more
details on marriage, see the section “Gains and Goals.”

Meeting Your Wife/Mistress

If you have been fortunate enough to gain the confidence of or
even marry one of the ladies of the court, on subsequent visits
she will tell you what she has learned since your last visit.

Receive a Promotion/Land Grant

As the Crown’s representative in far-off lands, the Governor is
empowered to reward you for actions you have taken which ben­efit the nation. The rewards take the form of promotions or gifts of
land. It is possible for you to start as a penniless pauper and to
retire a rich, landed nobleman!

Your final social ranking and the amount of land you own are
extremely important to your overall success in
section “Gains and Goals” for more details.

Pirates! Gold.

See the

17

THE TAVERN

Sailing is not a particularly respected profession. Officers are tol­erated and the Captain of a ship is an important man, but the
men who crew the ships are despised by the citizenry as
uncouth, uneducated, diseased, dangerous scum.

There’s some good reason for this. If a sailor hasn’t seen land, a
real bed, a decent meal or a pretty woman for months, the first
time he hits a city he’s probably going to raise some hell. Roaring
through the streets, breaking into shops, accosting the ladies, a
sailor is a positive menace to a town. However, if he’s getting
drunk, eating, gambling or buying drinks for “fancy ladies” in a
wharf tavern, he’s an economic boom.

In his turn a sailor can relax in a tavern. He’s enjoying the com­pany of men like him, equals with whom he can discuss the infi­nite mysteries of the sea — or just swap lies. He can get roaring
drunk with friends. He can get into a fistfight and break furniture
without getting arrested — as long as he pays for the damage. He
can learn more of his craft from older, more experienced sailors.
If temporarily “on the shore,” he can look for a job.

For the pirate captain too, the tavern is an extremely important
resource. While the governor’s mansion may be the place you go
to meet the nobility, the tavern is the place to meet other seamen.
In the tavern, you encounter traders, sailors and even the occa­sional pirate. You can recruit crews for your ships; you can gossip about goings-on in the Caribbean; you can have the chance to
purchase treasure maps from shady characters; and, if you desire, you can carouse with pretty barmaids.

Following is a list of things to do in a tavern:

The Tavern Screen

The Bartender

Shady Character Traveler

Mysterious Stranger

The Barmaid

Unemployed Sailors

RECRUIT SAILORS

As discussed above, unemployed sailors look for work in tav­erns. You’ll find them sitting around a table, shorn of earrings
and other finery, drinking small beer and hoping to catch the
notice of a successful Captain. If your reputation is high and the
prospects for booty good, some of these men may want to sail
with you. However, if you have a reputation as an unskilled or
unlucky Captain and the prospects for booty are small, they’ll
look for work with someone else.

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The basic rule on plunder is: the more men you have in your
crew, the smaller will be each man’s share of the treasure.
Thus, if you have a big crew already, it may be difficult to get
more men to ship with you. You’ll need to have a very good
reputation indeed.

If you sneak into the town, you can’t recruit men at all.You’re
keeping a low profile; buying rounds of drinks for large groups of
unruly, loose-tongued sailors will surely betray your presence.

PURCHASE TREASURE MAPS FROM SHADY CHARACTERS

From time to time you’ll find old pirates down on their luck
who offer to sell you a treasure map. Buying a treasure map
sight-unseen is a somewhat chancy business: you may get an
complete map with an obvious treasure location, or you may get
a small fragment showing some unidentifiable island and a lot of
water. If you can’t figure out where the treasure is, don’t despair:
there‘s always the chance that some other old pirate will sell you
another piece of the map.

PURCHASE CITY INFORMATION FROM TRAVELERS

Taverns are filled with merchants, seamen, and others who
regularly travel across the wide Caribbean. One of these men
may offer to sell you information about a city he recently visited.
If you meet his price, he’ll tell you the city’s current status. See
”City Status“ above, in ”In the City,“ for details.

The new information is immediately recorded in the city
gazette in your cabin. (See ”The Map of the Caribbean“ in the
section ”The Captain’s Cabin“.)

GOSSIP

If you buy the barkeep a drink, he’ll update you on local gos­sip: who’s at war with whom, which cities have been plundered
by pirates, where gold has been discovered, and the like. See
”City Status“ to learn how to best use this intelligence.

THE BARMAID

Barmaids in wharf taverns are worldly wise young women,
battle-hardened and experienced at fending off the unwanted
advances of drunken sailors. Occasionally, one may take a fancy
to a fresh young Captain like yourself; if so, she can be a very
useful — if somewhat expensive — ally.

If a barmaid takes a liking to you, she can tell you of the
goings-on in far-off cities (that is, she’ll give you city status infor­mation); and very occasionally she may present you with a frag­ment of a pirate treasure map!

Thus it’s a good idea to buy your barmaid a drink from time to
time; you never know what might happen.

OTHER CHARACTERS

You may run into other characters in a tavern. Secret agents
frequent pubs, as do Evil Spaniards with knowledge of your lost
relatives... Keep your eyes open and your sword handy!

TRADING OR PIRACY?

A canny Captain can make a tidy profit exploiting the econom­ic variances from city to city, by following the simple maxim “buy
low and sell high.” If you purchase goods from a merchant for 30
gold a ton and then sell them to another for 60 gold, you can
make a small fortune each trip (even after deducting the cost of
feeding your crew and other incidental expenses from the profit).

Eventually the market will even out somewhat: with increased
demand at the source, the price to buy the goods will rise; with
increased supply at the market, the price you get will go down.
But until it does, the money will roll in.

However, no matter how low the price, you won’t make as
much money as you would if you stole the goods rather then
paid for them. If you want to truly excel as a buccaneer, you’ll
have to turn to piracy.

But, if everyone is at peace and an honest privateer simply
can’t get a Letter of Marque for love or money, trading is a good
profession until the next war breaks out.

While you are trading, keep your crew as small as you can: it’s
virtually impossible to keep a large crew happy by honest work!

19

THE MERCHANT

The lifeblood of any colonial town is trade. The towns in the Caribbean are rarely self-sufficient. The arrival of a ship, its hold bulging

with food and possibly even goods from far-off Europe, is anticipated eagerly.

MERCHANTS AND THE LAW

With law-enforcement lax and the need for products desperate,
most English, French and Dutch merchants are happy to trade
with privateers, smugglers and even pirates. These merchants
don’t ask where the cargo came from. Whether you purchased it
from another merchant, plundered it from a city or stole it off of a
ship doesn’t matter: they’re just happy to have the business.

Spanish merchants — particularly merchants in rich towns — are
sometimes more choosy. If you are a known pirate, they may not
trade with you even if you acquired this particular cargo legally.
See the ”City Status“ section, above, for more details.

ECONOMIC STRENGTH

Some merchants are rich, some are poor. The strength of the
local merchant is largely determined by the town’s economic
strength and population. A strong merchant community has
many goods for sale, and plenty of money to buy yours. It also
has higher prices. Small, poor towns have the lowest prices, but
their merchants are poor also, with tiny warehouses.

THE MERCHANT’S DAUGHTER

If you have the air of a wealthy young man with a good future
and some money in the bank, the merchant may introduce you
to his young daughter. If you desire, you can ask for her hand in
marriage. If she agrees to marry you, your new father-in-law will
give you a special deal: he’ll sell you cargo for far below the
market price! If you have chosen to be an honest trader, this can
make your voyages far more profitable indeed.

The Merchant Screen

Merchant’s Gold

Goods for Sale

Note, however, that your father-in-law expects you to sell him
cargo at the same low rate! You can’t buy something from him
on the cheap and then turn around and sell it back to him at the
higher rate...

Your Cargo

Exchange Bar Your Cargo Space

Your Gold

20

THE SHIPWRIGHT

During your career, you’ll have a lot of business for the shipwrights of the Caribbean. Though most shipwrights will do business with
anyone who sails into port, Spanish wrights operate under the same restrictions as do Spanish merchants: shipwrights in large, wealthy
Spanish towns may refuse to deal with pirates.

REPAIRING SHIPS

Piracy is one of the most dangerous professions imaginable.

You lead your ship in combat against armed vessels, trading can-

SELL YOUR CARGO BEFORE SELLING YOUR SHIPS!

When planning to sell off some of your ships in town, always
sell your cargo and excess cannon first! When you sell a ship, all
of its cargo and cannon are unceremoniously dumped on the
wharf for you to dispose of. If you have cargo space available on
your other ships, your grumbling crew will stow it away, but if
there’s no room, the excess cargo will be left rotting on the wharf.

Under normal circumstances you can sell this cargo to the
town merchant, but you’ll obviously have to accept whatever
price he gives you. And in a poor city, the merchants may not
have enough gold to purchase your cargo at any price. You’ll
have to leave behind whatever cargo you can’t carry or sell!

While the wharf-rats will love you, your crew won’t be happy
at this profligate waste of money...

non-fire with each other until someone is sunk or is battered into
surrendering. This naturally leads to wear and tear on your ship!
You can get your vessel repaired at the shipwright’s.

SELLING SHIPS

During your career, you may capture more enemy ships than
you have need for. The shipwright will be happy to take these
excess ships off your hands. This can be extremely profitable: an
undamaged merchant ship may go for 2000 pieces of gold!

Note that you must always keep one ship; you can’t sell the
shipwright your last vessel.

SELLING CANNON

Finally, you can sell the shipwright excess cannon. If you
are in a barque, for example, it has deck-space to fire a maxi­mum of sixteen guns. If you have more than sixteen guns, they
are so much useless scrap, taking up valuable cargo space.
(See the “Gazetteer of Ships” for details on ships’ cannon and
cargo capacity.)

YOUR TREASURE TROVE

Even if you are keeping your crew happy, it’s a good idea to
divide the plunder from time to time — particularly when you have
a lot of treasure. Until the loot is divided, it all belongs to the ship,
none of it to you.

Your reputation and standing is largely based upon your personal
wealth — the money in your secret treasure cave — the treasure in
your ship’s hold does little to enhance you in the eyes of society.

Until the money is divided and your share is placed in your cave,
you are just another penniless sea-captain.

And there’s another good reason to divide the plunder: money in
your treasure-cave is safe. It can never be lost or stolen. But if you
have 150,000 pieces of gold in your ship’s hold and your ship
founders on a reef or is sunk by a pirate-hunter, the gold is gone
and you are out of luck.

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THE BANK

At the bank, you share out the profits of the voyage with your officers and crew. As Captain, you get a fixed percentage of the party’s
wealth, which goes into your personal treasure trove. The remainder is divided among the crew. Not only the gold is divided, but also
the ships, stores, goods and cannon on them. The crew always disperses with their newfound wealth, leaving you with just your flag­ship and its share of the provisions and armament. After refitting your ship (which always takes a few months), you’ll have to rebuild
your band from scratch.

The amount of wealth the crew receives when you divide the plunder has an important effect on your reputation as a Captain. If
the plunder’s too small, you may have difficulties recruiting men in the future. If the crew is happy with their share, they’ll spread
the word and sailors will be eager to serve with you.

After you have divided the treasure, you are offered several options, depending on your age and health:

PLAN A NEW EXPEDITION

If your age and health permit, you can plan a new expedition.

In a few months, you’ll be sailing the Caribbean once more.

ADVANCE TO ANOTHER DIFFICULTY LEVEL

If you plan another expedition and you are playing at any but
swashbuckler level, you will offered a chance to try a higher
level. If you are succeeding handily, you may wish to consider
this: though the game is harder, you receive greater rewards and
more Pirate Points for playing at higher levels.

The effects of difficulty levels are discussed in the chapter on
“Creating Your Character.”

RETIRE FROM PRIVATEERING

Choose this option when you wish to end your game of

Pirates! Gold

life will be shown to you. If you are satisfied with this end, the
game is over. If you are not, you have an opportunity to return to
the pirate’s life.

See “Book II” for more details on retirement and scoring.

DIVIDING THE PLUNDER ENDS A FAMOUS EXPEDITION!

If you are playing a Famous Expedition, dividing the plunder
ends the game! (See the chapter on “Famous Expeditions” for
more details

. You learn your final ranking and score. Your future

VISITING THE CAPTAIN’S CABIN

You can go to the Captain’s Cabin while in town to check on your crew and cargo, to check your ship’s log and your map of the
Caribbean, to examine your treasure-maps, to see your personal status, to practice fencing, and to save the game. See the next section
for details.

LEAVING TOWN

When your business in town is finished, you’ll find yourself outside of town once more. If you entered town on your ship, you’ll be
back on your ship, just off-shore from the port. If you marched in, your landing party will be on land, just outside the city gates.

See the sections on land and sea movement for details on navigating the world outside of the towns.

22

THE CAPTAIN’S CABIN

The Captain’s Cabin contains information on your ships, cargo, crew and personal status. Further, the Captain’s Cabin is where you save

games, quit the game, and perform other important functions.

The Captain's Cabin

Practice Fencing

Treasure Chest Map of the Caribbean

Ship's Log

Quit

Pirates! Gold

Exit Captain's Cabin

Treasure Maps

Save Game

The captain of a sailing vessel of the 16th and 17th Centuries is
responsible for the success of his voyage as well as the lives,
well-being and wealth of his crew. He is judge, father, chief
executive officer of the corporation, diplomat, admiral and king,
all rolled into one. He spends as much time keeping the ship’s
books as he does keeping the ship on course.

As a pirate captain, you too face these challenges. You must
keep your ship on course, avoiding shoals, braving storms, fight­ing enemies. But you must also keep your crew happy, keep your
ship provisioned, and keep your balance sheet in the black.
Moreover, you must study intelligence learned in forays into the
town and you must keep your personal career on track.

The Captain’s Cabin is the center of information on you and
the world around you. Much of your time will be spent here.

Entering the Cabin

You can enter the captain’s cabin while at sea, on land, or in a
town. See the

Captain’s Broadsheet

for details.

Exiting the Cabin

When you exit the cabin, you’ll return to wherever you were
when you entered.

FEATURES OF THE CAPTAIN’S CABIN

Following is a listing of things you can do in the Captain’s Cabin:

MAP OF THE CARIBBEAN/CITY GAZETTEER

This useful area has two complementary features. The map on
the left is a full picture of the Caribbean, showing your current
position and all cities in the game. The scroll on the right, the
“City Gazetteer,” lists all of the cities alphabetically. Both fea­tures tell you about known cities’ status (see the section on “City
Status” in ”In the City“).

When you click on a city on the map, the city’s name appears,
along with its status (if known). When you click on a city in the
gazetteer, its name and known status appears; in addition, the
city’s location flashes on the map. Thus, you can use this feature
to find the name of a city you are sailing near to or to find a
known city’s location.

The city status screen lists everything you know about a city.
This list may not be complete — recent events may have made
your knowledge obsolete — but you can update your list by
entering a city or by purchasing information on distant cities
from travelers you meet in taverns.

23

PRACTICE FENCING

As a bloodthirsty pirate, a good deal of your time is spent lead­ing your men in battle against Evil Spaniards, brave Captains of
the Guard, dread Pirate-Hunters, and the like. When doing this,
it’s a good idea to know how to fence. When you practice duel­ing, you’re spending an entire week pitting your skills against the
best men in your crew, hardy, cunning killers all who will teach
you the tricks of the trade.

If, during the battle, you lose or retreat, nothing happens. However,
if you win, your swordsmanship may improve. The more you prac­tice, the better the chances of your swordsmanship improving. (Note
that at higher difficulty levels, this can take a long, long time.)

QUITING THE GAME

This feature allows you to quit
first if you wish to continue playing the current game at a later time.

Pirates! Gold.

Remember to save

THE LOGBOOK

SAVE A GAME IN PROGRESS

This allows you to save the game, but only while in town.

TREASURE MAPS

Here you keep all the treasure maps and map-fragments
you’ve acquired. If you have a map fragment and then acquire
an additional piece to it, the piece is automatically added to the
appropriate map. Once you’ve found a map’s treasure, the map
is removed.

TREASURE TROVE

Use this option if you want to visit your secret treasure cave.
This is a visual representation of your wealth, which is also listed
in the “Personal Status” screen (see above).

