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That ship gains the Parley keyword for this turn.
This is actually quite powerful, because you can target a ship in the middle of a battle from far away, and make it very difficult to take down. As long as the ship is in a different location, you wouldn’t be able to cancel the ability effectively either to combat it.
When something gains an ability, regardless of how, it’s considered to be a source of that ability, so it could be cancelled directly.
Cancelling LT could prevent him from giving Parley, but that would have no effect on the recipient after it was given.
@Ben and Woelf: Thank you for your feedback! I will probably try playtesting at the suggested 11 points, and we’ll see how that works.
And now, the final installment in Seas of Doom (for reals this time): The Super Rares.
Relevant Keywords:
–World-Hater: This ship gets +1 to her cannon rolls against any [non-faction] ship.
–Man-O’-War: Once per turn, before you give this ship a shoot action, roll a d6. On a result of an odd number, her cannons become 2-rank for this turn. On a result of an even number, she eliminates two masts with each hit.
1. Nazgûl
Points: 15
Masts: 3
Cannons: 2S, 2L, 2S
Cargo: 1
Base Move: S+L
Ability: Schooner. When another ship loads “The Ring”, this ship gets +S to her base move, and +1 to her cannon and boarding rolls against that ship.
Link: The Fell
Faction Affiliation: The CursedFlavor: Decorated with the skulls of Sea Dragons, the Nazgul is the home of the Fell, and one of the few ships that can ferry these demons across the waves.
2. The Fell
Points: 7
Ability: Captain. World-Hater.
Link: Nazgûl; Barad-dûr
Faction Affiliation: The CursedFlavor: Once, the Fell were human sailors, mortal in every way. However, their souls and bodies were corrupted by a powerful relic of the old world. Now they roam the ocean, searching for their lost treasure, and filled with a hatred for every other living things in the world.
3. Barad-dûr
Points: 25
Masts: 5
Cannons: 4L, 3S, 3S, 3S, 4L
Cargo: 5
Base Move: L
Ability: Man-O’-War. When another ship loads “The Ring”, this ship gets +S to her base move, and +1 to her cannon and boarding rolls against that ship. Once per turn you may look at one face down treasure on any ship.
Link: The Fell
Faction Affiliation: The CursedFlavor: The mainstay ship of the Fell and their minions, the Barad-Dur is more of a floating fortress than a ship. Though the Fell are usually never on board, their foul minions man the ship well in their absence.
4. The Ring (unique treasure)
-Load this treasure face up. This treasure cannot be destroyed, only transferred between ships. Before giving this ship an action, decide if The Ring is in use. If it is, then this ship can only sustain damage from Cursed ships. If this ship is sunk by another ship, The Ring is automatically transferred to that ship.And with that, Seas of Doom is finished.
I will probably take *a few* months off before I post new content and not just responses.
And speaking of which, tell me what y’all think of the Super Rares! leave comments, questions and concerns, and I’ll get back y=to you as soon as I can.Until next post;
-J. W. DarkhurstThe SR’s look pretty fair overall, though I think The Ring might be less OP if it was linked to a crew that couldn’t be eliminated (or turned face up?) rather than an entire “invisible” ship.
I understand it’s just an interpretation of existing concepts from a different fantasy world, but the choice of game pieces is more of an issue IMO than the gameplay stats. To me it follows that Nazgul would be crew, the Fell Beasts would be sea dragons (with a cargo for a Nazgul) or small fast ships, and Barad-dûr would be a fort. Assuming you keep them all the same, I think it would be somewhat fitting to make Barad-dûr slower but more accurate with cannons. (in which case I would swap out Man-O’-War for “this ship gets +1 to her boarding rolls for every crew assigned to her”, but that’s me trying to optimize the thematic nature of the LotR stuff)
Devil’s Storm
Type: Ship
Faction Affiliation: Cursed
Rarity: C
Point Value: 12
Number of Masts: 2
Cargo Space: 2
Base Move: S+S+S
Cannons: 2S-2S
Ability: Longship.Flavor text: Unlike the crazed bloodthirsty fiends manning the majority of Cursed ships, the crew of the Devil’s Storm prefer to win their fights with blazing speed and accurate cannon fire.
Invarri (inspired by the Inferi from Harry Potter)
Type: Crew
Faction Affiliation: Cursed
Rarity: C
Point Value: 2
Ability: If this ship wins a boarding party, you may eliminate a crew in addition to any other results. These crew are not subject to the No-Duplicates and No-Stacking rules.Flavor text: Bloodsucking creatures with lanky naked bodies, the Invarri are a feral menace unlike Trogs and other devilry. Some Cursed captains have been filling out their ships with them – you can always tell by the large number of sharks following behind the ship.
