Game with Luke at Mox Boarding House in Seattle

September 19th, 2021 (Talk Like a Pirate Day)

I met up with new Pirates CSG player Luke in Seattle, coincidentally on Talk Like a Pirate Day!  We played at Mox Boarding House Seattle, the sister location of the venue I visited with Tiffany O’Brien the day before.

We went with a 60 point build total, round earth, and generally my Basic Rules, with the exception that rams could still cause damage and terrain was literally tossed onto the map and played where it landed.

I went first with this Anglo-French fleet:
La Belle Etoile + captain, helmsman, oarsman
La Belle Poule + helmsman
Maui’s Fishhook + LE Griffin, captain, helmsman

He followed with this mixed fleet.

Mox had a nice playmat lying around that worked well as a unique ocean I’ve never played on before.  More of a snowy/icy look than water, but certainly good enough for us!  Luke included his nice custom made island along with a few rocks.

The Maui’s Fishhook (MF) flew out at L+S+S and grabbed some coins with her shiny crane:

Luke’s fleet sailed out, but the Belles would reach wild islands first.  I docked the Belle Etoile at an angle where she could shoot all three cannons at the Santa Isabel, but true to form my characteristically terrible cannon luck continued, shooting 1/3 and only eliminating a minor crew from the Isabel.

This left the Belle Etoile open to attack, and the Spanish pounced, dismasting the ship!

A different angle showing my ships coming home with gold:

The Belle Etoile tried to sneak away on oar power:

The Maui’s Fishhook caught the Pride sailing off my home island, and eliminated two masts!  While the Santa Isabel was busy grabbing gold, the Belle Etoile escaped into a fog bank.

The Pride did a hit and run on the Belle Poule on her escape attempt, but the MF caught and dismasted her.

Overhead shot showing the MF capturing the Pride, while Luke’s ships gather gold at home and abroad (Courageux at top of frame).

I wanted the center island’s gold more than a derelict Pride, so the MF dropped the tow and hoisted more booty aboard.

The Belle Etoile took up towing duties, but the similarly speedy Santa Isabel was ready to strike!  She sank the Belle Etoile shortly afterwards.

The Santa Isabel also sunk the other Belle (Poule).  The MF grabbed (now friendly but probably not voluntarily obliging) Calico Cat off the captured Pride, with Griffin (English LE version, not the one still on the Pride!) looking to throw her overboard as insurance policy against potential whirlpool damages.  Only now is it occurring to me how strange this situation was thematically, especially with Calico Cat’s history with the English, Griffin’s backstory and two versions in play in the same fleet, etc.  O_O

However, the Santa Isabel turned around and blasted two masts off the MF!  At the upper right, you can see the final coin in play, which is all that stood between us and the final gold count.

The MF did manage to whirl towards the coin, but there was too much ocean and game left…

This is where Luke’s luck abruptly ran out, going a combined 0 for 5 on his turn! (Santa Isabel and Coeur missed 4 shots and the Courageux failed her ram attempt)

The Maui’s Fishhook lives!  She used her unique ship ability to nab the final coin, but it wasn’t likely to survive with it in her secret hold.

Luke sank the MF and the game ended!

1. Luke: 24 gold
2. Ben: 20 gold

We had a great time and some interesting Pirates CSG discussions.  I highly recommend Mox Boarding House (both WA locations) and hope to meet more Pirates CSG players and fans there!  😀

After the game we did a really cool impromptu trade!  Luke gave me an Isle of Fire from Savage Shores (my first one I believe!) so I returned the favor by giving him a sealed pack of Revolution!  He opened it on the spot and found a neat pack including his first fort (Ramsgate), first event (Divers), and favorite ship! (Le Courageux)

We noticed a sliding part above the table which made me think about potential waterfall ideas, or something thematically opposite of the Bowen sub-ocean….

As an aside, I seem to keep going first, but keep losing all the time (5 straight losses now).  They have been mostly casual games, but something needs to change perhaps….