The Logbook contains important details on your ships, men and
personal status. It is divided into the following sections:

SHIP’S LOG

This book contains a detailed history of your ship’s activities —
where you’ve gone, who you’ve fought, and so forth. Further, it
lists all rumors and gossip you’ve heard.

PARTY STATUS

The Party Status screen details your crew, cargo and cannon.

PERSONAL STATUS

This screen tells you how you are doing: your age, health, per­sonal wealth, marital status, reputation, and difficulty level. It
also lists your standing with each nation.

Age and Health

Your age and health determine how long you can continue as a
pirate. As you grow older your reflexes slow, making fencing more
dangerous. You’ll find it difficult to lead your men in battle against
the enemy. If you’re wounded, the problem is made worse. Each
wound you take has a detrimental effect upon your health.

24

As you age, you’ll find it increasing difficult to find men who
are willing to sail with you; sailors prefer to sign on with a
younger, more active captain. Eventually, you won’t be able to
put together a crew at all; you will be forced into retirement
whether you like it or not.

If you have the ”medicine“ special skill, age and wounds have
a smaller effect on you, which can postpone a forced retirement.

Personal Wealth and Lands

Your personal wealth and lands are an important indicator of
your success in

You gain personal riches when you divide the plunder at the
end of a voyage (see the section “The Bank” in ”In the City“);
that’s when you split up the loot and take your share. Until then,
all the money in your possession belongs to the ship’s company.

In addition to increasing your score at the end of the game,
your personal wealth determines how others react to you. In
most cases, the richer you are, the better your reputation.

Land has a similar effect upon your status. The more land you
have, the better. You receive land as a reward from a grateful
governor (see the section on “The Governor” in ”In the City“).

Pirates! Gold

.

Marital Status

This tells you if you have yet married.

Reputation

Your reputation is a measure of your impact on the world of
the Caribbean. As you gain wealth and land and perform more
feats of daring-do, your reputation grows. The higher your repu­tation, the better you’re doing. You are recognized when you
walk down the street, and fat merchant ships will lower their
flags when you approach, rather than face you in battle.

On the other hand, your growing reputation has a price. It is
more difficult to sneak into a town if you are well-known. The
more famous you are, the more likely you are to attract the atten­tion of pirate hunters!

The reputations you can gain in
(the lowest), promising, well-known, famous, notorious and infa­mous (the highest).

Difficulty Level

You can change the difficulty level of the game during play,
after you divide the plunder (see “The Bank” in ”In the City“).

Political Standing

This shows your current relations with each nation in the
game. Your political standing determines the reactions of other
nations’ ships, governors, merchants and pirate hunters.

Your original political standing is determined by your nationali­ty, but your actions can and often will change that. For example,
if a nation is hostile or wary, you can purchase ”Pirate Amnesty“
to change their opinion to neutral (see ”The Governor“ in ”In the
City“ for details). The political standings are:

Hostile: The nation is effectively at war with you. That nation’s
warships attack you on sight; pirate hunters attempt to capture
you; you’re often attacked when you enter a city; governors and
merchants probably won’t talk to you.

Wary: The nation distrusts you. Their warships may attack you
and they may send out the occasional pirate hunter; you may be
fired upon when you enter a city; governors and merchants may or
may not deal with you depending upon other circumstances (your
personal relations with the governor, military strength, economic
status, and so forth).

Pirates! Gold

are cowardly

Neutral: The nation has no feelings about you either way.

Warships and pirate hunters probably won’t bother you; you
should be able to sail into a city unscathed; governors and mer­chants will almost certainly deal with you.

Letter of Marque: You are a semi-official member of that

nation’s navy. As such, you should have no trouble interacting
with ships and towns of that nation. (Note that you can lose your
Letter of Marque if you perform hostile actions toward that nation.)

Ranked (Ensign, Captain, etc.): If a governor has awarded you

a military rank (see “The Governor” in ”In the City“), the nation
is friendly to you. Until, that is, you attack its shipping or towns.
If so, you keep the rank but the nation treats you as an enemy.
You won’t be promoted further by that nation until you make
peace — ie, until you purchase Pirate Amnesty.

From the lowest to the highest, the ranks are: Ensign, Captain,
Major, Colonel and finally Admiral. Beyond the rank of Admiral
are patents of nobility.

Patent of Nobility (Baron, Count, etc.): Once you’ve achieved
the rank of admiral, a governor might use his influence at the
King’s Court to see that you are given a patent of nobility. If
you’ve got such a patent, the nation will treat you as an ally,
until you betray it. Like in the military ranks, above, you can
purchase forgiveness by taking advantage of an offer of amnesty.

From the lowest to the highest, the titles of nobility are: Baron,
Count, Marquis and Duke.

SHIP STATUS

This screen shows the status of all of the ships in your fleet.

HOSTAGE STATUS

This screen lists any hostages or prisoners you are holding.

25

SAILING THE CARIBBEAN

The Caribbean is a wide, warm and pleasant sea. Idyllic tropical islands and lush jungled shores contain in its steady currents.
Stretching over three thousand miles, the water is a broad highway between mainland ports, island towns and hidden anchorages.

The Caribbean has its dangers, however. Shallow reefs lurk off-shore, waiting to tear the heart out of the unwary traveler. During
fall — hurricane season — terrible storms blow, driving ships far off-course or onto the teeth of the waiting rocks. And don’t discount
the threat posed by Man, either. Low-intensity war is the normal state here, and the rich waterways of the Spanish Main are home to
some of the most terrible pirates the world has ever seen.

Beneath its placid beauty, the Caribbean hides the bones of thousands of sailing ships.

SETTING SAIL

Leaving a City

You begin the game in port, your ship docked at the wharf.
When you choose to leave town, you board your ship and head
out to sea. The scene changes to show your ship just outside of
town. The same happens whenever you leave a city you have
entered by sea. (If you entered the town by land, you’ll leave by
land, as well.)

Leaving the Land

When you anchor your ship and lead a landing party ashore,
your ship remains where you left it. To set sail once more, march
your men back to the ship. Once your men are aboard, your
ship will head out to sea again.

YOUR FLEET

As the game progresses, you may capture ships and add them
to your force. Each ship requires at least eight men to sail. If you
don’t have enough men, you must abandon one or more ships.

When you have more than one ship in your command, your
fleet moves with the sailing characteristics of the largest ship in
the fleet. This is the only ship which appears on the map. To
check on all your ships, go to the Ship Status screen in your
cabin (see “The Captain’s Cabin”).

SAILING

In

Pirates! Gold

can turn your ship and you can raise or lower its “full” sails. The
difficulty lies in avoiding shoals, bending the winds of the
Caribbean to your command, and taking best advantage of your
ship’s sailing qualities.

, sailing is easy. You have two controls: you

Raising and Lowering Sail

Normally, you’ll travel under full sails. This is the fastest sail
plan for your ship. However, when negotiating through narrows
or around treacherous shoals you may wish to lower (reduce)
your sails so that you move slower.

Remember to raise them once you reach open water again —
or your voyage will take forever!

Sailing the Caribbean

Your Ship

City

Cloud

26

26

The Wind

The speed of a ship depends on how the wind blows against
its sails. Traveling directly into the wind is always slowest; travel­ing with the wind coming diagonally from the rear is generally
the fastest. Each ship-type has a different best “point of sailing”
(the wind position at which the ship develops maximum speed).
What with shifting winds and periodic storms, sailing requires
more than a little judgment and skill.

If you have a fleet of many ships, the entire fleet travels at the
speed of the single largest ship.

Weather

The clouds traveling overhead indicate wind speed and direc­tion, both of which can vary significantly from day to day, or
even hour to hour.

In addition the clouds — particularly the dark clouds — also
signify storm fronts. Storm fronts provide strong, fast wind if you
are near, but may trap your ship if you sail too close.

These weather effects become more pronounced at higher dif­ficulties. An Apprentice Captain can sail under any clouds with
impunity, while a Swashbuckler risks being blown far off-course
before he can regain control of his ship...

One of the biggest risks posed by clouds and weather is that
you might be blown onto shoals.

Shoals

Shoals represent the wicked rocks and reefs common through­out the Caribbean. If you drive your ship onto shoals, she might
cross safely, or she might founder.

The chance of foundering when crossing shoals depends upon
two factors: the size of your ships and the difficulty level you’re
playing. The big ships, (galleons, frigates and merchantmen),
may founder on even the lightest shoals, while the smallest craft,
(pinnaces and sloops), cross most shoals safely. Medium-sized
craft, fluytes and barques, are right in the middle.

The difficulty level you’re playing determines the overall dan­ger of the reefs. At easier levels you run less risk of crashing; at
harder levels the risks are greater.

Sinking: If you have more than one ship in your fleet and one
ship sinks, the men, cargo, cannon and treasure aboard that ship
are lost. You transfer your flag to another craft, a wiser (and
poorer!) sailor for the experience. If your last ship is sunk, you’re
in more trouble. You lose all your crew, cargo, cannon and trea­sure, and you are washed up on a desert island, there to pass
anxious months awaiting rescue.

GETTING INFORMATION

While sailing, you can pause the game and access the Captain’s
Cabin at any time (see “The Captain’s Cabin” for details).

SAIL HO!

During your voyages, you’ll often encounter other ships on the
broad highway of the Caribbean. You have the option to run away
or close with the ship. As a full-fledged member of the Brotherhood
of the Coast seeking fame and fortune, heroically battling the ene­mies of your King and Country, you’ll often want to get closer, to
see if the ship is a fat target or a well-armed warship.

For details, see “Ship Encounters” below.

27

PUTTING INTO PORT

To enter a coastal town, direct your ship into the town. As you
approach, you’ll see what flag the town is flying and what level of for­tifications the town possesses. You receive the following options: Sail
into Harbor, Attack the Town, Sneak into Town, and Leave Town.

Sail into Harbor

Your ships sail peacefully up to the quays. If the town is guard­ed by a fort, it may open fire on your ships if that nation is hos­tile. If that nation is wary of you, the fort rarely fires unless the
governor personally dislikes you. The fort’s fire usually drives
you back to the open sea. Occasionally, at higher difficulty lev­els, it may sink one of your ships.

Attack the Town

When you attack a town from the sea, you fight a naval battle
against the town’s fortifications (see “Attacking a Town From the
Sea”, below).

you are afraid of fire from the town’s forts, this is an excellent
way to get inside and do some quiet business. However, if your
reputation is great, you may be recognized and attacked. If that
happens, you must fight your way out of town or be captured
and imprisoned.

When you sneak into town, the need to keep your identity
secret prevents you from recruiting men in a tavern. In addition,
the loot accumulated during your voyage is left aboard ship, pre­venting you from dividing the plunder.

ANCHORING YOUR SHIP

To anchor at land but away from a port — say, to search for
buried treasure or to march to an inland city — simply steer
your ship into the land at the point you want to anchor. When
it hits land, your ship stops moving. A landing party appears on
land beside the ship. See “On the Land,” later, for details on
land movement.

Sneak into Town

This means that you hide your ships in a nearby cove and

creep into the back streets at night with a few trusted men. If

TACKING

For most of the year, the winds of the Caribbean blow from the south-southeast (that is, from South America toward the Gulf of Mexico).
Though the winds do change — sometimes blowing from the south or southwest, sometimes from the east or south-east — on the whole any
ship sailing south-east is going to spend much of its time fighting the wind.

This is particularly difficult for some of the slower, larger ships in the game — galleons, merchantmen,

and, above all, the sluggish cargo fluyte. If you head one of these ships into the wind, if it moves any-

Wind
Direction

One of the most important characteristics of a sailing ship is its ability to sail “close hauled” — that is, to sail toward the wind’s “eye.”
Throughout the history of sail, ship-builders have struggled mightily to design craft which will sail just a few degrees closer into the wind.
Over long journeys, a difference of just a few degrees can mean days — even weeks — of saved travel time. (See the section “The Ship
Gazetteer” for more details on points of sailing.)

In short, if you’re planning to travel far from east to west, you might consider selling off any poor-handling ships, particularly merchantmen and
fluytes, before you go.

where at all, it will probably move backwards! This can be discouraging, particularly if you’re on a long
south-easterly voyage, going, say, from Havana to St. Kitts.

When the wind is in your teeth, the only way to get where you’re going is by “tacking.” When you tack,

you zig-zag toward your target rather than heading there directly.

You’ll note that in the diagram at left, you actually cover about twice as much distance as if you sailed
directly east. However, with an unwieldy ship, you’ll get there much faster than if you went straight east.
In sailing, the shortest distance between two points is not always the fastest...

28

SHIP ENCOUNTERS

As a fighting sailor — whether you call yourself “pirate” or the more genteel “privateer” — you live by attacking and capturing ships.
While doing so you damage your king’s enemies and fill your crew’s pockets.

FIRST SIGHT

Your first sight of an enemy ship is its sails and masts coming over the horizon. Continuing
your voyage is a nearly foolproof way to evade any encounter. If you choose to investigate fur­ther, you close with the other ship. Once you close the distance, your chances of evading a
dangerous opponent decline.

SHIP IN VIEW

If you sail away now, you usually evade contact,
but not always. You can continue investigating,
which closes the range further, allowing you to
determine the ship’s nationality.

SEE HER COLORS

After the other ship hoists her colors, you can try to sail away peacefully, come alongside

and talk over the latest news, or attack her. If the other ship is a merchant vessel, it will almost
certainly let you sail away or discuss news peacefully; however, if it is a pirate or pirate­hunter, it may recognize you and attack, regardless of your choice.

SELECT YOUR FLAGSHIP

If a battle occurs and you have more than one ship in your fleet, you can select
which will be your flagship. The ship you select fights the battle. Consider your
choice carefully. The type of ship you’re sailing can be critical. Ships’ strengths,
capacities and sailing characteristics are described in the “Ship Gazetteer,” later in
this book.

29

Men and Cannon Available

The number of men available shows the maximum number of
men available for duty in your flagship after eight men are
deducted for each other ship in your fleet. The number of can­non shown is the total number of cannon you have available. If
your flagship is small, you’ll find the number of men and cannon
limited to the capacity of the ship. Further, it takes four men to
man each gun. If your crew is too small, you may have to fight
with fewer than the maximum number of cannon available.

BATTLE AT SEA

When an encounter leads to battle, the scene changes to a
ship-against-ship duel. See the

Captain’s Broadsheet

information on your ship’s controls.

Sailing

Maneuvering in battle is similar to travel by sea. You can turn
right, turn left, or remain on course.

Change Sails

You can either “set full sails” for maximum speed in battle, or
“reduce to battle sails” for lower speeds with much less risk of
rigging damage. You begin the battle with battle sails set.

It takes some time to change sails; while your men are doing
so, they can’t reload the ship’s cannon (see below).

Fire Broadside

Your guns are mounted along the port and starboard (left and
right) sides of the ship. Therefore, to aim your guns, you turn
your ship so its side faces the enemy. When you fire your can­non, your gunners automatically fire from the side of the ship
nearest the enemy.

The effect of gunfire varies with the number of guns firing, and
the size of the ship hit. For example, a broadside from a 20-gun
ship into a galleon may have little effect, while the same into a
pinnace might leave her a flaming wreck.

After a broadside is fired, the gun crews reload as fast as possible.
Reloading speed depends upon the morale of your crew. A happy
crew loads faster than an unhappy one. Enemy reloading speed
depends upon the quality of their crew (warships, pirate hunters
and pirates have better quality crews than peaceful merchantmen
and cargo fluytes). Reloading is temporarily halted when you
change sails — the gun crews leave their guns to man the rigging.

for specific

Damage

When a ship is hit by a broadside, the ship’s crewmen are
injured and cannon may be dismounted. The stronger (and clos­er) the broadside, the more men and cannon are lost.

In addition, especially powerful hits cause structural damage
to the ship. Each level of structural damage slows the ship and
brings it closer to sinking. The damage levels are: Sail Damage,
Lost a Mast, Hull Damage, Hull Leaking and Ship Sinking. If a
sinking ship takes additional structural damage, it sinks.