Not sure if this could go to 1.
You can find my custom sets here: Pirates of the Age of Sail and Pirates of the Epic Seas
4. The Ring (unique treasure)
-Load this treasure face up. This treasure cannot be destroyed, only transferred between ships. Before giving this ship an action, decide if The Ring is in use. If it is, then this ship can only sustain damage from Cursed ships. If this ship is sunk by another ship, The Ring is automatically transferred to that ship.This effect seems… incomplete.
Is there any reason why you wouldn’t want to leave the Ring on at all times?
The protection against all non-Cursed is huge, and potentially game-breaking especially if this gets transferred to a gunship. The only protection against it is using an all (or at least mostly) Cursed fleet, or digging out one of the handful of effects that can eliminate or steal UTs, like Jailhouse Dog or Rollando. If another player does get their hands on it, that just flips the problem back the opposite direction.The only actual negative to this at all is indirect, by giving a bonus to those two specific ships, but that happens whether the Ring is active or not. If neither of those are in play that negative is irrelevant. Considering how powerful the positive effect is, if you’re going to give the option to put it on or not, there should be some significant reason why you wouldn’t want to – and it should be something that matters regardless of what your opponents bring to the table.
I will probably take *a few* months off before I post new content and not just responses.
Don’t. 😀 I’ve purposely kept myself in the dark with the next set, so I’d like to see it sooner rather than later.
@Ben: So you suggest a link similar to the Heart of Stone?
I can Make the Barad-dûr’s cannons more accurate or change/add the World-Hating, but I don’t want to make her a fort. I kinda like the idea that whoever finds the ring will be pursued by two fairly good gunships for a majority of the game. I was honestly tempted to make one if not both of the ships and maybe even the crew have the Eternal Keyword. And while having dragons would be way cool, I don’t want to break the WK trend of 4 pieces in Super Rare packs. However, for naming The Fell and the Nazgûl, I used Wikipedia for the name info, so I might have them wrong between which is the Wraiths and which is the dragons. ? Either way, I’m not gonna change names just yet.
@Woelf: I see ypur point. Looking back, I basically, without realizing it until now, incorporated the Ring’s power to corrupt and control its possessor, since who wouldn’t want that kind of immunity. ?
Considering that the Ring in LoTR makes the wearer invisible to the eyes of people, would it make a better ability if you just couldn’t be boarded by non-Cursed ships? Somehow I feel like that would be worse, but you tell me what you think about it.Thank you both for your feedback!! 😀
-Darkhurst
@Xerecs: I’ll post when I’m alive inside again. ????
So you suggest a link similar to the Heart of Stone?
I think that makes more sense than making the entire ship borderline invincible. The ringbearer couldn’t hide the building he was in, for example. Let alone allow a large sailing vessel to be impervious to any kind of damage. It’s a ring for one person, not a sci-fi cloaking device. I might not be so concerned about the thematics of it if it was less powerful, but as Woelf said, it’s OP.
There’s a ton of variations you could do. Ideally this guy might be his own crew, with the Nazgul crew linked to him. I know it’s absurd, but if you really want to make it like the movies, you could make all 9 ringwraiths as individual named crew and have the Fell Beasts be Sea Dragons with 1 cargo each that aren’t subject to the No-Duplicates rule. XD
I think Wikipedia has it right…. (with the names)
Ah; I had the names wrong ?? (I’ll see what I can do to fix that)
Well, while having a specific named crew, like the Witch King would be probably ideal, I was kinda going for an Unblinking 99 feel, where its just one crew, but it encompasses all of the mentioned characters/individuals.
One of my favorite customs I’ve made in a while, though very over the top. 🙂
Grand Phoenix
Type: Ship
Faction Affiliation: Jade Rebellion
Rarity: R
Point Value: 33
Number of Masts: 6
Cargo Space: 4
Base Move: S+L
Cannons: 4L-2L-2L-2L-2L-4L
Ability: Junk. Eternal. Firepot Specialist. When this ship sinks, roll a d6 for every ship within S of her, both at the point of sinking and when she docks at your home island via Eternal. The result is the number of fire masts that ship receives.Flavor text: One of the most awe-inspiring ships ever to sail the seas… the Grand Phoenix brings flame and elegance to every location she visits. The Jades built her specifically to explode like a massive firework when water reaches a critical point in her hold. Unfortunately the ships they build to replace her seem to malfunction in drydock, leading some to believe that the ship’s name is cursed.
