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If you’d like to post fleets in text form (pictures will likely slow the page down a LOT), feel free to do so here. If you have a folder of pictures documenting your past fleets at Miniature Trading, feel free to leave a link to it if MT goes down.
For example:
40 Point Pirate Fleet
Harbinger + Captain Blackheart, Tia Dalma, helmsman, oarsman
Coral + explorer
Rover
For the first time in quite a while I just had a flurry of fleet ideas. Since the MT crisis started last August I’ve been hesitant to post much there, and I don’t have time to flesh out and post all these ideas in full.
I’m (re)posting 2 fleets per day here at PwB, with my personally legendary American Pirates fleet today. It really amazes me how well that fleet was able to perform despite not even being optimized. Although the obvious swap is to go from Bandido to Banshee’s Cry + helmsman and explorer, I suddenly realized further potential “optimizations” to make involving at least one of the other two ships. This led to a crazed flurry of ideas, which was really exciting and fun to experience again. I’ve been busy with non-gaming Pirates stuff since August of last year and even before that, so it was really cool to have a blast of “power gamer” (phrase I learned from James Ernest) thoughts and get really mentally involved with the strategic and fleet building aspects of the game.
It’s hilarious that my AP fleet can do well in competitive play without even being truly optimized. It’s a little scary to think that it could be better with some modifications. For example: (H=Helmsman, E=Explorer)
American Pirates 2: Same Roanoke setup, BC w/H+E instead of Bandido, Bloody Jewel w/H+E, Rover, Mermaid
AP’s 3: Roanoke, BC w/H+E, Darkhawk II w/ H+E
AP’s 4: Same as original AP’s but with NH + explorer instead of Amity + explorer
AP’s 5? Combine basic Hai Peng setup with Roanoke setup
French American Pirates: Roanoke setup (or Pirate hybrid sac monster), Bloody Jewel + helmsman, Intrepide, BC w/H+E, HC
-Modify above setups by replacing Roanoke with Victoire less an oarsman. (French Pirates?)
Pirates fleet: 300 FD + Havana Black, helmsman, explorer, oarsmen x2, Darkhawk II + Captain Blackheart, helmsman, explorer, oarsmen x2. Last 4 points for HC + Mermaid, or BC + JM
Pirate fleet with Darkhawk II and Hai Peng, + HC and/or BC?
Alright, that’s my little “fleet blast” for now. Hopefully I’ll eventually get these posted here and MT. Just a quick trip inside the mind of a Pirates fanatic trying to make competitive fleets even better and more optimized with tons of variations. XD Love this game.
I’ve been making pure/almost pure Spanish Main fleets since my nostalgia kick which got me into hunting down the ships I’ve always wanted, but never pulled. Here’s two:
Spanish Pure* Spanish Main 40 pt fleet:
El Acorazado (31pts)
– Captain Alarico Castro
– Helmsman
-Captain
Pescados de Plata (9 pts)
– Explorer
Optional non-Spanish Main stuff: Admiral Castro instead of Captain, Castillo del Infanta, Duque Marques Vacarro, Divers (replace it for the explorer)
Very simple strategy. Pescados gets treasure, Acorazado blows up anything else. If you’re playing pure Spanish Main fleets, this one’s pretty tough to stop.
——————————————————————–
Jack Hawkins 40* pt 90% pure Spanish Main fleet:
My attempt to get the best fleet possible while using the Sea Nymph and Snipe, Hawkins’s two in-universe Spanish Main ships, alongside OG Spanish Main Jack, using as many Spanish Main pieces as possible.
Sea Nymph: (22 pts)
– Captain Jack Hawkins
– Calico Cat (SM)
– Helmsman
Snipe: (9 pts)
– Musketeer
Darkhawk II: (14 pts)
– Captain
– Helmsman
– Explorer
– Oarsman
– The Hag of Tortuga (CC)
The Devil’s Maw
Darkhawk II runs treasure obviously, but it can defend itself very well and be an attacker late game. The Snipe’s job is to establish the fort, then attack any fort your opponent puts up. Failing that, the Snipe can always raid treasure runners. If you lose Hawkins and the Snipe picks him up at the Devil’s Maw, it turns into a really tough raider, as it’s immune to L-range guns and can no longer be rammed due to being a ghost ship. The Sea Nymph will be your attacker, of course. You can replace SM Calico Cat with her OE version and lose the SN’s helmsman and Darkhawk’s Oarsman if you want. I suppose you could also replace the Helmsman with Skyme the Monkey.
I’ve also been on a fleet building kick, currently thinking of a way to build a French fleet to maximize Marines. Might post that later.
Optional non-Spanish Main stuff: Admiral Castro instead of Captain
That’s what I’m seeing in the fleet (the BC 5 point EA Castro) – with the 3 point SAT Castro the Acorazado setup would come to 29 points.