Pause

You can pause the battle to catch your breath. When you
resume play, you’ll be right where you were when you left.

Escaping from Battle

To escape from battle, sail away from the enemy. Once the
distance between ships is large enough, the battle ends. If you
flee from battle and the enemy ship is undamaged, you may lose
a ship to the enemy pursuit. However, this can occur only if you
have two or more ships.

Sea Battle Screen

Enemy Vessel

Wind Speed and Direction

Your Ship

Your Men

Enemy Ship Status

SpeedCannons

30

In addition, in a long action, nightfall may end the battle. You

never lose ships when battle ends due to nightfall.

Land and Shoals

If you fight a battle near the shore, you’ll face the additional
hazards of shoals and land. If a ship drives itself onto the shoals,
it might sustain damage. In addition, it may become caught on
the rocks for a time, until the crew can back sails or man row­boats to pull her off. During this time, the other ship can pound
the immobile ship with immunity.

Shallows pose much the same threat. Ships are less likely to be
damaged from running aground in shallow water, but they can
be immobilized.

Note that smaller, shallow-draft vessels run less risk of run­ning aground or taking damage than larger craft. Small craft
can take advantage of this to escape from the larger ones: it
takes an iron will to send an expensive frigate into the shallows
after a wily pinnace...

Surrender!

If you have pounded the enemy ship unmercifully and you
have a reputation as a daring and successful pirate, the enemy
captain may choose to surrender once you close with his ship.
The chances that he will do so depend upon the amount of dam­age he’s taken, the relative size of the two ships’ crews, and the
difficulty level.

Grapple and Board

If you sail your ship alongside or into the enemy, your crew
leaps aboard the enemy ship and attempts to take her by
storm. You must lead your men into the fight. See “Fencing”
for more information.

PRIZES AND PLUNDER

Prizes

When you win a battle at sea, you can either take the enemy
ship for your own (sending a “prize” crew of eight sailors to man
her), or you can just take its cargo, while burning and sinking the
ship itself. After the battle you’ll get a report of the ship’s arma­ment and capacity, as well as the empty space remaining in the
cargo holds of your fleet.

In general, taking a ship as a prize is useful, since you can sell
the ship at a friendly port. The disadvantages are that a slow­moving prize will slow down your entire fleet (galleons and
badly-damaged ships are especially slow). Further, each prize
requires eight crewmen to man. This means eight fewer men are
available for subsequent battles.

Plunder

Regardless of whether you take the ship prize or sink her, you
must decide what cargo you wish to plunder and call your own,
and what you wish to leave behind (throw overboard). You’ll
automatically take all the gold — compared to its value, gold
weighs virtually nothing, and therefore doesn’t affect your cargo
capacity. Transferring captured goods to your ship or throwing
them overboard is just like trading with merchants (see the

Captain‘s Broadsheet

).

31

ATTACKING A TOWN FROM THE SEA

If you sail into a town and select “Attack Town,” you begin an
amphibious assault on that town. In an assault, your flagship must
sail up to the fort guarding the town, touching land as close as possi­ble to the fort. If you land close enough, the men jump ashore and
storm the fort, leading to a fight on the battlements (see “Fencing and
Swordplay”). If you land too far away, the men will refuse to march
and the assault ends in failure.

You can fire at the fort during your approach. Your broadsides
will reduce the fort’s return fire and reduce the number of men
you will face when you storm the fort.

Shoals

When assaulting a fort, shoals may block your approach. If you
run onto a shoal, you may run aground and/or damage your
ship. See “Land and Shoals” in “Ship Encounters” above for
more details on shoals.

Defeat

If you’re losing the battle, you can end the fight by sailing off
the screen and out of range of the fort. You then return to the sail­ing screen. If you are sunk, you’ll be captured and held prisoner
in the city jail until your men can arrange a prisoner exchange.

THE ASSAULT

If you succeed in reaching the fort intact, you lead your men in
battle against the commander of the fort. See ”Fencing and
Swordplay“ for details on massed combat.

Retreat and Surrender

If you are losing the battle against the fort’s commander, you
can retreat. You’ll find yourself outside of the city once more, and
with a somewhat more tarnished reputation than when you went
in. If you surrender to the commander, you’re thrown in jail.

Victory

If you defeat the commander, the town is at your mercy. First
your men gather up the town’s treasure. The amount they find
depends upon how long your assault took: the longer the battle,
the more time the citizenry has to hide their gold.

Attacking A Fort Screen

Wind Speed and Direction

Your Ship Enemy Fort

If the Silver Train or Treasure Fleet happen to be in the city
when you capture it, you capture them, too. These are worth a
tremendous amount of money. (See “Treasures of the
Caribbean” for details on the Silver Train and Treasure Fleet.)

After you’ve loaded the gold, you can then plunder as much of
the town’s goods and cannon as your ships’ holds can carry.
Obviously, it’s smart to have a large-sized fleet when you take a
rich town!

If you have a large force in occupation, you may frighten the
governor into fleeing the city, leaving it to you. You can then
install a governor of your own, changing the town’s nationality
to one of your choice. This exceptional service is likely to gain
you the gratitude of the appropriate king.

Your Men

Cannons

Enemy Fort Status

Speed

32

ON THE LAND

Though you are a seafaring pirate, during your career you’ll travel on land for a number of reasons: to search for buried treasure, to
rescue lost relatives held in durance-vile by Evil Spaniards, to reach inland cities, and to assault cities you don’t dare attack from the sea.

EMBARKING/DISEMBARKING FROM YOUR SHIP

To leave your ship, simply steer it into the land. The landing
party, consisting of your entire crew, appears next to the ship.
When you want to return to your ship, move your landing party
back onto the vessel.

MOVING ON LAND

When on land, you can move your party in any direction
except into the sea. (See the
land movement.) Of course, the land is mostly trackless jungle,
swamps and mountains, making overland travel very slow.

When moving on land your party can carry only as much as you
can fit into your hold. Since your men move slowly, be careful
about traveling long distances overland if you’re low on food —
starvation can be quite unpleasant as well as bad for morale.

Captain’s Broadsheet

for details of

SEARCH FOR BURIED TREASURE

When the landing party reaches a location where you think a
treasure is buried, use the “Search” command to search for it. If
you are in the correct place, you’ll find the treasure. If you are in
the wrong place, you’ll find nothing.

ENTERING A TOWN

To enter a town, move your landing party atop the town. The
options when entering a town from land are similar to those
when entering a town from sea (see “Putting into Port”, above).

You are told what flag the town is flying and what level of fortifi­cations the town has. You receive the following choices:

into Town, Attack the Town, Sneak into Town,

March into Town

You and your men march into town openly and peacefully. If

your force is large and the city distrusts you, this might lead to battle.

Attack the Town

You lead your men in battle against the town’s defenders.
This may lead to a land battle (see below), or the defenders may
refuse to come out and fight. If the latter is the case, your men
storm the city and you cross swords with the leader of the
defenders (see “Fencing and Swordplay”).

Sneak into Town

You leave the bulk of your forces outside of town and scuttle
over the city walls at night with a few trusted men. The risks and
restrictions are the same as when you sneak into town from the
sea (see “Putting into Port”).

Leave Town

If you change your mind about entering the town, this option
puts you back outside the city gates.

and

March

Leave Town

.

33

LAND BATTLES

Pirates aren’t fools. They know that the wealth carried by Spanish galleons originates in Spanish towns. When looking for wealth, it seems
logical to go to cities. Cities are certainly easier to find than ships — cities simply don’t move around as much. On the other hand, ships
aren’t protected by stone walls, pikemen and cavalry. Capturing a well-defended city is no treat at all.

When your party marches overland and attacks a town, the town’s defenders may form a small army, march out, and meet you in open
battle. Controlling your forces on land is different from all other activities in
ing. Please read the following instructions carefully and see the

Captain’s Broadsheet

Pirates! Gold.

Pike and shot warfare is quite unlike other fight-

for details.

GIVING ORDERS

In a land battle, your party is divided into two or three groups.
You can give orders to each group separately, or give the same
order simultaneously to everyone.

Select Group Key

This shifts your control from one group to another. The current­ly-selected group is highlighted on the map, and their strength,
weaponry and morale appear on the right side of the screen.

Move Group

This control moves the group according to your instructions. All
your other groups remain stationary while this group is moving.

Move All Groups

This moves all of your groups. This is the only way to move
your force as a whole.

Pause

This pauses the battle.

COMBAT

Your men fight automatically when in range of your oppo­nents. Your men fight in two ways: they fire muskets a short dis­tance and they melee with the enemy in hand-to-hand combat.
In melee combat everyone participates, not just those armed
with muskets.

Musket Fire

This occurs only when your men are stationary. Each group
selects the nearest enemy within range, then fires. If no enemy is
in range, that group doesn’t fire. Remember: your men cannot
fire while moving, so be careful about giving movement orders.

Land Battle Screen

Your Forces

Enemy Soldiers Enemy Cavalry

Melee Combat

This occurs whenever your men move into direct contact with
an enemy group, or vice versa. You may continue moving while
melee combat rages.

Enemy Fort

34

Visibility and Cover

Men in woods and within a town are invisible to the opposi­tion. You’ll notice that enemy units disappear in such situations;
when you are in woods or a town, the enemy loses sight of you
as well. The on-screen report about an enemy group (see above)
refers to the nearest visible enemy group.

Use this to your advantage by hiding a group along the edge
of a wood or town, then use another group to lure the enemy
into range of the first group.

TERRAIN TYPES

There are a number of terrain types to be found in and around
the cities of the Spanish Main:

Open Terrain: This terrain has no effect upon the battle; i.e.,
it doesn’t hinder movement, make an occupant invisible or
provide cover.

Woods and Towns: These terrain types slow movement. In
addition, men within woods or town are invisible until an enemy
gets close. Woods and towns provide “cover” to defending
forces: that is, the men take fewer casualties and cannot be fired
at from long range.

Swamps: Swamps greatly slow movement. In addition, men in
a swamp are invisible and in cover (see above).

Hills: These slow movement. In melee, men on a hill inflicts
extra casualties if their opponents are not on a hill. Hills don’t
block visibility or provide cover.

Water: Your men can wade through the shallow coastal
waters off-shore. (Enemy forces have boats available; see
below.) Water greatly slows movement. Men in water take

more

casualties in battle.

FORCE TYPES

Infantry: Most of the fighters in land combat are infantry. Some
infantrymen are armed with muskets, others with pike and swords.

When in battle with enemy infantry, take note of how many
muskets each side has. If you have more muskets, you’ll want to
stay at a distance from the enemy and trade musket-shots. If they
have more muskets, you will want to close in for melee combat.

Cavalry: Although your party and most defenders are on foot,

some larger Spanish towns field cavalry forces. Cavalry moves
fast and is excellent in melee on open ground. Cavalry, however,
lacks long-range muskets and is hindered greatly in woods.

Boats: Enemy forces have small coastal boats available, allow-

ing them to move quickly over water. Your men, however, must
wade through the shallows.

MORALE

Each group has a separate morale level. Morale ranges from
strong (the best) through firm, angry, shaken, and finally panic
(the worst). When a group panics they run away from the
enemy, regardless of orders.

Significant casualties will demoralize a group, while a respite
from battle restores morale. Troops out of battle recover their
morale faster than troops under enemy fire or melee attack.

THE FINAL ASSAULT

Your goal is to move your men onto the enemy fort. When
you do this the open field fighting ceases and a swordfight on
the ramparts decide whether the enemy surrenders the city, or
your attack fails (see “Fencing and Swordplay”).

VICTORY

You receive the same benefits for capturing a city through a
land battle as you do for assaulting it by ship. That is, you cap­ture some or most of its gold, depending upon the time it took
you to complete the assault; you can take its goods and cargo;
and you may get a chance to make it change its political alle­giance. (See “Attacking a Town from the Sea” for details.)

RETREAT AND DEFEAT

You can retreat from the battle by moving off the edge of the
map with all of your groups. This ends the attack.

If all of your groups are destroyed, you are captured and
unceremoniously thrown into jail, there to await your fate.

35

PIKE AND SHOT WARFARE

Land warfare in the 16th and 17th Century saw the supremacy of infantry restored after the long reign of the mounted knight. In
Europe, the Spanish Tercio was the great military system, as formidable in its day as the Roman legion. The Tercio was a solid
block of pikemen, 16 or more ranks deep. It developed an awesome power charging forward, as well as a nearly invincible
bristling defense against cavalry.

Men with firearms (arquebuses and the heavier muskets) formed loose groups at the corners, giving supporting fire and softening
the enemy for the pikemen’s punch. Bayonets did not exist and firearms took over two minutes to reload. Therefore when close
action threatened, the musketeers retired behind the pikemen.

Spanish Tercios were built of well-drilled, professional soldiers, ready to instantly perform the complex drill evolutions that
maneuvered the cumbersome blocks of pike and their supporting musketeers. This military system was widely copied in Europe
throughout the 16th and 17th Centuries. As firearms improved, the proportions of musketeers gradually increased.

In the West Indies the slightly faster-firing flintlock musket was popular among privateers and buccaneers decades before regu­lar troops were issued the weapon. The buccaneers had uncommon accuracy and skill with their weapons, mostly because they
relied on them for hunting ashore.

Buccaneer firepower was among the most accurate on earth at the time. Furthermore, a risk-all, gain-all attitude made bucca­neers ferocious opponents in melee. No wonder many Spaniards ran from the crack-shooting, cutlass-wielding berserkers of
Tortuga and Port Royale.

The great weakness of the buccaneers was cavalry. Their firepower was insufficient to stop an organized, disciplined cavalry
attack. However, Spanish cavalry was neither organized nor disciplined. Composed mostly of local notables more interested in
preserving their wealth than in killing pirates, New World cavalry was better known for their failures than their successes. Even in
the defense of Panama, when the Spanish had 100 to 200 horsemen, the mounted arm was timid and indecisive, with many
desertions before and during the battle.

Drake’s Assault on Cartagena, 1586

One late winter afternoon, Francis Drake in his 30-gun
galleon flagship Elizabeth Bonaventure led a fleet of ships to
Cartagena, fresh from the plundering of Santo Domingo. His
ships anchored in the roadstead, outside of the range of the
forts. That night, while the Spanish prepared for a naval attack
into the harbor, Drake disembarked over 1,000 men onto the
harbor’s large outer peninsula and marched over the sandspit
connecting this to the city proper. There his men cut through a
fence of poisoned barbs, waded out to sea to avoid the gunfire
from Spanish ships anchored in the harbor, and finally
charged the 750 defending Spaniards. The hand-to-hand fight­ing swirled back into the city, where the Spanish finally broke
and surrendered (or ran). Victorious, Drake’s men plundered it
all. Eventually the Spanish governor raised 110,000 ducats (a
vast fortune) as ransom for Drake’s departure. Drake agreed,
as he and his supporters preferred money to ownership of a
plundered city.

The Defense of Panama, 1671

When Don Juan Perez de Guzman, President of Panama,
organized the city’s defense against Henry Morgan’s bucca­neers, his “army” consisted of two companies of Spanish regular
infantry (each about 100 men), plus militia companies of
Spaniards, mulattos, free blacks, mestizos, and zambos (various
Spanish-African-Indian racial mixtures) which may have totaled
800 or more. The pure-blooded Spanish militia was largely
mounted, carrying pistols and swords, theoretically capable of a
battle-winning charge over the open ground north of the city.
The remainder served as infantry, many with no weapon better
than a crude pike. None of these had sufficient military drill to
move in the dense, formidable blocks of pikemen that won
battles in Europe. Indeed, few had sufficient discipline to
withstand more than one or two volleys of musket fire.
Curiously, in battle the native Spaniards were the first to flee
(many before the battle even started!) while the free Blacks
were among the most stalwart defenders of the city.