FPS: Once per turn when this ship is given a shoot action, one of her cannons may shoot a firepot at a target within S of her. Declare which cannon will shoot the firepot before rolling the d6. If it hits, the ship’s controller replaces one of her masts with a fire mast. At the beginning of every turn, roll a d6 for each fire mast. On a 5-6 remove the fire mast; on a 1-2 the ship’s controller replaces another of her masts with a fire mast. When a ship has only fire masts, she must be scuttled on her next turn. When a ship docks at her home island or at a fort, remove all fire masts as a free action.
For once I also have some cool ideas in mind for what it would look like… Artwork: greenish hull, brown decks, orange sails with red/orange phoenix on the fore mainmast.
Evylaethil
Type: Crew
Faction Affiliation: Jade Rebellion
Rarity: C
Point Value: 5
Ability: Shipwright. This ship gets +2 to her boarding rolls.Flavor text: Evylaethil is able to use their sword to make swift repairs to a ship’s rigging, but also to lead aggressive boarding parties that result in lopsided victories.
You can find my custom sets here: Pirates of the Age of Sail and Pirates of the Epic Seas
oooooh, I like that sixer VERY much. Excellent speed, and decent cannons, along with one of my favorite abilities. The negative ability would have to be seriously considered, especially when it reappears back home from eternal. In a regular game I don’t think it would be an issue as much since thee would be less ships, but in a campaign, with crowded home islands…..
That’s a pretty powerful ship, there. It almost sounds like something Xerecs or I made! ??
I’d say the points are probably accurate considering the combination of abilities and other stats. Really cool concept though!
Additionally, a named Shipwright is generally an unusual find in any set, and the ability combo potentials given by Evylaethil on a good Rebel gunship sound like fun to play-test and use ?-Darkhurst
@Xerecs, Darkhurst: Thanks! Glad you share my enthusiasm for the new ship.
Made some more today, here are 2 of the 5 new ones.Devil of the North
Type: Ship
Faction Affiliation: Cursed
Rarity: C
Point Value: 22
Number of Masts: 3
Cargo Space: 5
Base Move: S
Cannons: 4L-4L-4L
Ability: Longship. Cargo Wrecking. [When this ship hits an enemy ship, you may also eliminate one cargo from that ship.]Flavor text: The first of the “regional devils” to begin terrorizing a specific part of the world’s oceans, this powerful longship is slowed by the weight of her massive powder room and excessive weaponry stowed in the hold.
Cost may increase, though that would mostly be due to OP crew combos I think.
Flameburst
Collector’s Number: 734 (for now, just included for kicks since the set is so huge XD)
Type: Flotilla
Faction Affiliation: Mercenary
Rarity: R
Point Value: 12
Number of Masts: 1
Cargo Space: 0
Base Move: T
Cannons: 3L-3L-3L-3L
Ability: Mercenary. Flotilla. Once per turn when this ship is given a shoot action, one of her cannons can shoot a fire shot. Declare which cannon will shoot the fire shot before rolling the d6. If it hits, the target’s controller replaces one of her masts with a fire mast. Instead of giving this flotilla an action, you may remove it and any assigned cargo from the game; if you do, place one fire mast on all ships within S of this flotilla.Flavor text: The Mercenaries gathering together in the Pacific Ocean have stolen a European weapons concept and made their own version. This armed barge is a floating time bomb – at any point the gunners might just set fire to the explosive ammunition and cause a huge explosion that would devastate anything unlucky enough to be in the vicinity.
Not sure if this one is also undercosted… definitely a great candidate for a whirlpool bomb, especially if the towing ship could get another action to move away from the blast before it happened. I probably shouldn’t make customs that are tailor made for my whirlpool raiding strategy, but I don’t think this is the first….
You can find my custom sets here: Pirates of the Age of Sail and Pirates of the Epic Seas
This is a preview of sorts…. 😀
Jozeran Danklidge
Type: Crew
Faction Affiliation: Mercenary
Rarity: C
Point Value: 6
Ability: Ex-Patriot. Shipwright. HI Raider.Flavor text: Originally finding employment as a ship’s carpenter, Danklidge has slowly gained a reputation as a mercenary that can slip into and out of ports unnoticed. This has greatly increased his personal wealth, but at the cost of being on Spain’s most wanted list.
