VASSAL Campaign Game 2!

[a7xfanben]

More turns have been played with very interesting developments.

The English did something I believe to be unprecedented. After launching the Shui Xian, they proceeded to launch the Zhanfu on their next turn! The Zhanfu is one of the 10 masters from Return to Savage Shores. Then, after using an AA (admiral's action) to dock home the Scots' Pride for enough gold, they purchased the Fortaleza (also from RtSS) as well!! Three 10 masters in three turns! However, by the end of it they were flat-out broke and will remain poor for the time being. They also didn't have enough gold to put much crew on the Fortaleza - the gold from the Scots' Pride was needed just to launch the final 10, let alone have a good crew complement aboard. However, the crews of the Shui Xian and Zhanfu are more impressive, hosting the likes of Lawrence, Huang Bai, Captain Nemo, and others. This flurry of launches give the English 4 10 masters in play, which may be a campaign game record.

The English had also cleaned up in the south against the Pirates. After a dismal turn of bad rolls, they had two good turns in a row to sink not only the captured Oxford and Success, but also the Pirate ships Thirty Tyrants and Darkhawk II! Most recently, the Deliverance showed up to contest the now-surfaced Hephaestus, but the Deliverance was sunk by the Mercenary sub after the Hephaestus went 6/6 with an AA! So in total, the English raid through the whirlpool almost had 3 distinct stages: initial success with the element of surprise, followed by the Terror being sunk and the Oxford and Success captured, and now with the remaining submarines (Hephaestus, Mobilis, and Slipstream) doing a great job of salvaging the operation and hurting the Pirates by permanently taking some of their better ships out of the game. It also mirrors CG1 a little bit, where the English got some hired help to combat the Cursed. However, the English are doing a much better job this time around, making sure their minor faction helpers have enough crew to be effective in their missions.

The French seem to be changing their ways a little bit. Understandably shy in combat so far with a (somewhat) smaller battle fleet, they attacked the Pirates! The Recreant had actually shot first, but the French got the better of the engagement, capturing the Pirate 3 master with Le Lyon. The Soleil Royal then ventured into Pirate waters to dismast the Dragon! This was a rare instance of hurting a fleet's gold system, and that's one of the best ways to bring down a faction in a campaign game (though it's often difficult).

If it looks like the Pirates had a rough day, that would be correct. However, they were well prepared for whatever came next. The 20 point Flying Dutchman sailed towards the submarines with canceller Tia Dalma aboard, with the sub-hunting Prussian Crown and Corcoran nearby. The Zeus and other Pirate gunships still loomed large, and in the far south you can see the Victoire departing the Pirate home island.


The next phase of the game promises much excitement!

[a7xfanben]

A single turn has been played since the last report, but it was a notable one. The Flying Dutchman opened fire on the Hephaestus and did minor damage.

As the English, I knew what my strategy was. First the three submarines got through the whirlpool to safety, back in the north. Then, it was time to ATTACK! The 10 masters were sent into battle!


Emerging from the whirlpool, both ships sacced for extra actions. The Shui Xian was first, hitting 5/9 overall (I think) against the Corcoran and Prussian Crown. The Zhanfu was next, and Huang Bai positioned her to ram and board the Flying Dutchman, with Lawrence aboard the Shui Xian cancelling the FD's Ghost Ship keyword. The Zhanfu was a bit less effective, taking out three masts on the Flying Dutchman. At the end of the attack I rolled 4 consecutive 1's, two on shots, one on a reroll, and one on the ram roll. However, the Zhanfu won the boarding party! This allowed Captain Nemo to capture Captain Barbossa! I wanted to make sure I could ram in order to have enough crew to sac on the next turn, since the Zhanfu was running with one less extra crew than the Shui Xian, and I wanted to avoid saccing the shipwright or primary oarsman.


Xerecs' counterattack will no doubt be devastating, but the Fortaleza may also be sent through the same whirlpool!

Three other things: the Shui Xian is using Woodes Rogers, a rare instance of him being useful. At the end of Xerecs' turn, he launched the Grand Path and Fool's Hope at his home island. Also, El Cazador's Soleil Royal managed to light the Cassandra aflame with some exploding shot, continuing the assault on Pirate gold runners!

