Pirate Hero

[Loxly]

Has there ever been any talk about a "Pirate Hero" suppliment.

 

We do have a Ninja one ...

[Captain Obvious]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

Pirate is the new ninja...

[Loxly]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

That's stating the ... eeerrr ... I'm not gonna walk into that pun.

[BobGreenwade]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

There has been talk of it. Lots of talk, in fact. All it really lacks is the right author, and the right entry in the schedule. Hopefully something can be done with it for 2009.

[Edsel]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

Back in 1990, the Iron Crown era, there was a supplement released called Pirates. It had rules for rolemaster and Hero System. Of course if you found a copy it would be old, pre-4th Edition rules, but it might be useful.

 

I used to have a copy but not anymore. Perhaps a copy may crop-up on eBay from time to time.

[Spence]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

As much as I’d like to see a Pirate Supplement, I am writing off this one before it even starts. I have copies of most of the “Pirate” RPG’s and “Pirate” supplements out there and to be frank, they all s*** the big one.

 

Yes, they all cover to various extents the backgrounds, various versions of skill and PC makeup as well as the Pirate World. I suspect that the DOJ version would be fantastic. But in the end they all fail miserably.

 

Why? Why do they fail, you ask?

 

Simple. Ships!

 

Pirates = Ships.

 

A pirate without a ship is a bandit. Not a Pirate.

 

Pirates are all about boarding actions and seizing merchant cargoes, fighting the Royal Navy and so on. 95% of the action is at sea on ships.

 

Since it is an RPG, you need deck plans.

 

No…..that is not right…..

 

You need DECK PLANS !!!!

 

The deck plan should admit that Decks is plural!

 

A basic supplement for a PIRATE game should include at least 4 DECK PLANS.

 

A large Military/Pirate ship

A small Military/Pirate ship

A large merchant ship.

A small merchant ship.

 

Lets say the period is for the 1700’s. A basic multideck plan for a Sloop, a Brigantine, a Sloop-of-War and a small Frigate would do. Not every single feature would need to be mapped. But at least the major decks and holds. Interior of the Foc’sle for example. In this case including a hexgrid to scale and a square scale to 5'.

 

I’ve gained enough understanding of CC that I would make the makes of a high enough resolution so that when someone buys the PDF they could print the deck plans out large enough to make one hex = one inch on the table.

 

But I really don’t expect anyone in the RPG market will ever get a clue of the demise of pretty much every “ship” based RPG. Most players and GM’s simply do not have the resources or time to whip out a deck plan to play test a new RPG. It is pretty hard to describe the action of a boarding action with no visual aids. Especially when most players are clueless about the structure of a true ship.

 

100% accurate is not needed.

 

General overall layout is critical.

 

 

 

Did I mention a Pirate supplement needed deck plans?

[Confusion]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

I agree 110% on the need for deck plans.. deck plans period! We are currently playing a Pirate Game, and I have spent a fair amount of time and money looking for suitable deckplans.

We are using a psuedo-sloop from 7th Sea, a Brig and a Brig-ish "Slave Ship" from Oone Games. The Color Prints from an Osprey book on Galleons and modified images from a Spelljammer Merchantman. All I can say is thank (insert-diety) for Chessex and the Battlemat.

I have no idea what the heck to use for the frigate I think we are about to get.

 

It's all very annoying.

 

Anyway.. I'm going to plug Oone Games While they only have two ships available, and I only really like one. I have hope, and I like some of their other products.

 

I got the 7th Sea 50ft Sloop here (at the bottom) http://www.7thsea.info/index.php?module=Downloads&func=view&cid=8&start=0

 

I don't remember where I got the merchantman from, and I don't feel comfortable posting the pdf without that information.

 

I also got these two books from Osprey Spanish Galleon and The Pirate Ship. There is also a book on American Heavy Frigates that holds some interest for me.

[Spence]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

I agree 110% on the need for deck plans.. deck plans period! We are currently playing a Pirate Game, and I have spent a fair amount of time and money looking for suitable deckplans.

We are using a psuedo-sloop from 7th Sea, a Brig and a Brig-ish "Slave Ship" from Oone Games. The Color Prints from an Osprey book on Galleons and modified images from a Spelljammer Merchantman. All I can say is thank (insert-diety) for Chessex and the Battlemat.

I have no idea what the heck to use for the frigate I think we are about to get.

 

It's all very annoying.

 

Anyway.. I'm going to plug Oone Games While they only have two ships available, and I only really like one. I have hope, and I like some of their other products.

 

I got the 7th Sea 50ft Sloop here (at the bottom) http://www.7thsea.info/index.php?module=Downloads&func=view&cid=8&start=0

 

I don't remember where I got the merchantman from, and I don't feel comfortable posting the pdf without that information.