Similarly, wouldn’t the Sea Nymph setup in the second fleet come to 20 points with the 4 point Hawkins from SM? I’d recommend a captain instead of musketeer on the Snipe. Solid fleets either way.
Unfortunately the set specifics and ability abbreviations/etc may get lost in translation without the fleets section at MT, but at least we can still use that too. Not expecting this thread to take off after so many fleets have been created since 2004, but it can be fun to bounce ideas around.
I always do this thing where I assume SAT crew are 5 pts instead of 3 >:(
That frees up some space, doesn’t it. Swap out the Captain on Darkhawk II for Captain Blackheart then. I like that a lot, actually.
Trying to think of a gimmicky Maman Brigitte fleet right now. Right now I’m thinking…
Maman Brigitte: (23 pts)
– El Fantasma SCS
– Helmsman
– 3 Oarsmen
Snipe: (12 pts)
– Calypso
Banshee’s Cry (4 pts)
– Explorer
– The Hag of Tortuga
Events: Mermaids, Foul Winds (6 pts)
Treasure contributed: Cursed Natives, Dead Man’s Chest, Pandora’s Box, Whirlpool, Maps of Alexandria, 2, 7, 7
UTs to potentially use with Pandora’s Box: Kraken Gong, Homing Beacon, Dead Man’s Chest, Ghostly Encounter, Lost (if I load it) Maps of Hades, Cursed Natives, Whirlpool, Bad Maps, Enemy of the State, Buried Treasure, Plunder, Rum (if my opponent loads it.)
Banshee’s Cry obviously is your main explorer. Snipe plops down whirlpools for the Brigitte to jump through to catch haulers. El Fantasma allows you to go ghost to break pins once you ram and snatch all the UTs. The events delay your opponent, allowing you to catch them easier. The UTs delay them. You’re looking for the 7’s and Dead Man’s Chest.
I don’t have nearly enough pieces to make this (I have sadly few UTs) but I somehow think this could be not the worst Maman Brigitte fleet ever.
I don’t have nearly enough pieces to make this (I have sadly few UTs) but I somehow think this could be not the worst Maman Brigitte fleet ever.
Definitely not. It’s a solid concept, but why the oarsmen on the MB? They take up space after the first one due to the no-stacking rule, and would be better off the ship to optimize cargo. Ghost Ship on a stealer is nice, but Trogs could be an alternative as well. Glad you listed the coins (attention to detail that I would sometimes forget to bother including), but I think it would be a 1 instead of a 2 to get to 15 gold contributed. (or 7-6-2)
I think all events should be banned, so you won’t see any love for them from me.
I had the oarsmen on the MB to be sacrificed to whirlpools and Dead Man’s Chest. But the no-stacking rule kills that idea…
I’m not sure how else to protect Brigitte when she hops through whirlpools. She actually doesn’t need any cargo room if she’s just trying to steal UTs, but I guess I might as well go full broken event cards and lose 2 oarsmen for Hidden Cove right? Maybe an explorer on MB and BC.
I don’t particularly care for events either but I’m trying to make one of the worst ships in the game playable here lol.
I had the oarsmen on the MB to be sacrificed to whirlpools and Dead Man’s Chest.
Sacrificed with what? You’ve got the wrong Fantasma – the SCS version doesn’t have Sac.
No not that Fantasma. If I’m hopping through whirlpools I’ll need to be ready to give up some crew if I roll badly.
Rebel Spanish fleet
I’m going for a 40 point fleet here, just something simple to begin and get feedback with. There’s a small backstory to this fleet, and that is that these Spaniards have rebelled against royal Spanish authorities to help the natives in their colonies, hence the canoes.
El Leon: 14 pts
Captain + Helmsman + Contessa Anita Amore
San Pedro: 22 pts
Explorer + Native Chieftain
Native Canoes
El Raton: 9 pts
Diablo
Fortaleza Dorada
Total: 40pts
The object of this fleet is twofold: use the considerable gold-gathering ability of the San Pedro and the canoes to build up an early tally and bust out the Fortaleza in a key island. El Leon and El Raton would roam and protect the San Pedro and hunt smaller treasure runners if possible, but combined they might be able to take down bigger game.
I’m thinking that this fleet is well rounded and can take on most other challengers, especially in 1v1s where the map will be smaller, therefore easier to lock down with El Raton and Fortaleza Dorada.
Looks like a solid fleet. I think the San Pedro combo comes to 21 points, so you could add a point somewhere. I would separate the Raton and Diablo in the fleet section; you might be surprised how badly you’ll wish Diablo was towed by the San Pedro instead. (better speed and more direct protection) Raton probably won’t be a big factor.