Xavier Gedry
Type: Crew
Faction Affiliation: Mercenary
Rarity: C
Point Value: 3
Ability: Ex-Patriot. This ship gets +1 to her cannon rolls when carrying gold.Flavor text: Xavier Gedry is willing to put his skills to work only when he is paid first. Once the doubloons start flowing, his guns get hot.
You can find my custom sets here: Pirates of the Age of Sail and Pirates of the Epic Seas
When this ship sinks, roll a d6 for every ship within S of her, both at the point of sinking and when she docks at your home island via Eternal. The result is the number of fire masts that ship receives.
@Ben
Point costs and potential for breaking the game aside…What happens when you roll a number higher than the number of masts on the ship?
Does it apply to only current masts, or total masts? (In other words, do you fill empty slots with fire masts if there aren’t enough remaining masts?)What happens when you roll a number higher than the number of masts on the ship?
It would replace all the masts with fire masts, but not sink it outright.
Does it apply to only current masts, or total masts? (In other words, do you fill empty slots with fire masts if there aren’t enough remaining masts?)
I used to wonder about that a lot in terms of general fire masts. Here it would apply to current masts to simplify and so players couldn’t just keep their existing masts up.
“Replace a number of masts on the ship equal to the result.” Hopefully that replacement of the last sentence clears that up.
@Ben:
I’m not sure how I feel about the point cost for Devil of the North; I don’t own a lot of Longships, so I don’t really know if they’re much more expensive, but the base move and the cannons don’t really justify 22 points, in my opinion. The Cargo-Wrecking, though very useful, isn’t much of a point booster either, especially since the Devil has all rank-4 cannons. It’s definitely usable, however, what with a possibility for six long-range shots. I just don’t think I’d personally use it.I really like the Flameburst. I literally don’t know why I’ve never made a mercenary flotilla. ??
In Return of Davy Jones, I made a Spanish flotilla (La Corona) that had one cargo, and could carry/use specifically equipment shots. This reminds me of the Corona in a way, since it has a built in Fire Shot.
Really cool Idea! I wanna use it… ?-J. W. Darkhurst
I used to wonder about that a lot in terms of general fire masts. Here it would apply to current masts to simplify and so players couldn’t just keep their existing masts up.
“Replace a number of masts on the ship equal to the result.” Hopefully that replacement of the last sentence clears that up.
What would be really neat to see happen (in general – not specific to this ability) is that the fire would always take existing masts first, then would spill over and spread to empty slots, but for being a relatively easy concept to understand, it’s a tricky one to write out in a concise, unambiguous way.
The Cargo-Wrecking, though very useful, isn’t much of a point booster either, especially since the Devil has all rank-4 cannons.
I strongly disagree. If it’s useful, it has to increase the point cost. 6 cannons at 4L is not trivial, and a world-hater to essentially make them all 3L’s is easy to add (especially considering customs and not just DJC Fantasma), making the Cargo Wrecking ability that much more important and relevant. All that cargo could easily be used to make the ship a beast of a gunship.
Thanks, glad you like the Flameburst! Maybe it’s partly because they’re from Fire and Steel, but I certainly like the idea of flotillas using equipment/special shots, partly because they don’t have a “mast” to eliminate if things backfire on 1’s. 🙂
What would be really neat to see happen (in general – not specific to this ability) is that the fire would always take existing masts first, then would spill over and spread to empty slots, but for being a relatively easy concept to understand, it’s a tricky one to write out in a concise, unambiguous way.
Isn’t that how it always happens by default? Not seeing in the Code if fire masts are supposed to spread to empty slots once all the regular masts are consumed, though it doesn’t matter too much at that point because you’d automatically scuttle before giving extra (arbitrary at that point) fire masts.
Satan’s Ascent
Type: Ship
Faction Affiliation: Cursed
Rarity: R
Point Value: 22
Number of Masts: 3
Cargo Space: 6
Base Move: S
Cannons: 2S-3L-2S
Ability: Submarine. Firepot Specialist.* L-range cannons cannot hit this ship. If this ship is not assigned any crew, she gets -1 to her d6 rolls.
Link: The Archking DemonlordFlavor text: This submarine was built to bring Satan himself from the depths of Hell to the seas of the living. The massive sub is carrying all manner of fiends that anticipate the arrival of Satan. It remains to be seen if The Archking Demonlord will stay aboard or command a larger vessel.
Wanted to make a really unique submarine. Also toying around with an ability that allows the sub to surface while underneath a ship, which would displace the surface ship and maybe eliminate a mast. Tough to make into an ability though.
