Activity – Ben – Pirates with Ben

Ben wrote a new post 7 years, 8 months ago

My Years at Miniature Trading: By the Numbers My Years at Miniature Trading By the Numbers Original threadContinue reading→

Ben wrote a new post 7 years, 8 months ago

Originally posted to Miniature Trading on January 22nd, 2018

Inspired by the annual “State of the Union” address, as the arguable leader of the current Pirates CSG community, I hope to make this an annual […]

Ben wrote a new post 7 years, 8 months ago

All Pirates CSG Surveys – please take!Pirates CSG Survey (kinda long) (results) Buying Survey (short) Pirates CSG videoContinue reading→

Ben replied 3 years, 5 months ago

Plenty of older pirate folk out there! 🙂

Ben wrote a new post 7 years, 8 months ago

Ocean Play Mat – Many Options for Pirates Players Ocean Play Mat Options – Which is Best? A member of the Facebook group asks: What do you useContinue reading→

Xerecs replied 7 years, 8 months ago

What you call textured I would call marbled. Textured to me implies that there’s a difference I can feel in the fabric, if I was to run my hands across it.
In terms of which I prefer, I would say darker. A lighter colored ocean to me feels cartoonish or light and comical, which pirates is not. I much prefer the darker tones which feel more real and more like water to me.
That said however, I usually don’t use a ‘play mat’ for quick afternoon games. For campaigns however I go out of my way to use a fabric ocean, often a dark blue bed sheet.
In defense of the plunder pack mat, if it had been ROLLED instead of TIGHTLY FOLDED, it might not have the creasing issue. That’s my only defense of it though, as it is a rather dull color.
- Ben replied 7 years, 8 months ago
  
  @Xerecs: That makes sense, I just call it textured since I don’t know what else to call it.
  Good point about the dark vs. light difference. I agree with you about the darker tones, and I especially like using those for “deep sea” water. But I really love the lighter ones for a more tropical setting, or small scale setting with shallow waters/etc. The lighter blues are kind of “happier” while the darker blues more ominous.
  Not using a play mat for quick games makes some sense, especially since you don’t normally do battle reports with pictures for those games. (that I know of… 😉
  I’m not so sure about the Plunder Pack map being rolled. It’s a few feet wide and would be more annoying to store in an elongated position. Plus, it would probably just roll back up so you would need some weights on the corners, which is not something I want to deal with when using a subpar map in the first place. All in all it’s just kind of a failure. I’d rather go back to Joann’s and get another cool blue fabric. I know they sell some watery design ones, I just don’t want symmetrical lines/etc for the patterned ones.
  
  Thanks for commenting! Hope to see you on the seas of VASSAL.
  -Admiral A7XfanBen
Captain Vendari replied 7 years, 1 month ago

I personally enjoy a “mousepad” material playmat, like the ones Ares Games produced for Sails of Glory. Two of those will run you about $40-$60, but they have the added benefit of not rumpling up if you brush your arm against them, and they make a good sized ocean for 2 to 4 players (a single mat can fit a standard two player game with islands spaced 3L to 6L apart)
- Ben replied 7 years, 1 month ago
  
  @Captain Vendari: Thanks for the suggestion! Are those easy to store and transport? One of my favorite things about a simple thin fabric is how it can fold or roll up easily and fit into a plastic bag or small box used to transport everything I would need for a game. And yeah, I’ll take the price difference of 5 yards for $17 vs. 2 of those for $40+. They certainly look nice though!
  Ben

Ben wrote a new post 7 years, 8 months ago

Originally posted on Miniature Trading on July 21st 2016

I’ve looked at the patents that Wizkids had/has a few times now. Being relatively young and rather inexperienced with this sort of thing, I have some […]

Ben wrote a new post 7 years, 8 months ago

60 points – Pirates vs. Americans (again!) – December 24th, 2013 Today I played three more games in which the Pirates faced the Americans.Continue reading→

Ben wrote a new post 7 years, 8 months ago

Ability Analysis: Admiral's Action (AA) | Better in Big Games Ability Analysis: Admiral’s Action (AA) Better in Big Games Question ofContinue reading→

Ben wrote a new post 7 years, 8 months ago

Best Crew – Optimize your crew complements to WIN Another part of the Q&A series here at Pirates with Ben. This was asked in the Facebook gContinue reading→

Ben replied 7 years, 8 months ago

@Devara Garrison: Thanks for the compliment! I’ve played the game over 400 times, so I’ve certainly acquired a lot of experience, but I still learn new things quite often. It can be complicated, but basic small games using the Start Here rules are quite simple.
And yes, gunships with captains AND helmsmen are one of the simplest yet most effective ways to optimize your fleets for winning.

Thanks for commenting!
Ben

Ben wrote a new post 7 years, 8 months ago

This is the first in what could be a nice long Q&A series. From my Eternal keyword video.
XxMrLimeyxX asks:
Is there absolutely no way to eliminate a ship with eternal built in? And if no does this cause any g […]

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