You can tow the flotilla with the San Pedro like Ben said and use the spare 2 points to upgrade Leon into El Duque for better speed and cargo.
Looks solid though, especially for 1v1. I like control based fleets even though I refuse to use flotillas.
Thanks for the feedback, guys! I’ll test it out soon and report back when the game’s over. I chose to put the Diablo on El Raton in order to protect the San Pedro but also to hunt down other treasure runners or support gunships- maybe even tag team a flagship with El Leon. I wouldn’t feel comfortable risking such a valuable investment like the San Pedro with an attack action or by putting it close to the fighting, but I’ll definitely keep your advice in mind and see if it might just be better to put the Diablo on the San Pedro as a deterrent. I could then use the Divers event, and profit from enemy kills whenever that opportunity shows up.
Raven Pirates
Tomorrow I’m playing a 40 pt game with friends and we’re thinking of taking some casual pirates to introduce some new players. Here’s the fleet I’m bringing, let me know what you think:
Raven’s Neck: 19 pts
Captain + Helmsman + Firepot
Recreant: 14 pts
Captain + Helmsman
Bloody Jewel: 7 pts
Explorer
Total: 40 pts
I would like to focus on gold running with this setup. The Firepot and the Recreant are there only as deterrents against intruders since the Raven’s Neck and the Bloody Jewel will be hauling in gold every turn. I want them to begin in a faraway island to get that gold first and then explore an island closer to home so that by the time everyone else is done exploring their home islands, I’ve already consolidated the gold in the center and can focus on protecting myself and my gold close to home. One thing I could definitely do is either move the Firepot to the Recreant, or replace it with a Helmsman on the Jewel to make it super fast. What do you guys think?
It’s not a fantastic fleet by any means but it’s a nice casual fleet I can use to have fun with new players. I would add more efficient options but I don’t have the ships I need yet and it would make it harder for the other players if I were to go all out on this game. Fun is the name of the game!
You can tow the flotilla with the San Pedro like Ben said and use the spare 2 points to upgrade Leon into El Duque for better speed and cargo.
I don’t see that as much of an upgrade since Leon has better cannons and a solid ability. Though I’ll always favor a ship like the Leon over a ship like the Duque. 🙂
@Mechavelli: Diablo being towed by the San Pedro would be an excellent deterrent and a good way to protect your most valuable ship. The Raton is pretty slow for towing Diablo, so she might have trouble getting the firepower into position and keeping up with the Leon or San Pedro. Though depending on the setup you could just plop the Diablo near important islands and run gold with the Raton too.I think swapping the FPS to a helmsman on the Bloody Jewel would be a good idea. However, since you say you’re playing against newer players, I probably wouldn’t do that for a starter game since it makes the fleet more competitive. I think leaving it as-is would be cool, I like the fleet! I like how you’ve got at least 2 cargo open on every ship.
Though I’ll always favor a ship like the Leon over a ship like the Duque.
I like speed above all else. Interesting how styles can differ like that.
@Mechavelli where you thinking of using any UTs for your game? Rum and Ghostly Encounter could work well.(I like to shoehorn Snipe or Zephyr into my fleets and Rum is really good with them.)
I don’t have any useful UTs right now, I haven’t really had a taste for them tbh. Anything that can accidentally help my opponent instead of me isn’t good in my eyes, but maybe there’s something I’m not getting when it comes to these treasures?
Ben, I’m not sure why you’re saying that El Raton is slow when the San Pedro and El Raton have the same starting speed and I haven’t given a helmsman to the San Pedro both for points sake and cargo space. Like I said, I’ll see if I really need it since it does sound like a good idea, but I like flexibility and El Raton is a cheap way to give Diablo independence to just rush in guns blazing.
Lastly, on the Duque Vs Leon question, I would pick the Leon over Duque because of the better cannons and the ramming immunity. El Leon is a nasty little pit fighter I can throw at any enemy and destroy 2-4 masts on average, which is pretty good in small games. Duque would be a good choice if her cannon ranks were just a little better but as it is I can’t compromise El Leon’s excellent shooters for more speed.
Ben, I’m not sure why you’re saying that El Raton is slow when the San Pedro and El Raton have the same starting speed and I haven’t given a helmsman to the San Pedro both for points sake and cargo space.
No they don’t, Raton is S+S while San Pedro is S+L.Edit: Nope, Ben relied too much on MT and El Raton has S+L on her deckplate!
Oh, I updated my whirlpool-hopping Cursed fleet. I don’t expect it to be all that strong, but it tested well the other day.