36

BOOK II: A PIRATE’S LIFE

37

THE VOYAGE

A MERRY CREW OF DEMOCRATS

Buccaneers and pirates are unique: they are a democratic
group, governed by voting, in an age of absolute kings and impe­rious aristocrats. Among pirates, spoils are divided fairly and
equally. The Captain gets extra shares, but only because he takes
larger risks. His crew is said to sail “on account” when they are
paid by shares of the loot, instead of by wages.

“ON ACCOUNT”

At the end of a voyage, or series of voyages, the party’s profits
are split. Each man gets his fair share. Until the division of plun­der, the Quartermaster keeps an “account” for each man, from
which is deducted expenses for clothing and food, penalties for
crimes and misdemeanors, gambling losses, etc. The term “sailing
on account” refers to this complex process of bookkeeping. This
approach is also sometimes known as “No Purchase, No Pay!”

As Captain, remember to distinguish between the entire party’s
wealth (displayed in the “Party Status” screen) and your personal
wealth (in the “Personal Status” screen). Certainly your crew
knows the difference! During the course of a voyage, the party’s
wealth is the combined profit of the voyage. It is the property of
all, and strongly affects crew morale (see below). At the end of
the voyage, when you divide up the loot, each man gets his fair
share. Only then do you get your share.

DIVIDING THE PLUNDER

When the cruise ends and you divide the plunder at the Bank,
don’t be surprised when the men disperse to enjoy their wealth.
Also remember that everything is split evenly, including the ships,
cannon and cargo. As Captain, you retain only your flagship.
Therefore, it’s advisable to sell everything except your flagship
before dividing the plunder.

A fixed percentage of the party’s gains go to the officers. Each
officer’s share is worth a bit over 2%. Therefore an Apprentice
Captain with two shares gets 5%, a Journeyman with four 10%,
and Adventurer with six 15%, and a Swashbuckler with eight
20%. (Note that the size of your crew has no effect upon your
share. This is to discourage Captains from leading their crews into
massacres right before dividing the loot!)

A flat 10% of the booty is returned to the patrons and sponsors of
the voyage as their profit. Generally, the financiers then make this
money available to you as starting capital for your next voyage.

The crew gets equal share of everything remaining. The size of
each crewman’s share affects your reputation. If the shares are
large, your prestige is enhanced. If the shares are small, your rep­utation suffers, making it harder for you to recruit new crewmen.

38

EACH VOYAGE A NEW START

Each voyage means a new start for the Captain and crew. You
begin with one ship, recently cleaned and outfitted, some initial
funds from your backers (about 10% of the last voyage’s profit),
and a core of loyal crewmen.

RECRUITING CREWMEN

You recruit crewmen in taverns, and sometimes from captured
ships. If you sneak into town you cannot recruit (recruiting is a
very public activity). Recruiting from captured ships is easiest if
the captured ship is a pirate, or a ship with a large crew.

CREW MORALE

You can determine your crew’s morale in the ”Crew Status“ area
of your ”Logbook“. The attitude of the crew varies from happy (the
best) to pleased, unhappy and angry (the worst). The more money
the party has, the happier they are. The crew attaches little impor­tance to captured ships, goods, treasure maps and other items —
until they are turned into bright, shiny gold!

The crew is also impatient. As the months pass, they want to dis­band and spend their loot, or (if you don’t have much loot) they
start thinking about joining some other Captain. The only way to

keep them happy is to keep collecting more and more gold. It’s
difficult to keep a crew pleased for more than a year, and almost
impossible to keep them pleased for two years or longer.

When the crew is unhappy or angry, they will start deserting
whenever you visit port. If they are angry too long, they mutiny.
This means you must fight to remain Captain.

It is easier to keep a small crew happy than a large crew. This
is because with a small crew, each man’s share of the loot is
larger, making him a happier fellow! Also note that converting
plundered cargo to gold helps keep morale high, especially if
you sell at a town with high prices. Selling excess ships and can­non for good, hard gold to a shipwright is similarly useful.

A CAPTAIN’S QUALIFICATIONS

Among buccaneers the Captain was elected by the crew, not
appointed by government or owners (as is common on military
or commercial vessels). He was the man the crew agreed was
best for the job. If the crew decided the Captain was inept, they
would replace him with another of their number. Often the new
candidate dueled the old for the Captaincy.

In the crew’s mind, the Captain’s most important skill was
leading them in battle. For this they wanted bravery and ferocity
more than they wanted tactical genius. However, the best
Captains, such as Henry Morgan, had both.

Outside of battle, when dealing with governors and other offi­cials, the Captain acted as the “front man” to represent the group.
Although pirates professed disdain for the privilege and status of
the aristocracy, often their Captains were former military men,
merchants or aristocrats with a “lordly manner.”

Finally, a Captain needed a good reputation, with numerous
past successes to his credit. It was his name that brought new
recruits aboard. This experience was doubly valuable since most
of the really good plans for profitable expeditions were conceived
by veteran Captains.

39

GAINS AND GOALS

AN AGE OF NEW BEGINNINGS

This is an era of privilege. A man of high rank or title lives under
different laws than commoners. More importantly, this is an age of
social mobility. Old families with the wrong religious beliefs,
incorrect political views or insufficient wealth disappear from the
national scene. Even the royal houses change frequently.
England’s royal family was the House of Tudor to 1603, the House
of Stuart to 1649, the Cromwellian Commonwealth to 1660, the
House of Stuart again to 1688, and then the House of Orange!

Onto this stage of turmoil and change, a single man of energy
and boldness can grasp power and prestige for generations to
come. A common seafarer from an undistinguished family, such as
Francis Drake, could gain titles of nobility, rank, honors, and
immense prestige.

WHAT TO SEEK?

Planning for a happy retirement means seeking as much of
everything as possible. Personal wealth is always valuable.
However, high rank or (better yet) a patent of nobility is
extremely valuable. Land is also useful — among the nobility,
for example, the land he owns is considered the measure of a
man. As a rule, the more you accomplish at a rank, the more
land you receive when you are promoted to the next higher
rank. In addition your reputation, your family (including a wife, if
any) and your health all contribute to your future happiness.

WHEN TO RETIRE?

Roving the seas is an enjoyable and exciting life, but a wise
man keeps an eye toward retirement. Eventually wounds from
battle and the taxing demands of sea voyages affect your health.
If your health is poor, helpful friends will advise retirement.
Heed their advice — if you ignore them, life becomes more and
more difficult, until one day you’re are unable to recruit a new
crew for another voyage.

In general, your career is limited to five to ten years of active
endeavor. However, waiting until you are at Death’s Door is not
a good way to start a happy retirement!

Henry Morgan

Morgan was a Welsh adventurer. Although his origins are
uncertain, he probably came to the Antilles in 1655 as part of the
invasion force that captured Jamaica. He advanced both as a
militia officer (on land) and a privateering leader (at sea). In 1667
he was commissioned as Admiral of Privateers by the English
governor at Port Royale. In the next few years he plundered
numerous ships and cities, including Puerto Bello. Then, in 1671,
he took Panama, the richest city in the New World.

Patrons who benefitted financially from his Panama expedition
included Sir Thomas Modyford, Governor of Jamaica, George
Monck, Duke of Albermarle, Modyford’s aging but influential
patron at Court, and James Stewart II, King of England since his
restoration in 1660. Despite the Treaty of Madrid in 1670, where
England pledged to stop attacks on Spain, none of these notables
refused their share of the expedition’s spoils.

Morgan was officially “arrested,” probably to mollify the Spanish
ambassador, but not confined. He traveled in aristocratic circles,
was toasted everywhere, and consulted on West Indian policy by
the King’s advisors. In 1674 King Charles II knighted him Sir Henry
Morgan. He was appointed Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica,
where he lived a pleasant life amid his large plantations.

40

TREASURES OF THE CARIBBEAN

In addition to the plunder gained through the capture of ships
and towns, the Caribbean is bursting with special treasures for a
worthy Captain to set his sights upon.

PIRATES’ BOOTY

Pirates have been plundering the Caribbean virtually ever
since the first Spanish galleon was loaded with Indian silver.
Much of this treasure has since been spent, but much also still
remains hidden, its owners long dead, with only fragments of
maps showing where it might lie.

When you visit a tavern, you might be given the opportunity to
purchase such a map. Though many arduous days of searching
may be required before you discover the treasure’s location,
there may indeed be great wealth awaiting you!

If you can’t find the treasure with the small piece of map in
your possession, don’t despair: some other suspicious character
in another tavern may hold the missing piece...

THE TREASURE FLEET

From the 1530s onward, Spanish ships suffered from privateers
and outright piracy, not only in the West Indies, but in the
Atlantic. Spain’s solution, adopted informally in the 1540s and
made law in the ‘60s, was to “convoy” ships together in one
powerful fleet.

Each year, the fleet (“flota”) sails from Seville in Spain, carrying
passengers, troops and European goods to the Spanish colonies
of the New World. However, its principal purpose is returning
silver from the mines in New Spain (Mexico) and Potosi (Peru) to
the Spanish government in Europe.

This vast wealth makes the returning fleet a tempting target.
Privateer and pirate ships frequently follow the flota, hoping to
pick off stragglers. This is a dangerous business, since a well­handled war galleon can turn the tables and capture a pirate!

You can find the current location of the Treasure Fleet through
informers in a governor’s Court. Also, important enemy Captains
will occasionally agree to tell you where to find the Fleet in return
for their freedom. If you capture a city where the Fleet is anchored,
you stand to gain hundreds of thousands in silver and gold.

THE SILVER TRAIN

To move the silver and gold from the mines of Peru and South
America, the Spanish loaded the treasure aboard hundreds of
mules, then moved them en masse to the coastal cities, there to
await the arrival of the Treasure Fleet. These mule “trains” car­ried hundreds of thousands of pounds of pure silver and gold.

Your informants in Court may be able to tell you of the Train’s
present location. If you capture a city with the Silver Train in it,
you’ll be a very rich pirate indeed...

INDIAN TREASURES

During their early conquests of the Central and South
American natives, the Spanish plundered literally thousands of
tons of gold and silver from the Indian cities. Most of this trea­sure has made its way to Spain, but some was “diverted” and
remains hidden in the Caribbean.

If you can find such treasure, your wealth will be sung of in
wharfside taverns across the oceans. Perhaps one of your miss­ing relatives has a clue to the treasure’s location...

41

42

BOOK III: THE GOLDEN ANTILLES

A GAZETTEER OF SHIPS CIRCA 1690

Among the myriad types, sizes and rigs of ships sailing the Caribbean, nine basic approaches to shipbuilding can be discerned.
Although each ship was individually designed and built, shipwrights learned by copying one another, producing ships of remarkable
similarity. These general types are summarized below. However, expect to meet the exception more often than the rule!

DEFINITIONS

Broad beam reach

Broad reach

Running
broad reach

Running
before
the wind

Running
broad reach

Broad reach

Broad beam reach

Beam reach

Beam reach

Close-hauled
beam reach

Closed-hauled

Closed-hauled into the eye

Closed-hauled into the eye

Closed-hauled

Close-hauled beam reach

Wind blows from
this direction

Into the eye
of the wind

36 guns –

20-24 guns –

275 men –

CARGO SPACE

This refers to available cargo space, after deduction for food,
water, crewmen, and other common materials and stores. This
should not be confused with tonnage: that describes the entire
weight-carrying capacity of the ship when completely unloaded.

SPEED

Speeds are given in leagues (about 2.5 miles) traveled during a
watch (about four hours). The first value is best speed in light
wind, the second is best speed in strong wind.

BEST POINT OF SAILING

This refers to the wind direction in which the ship makes its
best speed. Each type of ship has a different point of sailing.

SPANISH GALLEON

7-15 leagues –

Broad reach –

Best point of sailing

Max number of heavy cannon

Typical number of heavy cannon

288 men –

Maximum personnel

Typical crew and passengers

160 tons –

Best speed

Cargo space

Galleons are the largest sailing vessels on the Spanish Main. Originally they were created because one large ship was cheaper to build
than two smaller ones. However, large ships were much less maneuverable, which increased the chance of shipwreck, not to mention
hindering them in battle. Galleons are slow to turn, and are especially poor sailors close-hauled. Tacking into the wind is very difficult
with this type of ship. Still, enormous carrying capacity and powerful armament makes the galleon a formidable opponent in battle.

43

SPANISH WAR GALLEON

7-15 leagues –
Broad reach or running reach –
32 guns –
28-32 guns –
256 men –
250 men –
140 tons –

War Galleons are similar to mercantile types. They have less cargo capacity, but more guns and soldiers. The most important differ­ence is that war galleons are crewed by soldiers and commanded by noble officers, making them brave and formidable opponents in
battle. Due to their better crew, war galleons are slightly faster than merchant galleons on a running broad reach, but otherwise just as
ponderous and unmaneuverable as their more peaceful cousins.

Only the most powerful warships can expect to engage a war galleon and succeed. The preferred Spanish tactic with these ships
was to run alongside an opponent, fire one broadside at point-blank range, then board for hand-to-hand combat. This made best use
of their large crew of trained soldiers.

Best speed

Best point of sailing

Max number of heavy cannon

Typical number of heavy cannon
Maximum personnel
Typical crew and passengers

Cargo space

FAST GALLEON

9-12 leagues –
Broad reach or running reach –
28 guns –
24 guns –
224 men –
215 men –
120 tons –

Best speed

Best point of sailing
Max number of heavy cannon
Typical number of heavy cannon

Maximum personnel
Typical crew and passengers

Cargo space

The northern European powers refined the basic Galleon design, revising the sail plan for more flexibility, then reducing the upper
works and hull shape for better seakeeping. The resulting ship was smaller than a Spanish galleon, but faster in light winds and
considerably more maneuverable. However, it suffers the universal disadvantage of all galleons — poor speed when close-hauled.
Still, its superior maneuverability and seakeeping showed when the English fast galleons and smaller craft defeated a Spanish fleet
of conventional galleons in 1588.

44

FRIGATE

9-12 leagues –

Broad reach or running reach –

28 guns –

26-28 guns –

190 men –

Square-rigged frigates are fast sailors, fairly handy to maneuver, and faster than most square-rigged ships when close-hauled. A frigate
is extraordinarily useful for patrols and independent cruises. Almost all frigates are built for the Crown as naval warships. With their
well-drilled and professional crews, frigates are dangerous opponents at any time. Most pirates and buccaneers disappear over the
horizon whenever a frigate appears.

Max number of heavy cannon

Typical number of heavy cannon

224 men –

Typical crew and passengers

Best point of sailing

Maximum personnel

120 tons –

Best speed

Cargo space

MERCHANTMAN

24 guns –

6-12 guns –

20-45 men –

9-12 leagues –

Broad reach –

Best point of sailing

Max number of heavy cannon

Typical number of heavy cannon

198 men –

Maximum personnel

Typical crew and passengers

100 tons –

Best speed

Cargo space

Square-rigged merchantmen are a trader’s dream. They have large cargo capacity, space for numerous guns for use in dangerous waters,
and plenty of room for crew and passengers. Furthermore, they can be sailed with a small crew to save money.

Most merchantmen are peaceful traders, disinclined to fight. They tend to have large cargos and sometimes a bit of wealth.
Privateers and pirates always look forward to capturing a “juicy” merchantmen. However, some merchantmen have been converted
to pirate ships, with stronger armament and a ferocious crew of cutthroats. These ships are extremely dangerous.

45

CARGO FLUYTE

9-12 leagues –
Running reach –
20 guns –
4-12 guns –
160 men –
12-24 men –
80 tons –

Fluytes were invented by the Dutch around 1600, then widely copied throughout northern Europe. Essentially smaller and much
more economical merchantmen, they can be sailed with a tiny crew (12 to 15 men is not uncommon). A fluyte has large cargo
space, but a draft so shallow it can enter rivers, coves and small harbors unsuitable to larger craft. Its sailing qualities are similar to a
merchantman’s, although the best point of sailing is slightly different.

The smallest of the square-rigged ships, fluytes make poor warships. Almost always they are manned by peaceful traders who

surrender after a broadside or two. They are unpopular as pirate ships.