I know it’s arguably a little hypocritical for me to harp on steam/iron stuff and then make custom subs or sea creatures, but it’s because Wizkids already made them so they’re in the game regardless of how I feel. (if Wizkids hadn’t introduced subs, I’m sure I wouldn’t be making any custom subs) The submarines and sea creatures from Epic Seas are still a pretty minimal total of the huge number of game pieces in the set.*FPS: Once per turn when this ship is given a shoot action, one of her cannons may shoot a firepot at a target within S of her. Declare which cannon will shoot the firepot before rolling the d6. If it hits, the ship’s controller replaces one of her masts with a fire mast. At the beginning of every turn, roll a d6 for each fire mast. On a 5-6 remove the fire mast; on a 1-2 the ship’s controller replaces another of her masts with a fire mast. When a ship has only fire masts, she must be scuttled on her next turn. When a ship docks at her home island or at a fort, remove all fire masts as a free action.
The Archking Demonlord
Type: Crew
Faction Affiliation: Cursed
Rarity: R
Point Value: 11
Ability: Captain. You own any derelict this ship explores; both ships become docked at your home island. If this ship’s point cost is matched by the point costs of the crew assigned to her, you may roll a d6 each turn. On a 5-6, this ship gets +S to her base move that turn.
Link: Satan’s AscentFlavor text: Spurring Cursed fiends to new heights is The Archking Demonlord. He is always improving his commands, whether they lie above or below the waves. After his ship is in tip top shape, he turns his attention to his crew complement – with enough experienced bodies, he can surprise opponents with bursts of speed that give him an upper hand in battle.
His final ability is about maxing out a ship’s point cost with crew. Which can be hard or impractical, which is why I didn’t make the ability more expensive. 2 points is already as much as Helmsman, but he’s powerful because any ship he’s on will pretty much always have a Helmsman crew as well. On a 10 master with a helmsman and reroll he could add another S rather frequently, but would still require a huge point investment. Plus, once a single crew is eliminated, the ability wouldn’t work.
You can find my custom sets here: Pirates of the Age of Sail and Pirates of the Epic Seas
“The Cargo-Wrecking, though very useful, isn’t much of a point booster either, especially since the Devil has all rank-4 cannons.”
I strongly disagree. If it’s useful, it has to increase the point cost. 6 cannons at 4L is not trivial, and a world-hater to essentially make them all 3L’s is easy to add (especially considering customs and not just DJC Fantasma), making the Cargo Wrecking ability that much more important and relevant. All that cargo could easily be used to make the ship a beast of a gunship.
I agree somewhat with JW, but I can also see you points as well. Crew with that ability have been seen at 4 points, so that’s whee I’d put the ability, which means the DotN is an 18 point ship before that ability is added. IF this was a Viking custom I would say it’s too expensive, but as it’s Cursed…. I’m not as sure what to decide.
I didn’t notice them as much on the first run though, but I quite like Jozeran and Xavier. Xavier especially would see use on some high-cargo ships to make them better hybrids. Actually, I think he’d be perfect to place on a ship with Hidden Gold.
Maybe it’s partly because they’re from Fire and Steel, but I certainly like the idea of flotillas using equipment/special shots, partly because they don’t have a “mast” to eliminate if things backfire on 1’s.
I would assume that a backfiring equipment would still have effect on a Flotilla, since there is no such thing as a free lunch. 😀
The SA certainly is a unique sub, I don’t think I’ve ever seen one as expensive as this one. Given it’s cargo and other abilities though I think it’s justified.
Crew with that ability have been seen at 4 points, so that’s whee I’d put the ability, which means the DotN is an 18 point ship before that ability is added.
Just like world hater, it’s an ability that ideally would scale in cost to the number of cannons on the ship. A ship that essentially has 6 cannons can make great use of it, especially if you add a cannon bonus. And as always, I prefer to overprice things when creating customs rather than underprice, because that really seems like the clear right thing to do. With 5 cargo you would have plenty of space to add captain, helmsman, World Hater, and maybe something like exploding shot (imagine that combined with Cargo Wrecking) or another cannon bonus against a specific faction that could make the cannons 2L against Pirates for example.
I didn’t notice them as much on the first run though, but I quite like Jozeran and Xavier.
Awesome, I hope we’ll be seeing them this year. ?
I would assume that a backfiring equipment would still have effect on a Flotilla, since there is no such thing as a free lunch.