 

I also got these two books from Osprey Spanish Galleon and The Pirate Ship. There is also a book on American Heavy Frigates that holds some interest for me.

 

I will check my books and get you a few more titles that have some great deck plans. I will also see if I can find some "not too embarrasing" deck plans that I may be able to finish up and email. I have been tinkering with CC3 and have a few plans started with CC2. I just never had a reason to finish them and couldn't crack the scaling code for CC2, ie I could complete a map, but could never find out how to "set" the scale so the grid was accurate. In CC3, so far it appears they actually have a default scale now and I have been able to set grid scales that seem to actually be accurate. I don't think conversion will be that bad. I was going to aim at a Sloop-of-War I had been tinkering with, but a small frigate isn't too far off. No promises but I may be able to crank something out.

[Susano]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

Back in 1990, the Iron Crown era, there was a supplement released called Pirates. It had rules for rolemaster and Hero System. Of course if you found a copy it would be old, pre-4th Edition rules, but it might be useful.

 

I used to have a copy but not anymore. Perhaps a copy may crop-up on eBay from time to time.

 

Don't bother. I own a copy and it's frankly, terrible. I'd place a vote for GURPS Swashbucklers Second Edition, or even Furry Pirates for the historical section.

[Captain Obvious]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

Does GURPS Swashbucklers have deckplans? I flipped through it before, but don't remember those. Mostly I remember the musketeer stuff, even though I like pirates better.

[Susano]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

Does GURPS Swashbucklers have deckplans? I flipped through it before' date=' but don't remember those. Mostly I remember the musketeer stuff, even though I like pirates better.[/quote']

 

Hmm.... not sure. I thought it had something. Furry Pirates might have one.

[Spence]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

I'm pretty sure if they do, they have the same "not really a deck plan" deck plan that most have.

 

Just the exposed weather deck akin to a from a height looking down drawing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OK........ so I'm still griping......

 

 

 

 

[Confusion]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

Maybe a bit of a thread hijack is in order then..

Allow me to go into detail on some things..

 

Black Flags: Piracy In The Caribbean is a decent book. There is a lot of history in one convenient place, and the d20 stuff can be ignored. It's currently 3.00 at RPGNow for a PDF download. However, there are no deckplans.

 

Dark Quests City Guide: Nautical Necessities is interesting.. it only covers a few places. I have not completely read this particular book, but I do know it is missing a number a pages within the PDF.. not really a good sign. Again, no deckplans.

 

0one Games Battlemaps: SlaveShip provides a pretty good look into a ship called the Cottonmouth, in what is basically a map supplement for a d20 Adventure called Blood Runs Cold. I only purchased the map, not the adventure which may leave somethings in the dark. It can be printed in full color, or in black and white. It is visually stunning, but the ropes on deck bug me for some reason. Given the relative size, I would guestimate this ship to be a Brig or Brigantine, there are no cannon shown on the map, which to me is a good thing, because I can move them about as I see fit.

 

0one Games Pirate Ship I love this thing. It's a bit on the large side, I would again say more of a brig than a sloop. You can adjust from a Square Grid, to a Hex Grid though I would guestimate the hexes to be about 3 feet. There are a number of 'print' options, what grid, what furniture, whether the compass is apparent. It actually creates a number of single page PDF files that must be printed out on a regular printer.. but for 1.95 I won't complain. I'm not to clear on the advantage of printing it out blue vs. black but overall I am very happy with this one.

 

Adamant Entertainments CORSAIR: The Definitive D20 Guide to Ships, is really anything but. It includes one deckplan for a Brig, and some of it appears to have been taken from a website about the Jack Aubrey books

 

Comstar Games Fantasy Ships of the High Seas Does actually have 5 deckplans in it.. but from what I understand they are not that great. Hand drawn on graph paper seems to be the biggest gripe. However it's 4.95

 

There was one other book whose name escapes me at the moment, but it boasted 4 deckplans.. one of them was for a rowboat, and one for a viking longship.. not so useful for pirates.

 

I'm also looking at getting a cheap copy of Stormwrack (yay eBay) Some of the stuff from the archive looks decent, but not enough to pay retail for, since I'm not a d20/D&D Player.

 

 

jeez, that was mighty long winded of me for being at work.

[Spence]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

Maybe a bit of a thread hijack is in order then..

Allow me to go into detail on some things..

 

0one Games Battlemaps: SlaveShip provides a pretty good look into a ship called the Cottonmouth, in what is basically a map supplement for a d20 Adventure called Blood Runs Cold. I only purchased the map, not the adventure which may leave somethings in the dark. It can be printed in full color, or in black and white. It is visually stunning, but the ropes on deck bug me for some reason. Given the relative size, I would guestimate this ship to be a Brig or Brigantine, there are no cannon shown on the map, which to me is a good thing, because I can move them about as I see fit.