Best speed

Best point of sailing

Max number of heavy cannon

Typical number of heavy cannon

Maximum personnel

Typical crew and passengers

Cargo space

BARQUE

9-12 leagues –
Broad beam reach –
16 guns –
4-6 guns –
128 men –
12-36 men –
60 tons –

Best speed

Best point of sailing

Max number of heavy cannon

Typical number of heavy cannon

Maximum personnel

Typical crew and passengers

Cargo space

The largest fore-and-aft rigged ships, barques are a traditional design similar to many Mediterranean merchant and war craft. Many
barques are built in the Caribbean, rather than in Europe. Barques are good sailers for quiet seas, but all too easily come to grief in a
rough ocean crossing. This means that few barques return from the Caribbean to Europe, as the North Atlantic west-to-east route is
often stormy.

Barques are the slowest close-hauled sailors among fore-and-aft rigs, and the least maneuverable. However, the advantages of the
rig are so great that barques still surpass all square-rigged ships in both departments. Furthermore, barques carry oars, allowing them to
row straight into the eye of the wind. With both large size and good handling, a pirate barque can be a formidable adversary.

46

SLOOP

9-10 leagues –

Broad reach or broad beam reach –

12 guns –

4-6 guns –

8-12 men –

Another Dutch design that gradually appeared during the 1630s and 1640s, the sloop (or jacht, or schooner) became very popular in
the Caribbean. It is extremely fast and exceptionally maneuverable — better than any other ship in light winds. Close-hauled it sails
very fast, and under oars it can move directly into the wind.

Most importantly, sloops have a shallow draft, allowing them to sail over many shoals. The main weakness of a sloop is that in
strong winds it is considerably slower than a square-rigged ship. Then its only advantage is maneuverability and superior speed close­hauled or into the wind.

Despite its modest size and cargo capacity, a sloop’s maneuverability is so great that many buccaneers prefer it to larger, more
powerful craft. Indeed, in the 1680s and after, the English Royal Navy built a number of sloops for its own use as pirate-chasers.

Max number of heavy cannon

Typical number of heavy cannon

96 men –

Typical crew and passengers

Best point of sailing

Maximum personnel

40 tons –

Best speed

Cargo space

PINNACE

9-10 leagues –

Broad beam reach or a beam reach –

8 guns –

2-4 guns –

8-12 men –

Max number of heavy cannon

Typical number of heavy cannon

64 men –

Typical crew and passengers

20 tons –

Best point of sailing

Maximum personnel

Best speed

Cargo space

Until the advent of the sloop, pinnaces were the primary small craft of the Caribbean. Like the sloop, a pinnace is very fast, very
maneuverable, and with a draft that permits sailing in shoal waters. Sailing upwind (close-hauled) it is even faster than a sloop, and
much faster when rowing into the wind.

However, a pinnace is also much smaller than a sloop, with minuscule capacity for cargo and guns. Still, many a pirate raid was
conducted in tiny pinnaces crammed with fighting men. Drake himself abandoned his merchantmen in favor of pinnaces when
raiding the Spanish Main.

47

FAMOUS EXPEDITIONS

JOHN HAWKINS AND THE BATTLE OF SAN JUAN DE ULUA (1569)

Your Forces

One slow galleon:
One merchantman:
Four pinnaces:
308 men.

Political Situation

Spain is at war with France and England.

Your Prospects

You have a formidable squadron, but the flagship is a cumber­some, umaneuverable galleon of the Spanish type. As you
approach the Spanish Main, your big decision must be: peaceful
trade, or warlike raids?

Peaceful trade means you can use the smaller Spanish ports to
reprovision and perhaps even recruit additional crew. However,
it also means that the rich, larger ports are closed to you.
Unfortunately, the profits from peaceful trade are modest, espe­cially so given your large crew and the slowness of your flagship.

Warlike raids offer a better prospect for immediate gain, but
your fleet isn’t strong enough to attack the truly great cities such
as Santiago, Santo Domingo, or Panama. For repairs you can use
the privateer anchorages at the tip of Florida and in the
Bahamas. These places have few provisions, but captured
Spanish ships could provide those. Your biggest problem will be
selling captured goods and replacing crewmen lost in battle.

MONTALBAN

Jesus of Lubeck

Minion

William and John, Swallow, Angel, Judith

Historical Chronicle

Inheritor at age 21 of an English shipping firm, John Hawkins
voyaged twice to the West Indies (in 1562 and 1564), selling
European goods and African slaves to smaller Spanish towns. In
1567 he organized his third and largest expedition (this one)
around the galleon

On the Main, Hawkins found the Spanish increasingly unwill­ing to trade with him. The Spanish home government was aware
of Hawkins’ voyage, and was putting pressure on the colonials
to obey the letter of the law. Hawkins resorted to forcing open
the marketplace at gunpoint in a few ports, and was chased out
of others by gunfire from forts.

Disappointed by the Main, Hawkins set sail for Havana, but a
storm blew his ships far into the Gulf of Campeche. The only
harbor where he could repair his ships was San Juan de Ulua,
the island anchorage for Vera Cruz. Unfortunately for Hawkins,
the day after he arrived the Spanish Treasure Fleet appeared,
armed to the teeth with war galleons and troops.

After a few days of organizing, the Spanish attacked Hawkins
in the harbor, destroying most of his ships and scattering the rest.
These sad remnants, without food or water, struggled home to
England. Hawkins returned on the
left in his crew.

After this voyage Hawkins became a staunch enemy of Spain,
serving England as treasurer and comptroller of the Navy, an
admiral on the
raids against Spanish South America, and finally as Member of
Parliament. He died in 1595 at age 63.

Jesus of Lubeck.

Victory

against the Spanish Armada, leader of

Minion

with only fifteen men

48

FRANCIS DRAKE AND THE SILVER TRAIN AMBUSH (1573)

Your Forces

One merchantman:
One pinnace:
73 men

Political Situation

Spain is at war with England.

Your Prospects

Only a man with foolhardy bravery would dare attack the
Spanish Main at the peak of its might and power with a paltry 73
men on board two small ships. Making any profit from this ven­ture will be most difficult. A cautious man would adopt a trading
strategy, calling at smaller Spanish ports and building both his
wealth and his crew before beginning to raid and plunder. Only
someone as bold as Drake himself would immediately begin
raiding and plundering, trusting to luck and good fortune.

This is an extremely difficult expedition for a fighter. You must
rely on your superb and charismatic leadership to overwhelm
enemies in hand-to-hand combat before they wipe out your tiny
forces. Exploit and maintain the high morale of your small band.
Don‘t get into pitched battles. Instead, always seek to meet the
enemy leaders sword to sword and defeat them quickly.
Needless to say, skill in fencing is advised.

Historical Chronicle

Drake arrived on the Main in June, 1572 with two small ships.

Pasha

Swan

Within five days he raided Nombre de Dios, carrying off a huge
pile of silver from the governor’s house before a musket ball
wound overcame him. Next he captured a ship off Cartagena
(the city itself was too strong to attack).

By September he was back in the Gulf of Darien, taking
Spanish ships to replenish his provisions and trying to ambush
the Silver Train between Panama and Nombre de Dios. But that
winter he failed: the Spanish were alert to his threat. Drake
returned to his distant and secret base at the Isle of the Pines (at the
southwest end of Cuba) and reorganized. He gathered up reinforce­ments from friendly French privateers and Cimaroon rebels.
(Cimaroons were African slaves who escaped the Spanish.)

In March, 1573 he returned to Darien and finally ambushed
the Silver Train at Nombre de Dios, taking a fortune in gold. He
had to leave behind another fortune in silver because it was too
heavy to carry! Drake sailed swiftly for England and arrived at
Plymouth on Sunday, August 9, 1573. A mere thirty Englishmen
returned with him, but each survivor was rich for life.

In 1577-80, Drake raided the Pacific coast of Spain’s
American empire, then returned via Asia, circumnavigating the
globe. With Hawkins he was an admiral of the fleet that defeat­ed the Spanish Armada in 1588. He died of disease in 1596 (at
age 56) after an attack on San Juan, where some Spanish trea­sure galleons had sought shelter.

PIET HEYN AND THE TREASURE FLEET (1628)

Your Forces

Four fast galleons:
Two Sloops:
700 men

Political Situation

Holland is at war with Spain and allied with England. France

and England are also at war with Spain.

Your Prospects

You command a powerful if cumbersome squadron, vanguard
of a great Dutch privateering fleet. The Spanish Treasure Fleet is
an excellent goal. However, it’s late in the season. You must start

Vergulde Valk, Hollandia, Dolfijn, Haarlem

Tijger, Postpaard

hunting immediately off Havana or in the Florida Channel. You’ll
undoubtedly find a variety of smaller ships, but if you’re lucky
and persistent, you may find the treasure galleons.

If you miss the Treasure Fleet,
don’t be shy about raiding a
Spanish port or two. Your forces
are not especially maneuverable,
but they are quite powerful. This is
a situation where a good plan,
patient execution, and more than
a little luck are the keys to success.

DELGADO

49

Historical Chronicle

Piet Heyn was already a famous Captain when he sailed under
Admiral Willekens and led the 1623 attack that captured the
Spanish colony of Sao Salvador (Bahia) on the Brazilian coast.
Although the conquest only lasted one year, the Dutch gained
invaluable expertise in producing fine sugar from sugar cane,
knowledge they spread around the Caribbean in the succeeding
decade. By 1626 Sao Salvador was producing for Spain again, so
Heyn raided it once more!

In 1628 Heyn sailed for the West Indies with a powerful warfleet
of nine large warships and five jachts (sloops). He cruised along
the Main, then swung up to the north coast of Cuba. Off Havana

L’OLLONAIS AND THE SACK OF MARACAIBO (1666)

Your Forces

One Sloop
Five Pinnaces
400 men

Political Situation

France is at war with England and Spain, and allied to Holland.

In addition, England and Holland are at war.

Your Prospects

Your force is strong in men but weak in naval power. Therefore,
like L’Ollonais, your best prospects are in attacks on ports rather
than battles at sea. All but the strongest Spanish cities are within
your grasp.

Be aware of the fragile morale of your men. These Tortuga bucca­neers are impatient for riches. They will not tolerate long, fruitless
cruises. But still, a target must be selected with care. One disappoint-

ment and mutiny is not far off.

VASQUEZ

This expedition is challenging
but not extraordinarily difficult.
You must exercise good judgment
at the start, and then execute the
plan quickly and confidently.

Historical Chronicle

Arriving in the Indies as an inden­tured servant to a planter in French
Hispaniola, Jean-David Nau came

he finally sighted the Spanish Treasure Fleet of forty to fifty sail. He
quickly captured nine small stragglers, while the rest escaped in
all directions, two running aground in the process.

Four royal treasure galleons fled into Matanzas Bay on the
Cuban coast. Heyn pursued them, ran his ships onto the shoals
alongside the Spanish, traded broadsides and boarded. The bat­tered and demoralized Spanish either surrendered or fled
ashore, leaving 46 tons of silver in Dutch hands. This loss ruined
the Spanish economy and gave the Dutch government much­needed funds at a critical point in the Thirty Years War.

There was great rejoicing in Amsterdam when a fast jacht
sailed into that port carrying the news of Heyn’s fabulous victory.

from the Les Sables d’Ollone in Brittany. When his indenture was up
in 1660 he immediately went to Tortuga; within a few years he was
commanding his own buccaneer voyages. Nicknamed L’Ollonais,
“the man from d’Ollone,” he was one of the most ferocious and
inhuman pirates who ever lived.

In 1666 the terror and prestige of his name was enough to collect a
fleet of small boats, crowded with men, bound for Maracaibo. He
surprised the forts and took the city by storm. Despite a bloody plun­dering that lasted a fortnight, the town yielded only modest amounts
of gold and silver.

His next stop was Gibraltar. The Spanish there mustered a powerful
militia, but after a difficult fight in marshy ground, L’Ollonais’ bucca­neers prevailed again. The town was thoroughly sacked, its inhabi­tants tortured and killed, its buildings left in ruins. Six months after
departing Panama, L’Ollonais arrived at Tortuga with enough plun­der to return to France a wealthy man. But he had expected riches
beyond imagination.

So L’Ollonais mounted a new expedition to the coast of Nicaragua
and Honduras. Despite escalating barbarity and cruelty, he found so
little gold that his companion ships sailed away, leaving his tiny band
forlorn and hungry. L’Ollonais and his men went inland, raiding
Indian villages for food.

This final bit of nastiness was his undoing. Jean-David Nau’s mut­tering and mutinous crew deserted him when vengeful Indians
ambushed the party. Grievously wounded by poison arrows, he was
clubbed to death.

50

HENRY MORGAN, THE KING’S PIRATE (1671)

Your Forces

One Frigate:
Two Merchantmen:
One Barque:
Two Sloops:
One Pinnace:
600 men

Political Situation

England and France are both at war with Spain.

Your Prospects

You have a formidable force for either land or sea fighting.
You could seek additional recruits and food, or you can immedi­ately venture against almost any place in the Indies with good
prospects of success. Your greatest immediate difficulties are
procuring enough food to keep your men fed, and enough plun­der to keep up morale. This is an expedition that appears easy
initially, but can quickly become rather challenging.

Historical Chronicle

Henry Morgan was a successful privateer and buccaneer
leader. In earlier voyages he sacked Puerto Principe, plundered
Gran Granada on the far side of Nicaragua, overwhelmed the

Satisfaction

Lilly, Dolphin

Mayflower

Fortune, William

Prosperous

BARON DE POINTIS AND THE LAST EXPEDITION (1697)

Your Forces

Five Frigates
One Sloop
1200 men

Political Situation

France is at war with England and Spain.

Your Prospects

Your force is the most powerful ever on the Spanish Main. You are
free to select the target of your choice and strike. The real question is,
how much treasure can you carry off?

This expedition is a pleasant romp, suitable for commanders who
enjoy the “sure thing.” To obtain a suitable challenge at all, select the
“Swashbuckler” difficulty level. After all, in the real expedition both
de Pointis and du Casse were wounded in battle!

fortifications of Puerto Bello, and followed in L’Ollonais’ foot­steps at Maracaibo and Gibraltar, although both places yielded little
wealth and plenty of hot fighting with aroused Spanish defenders.

On August 24, 1670, Morgan sailed as Admiral of Privateers
under the auspices of Governor Modyford of Jamaica. He ren­dezvoused with French buccaneers from Tortuga and western
Hispaniola, swelling his forces to 2,000 men or more, making
him strong enough for any venture. His goal was Panama, richest
city of the Spanish overseas empire. Sailing upriver and then
marching overland, he arrived outside the city in January, 1671.
Here the governor of the province, Do Juan Perez de Guzman,
had collected his troops and militia.

On the plains outside the city the two forces fought a pitched
battle. The Spanish lost. The city was taken, plundered, and ulti­mately burned to the ground. However, the loot was disappoint­ing. Many of the richest Spaniards had fled with their families
and wealth, rather than staying around to defend it.

The Sack of Panama was Morgan’s crowning achievement. He
wisely retired while still ahead. Although Modyford lost his gov­ernorship and was imprisoned because of the affair, Morgan
received a knighthood. He retired on Jamaica an honored and
wealthy man. He died of too much drink in 1688, at age 53.

Historical Chronicle

In March 1697 Baron de Pointis was in Saint Domingue (the

French colonies of Western Hispaniola) with thirteen warships of the
royal French navy under his command. Louis XIV’s France, simulta­neously at war with England and
Spain, was running short of men,
ships and money. The Baron’s
goal: Cartagena. His purpose: strike
a crippling blow at Spain and
secure a large treasure to support
the French war effort.

LA MANCHA

51

Jean Baptiste du Casse, the French colonial governor since
1691, was ordered to support de Pointis. He collected hundreds
of local buccaneers and privateers under the command of Jean
Bernard Louis Desjeans, who had sailed with the French priva­teering fleets of the 1680’s.