That has already been answered by the Code:
-A flotilla does not have masts, so abilities and effects that refer to masts have no effect.
I think what really throws me off the Devil of the North is her cannons. I don’t disagree that she’s a good ship; it’s just that I personally have trouble hitting with 2-rank cannons ????
So when I see ships with 4-ranks, I immediately avoid using them, regardless of abilities, because I know that the chances are, she will be close to defenseless under my control. Additionally, (this is just opinion) when I see a ship that has less than 5 masts and is 20+ points, I expect a really good offensive/defensive ability, a really good link combo, or exceptional cannons/combat potential. Now the Devil does deliver on combat potential, but to my eyes, the biggest draw is the ability, which wouldn’t do anything for me, since I would barely be able to hit with her cannons. Granted, she has six shots, but if you don’t get the first shot with the Devil, she’s probably sunk. Again, I don ‘t think she’s a bad ship. I just personally am not a huge fan of the point cost, and wouldn’t use her.In juncture with my previous statements, I feel like the Satan’s Ascent falls into a similar category with points, but I see a little more justification for her. She’s a Submarine, and can literally hide from most ships with impunity, her cannons are much better than the Devil’s, and with Firepot Specialist built in, there’s even more possibilities for solid or over the top combos in that massive cargo hold and point buffer.
Don’t get me wrong, they are both good ships and have their uses; but if I had to choose between the Devil or the Ascent, I’d more than likely choose the Ascent.
The Archking Demonlord has a very unique ability there. And with his 11 points in consideration, it’ll likely be used on almost whatever ship he’s on. would love to see him in use in the future ?
-Darkhurst
I don’t disagree that she’s a good ship; it’s just that I personally have trouble hitting with 2-rank cannons
I can vibe with that; I’ve had a lot of terrible dice luck when shooting.
Don’t get me wrong, they are both good ships and have their uses; but if I had to choose between the Devil or the Ascent, I’d more than likely choose the Ascent.
That makes perfect sense, especially because the SA is WAY better defensively. L-immunity on top of Submarine might even be kind of OP.
Lava Cauldron
Type: Ship
Faction Affiliation: Mercenary
Rarity: R
Point Value: 9
Number of Masts: 1
Cargo Space: 2
Base Move: L
Cannons: 2S
Ability: Mercenary. Turtle Ship. When an enemy ship initiates contact with this ship, replace one of that ship’s masts with a fire mast.Flavor text: The crew of this sturdy vessel keep a hot fire going at all times. Having learnt a deadly technique from a huge man in the Southwest Pacific, they are able to pour a lava-like mixture on the deck of any ship that gets too close.
Would love to have this cheaper, but don’t want to playtest at a level that would be too low given her main ability. I’d prefer if L-movers and “mind control” tactics wouldn’t count towards the ability.
Salma Joyfried
Type: Crew
Faction Affiliation: Mercenary
Rarity: C
Point Value: 8
Ability: Ex-Patriot. Captain. This ship gets +1 to her cannon rolls against ships without all of their masts. When this ship sinks another ship, you may assign one generic crew from that ship to this ship; the crew’s nationality changes to Mercenary.Flavor text: A free spirited woman who is adored by her crew, Salma is enjoying her lifestyle as a self-employed mercenary. Both gracious and fun-loving, her good will often convinces crews of “enemy” ships to join her.
You can find my custom sets here: Pirates of the Age of Sail and Pirates of the Epic Seas
@a7xfanben
I think that the Ascent would be better balanced if the L-immunity only applied while surfaced.
“L-range cannons cannot hit this submarine while she is surfaced.”
As most ships with submarine warfare must come within S of an enemy submarine to attack it, the additional L-immunity may be too steep of a hurdle for a submarine hunter; this change allows for the submarine hunter to properly banish the Ascent while preserving her flavor (and immunity) on the surface.
I’m glad to see you making more exotic pieces, no matter how few. Your take on Submarines, Turbines, and Pokeships (gotta sink em all) are welcome.
Edit:
I think that her linked crew Archking Demonlord could have the ability “This crew gains the Helmsman keyword if this ship’s point cost is matched by the point costs of the crew assigned to her.” This would make the ability more predictable but would limit the ship’s speed by preventing the extra +S on a 5 or 6 that he currently offers. I think that reducing the overall speed in this way helps to balance the Ascent while keeping her a strong submarine.
Between your fireballs, Flameburst seems much fairer (and more usable) than Grand Phoenix.
Alright, everyone
I’ve teased this a little before, and I dropped the name in the Black Mongoose Tavern.