Boneyard (28 pts)
– El Fantasma (OE)
– Trogs
– Helmsman
– Explorer
– Oarsman
Snipe (12 pts)
– Calypso
Banshee’s Cry (5 pts)
– The Hag of Tortuga
– Explorer
The Devil’s Maw
Treasure: Pandora’s Box, Plunder, Buried Treasure, Ghostly Encounter, Dead Man’s Chest, 7, 7, 1
UTs to use for Pandora’s Box: Kraken Gong, Homing Beacon, Protection from Davy Jones (if I load it) Bad Maps, Maps of Hades, Missionary, Enemy of the State (if my opponent picks it up)
Islands to contribute: The mysterious island that moves all treasure to another island if you roll badly, the one that lets you play a UT from outside the game if you roll well.
Pretty simple strategy. Use the UTs to slow your opponent down. Whirlpool hop the Boneyard right on top of them and steal all the UTs your opponent finds first.
That’s strange, my faceplate says S+L… Is the Miniatures entry correct, or is this a misprint?
Wow, I just checked my card and it’s S+L. O_O I’ve been thinking it’s wrong all this time. This is what happens when I rely more on MT than my physical collection. XD Sorry about that!
But wait- it gets more interesting! The original Wizkids spreadsheet says S+S. Asking Woelf now if the cards are misprinted or not. It’s not in the Code.
The ship is weird enough since it’s got a red rarity corner, but now it’s just plain confusing. XD
Woelf’s response:
The printed deckplate should still be considered correct. It’s entirely possible that the spreadsheet I had wasn’t the final-final version, and things got tweaked just before the set was printed. From seeing how things are done behind the scenes with a different company, I’m assuming they used a completely separate layout sheet (with artwork) to show the factory exactly what to print, rather than relying on the spreadsheet directly.
Even if it was a typo, it doesn’t break the ship, and keeps it more playable.
Last night I submitted a correction to the MT database, and now I’m off to correct the Master Spreadsheet.
@Jack: That Banshee’s Cry setup looks like 4 points to me.
As said above, I’m reposting two Fleets per day to “save” the text from MT, and I think the last 3 are some of the more interesting ones I’ve made. (as of March 9th anyway; more fleets coming tomorrow! 🙂 )
I’ve about exhausted Spanish Main fleets. Moving on to Crimson Coast, which is the pack I have the least of sadly. Don’t have much to work with here. I’ve been trying to track down Crimson Coast packs online, as I don’t think I ever bought more than 6-7, but I’m only seeing single ships/crew.
40 pt. Pure French Crimson Coast fleet:
La Magnifique (29 pts)
– Capitane Arathiel
– Helmsman
– Cannoneer
– Shipwright
– Oarsman
– 5 pt dude whose name escapes me
L’Auguste (16 pts)
– Helmsman
– Explorer
I don’t like investing so much into one warship, but these are literally the only two French ships from CC I own. Luckily Magnifique/Arathiel are my favorite French ship/crew.
40 pt Pure Crimson Coast Pirate fleet
Duke (29 pts)
– Geoffrey Flores
– Jack Hawkins
– Helmsman
Rover (2 pts)
Bonny Liz (14 pts)
– The Hag of Tortuga
– Commodore Rhys Griffin Owen
Spanish Main’s Bonny Kate would have to play surrogate for Bonny Liz, as Rover/Duke are the only two pirate ships from CC that have survived the years for me. I like this fleet much better, though the Liz could could do with being faster.
I’ve been trying to track down Crimson Coast packs online, as I don’t think I ever bought more than 6-7, but I’m only seeing single ships/crew.
Wow yeah, a simple search only shows an expensive option from Germany. OK found this but pretty expensive.
Decent CC fleets for a limited collection. I like the Duke but I LOVE the Victoire.
French 40 point Marine Fleet
My only regret is that Marines are so damn expensive.
So I wanted to make a fleet that made use of France’s great Revolution ships as well as their two marines. The end result is… not good. But it could be fun.
La Belle Etoile (26 pts)
– Benoit de Marseilles
– Michel de Bordeaux
Le Bon Marin (9 pts)
– Khaleed Yousef
Becalmed, Divers
Marin runs gold, Belle Etoile heads to the opponent HI and unleashes the Marines on some poor unsuspecting treasure runner. You can use its ability to knock out crew or UTs, or if you can sink the ship you can ignore the ability to steal all of the gold with Divers. (The ship’s ability won’t work with the marines, though) The marines can then be dropped off at a contested wild island to hold things down until the Marin can come and pick the gold up.
This is NOT how I would normally build a French fleet. I’d typically do something along the lines of using Le Favori as another gold runner and putting a captain and helmsman on board the Belle Etoile, ditching the Marines and Events. But I wanted to try finding a build that will make decent use out of the two marines.
This fleet will go up against Barbary Corsairs and a Jean Laffite-led swarm fleet soon.
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