The French expedition arrived off Cartagena in April and began
reducing the Spanish defenses. Outlying forts were seized, often with
the buccaneers in the vanguard, while the fleet moved up behind in
support. Isolated and demoralized, the Spanish fell back on the city.
The French deployed and opened fire with powerful 24-pounder
and 36-pounder siege mortars, demolishing the city’s fortifications.

On May 6, 1697, governor Don Diego de los Rios y Quesada
surrendered Cartagena. Baron de Pointis carried off all the avail­able wealth, paying the buccaneers at the same rate as his own
men (which was a pittance compared to a privateer-style division

of plunder). Worried about a powerful English squadron known
to be hunting him, de Pointis sailed for home with a treasure
worth 20 million Livres in his hold.

The buccaneers, angry with their tiny share, returned to the
still prostrate city. There they sacked, pillaged, raped and tor­tured until the residents coughed up another 5 million Livres
worth of plunder. Meanwhile, de Pointis was intercepted by
Neville’s English fleet south of Jamaica, but the French outma­neuvered the English at night and escaped.

The sack of Cartagena in 1697 was the last great expedition
involving buccaneers. It wouldn’t have occurred without de
Pointis’ powerful and well-equipped invasion forces. Nations
were now fielding regular army and navy units in the Caribbean.
The pirate’s freedom of the seas was at an end.

52

DE SILVA

ANOTHER AGE: PUTTING THE SPANISH MAIN IN ITS HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Around 1500, when Spain discovered the Caribbean basin, Europe was just emerging from the Middle Ages. Most people were peas­ants, farmers scratching out a bare living from the soil, ruled by a small but powerful class of aristocratic landlords. Some people lived
in the towns and cities founded in the Middle Ages, but townspeople remained a small percentage of the population. Their trade and
industry only made a marginal impact on the lives of the vast majority. A rare few made their living “on the road” as peddlers, beggars,
sailors and thieves. To the majority they were a source of tales, or warnings for children — “Be nice or Black Bart the highwayman will
eat you for dinner!”

The period from 1550 to 1650 is sometimes termed “the Iron
Century” because ordinary people’s lives became so harsh.
Europe’s population had been growing rapidly since the early
1400s. Around 1500 the number of people began to exceed the
amount of available farmland. Trade and manufacture had
developed sufficiently so some peasants with little or no land
could do part-time weaving (the source of much cloth in
Europe), or move to towns and cities to seek employment in
businesses centered there.

These enterprises could absorb only some of the surplus popu­lation. Some young men found employment in mercenary
armies that served competing causes in the growing Catholic­Protestant conflict. Unfortunately this employment did more
damage than good, for armies then were not as polite as today.
Soldiers lived off the land, ruining the farms and livelihoods of
the peasants. This destroyed the economic substructure upon
which all depended. The intense religious hatreds added an extra
measure of ferocity to the struggles, international or civil, causing
devastation and death wherever war occurred.

As the 16th Century came to an end, overpopulation, war, and
the growing taxes brought unprecedented poverty to most areas of
Europe. Villages were torn between the lucky few who had
enough land to support their families, and the insecure majority
whose survival depended on a fortunate growing season and suffi­cient extra work. Swarms of paupers huddled in slum quarters of
towns, while beggars and brigands infested the countryside.
Vagabonds, the rootless poor, became an unmanageable problem,
straining Europe’s charitable institutions and swamping its courts.

Brigands were beggars who stole instead of asking. They often
fared better as a result. They were just one group of many crimi­nal elements who found in lawlessness an escape from grinding
poverty. In towns they practiced burglary and larceny; in the
countryside they worked as highwaymen and thieves; and at sea

they operated as pirates. Thieves worked alone or in small
bands, brigands in moderate-sized bands, while pirates operated
in larger groups because they needed to crew a sizable ship.
Sometimes pirates even worked in fleets of several ships.

The Mediterranean had long known pirates, some of whom
went so far as to organize mini-kingdoms on the Barbary coast of
North Africa. The New World opened new opportunities for
piracy. But whether they operated as thieves, brigands, or
pirates, all these men struggled to survive in a harsh and unfeel­ing world by preying on others. They redistributed wealth from
those who had it but could not protect it, to those who didn’t
have it but had the power to seize it.

A brigand or pirate might begin his career in order to survive,
but he often continued it to prosper. In a society torn by religious
hatred and war, with governments still weak and uncertain, suc­cess bred success and power respected power. A brigand band
could join an army as a group of mercenaries. A pirate might
well drift in and out of service of a government. Governments
found it expedient to use pirates against their enemies, while
pirates found it profitable to ply their trade with a royal seal of
approval, a privateer’s Letter of Marque.

Perversely, a pirate might find himself fighting alongside a
Count or an Earl, championing the cause of a king about whose
goals and needs he knew little
and cared less. However, notable
service could bring notable
rewards: wealth, land, legitima­cy, and perhaps a title of nobility!
A man who began as a poverty­stricken nobody might rise to rub
elbows with the old aristocratic
families who had led the realm
for generations.

FIELDING

53

The mounting cycles of war and poverty climaxed in 1618
with the outbreak of the Thirty Years War. What began as reli­gious strife in Germany became a constitutional struggle as the
Habsburgs tried to consolidate their hold on that land. Holland,
Denmark, Sweden, and ultimately France intervened to help the
German Protestants frustrate this plan. The international melee
turned vast areas of Germany into wasteland. Entrepreneurs
stepped in where kings and emperors were weak. They created
huge mercenary armies that swarmed across the countryside like
a plague of locust. This was the heyday of the mercenary and the
freebooter, as soldiers and captains sold their services to the
highest bidder and switched sides when the time seemed ripe.

But even the greatest of the mercenaries was defeated in battle
by a well-organized national army (that of King Gustavus
Adolphus of Sweden), recruited through national conscription
and supported by national taxes. The French also used a national
army fashioned after the Swedish, and the English Civil War,
which raged separately on that tormented isle, was won by
Cromwell’s “New Model Army” formed on the same principles.
As the 17th Century approached its midpoint, the age of the
mercenary and pirate was waning in Europe. Within a few
decades this new national power and organization would extend
into the Caribbean, driving out the buccaneers and pirates.

The rise of national governments brought new taxes, oppres­sive new central administrations, and government bureaucrats
whose powers rivaled that of the old nobility. A series of

revolutions in Spain, Portugal, Italy, and France, and near-revo­lutionary constitutional conflicts elsewhere showed how the
lower classes and local nobles resisted the new order. But the
powerful national governments emerged victorious. No longer
would the state tolerate independent agents using the techniques
of war. Armies were firmly under royal control, disciplined and
supplied from depots. Navies were directed to put down piracy
as well as to fight with other countries. The France of Louis XIV,
the Sun King, epitomized this new order.

Meanwhile, the colonies around the Caribbean were no longer
serving as silver mines for the Spanish Empire. Instead, the new
English and French colonies, the “Sugar Islands,” formed the cor­nerstone of a triangular trade network involving Europe and
Africa. This was the most important of many economic develop­ments that helped Europe sustain its growing population in the
later part of the 17th and 18th Centuries. Conditions were still
hard for many, but prosperity grew as the economy found new
forms and new energies.

This wealth was little endangered by pirates, for long before it
reached its peak the naval vessels and royal courts of the various
European kingdoms had all but eliminated piracy from the high
seas. The age of the freebooter was gone. The age of the bureau­crat had begun.

Edward Bever, PhD (History)

54

MOODYFORD

THE HISTORICAL PERIODS

THE SILVER EMPIRE(1560-1600)

INTRODUCTION

The Spanish Empire reaches it peak in this era, both in Europe and in the New World. The empire is built on mountains of silver bul­lion from New Spain (Mexico) and Peru. This bullion finances Spain’s imperial glory, but also encourages misguided economic poli­cies that will soon ruin the country. The secondary export form the Indies is hides of uncured leather. Spanish colonial grandees prefer
ranching large herds to managing farms and plantations. Ranches are equivalent to the property noblemen own in old Spain.

Holland, a province of this far-flung empire, begins its revolt against Spanish rule in the 1560’s. England, ruled by Elizabeth I (1558-

1603) develops an anti-Spanish policy as well. France had been and will remain consistently anti-Spanish, surrounded as it is by
Habsburg territory (the Habsburg family controlled the Austrian and Spanish thrones, whose territory included a considerable amount
of Italy as well).

Spain in this era is the only European nation with large, populous colonies in the New World. With the exception of one abortive
venture at St. Augustine, the other European powers have nothing more than temporary anchorages and tent towns, casual bases for
privateering and smuggling that appear and disappear with the seasons.

CITIES AND TRADE

Spanish Colonies

Cartagena, Panama, Santiago, and Santo Domingo are the
great and powerful cities of the Spanish Main. All except Panama
have impressive fortifications, and all have large military gar­risons. Prices for everything are high here; European goods are in
especially high demand but Spanish trade laws are firmly
enforced. San Juan (on Puerto Rico) is very nearly as large as the
major cities.

Havana is a growing port that during this era becomes one of
the new, great cities of the region. The increasingly frequent stops
by the Treasure Fleet boost Havana’s economy. Vera Cruz and
Nombre de Dios are unhealthy cities that are only populous and
wealthy when the annual fleet is in. At that time vast wealth from
Peru (to Panama) and New Spain (to Vera Cruz) is being loaded
onto the ships.

Larger, politically important cities with a craving for European

goods include Campeche, Cumana and Maracaibo.

The towns in economic difficulties, and therefore more likely
to trade with foreigners, include all ports on under-developed
Jamaica and Hispaniola (except the capital Santo Domingo), and
the lesser ports of the Main, such as Santa Marta, Gibraltar, Coro,
Puerto Cabello and Margarita, although the last is rich only from
its declining pearl fisheries. The inland capitals of Villa Hermosa
and Gran Granada are still economically weak. Both were in the
front lines of Spanish conquest just a few years previously.

Trinidad is tiny, but already beginning its unique role as a
transshipment point between Atlantic carriers and local
Caribbean trade, an activity illegal by Spanish law, but nonethe­less profitable. Here smugglers find a ready supply of cheap
European trade goods, and a
good market for selling hides.

HOLCROFT

55

Other Colonies

The only non-Spanish colony is the new French one at St.
Augustine (in Florida). A few additional French and English priva­teering bases exist in the Florida Keys and Bahamas. These have
an erratic population and uncertain wealth. No agriculture exists,
so food supplies are uncertain.

The only official colonial governor of either nation exists at St.
Augustine. Unless other colonies grow or change colors, be sure
to remain friendly with the French here. All non-Spanish promo­tions, titles, and land must come from him.

PROSPECTS FOR SUCCESS

A successful career in this period requires exceptional skill and
guile. All the major ports are Spanish controlled, forcing one to
either trade with them (as Hawkins tried), or to capture them by
assault (Drake’s method). Trading eventually improves the eco­nomic status of the towns, making them more likely to obey
Spanish laws and shut you out! Conquest is difficult, especially
against well-populated cities, and often is undone by a Spanish
counterattack. Furthermore, once you initiate warlike actions
and the Spanish become hostile, you must wait for a “Pirate
Amnesty” before attempting a trading strategy once more.

You must husband your crewmen carefully. Avoid dividing up
the plunder for as long as possible. Recruiting new crewmen can
be extremely difficult.

The English Seahawk

With solid backing from your monarch, you have a powerful
and flexible force. This is fortunate, since you’ll need to find
quick profits to enlarge your tiny coffers.

The French Corsair

Your small, fore-and-aft rigged craft is no match for a well-armed
war galleon. If you encounter a powerful enemy, discretion is defi­nitely the better part of valor. Even if you survive the encounter,
your crew may be so depleted that recruiting replacements may
take months.

The Spanish Renegade

You start in a regrettably weak position, and must take risks at
almost every turn to improve your fortunes. This is not the life for
the faint-hearted!

56

THATCHER

MERCHANTS AND SMUGGLERS (1600-1620)

INTRODUCTION

After the 1590’s the Spanish Empire begins a slow slide into decay and chaos, both militarily and economically. Misguided economic

policies combined with a short-sighted aristocracy, redoubled by a powerful and restrictive church, will doom Spain for centuries to come.

In the Americas, expensive fortifications and garrisons have increased, but silver shipments and Spanish-owned merchant ships are
fewer. Most astoundingly, the empire in America is literally an empty one. Diseases brought by Europeans to the New World have
inflicted a century of horrifying plagues. The Caribbean basin has been depopulated. In New Spain (Mexico) the Indian population
plunges from 25 million in 1500 (before the conquest) to less than 2 million in 1600.

Food supplies are short for lack of farmers, and mine output falls for lack of workers. Spaniards in New Spain total no more than 100,000
by 1600. Worse, virtually no Spaniards are productive members of society — they expect to live a grandiose life, with slaves and Indian
peons serving them. The same pattern repeats throughout the Caribbean and along the Spanish Main.

Conversely, England and France are growing, vital nations. In this era both have new kings who seek peaceful relations with
Spain. Although this reduces the opportunity for privateering and piracy, neither monarch discourages colonization. America’s rep­utation for riches, pleasant climate, and emptiness all beckon. A miscellaneous assortment of Frenchmen and Englishmen start new
colonial ventures.

The Netherlands, after decades of rebellion against Spain, are virtually victorious. More amazing, Holland is an economic miracle.
Out of war, peaceful and profitable enterprises spring. With new ship designs (the Fluyte), joint-stock companies, and the twelve years
truce, Dutch commercial interests are exploding world-wide. However, at this time the big Dutch companies are mainly interested in
Indonesia and Asia, leaving the West Indies to smaller operators.

CITIES AND TRADE

Spanish Colonies

The cities of Cartagena, Havana, Panama, Santo Domingo
and Santiago are the capital cities of the West Indies. Each is
populous, rich, well fortified, heavily garrisoned and intolerant
of foreigners. Here both tobacco and European goods command
premium prices.

Puerto Bello has replaced Nombre de Dios as Panama’s
Caribbean port for the Silver Train and Treasure Fleet. Vera Cruz
continues to serve the vast inland areas of New Spain. Both cities are
still unhealthy, which limits their growth and economic success.

The majority of the Spanish Main and inland Central America is
now economically viable. The smaller towns of the Main frequently
grow tobacco and welcome smugglers. The hinterlands of
Hispaniola are another area where tobacco smugglers are welcome.

Trinidad is in its heyday as a wide-open smuggler’s port. Local
Caribbean smugglers can sell their tobacco for decent prices,
then buy European goods from Atlantic traders in reasonable

quantities. The Spanish governor, without harbor forts and
served by a laughably small garrison, can do little but take lucra­tive bribes and look the other way.

English Colonies

Early colonies exist on St. Lucia and Grenada, although both
are at considerable risk from the cannibalistic Caribe Indians.
Both islands need regular imports of food. No large tobacco
plantations or organized defenses exist yet.

French Colonies

No French colonies exist, but
old privateering anchorages with
small “tent camp” towns can be
found in the Bahamas. Here too
there is no local agriculture, Food
costs are dear: precious little is
available for victualling a ship.

CULLIFORD

57

Dutch Colonies

Although Dutch fluytes are common traders in these waters, no
Dutch ports (“factories”) exist. This is because the monied interests
in the Netherlands are busy financing colonial ventures in the East
Indies (notably Indonesia). The Dutch spend most of their time
trading in smuggled goods with the smaller Spanish colonies.
Trinidad is their unofficial home port in the New World.

PROSPECTS FOR SUCCESS

Difficulties in this era are similar to the 1560 period.
Furthermore, Europe is tending toward peace, dimming the
prospects for privateering profits. With the dearth of friendly ports
and peace in the offing, you should seriously consider searching
for friendly Spanish ports and smuggling goods between them
and Trinidad, with occasional trips to the new English colonies
or the old French privateering anchorages to the north.

The English Explorer

The situation and strategies for this era are not unlike those of
the previous decades. Do you settle into a life of peaceful trade
and smuggling, or do you seek out a war and go on privateering
expeditions? Your large crew suggests privateering, but the capa­cious merchantman with its sluggish sailing qualities and weak
armament makes trading attractive too.