It’s time for the next set. ??I give you: Pirates of the Eldest Seas!
Now, before I begin posting pieces, I should really preface this with how I got the inspiration for this set. Recently, I started reading the Shadowhunter novels by Cassandra Clare. I really liked the books, and immediately began thinking: “These would make interesting pieces for Pirates…” (This set, as usual for me, contains a total of 20 pieces per faction, but does NOT have any Mercenary pieces. It will, however, have eight Special Edition pieces, and a set of Super Rares.) The Shadowhunter books deal with religion, Demons, Nephilim (children of humans and angels), and is not isolated to a single country or region of the world. As such, a few new keywords needed to be made. Eldest Seas has seven new keywords, three of which are just new shorthand for existing abilities that I got tired of writing out ?? I will introduce these keywords now, and post the first pieces soon.
New Keywords:
1. Privateer: This piece/crew may use its abilities on any ship, but it gains the Loyal: X keyword for its flag faction.
2. Demon: This piece has the Fear and Eternal keywords. This ship gets +1 to her cannon rolls against any ship.
3. Nephilim: This ship gets +1 to her cannon rolls against pieces with the Demon keyword. If this ship is assigned a helmsman crew, she gains +L to her base move instead of +S
4. Royal Officer: When this crew is assigned with or on its Linked piece, its point cost is not counted towards the point limit of the ship. The crew’s points still count towards the build total of the game.
5. L-Mover*: Give this ship a move action but do not move her. Instead, roll a d6. On a result of 5 or 6, move an enemy ship L in any direction.
6. All-Powerful*: Once per turn, roll a d6. On a 1–4, you may give this ship an extra action; on a 5, you may give any ship you control an extra action; on a 6, you may give an enemy ship an action.
7. Ambassador: Crew of any nationality may use their abilities on this ship.
(*I know that these keywords are already common vernacular, but this is the first time I’ve included them in my master list of keywords.)
I know that the Demon keyword is essentially a combination of existing keywords, but that, to me, seems accurate to the characters in the books. I am also aware of the potentially game-breaking implications of the Royal Officer keyword. However, this piece only appears on seven crew in this set, and is mostly limited to imperial nations (England, Spain, France).
If you have questions, comments, or concerns, leave them for me, and I will get back to you as soon as possible! ?
Until next post;
-J. W. DarkhurstI think that the Ascent would be better balanced if the L-immunity only applied while surfaced.
I think you’re right and I’ve made that change. Giving subs additional defenses is probably never a good idea.
I’m glad to see you making more exotic pieces, no matter how few.
🙂 There definitely are some in the set, if you know the keywords to search…. Glad you like it. It is fun to have a fantasy set to just go crazy with. Though the average cost of a ship from the set is probably ballooning above 15 points by now, perhaps higher lol. I like epic stuff too much to not have that happen.
Pokeships (gotta sink em all)
Yes!! That’s the spirit. XD That will have to be my new motto when I go and wreck the scorpions with HMS Gallows. 😀 (who is scheduled to sail out within a month or so)
preventing the extra +S on a 5 or 6 that he currently offers
That’s part of why I added the ability in the first place, to give the sub a “max” speed of S+S+S with him and a Helmsman aboard. That would total 44 points, which is a lot. He’s designed to give the ship extra speed beyond a regular Helmsman. I would actually see your alternate ability as primarily negative, because it means the ship would need to max out her cap space to even go S+S, which is still slow (and again, at 44 points!).
I think that reducing the overall speed in this way helps to balance the Ascent while keeping her a strong submarine.
I’m not so worried about the sub being too good; I’m thinking that The Archking Demonlord could be abused on a 10 master. Could always just change things later.
@JW: Glad to see more stuff coming from you! I will think of Eldest (by Chris Paolini) when I see the set name. 🙂
Privateer just seems like an odd keyword to me, but perhaps I’ll warm up to it once I see one. Demon is basically a 10 point keyword. Nephilim also seems extremely good because speed is so important.
All-Powerful is not a new or shorthand keyword, it’s been around.
Ambassador is a great name for that ability. I’ve been wondering about trying to use shorthand for that. Selvaxri used “Free Ride” but I like this even better. Eventually I may or may not adopt that into my own sets.