 

0one Games Pirate Ship I love this thing. It's a bit on the large side, I would again say more of a brig than a sloop. You can adjust from a Square Grid, to a Hex Grid though I would guestimate the hexes to be about 3 feet. There are a number of 'print' options, what grid, what furniture, whether the compass is apparent. It actually creates a number of single page PDF files that must be printed out on a regular printer.. but for 1.95 I won't complain. I'm not to clear on the advantage of printing it out blue vs. black but overall I am very happy with this one.

 

Adamant Entertainments CORSAIR: The Definitive D20 Guide to Ships, is really anything but. It includes one deckplan for a Brig, and some of it appears to have been taken from a website about the Jack Aubrey books

 

 

jeez, that was mighty long winded of me for being at work.

 

I missed the Oone ship plans, last time I looked they were all "dungeon" stuff. From the looks of it, the pirate ship looks to be a carrack(??) or maybe a round ship (??). Those huge fore and stern castles argue the earlier age of sail. And I am floored by the description that indicates you "Alternative hexagonal grid available". Great stuff. repped!

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

http://www.all-model.com/

 

This website has some very nice deckplans, a few of which are even free. Mostly intended for model-making, but definite RP possibilities. I particularly recommened Frigate 'Roter Lowe' ("Red Lion", I think). Had those printed to A0 size, which turns out to be pretty much the right size for 25mm figures. The quality is very good - had a regular print job done instead of photo-quality and, with lamination, the results were BEAUTIFUL.

[CourtFool]

Wooden Ships

 

WorldWorks Games' Maiden of the High Seas

 

G.U.R.P.S. Swashbucklers has a layout for the top deck for a Galleon and a large Sloop.

 

I found the Iron Crown Pirates supplement substandard to G.U.R.P.S. Swashbucklers.

 

CORSAIR : The Definitive D20 Guide to Ships was far too focused on D20 to be of any use to me. I really do not need ship and crew feats.

 

I have been searching for top deck plans as I plan for most of the action to happen there. I have also considered using appropriate scaled models. I believe 1" = 2 meters ~ 1/79 Someone please correct me if my math is off. I believe there are a few model ships in the 1/72 range.

 

I have found quite a few wood model plans for ships which are quite detailed but rather difficult to convert into a clean plan to use for RPGs.

[Savinien]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

I have an awesome PDF from a Harn thing-a-majig that is really nice. I don't know how accurate it is of course.

 

It is a dak.

[TheQuestionMan]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

Seventh Sea

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seventh_Sea_%28roleplaying_game%29

 

50 Fathoms

http://www.peginc.com/Games/Savage%20Worlds/50%20Fathoms.htm

 

Pirates of Dark Water, The

http://members.shaw.ca/vdiakuw/DarkWaterRPG.htm

 

Furry Pirates

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furry_Pirates

 

En Garde!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/En_Garde%21

 

Sid Meyers Pirates!

http://www.2kgames.com/pirates/pirates/home.php

 

Skull and Bones

http://www.greenronin.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=1001&Product_Code=grr1018&Category_Code=3

 

 

More later

 

 

QM

[Beast]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

"Run out your guns" by I.C.E.

had very good details on ships of the time(but no deck plans)

also the templates for character was very good skills that a sailor/buccaneer/soldier/etc should have

[Spence]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

http://www.all-model.com/

 

This website has some very nice deckplans, a few of which are even free. Mostly intended for model-making, but definite RP possibilities. I particularly recommened Frigate 'Roter Lowe' ("Red Lion", I think). Had those printed to A0 size, which turns out to be pretty much the right size for 25mm figures. The quality is very good - had a regular print job done instead of photo-quality and, with lamination, the results were BEAUTIFUL.

 

The Rote Lowe free download link isn't. Instead of a plan the link downloads some type of .exe file that doesn't run. Too bad, the thumbnail looks great.

[Beast]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

you need something that will open .rar's

it opened fine for me

 

The Rote Lowe free download link isn't. Instead of a plan the link downloads some type of .exe file that doesn't run. Too bad' date=' the thumbnail looks great.[/quote']

[Spence]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

you need something that will open .rar's

it opened fine for me

 

What program is associated with .rar ?

[Susano]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

What program is associated with .rar ?

 

If you're on a Mac, Stuffit will decompress .rar.

[Beast]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

it is a different type of zip file compressor

here is a link to the program

 

http://www.rarlab.com/

 

What program is associated with .rar ?

[Susano]

Re: Pirate Hero

 

The Rote Lowe free download link isn't. Instead of a plan the link downloads some type of .exe file that doesn't run. Too bad' date=' the thumbnail looks great.[/quote']

 

Here's what I did (running OS X). Downloaded the .exe file, renamed it to .rar, and then double clicked. Stuffit unpacked the files and gave me a folder of three jpegs.