THE NEW COLONISTS (1620-1640)

The French Adventurer

Your ship and crew are well suited to privateering. However,
the lack of strong, friendly ports is a serious handicap when
recruiting men or selling captured goods. Conquering a few
Spanish ports and installing friendly administrations should be a
high priority.

The Dutch Trader

Your ship is admirably suited to mercantile endeavor, but slug­gish and underarmed for battle. While trading keep the crew
under twenty (but not below eight, as that’s the minimum to
operate a ship). Pay them off and recruit new ones periodically
to keep morale high. Use Trinidad as a base and experiment at
various Spanish cities. Discover which governors are tolerant,
and which will open fire. Privateering against the Spanish is
tricky business — and you will lose trading privileges until Spain
offers an Amnesty.

The Spanish Renegade

The renegade’s life, never easy, is quite difficult in this era.
Only the most courageous should undertake this course.

INTRODUCTION

Europe is ablaze with a new and bloody war between Protestant and Catholic (the Thirty Years War). The decay of Spain’s American empire
continues. Towns and cities are financially weaker, with fewer troops than ever. The economy and culture is stagnant. Spanish ranches, planta­tions and mines are increasingly dependent on slave labor imported from Africa.

Holland is now the world’s leader in mercantile shipping. Dutch companies finally turn their attention to the

RAYNALE

58

West Indies. The renewed war with Spain offers many opportunities for the large joint-stock companies to
finance military expeditions against the Spanish. The old English and French privateering anchorages swarm
with Dutch warships.

In England a new round of colonial ventures is fueled by declining economic opportunity and growing intol­erance for radical Protestants (such as the Puritans). After the demise of St. Lucia and Grenada colonies, and
the near death of Virginia, new and stronger colonies are being founded. These colonies will persevere.

France, in the grip of Cardinal Richelieu, is slipping once more into civil war between the Protestant
Huguenots and the Catholic government. Throughout the 1620s French Huguenots flee France and found
colonies in the New World. Then, in the 1630s, France enters the cataclysm in Germany: the Thirty Years War.

CITIES AND TRADE

Spanish Colonies

The cities of Cartagena, Havana, and Panama remain the capi­tal cities of the West Indies. Santiago and Santo Domingo, the
old capitals, have declined to a secondary position, though each
is still rich by American standards.

Many cities on the Main are economically viable, but few are
prosperous. Tobacco is a cheap export crop at some towns. The
more backward towns in the hinterlands of Jamaica and
Hispaniola are primarily victualing and watering ports.

Trinidad remains a popular smuggling port where European
goods are plentiful and fairly cheap, having come across on
trans-Atlantic traders, while good prices are paid for tobacco.
However, this port is being overshadowed by the new English
colonies to the north.

English Colonies

Barbados, the first successful English colony in the West
Indies, is growing fast. Increasingly English ships use it as their
home port in the Caribbean. As at Trinidad, merchants serving
the trans-Atlantic trade will pay good prices for tobacco. The
colony on Nevis is newer and smaller. The new venture of
Providence island off the Mosquito Coast, deep in the heart of
the Spanish Empire, is the premier base for privateers and
pirates raiding the Main.

French Colonies

On the shared island of St. Christophe (St. Kitts to the English),
the French have the upper hand. This colony is largely Catholic,
while the unofficial but growing presence in northeast
Hispaniola is largely Protestant. These enterprising Huguenots
have already claimed Tortuga off the coast, as well as establish­ing Petit Goave.

Dutch Colonies

Fully fledged Dutch colonies are sparse. Along with the tradi­tional Bahaman and Florida privateering anchorages, the Dutch
have begun a “factory” (trading town) on an island positioned
right in the center of the Spanish Main: Curacao.

PROSPECTS FOR SUCCESS

The new colonial ports are a godsend to privateers, who now
have legal employ thanks to renewed warfare in Europe.
Pinnaces and barques with piratical intent are everywhere in the
Caribbean. Spanish strength continues to wane, especially at sea.
A well outfitted force can even attempt to capture the Treasure
Fleet on the high seas.

Still, one must watch political developments closely. Spain is
quite capable of mounting periodic counterattacks to wipe out
intrusive colonies or troublesome privateer bases.

The English Adventurer

Don’t be shy about privateering against the Spanish. After
building your reputation, fortune, and fleet you can venture
ashore and try your hand at plundering the smaller towns and
cities. Opportunities abound for a man of boldness.

The French Huguenot

Your barque is a handy vessel for the Caribbean, and well
suited to privateering against Catholic Spain and its hated
Inquisition. Tortuga and Petit Goave are ideal bases, deep in
Spanish territory and only a short sail from the Florida Channel
and its yearly Treasure Fleet.

The Dutch Privateer

You have a very powerful force, but there is a lack of Dutch
bases. If possible, cultivate friendship with the French and
English (regardless of your government’s opinion). Can you
duplicate Piet Heyn’s feat of 1628 and capture the Spanish
Treasure Fleet?

The Spanish Renegade

As in 1560 and 1600, the life of a renegade is unenviable, but
conditions are somewhat
improved. The non-Spanish
colonies are few, so it’s wise to
remain friendly with England,
France and Holland.

DE COLIGNY

59

WAR FOR PROFIT (1640-1660)

INTRODUCTION

In Holland, Germany and France the last great religious war of Europe (the Thirty Years War), begun in 1618, is degenerating into
famine, plague and starvation across a landscape of ruins. England, having avoided European disasters, is on the brink of its own
ruinous civil war that will result in a short but brutal military dictatorship by Oliver Cromwell and his Protestant armies.

Of all the European nations, Spain is in the worst position. Economic and political conditions in the homeland are so bad that
provinces are revolting against a bankrupt and ineffective government.

Disasters in Europe breed new opportunities in the West Indies. Spain’s colonies are at their military and economic nadir. Freebooters
and privateers, veterans of the European conflicts, can pillage and plunder the helpless Spanish with ease, and with precious little interfer­ence from European governments. Non-Spanish colonies are growing everywhere, fueled by boatloads of refugees. While some settle into
the plantation economy, others take to the buccaneering life. Meanwhile, the crafty Dutch are making a fortune carrying trade goods
among these new colonies. Peaceful trading may not be as profitable as privateering, but it’s a safer business.

CITIES AND TRADE

Spanish Colonies

The richest Spanish cities remain the great capitals of the region:
Panama, Cartagena, Havana, and Santiago. These continue to
have wealthy economies and high prices.

San Juan and Santo Domingo are prospering, but remain popu­lated by old, aristocratic families with expensive tastes. Both cities
are well fortified and garrisoned.

All other Spanish cities are barely prospering, if that. Towns in
the hinterlands are on the verge of disappearing under the tidal
wave of immigration from England, France and Holland.

English Colonies

Barbados is the unofficial capital of the English West Indies. It
is a trader’s dream. European goods are freely available, sugar
sells for premium prices, and the local merchants are wealthy
and well-stocked.

The colonies on St. Kitts and

LE CROZAT

Nevis are economically strong
and well populated while
Antigua, Montserrat, Bermuda
and Eleuthera are newer, smaller
colonies with little population,
low prices, and tiny warehouses.

French Colonies

Guadeloupe and Martinique are the major colonies in the
Caribbee Islands (Lesser Antilles). However, all eyes are drawn
to that well-fortified haven of privateers, buccaneers and outright
pirates: Tortuga. Already this name inspires terror.

Mainland Hispaniola French colonies are developing slowly at
Petit Goave. French privateers still use anchorages in the Florida
Keys to plunder Spaniards in the Florida Channel, as well to
descend upon the north coast of Cuba.

Dutch Colonies

Curacao is the Dutch equivalent of Barbados. This large, rich,
well-defended free port offers good prices for sugar and sells
quantities of European goods in return. A second international
free port is developing at St. Eustatius, while sleepy St. Martin is
a placid place for sugar planters and other peaceful fellows.

PROSPECT FOR SUCCESS

Opportunities abound and success awaits. Spain is almost
always at war with somebody, and not uncommonly with every­body! Since Spanish military power is a joke, the opportunities
for privateering and outright plunder are legion. After a rich
cruise against the hapless Spanish, no voyage is complete with­out a wild party at Tortuga, Barbados, or Curacao.

60

The English Adventurer

As a privateer, everything is in your favor. A plethora of friendly
English colonies are ready and willing to buy your plundered
goods, while the taverns are brimming with sailors seeking a berth
with a successful Captain. Smiling governors will shake your hand
and bestow land and honors for your efforts. Isn’t life grand?

The French Privateer

Privateering is a growth industry with great profits for the French,
as with the English. Tortuga is the ideal base for such activities, sit­ting between Santo Domingo, the great cities of Cuba, and the rich
fleets passing outbound through the Florida Channel. Down a
pleasant beam reach to the south lies the heartland of the Spanish
Main and the usually friendly port of Curacao.

The Dutch Trader

Tired of war, many Dutchmen prefer the peaceful role of trad­ing. The new and growing French and English colonies offer
many opportunities to a savvy merchant. Trade routes between
the large, rich colonies and the new, small ones yield easy prof­its. One can also trade with the poorer Spanish cities, who have
cheap sugar and food that sells for premier prices on Curacao or
Barbados. Of course, the lure of privateering remains strong!

The Spanish Renegade

This is one of the two eras (the other is 1660) where the life of
a renegade can be fairly pleasant. Raiding the Spanish is a
rewarding occupation, war or no war.

THE BUCCANEER HEROES (1660-1680)

INTRODUCTION

The decline of the Spanish Empire continues when senile King Phillip IV is succeeded by the lax and inept regency for Charles (Carlos) II, who
in 1665 becomes King at age four. Although Spanish America is left without military protection, bureaucratic interference in its economic affairs
diminishes also. This, combined with renewed output from the silver mines, starts an upswing in the Spanish-American economy.

England, France and Holland are now strong colonial powers. Jealous of Holland’s commercial success, England begins economic war
against Holland with the Navigation Act (1651) and the Staple Act (1663), legislating trade limits that would ruin the free-trade Dutch mer­chants. This causes three shooting wars within twenty years.

Meanwhile, Louis XIV has finally taken control of France with the death of Cardinal Mazarin in 1661. The “Sun King’s” aggressive foreign pol­icy sparks almost constant warfare with England, Holland, and Spain as frequent opponents. In short, Europe is a dogfight of international
intrigue and warfare, with enemies and allies changing as frequently as partners in a court dance.

In the Caribbean, governors face new threats from all directions. St. Eustatius changes hands ten times between 1664 and 1674. The home
governments provide virtually no military forces, so the governors ask buccaneers, privateers and pirates to guard their colony and carry the fight
to the enemy. These sensible, profit-oriented warriors are often difficult to control.

CITIES AND TRADE

Spanish Colonies

Panama, Havana and Cartagena endure as the three greatest
Spanish cities, rich, well fortified, and well garrisoned. Still siz­able but of declining importance are Santiago, Santo Domingo,
and San Juan. The remaining Spanish towns are beginning to
prosper again, but are so weak militarily that all are prey to buc­caneers and pirates.

English Colonies

Barbados remains the greatest
English colony, with St. Kitts close
behind. Captured from Spain in
1655, Jamaica is the home of Port
Royale, the new English bucca­neer haven in the midst of the
Spanish empire, only a short voy­age downwind from the French
colonies on Hispaniola.

GALOISE

61

French Colonies

In the Caribbee Islands (Lesser Antilles) Guadeloupe and
Martinique are the main bastions of French power, while around
western Hispaniola Tortuga, Port-de-Paix, Petit Goave and
Leogane are buccaneering strongholds amid the growing wealth
of French sugar plantations.

Dutch Colonies

Curacao remains the premier Dutch colony and one of the
greatest free ports in the world. St. Eustatius almost surpasses it,
but conquest and reconquest by numerous expeditions has dam­aged its economy.

PROSPECTS FOR SUCCESS

This era is sometimes called the “Golden Age of
Buccaneering.” There is plenty of warfare to legalize your
actions, and a plethora of rich Spanish and non-Spanish ports to
either raid or use as bases, as you prefer. Because of her military
weakness, Spain’s ships and towns are the popular target for
buccaneers and pirates of all nationalities.

The English Buccaneer

Port Royale makes an excellent base of operations, while
Barbados is still the best place to dispose of large amounts of loot

at a very good price. The main disadvantage of Port Royale is that
recruiting a good crew often requires side-trips to the French buc­caneer towns on Hispaniola, while a base in the Caribbees gives
you access to many English ports for quick, easy recruiting.

The French Buccaneer

Privateer or pirate, it is wise to leave one or two nations alone,
so you have potential trading partners in case an unexpected
peace breaks out. You’ll find recruiting especially easy in the
vicinity of Hispaniola, with four separate French buccaneer ports
within a short sail.

The Dutch Adventurer

Dutchmen of this period weren’t shy about offering their services
to other nations, and were always looking for the main chance —
adventure with profit, be it peaceful or warlike. Don’t ignore the
excellent prospects for peaceful trade. Above all, remember that
Barbados and Curacao are the two richest ports in non-Spanish
America, good for either trading or selling a looted cargo.

The Spanish Renegade

Although a renegade’s life is never easy, this era is a bright
spot on a dark sea of danger. Privateering or piracy against Spain
is, of course, the recommended course.

PIRATE’S SUNSET (1680-1700)

INTRODUCTION

Europe is as full as ever of tumult and warfare, rapidly shifting alliances, and strange political bedfellows. But the depredations
of the buccaneers in the Americas have taught politicians and military men a lesson. Warriors who fight for profit can ruin the
local economy. Meanwhile, nations have bigger and more powerful fleets and armies, big enough so troops can be spared for
important colonies in the West Indies.

All this spells the doom of privateering and the buccaneers. Spain may be ruled by a deformed idiot

CARRIERE

(the unhappy product of excessive intermarriage by the Habsburgs), but despite this the pirates disap­pear, chased from the seas by an English naval squadron based in Port Royale. Letters of Marque are
harder and harder to get. Buccaneers of all nationalities flock to the French flag in 1684 when it offers
Letters of Marque again.

Economically, this is an era of rising wealth and trade for all nations in the Caribbean. Although

some piracy remains, the road to the future is one of peaceful trade and smuggling.

62

CITIES AND TRADE

Spanish Colonies

Havana, Panama, Cartagena, and Santiago are still important
cities, despite the raids and misfortunes of the last century.
Caracas has risen to prominence as the main harbor serving
inland Terra Firma (South America), while Santo Domingo and
San Juan have slipped to a second rank, isolated among the
growing French and English island wealth.

English Colonies

Port Royale, Barbados, and St. Kitts are the great English ports,
with the other English Caribbee ports are sound and healthy
trading posts. The Bahamas are the new colonial frontier.
Nassau, for example, is a wide-open pirate haven. A small
English colony has even sprung up at Belize in Honduras!

French Colonies

The French colonial empire has not changed its shape greatly
in two decades. Guadeloupe and Martinique remain the twin
economic capitals, now equal to the largest English ports.
Tortuga is declining, but the Hispaniolan towns of Port-de-Paix,
Petit Goave, and Leogane are all thriving.

Dutch Colonies

As with France, the shape of the Dutch dominions also is
constant: Curacao is the great free port, St. Eustatius is recover­ing from wartime disasters and trying to live on trade with the
recalcitrant English nearby. St. Martin, the northerly satellite,
continues to quietly expand its plantation economy.

PROSPECTS FOR SUCCESS

Prospects in this era appear as good as the 1660s and 1670s.
However, pirate-hunting warships appear more frequently, while
the non-Spanish ports are larger and better fortified. Indeed, the
fairly equal distribution of strong and weak ports throughout the
Caribbean means that prospects for trading are the best in fifty
years. If you do pursue a bellicose path, take advantage of pirate
amnesties when offered, so you are prepared for a sudden out­break of peace.

The English Pirate

Well, mate, ye always wanted a life of piracy. Try it on for size
now! Novices are encouraged to try a voyage or two in the
1660s first, to get the feel of privateering, before embarking on a
career of high seas crime. Beware the navy pirate hunters!