Whoops, I forgot to continue my new “series”. XD
Devil of the West
Type: Ship
Faction Affiliation: Cursed
Rarity: C
Point Value: 12
Number of Masts: 3
Cargo Space: 2
Base Move: S+S
Cannons: 3L-1L-4L
Ability: Schooner. If derelict, this ship gains a base move of S. American crew can use their abilities on this ship.Flavor text: Rumors abound that this ship is the long-forgotten Swamp Fox, captured by the Cursed. Although the Cursed aren’t telling where the ship came from, they’re certainly willing to tell people about some of their cannons. With live fire “demonstrations” against anyone who raises a flag of truce. Some especially rebellious former colonists have sailed aboard the ship and insist it is not as horrid as most of the Cursed fleet.
Fossil Cove
Type: Fort
Faction Affiliation: Cursed
Rarity: C
Gold Cost: 3
Cannons: 5L-5L-5L-5L
Ability: Sea creatures within L of this fort get +1 to their d6 rolls.Flavor text: Containing the fossils of ancient beasts, this graveyard is more a haven for sea monsters than an actual fortress.
(Additional/optional ability: can only be built within S/L of a reef.)
You can find my custom sets here: Pirates of the Age of Sail and Pirates of the Epic Seas
@JWDarkhurst
Eldest Seas made me think of Lovecraft.
Privateer: I rate this okay at first. It seems to be fair and a way to add “generic” named crew.
Demon, Nephilim: I think that Demon is a bit unnecessary (and potentially strong; this should be a ship ability only) and Nephilim is too specific. Both Demon and Nephilim seem better suited to a custom scenario than general play at first. Furthermore, if Nephilim is intended to counter Demon, it seems to me to fail in its purpose due to being so much weaker. However, in a custom scenario, both keywords could add to immersion.
Royal Officer: I like the idea of this keyword, and I would like to see it tested without the link restriction. I think it should pair with Ransom for more flavor and some balance.
Going Spanish today after the recent rules question by El Cazador….
Ataque Nocturno
Type: Ship
Faction Affiliation: Spanish
Rarity: C
Point Value: 8
Number of Masts: 2
Cargo Space: 2
Base Move: S+L
Cannons: 2S-2S
Ability: Galley. This ship gets +1 to her d6 rolls against targets with all of their masts [masts/flags/segments/etc]. This ship gets +S to her base move when she’s within S of a fort.Flavor text: Experts in amphibious warfare, the fighters that crew the Ataque Nocturno love assaulting forts in the dead of night, surprising those inside when the sun rises on a new flag.
Lannorius
Type: Crew
Faction Affiliation: Spanish
Rarity: C
Point Value: 9
Ability: Ex-Patriot. Captain. Once per turn, you can eliminate one of this ship’s non-unique treasures to give her an extra action. If this ship has a crew with the Musketeer keyword, she gets +1 to her cannon rolls.Flavor text: Constantly shouting and asking for more speed, Lannorius is a frenzied captain who cannot sit still. He sometimes takes jobs in non-Spanish fleets, but enjoys the company of Spaniards more than most. Lately he has been seen dumping treasure overboard to increase his ship’s speed during one of his manic episodes. His bloodlust grows every year and his affinity for having marksmen aboard is well known.
I just changed the bonus to cannons instead of d6 rolls, since the latter seems OP even at 10 points. If he didn’t have Ex-Patriot I would consider letting him “eat” UT’s as well. Playtesting would help determine a good cost.
You can find my custom sets here: Pirates of the Age of Sail and Pirates of the Epic Seas
Jamaican Escape
Type: Ship
Faction Affiliation: Pirate
Rarity: C
Point Value: 10
Number of Masts: 2
Cargo Space: 3
Base Move: S+S+S
Cannons: 2S-3L
Ability: Schooner. If this ship begins a move action within S of land, she gets +S to her base move. If this ship is assigned at least 2 crew, she gets +1 to her cannon and boarding rolls.Flavor text: After fleeing Jamaica, the pirates of this vessel preferred to keep their entire crew complement aboard in order to keep the revelry and action alive.
Might increase the cost here, especially since she might be a good candidate for the UPS strategy with Captain Jack Sparrow….
Weaponmaster Garson Cannels
Type: Crew
Faction Affiliation: Viking
Rarity: C
Point Value: 3
Ability: When this ship is docked at your home island, you may eliminate one treasure. It becomes a 3S cannon that can be eliminated only when the ship sinks.Flavor text: No one is prouder in their profession than Weaponmaster Garson Cannels. He prefers to stay on land to improve the Viking fleet from afar. He has earned the respect of blacksmiths and gunners worldwide.
You can find my custom sets here: Pirates of the Age of Sail and Pirates of the Epic Seas
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