The French Buccaneer

Privateering commissions are legally available still. Take
advantage of them to raid the Spanish. Of course, it pays to
beware of the Costa Guarda pirate hunters.

The Dutch Adventurer

As a peace-loving free-trade Dutchman, you should think long on
the advantages of trading and smuggling. Dutch ports are few, and
although England and France have laws prohibiting trade with you,
in reality the laws are ignored. Even the Spanish can be coaxed into
trading more often than not. Of course, some of your compatriots
made their reputation by sailing as privateers for France. In fact,
two admirals of the French privateers in 1685 are Dutchmen!

The Spanish Costa Guarda

Now that the English and French colonies are as rich as the
Spanish, it’s only appropriate that they taste some of their
own medicine! The only difficulty is evading those French,
English and Dutch warships that so inconveniently clutter up
the seascape.

VAAN RYHN

63

THE CITY GAZETTER

All founding dates are approximate.

Antigua: 21N, 62W. Colonized in the 1640s, this island is a

small, pleasant backwater with a classic plantation economy. In
the 18th Century it will become one of the two great naval bases
for the British Royal Navy in the Caribbean.

Barbados: 18N, 59W. The first major English colony in the

Caribbean (in the 1620s), Barbados is the economic capital of
the Caribbee Islands (Lesser Antilles) throughout the middle and
later parts of the 17th Century. Caribbean traders will find
European goods numerous and the selling of tobacco and sugar
quite good.

Belize: 21N, 88W. This small but hardy settlement of log-

wood cutters appears in the 1680s in a region conceded to be
Spanish, but as yet uncolonized. Its stubborn presence will
cause diplomatic problems for decades to come.

Bermuda: 30N, 65W. Settled in the 1640s, Bermuda built its

early economy on shipwrecks, thanks to the many treacherous
reefs that surround the tiny island.

Borburata: 16N, 67W. This modest city on the Spanish Main is

noteworthy only in the late 16th Century. Thereafter it is sublimated
in the growing power and importance of Caracas.

Campeche: 23N, 90W. A well-established “old” Spanish city

with aristocratic tastes, Campeche is an important port serving
the inland provinces of southern New Spain and Yucatan.
European goods fetch good prices here.

Caracas: 16N, 66W. This city rises to prominence at the end of

the 16th Century. It is the main port for many inland farms and

plantations, and home of many

RUYTERS

important Spanish families, who
have expensive tastes in
European goods.

Cartagena: 16N, 75W. This is the largest port city of the

Spanish Main, and after the 1590s a supposedly impregnable
fortress. Here the Treasure Fleet winters before its return voyage
via Havana and the Florida Channel. Cartagena has a powerful
garrison of troops and a thriving economy with little need for
illegal trade and smuggling.

Coro: 17N, 70W. This small city on the east side of the Gulf of

Venezuela thrives in the 16th Century, but after the 1600s it is
overshadowed by the new ports to the east. During it brief hey­day Coro is a good sources of hides and tobacco.

Cumana: 16N, 64W. The main port city of New Andalusia, it

forms the eastern anchor of the Spanish Main, the last major
harbor and fortress. It is a good market for European goods. This
does not prevent it from indulging in smuggling and other nefar­ious pursuits from time to time.

Curacao: 17N, 69W. First used in the 1620s, this island

becomes a great free port under Dutch control. Spanish produce
smuggled from everywhere along the Main is bought here by
Dutch merchants, who happily exchange them for European
products that can be profitably smuggled to the Spanish.

Eleuthera: 26N, 76W. At first just an anchorage for priva-

teers, Eleuthera becomes an English colony eventually. In the
17th Century it really never grows, remaining a backwater
haven for pirates, privateers, and the other riffraff who hide
among the Bahamas.

Florida Channel: 26N, 80W. The powerful Gulf Stream current

has cut this channel along the southeast coast of Florida, forming a
safe path past the Bahama shoals. Each year in the spring or summer
the Spanish Treasure Fleet passes up this channel from Havana,
bound for the North Atlantic Westerlies and the trip home.

Florida Keys: 26N, 81W. Among this chain of tiny islands and

reefs are transitory anchorages for privateers of varying nationali­ties. No permanent colonies are founded here — it is too close
to powerful Spanish Havana.

64

Gibraltar: 15N, 71W. This city is a modest-sized port for the

inland farms and plantations of Caracos province. The horrifying
rape and pillage of the city by L’Ollonais and again by Morgan
destroyed its economic vitality, making it a nonentity by the 1680s.

Gran Granada: 17N, 86W. Situated on the shores of Lake

Nicaragua, this is the largest and wealthiest city of the
Honduran provinces.

Grand Bahama: 28N, 79W. This island in the northern

Bahamas is used periodically as a privateering anchorage. It does
not become an English colony until the very end of the era.

Grenada: 17N, 61W. A group of English colonists attempt set-

tlement here in the 1600s, but fail and the colony disappears by
the 1620s.

Guadeloupe: 20N, 61W. Colonized by the French,

Guadeloupe becomes economically viable in the 1640s. Along
with Martinique it is the cornerstone of French power in the east­ern Caribbean. In the 1660s its fortress and garrison are increased
as part of France’s new interest in overseas colonization.

Havana: 25N, 82W. One of the old cities of Cuba, during the

middle 16th Century it grew rapidly because the Treasure Fleet
used its harbor for a last provisioning before the dangerous journey
back to Spain. Havana is a rich town where all mercantile activity
is done strictly according to law. Prices are extremely high.

Isabella: 23N, 71W. This tiny port town was initially estab-

lished by Columbus himself, but fades in and out of existence as
disease takes it toll. At the start of the 17th Century it is officially
abandoned by the Spanish government, it residents forced to
resettle around Santo Domingo.

La Vega: 23N, 71W. This smuggler’s haven of the early and

middle 17th Century serves the inland ranches and farms of
northern Hispaniola. Prices are low and the law nonexistent,
save the law you make with the point of your sword.

Leogane: 23N, 73W. One of the new French buccaneer ports

of the 1660s, Leogane serves the unofficial but rapidly growing
French presence in western Hispaniola.

Maracaibo: 16N, 72W. This is the chief port on the Gulf of

Venezuela and guardian of the Maracaibo Lagoon (also known
as Lake Maracaibo). As such it has more than its share of aristo­cratic families, with expensive tastes in European fashion.

Margarita: 17N, 63W. In the early 16th Century this island was

one of the richest pearl fisheries in the world. Unfortunately, the
pearl beds were quickly fished out. Margarita is a shadow of its for­mer wealth, with ports abandoned and many families moving to
bigger and richer mainland cities, such as Cumana and Caracas.

Martinique: 19N, 61W. Colonized by the French, Martinique

becomes economically viable in the 1640s. With Guadeloupe it
is the cornerstone of French power in the eastern Caribbean. In
the 1660s its fortress and garrison are increased as part of
France’s new interest in overseas colonization.

Montserrat: 21N, 62W. This English colony, founded around

1640, remains one of small plantations and gentleman farming,
a pleasant port of call with no especially important characteris­tics save low prices.

Nassau: 26N, 77W. Since the mid 16th Century this

Bahaman island has been a pirate anchorage. An English
colony, officially begun in the 1680s, soon degenerates into a
loud, squalid pirate haven full of verminous and evil men. The
port is named ”New Providence,“ to distinguish it from
Providence Island (“Old Providence”).

Nevis: 21N, 63W. This pleasant island, separated from St. Kitts

by a narrow channel, was populated by the English at about the
same time — the 1620s. While St. Kitts becomes a port of some
importance, Nevis remains more agricultural, with pleasant
plantations rolling across sun-drenched mountainsides.

Nombre de Dios: 15N, 79W. This town is the Caribbean port

for Panama and Peru throughout
the 16th Century. However, it is
sited in an unhealthy swamp, is
almost impossible to fortify, and
is plundered mercilessly by
English sea hawks. At the end of
the 16th Century it is abandoned
and a new port (Puerto Bello)
established nearby.

TROMPER

65

Panama: 15N, 80W. This large, rich city links the wealthy

Spanish realms of Peru with the Caribbean. All trade with Peru is
by ship on the Pacific coast, with Panama the terminus. Panama
is linked to a Caribbean port (Nombre de Dios in the 16th
Century, Puerto Bello in the 17th) by a mule train trail over the
mountains of the Darien Isthmus.

Petit Goave: 22N, 73W. Among the many small and informal

French Huguenot settlements on Western Hispaniola, this is the
first (in the 1620s) to gain repute as an important port. But as the
17th Century continues, planter and plantation lords push out the
rude buccaneers, gradually civilizing the raw colonial frontier.

Port-de-Paix: 23N, 73W. This later French Huguenot settlement

becomes a significant port in the 1660s, and by the 1680s is the
informal capital of the French colonies in Western Hispaniola.

Port Royale: 21N, 77W. In a natural harbor on southeast

Jamaica lies a curving spit and sandbar. By 1660, just five years
after the English conquest of Jamaica, the spit is covered by Port
Royale, a booming, rollicking, buccaneer town. Its reputation
was so evil that when an earthquake destroyed it at the end of
the Century, colonials and Europeans alike considered it an act
of divine justice.

Puerto Cabello: 16N, 68W. This secondary port along the

Spanish Main is a city of note throughout the 1620s. Ultimately,
however, Caracas takes most of it business, while the new Dutch
free port at Curacao destroys the rest.

Puerto Principe: 24N, 78W. This was one of the first cities

founded on Cuba. It represents the strengths of Spanish America:
a wealthy city surrounded by ranches and a cattle economy.

Providence: 18N., 82W. Also known as “Old Providence”, it is

first settled by an English colonial venture in 1620. The tiny

island quickly becomes a base

DE VRANCK

for privateers and pirates operat­ing deep in the Spanish Main.
The island is such a danger to
Spain that a major expedition is
mounted in 1640 to recapture it.
This is successful, and to this day
the island remains known by
what the Spanish renamed it:
Santa Catalina.

Puerto Bello: 15N, 80W. By 1600 this city replaces aban-

doned Nombre de Dios as the Caribbean port for Panama and
the Viceroyalty of Peru. Each year, when the Treasure Fleet
arrives to pick up the Peruvian silver, Puerto Bello becomes a
rich boom town. Weeks later, when the fleet departs for
Cartagena, it lapses into malarial somnolence once more.

Rio de la Hacha: 17N, 73W. This is one of the two major ports

for the Colombian highlands (Santa Marta is the other). It does a
thriving trade in export goods: first hides, then tobacco.

San Juan: 22N, 66W. This is the great port city of Puerto Rico,

and one of the most powerfully fortified cities in Spanish
America. San Juan was settled early and remains a bastion of old
Spanish aristocracy. Prices for all goods except food are high,
and most times Spanish law is vigorously enforced. Ultimately it
becomes a base for Costa Guarda raids into the Caribbees.

Santa Catalina: 18N, 82W. When Spaniards take Providence

Island from the English in the 1640s, they rename it Santa Catalina.
Although the island is valueless to Spain, a garrison is maintained
to prevent it from falling into English hands once more.

Santa Domingo: 22N, 70W. This is the great capital city of

Hispaniola, one of the largest and oldest in the entire American
Empire of Spain. In the 17th Century its power and importance
are fading, but the Spanish aristocrats and ranchers remain vigor­ous enough to defeat an English invasion in 1655 (disappointed,
the English invade and conquer Jamaica instead).

Santa Marta: 17N, 74W. Along with Rio de la Hacha, this is

the other principal port serving the Colombian highlands. Large
farmsteads nearby mean this city has low food prices, as well as
reasonably priced hides and tobacco.

Santiago: 23N, 76W. This is the original capital city of Cuba,

and remains a large, strong city until very late in the era. Like all
the great Spanish cities, prices are high while Spanish trade law
is vigorously enforced.

Santiago de la Vega: 21N, 77W. This is the main Spanish

town on Jamaica before the English conquest. Spanish Jamaica
was a tiny backwater, of little economic or military importance.

66

St. Augustine: 30N, 81W. Originally a French colony in 1560,

Spain attacks and captures it, massacring the Frenchmen and
establishing their own fortress and garrison to discourage other
Europeans. St. Augustine is of such small importance that
nobody bothers to dispute Spain’s ownership.

St. Christophe: 21N, 63W. First colonized in the 1620s by a

combination of Frenchmen and Englishmen, the Frenchmen are
ascendant on the island in the early days. Later the English predom­inate and their spelling of the name is commonly used: St. Kitts.

St. Eustatius: 21N, 63W. Settled in the 1640s by the Dutch,

this island becomes one of the great free-trade ports in the hey­day of Dutch mercantilism. Unfortunately, its poor defenses and
powerful English and French neighbors make it one of the most
fought-over islands. The political and military turmoil badly
damage the economy.

St. Kitts: 21N, 63W. By the 1640s the English gain the upper

hand on St. Christophe. When the English are predominant, this
English name for the island commonly is used. The island develops
a significant port that does a thriving trade with all nationalities.

St. Lucia: 19N, 61W. English colonists settled here in prefer-

ence to South America in the 1600s, but were quickly wiped out
by their own ineptitude and the ferocious Caribe Indians.

St. Martin: 22N, 63W. This island is colonized by the Dutch in

the 1640s. It remains a quiet, peaceful plantation isle for the
remainder of the 17th Century.

St. Thome: 15N, 61W. This tiny town, deep inland along the

Orinoco River, acquires a small Spanish garrison about 1600.
This is in response to Sir Walter Raleigh’s abortive expeditions
up-river.

Tortuga: 23N, 73W. First settled by French buccaneers and

Huguenots in the 1620s, it is built up and fortified into a great
pirate base during the 1640s and ‘60s. Despite Spanish attacks, it
survives as long as the buccaneers and pirates remain strong, but
disappears as their power wanes.

Trinidad: 16N, 61W. Theoretically a Spanish colony, this

island never has a large population, nor much of a Spanish gov­ernment and garrison. Its heyday as a smuggler’s paradise is in
the first years of the 1600s.

Vera Cruz (and San Juan de Ulua harbor): 23N, 96W. This

city with its island anchorage is the main port for the great inland
Viceroyalty of New Spain (also known as Mexico). Once a year,
when the treasure fleet arrives, this otherwise unhealthy city
becomes a rich boom town.

Villa Hermosa: 22N, 93W. This inland city is the capital of

Tobasco province, a southerly but nonetheless rich region of
New Spain.

Yaguana: 22N, 72W. In the 16th Century this town is a small

port serving the Spanish west coast of Hispaniola. It is officially
abandoned and its population deported at the end of the century
as a punishment for excessive smuggling.

DE GRAFF

67

CREDITS

ORIGINAL PIRATES!

ORIGINAL DESIGN AND PROGRAMMING

Sid Meier

PIRATES! GOLD IBM CLASSIC

PROGRAMMING

Randall Don Masteller

PROGRAMMING ASSISTANCE

David McKibbin

Ned Way

Kerry Wilkinson

GAME DESIGN

Paul Murphy

ART DIRECTION/PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Michael Haire

ILLUSTRATION AND ANIMATION

Chris Soares

Harry Teasley

Andy Laken

Murray Taylor

SHIP MODELS

Frank Vivirito

SOUND AND MUSIC PROGRAMMING

Ken Legacy

Jim McConkey

Jack Miller

MUSIC COMPOSED AND ARRANGED BY

JS Bach

Jeffery L Briggs

Roland Rizzo

ORIGINAL HISTORICAL DESIGN

Arnold Hendrick

QUALITY ASSURANCE

Management

Michael Craighead

Lead Tester

David Ginsburg

Testers

Mike Rea
Vaughn Thomas
Walter Carter

MANUAL TEXT

Paul Murphy
Arnold Hendrick

MANUAL LAYOUT AND DESIGN

Joe Morel, Cesar Novoa

MANUAL ILLUSTRATION

Mike Bates

COVER ILLUSTRATION

Chris Soares

PACKAGE DESIGN

Cesar Novoa

LOGO DESIGN

Harry Teasley

MAP ART

Rebecca Butcher

PRODUCER

Tony Parks

68