[xerecs]

From my turn right after this:

Cassandra immediately turned for home, but the fire spread, however the Lighting has come out to meet her, possibly to tow her home. La Victoire used a SAC to bring the Royal down to one mast, and then the Feathered Hat got in on the action, sinking the Royal, and damaging another french ship in the process.

The FD got her SAT and went 2/4 against the Zhanfu, while Lawrence and Tia Dalma cancelled each other out. The Sea nymph used a double action provided by Jean Laffite to fire 8 time on the SX, but only hit with half her shots. The PC and Corcoran split off, trying to get to safety to repair. The Zeus used a SAC to get her first five cannons in range of the SX, but only hit once in five tries.

The Grand Path and Fool's Hope have deployed from the Pirate HI, ready to assist Pirate efforts on any front.

[el_cazador]

From my turn right after this:

With the sudden disappearance of Le Soleil Royal, the French decided to stay put and hit harder. Down went La Victoire to the holy sword of St. Michael and the booming guns of the Nayru. Vive la France!

I also launched a custom 1 masted French galley.

And good to see the Cassandra burning. She sinks immediately at the start of Xerecs' next turn.

Xerecs: note the crew on those ships. I have 2 cancelers in the area (in case you try to attack).

[a7xfanben]

More exciting developments have unfolded!

Xerecs' counterattack knocked out more than half of the Shui Xian's masts, and the Zhanfu took damage as well.

As the English, my main objective had failed (if you can guess what is was heh). However, I eventually came to the conclusion that I needed to get my 10 masters out of a bad situation instead of losing them, or worse, having the Pirates capture them. The English were close to giving the Mercenaries the go ahead, but it would have been suicidal, and the main objective would likely have failed anyway.

Of course, there was damage to be done on the way out!! The Mobilis and Tia Dalma cancelled each other out, right before all three submarines high-tailed it outta there! Then it was time for the 10 masters. The Zhanfu was already on top of the whirlpool, so her first action was used to further damage the Flying Dutchman. The Zhanfu then used a sacrifice action to go through the whirlpool and emerge in the northwest where she had come from, near a friendly English fort where she and the Shui Xian could repair. The submarines had gone to a different fort, partly because the other fort would be quite crowded, and also to provide 2 targets via different whirlpools in the event of an immediate Pirate counterattack.

Here you can see the aftermath of a major skirmish. Certainly not a full-scale battle, but an important part of early-game combat. The Shui Xian and Zhanfu are looking to repair in the northwest, where the Fortaleza and Baochuan (two more 10 masters!) provide insurance in the case of a Pirate attack through the whirlpool. The battlefield looks strangely empty without the Merc 10's and the submarines - the Zeus is nearly intact, while the FD has been sunk. The Prussian Crown repairs at the Devil's Maw.


The Pirates and French continue to fight in the southeast while the 10 masters repair.


From north to south: the Baochuan has begun running treasure, picking up an entire island's worth of gold on her first trip. A bunch of English gold runners are crowded around their home island, and with some of the gold coming in I launched a few more ships. In the center, the French continue to get gold from their main 3 wild islands. In the south, total carnage between the French and Pirates! Xerecs recently launched the Rampage, a custom Merc 5 master with built-in cancelling.


It's a small picture, but a closeup of the carnage! One 5 master on each side lies derelict. The Nayru (a custom Hylian 5 master similar to El Acorazado) and Nautilus, both equipped with cancellers, hold the key to France's hopes in the battle. Their main opponents are the Grand Path and Feathered Hat, though El Ladron still has all her masts.

[a7xfanben]

Here are the latest ship and point counts as of October 11th!

French: 14 ships, ~232 points
Pirates: 33 ships, 515 points
English: 35 ships, ~670 points
Total: 82 ships, 1417 points

Since the last point count (June), the French have made some strides in their fleet, and lately they've made some waves by attacking the Pirates. The Pirates have about the same number of ships they had in June, but they have more crew since their point total is higher. The English, however, have climbed into the lead in both ship and point count! Their quartet of 10 masters (3 of them just about fully crewed) explains their point differential compared to the Pirates while having just 2 more ships.

Here both of the derelict 5 masters in the southeast have sunk; the Nayru flees the area while the Nautilus has submerged to reach safety underwater.

[a7xfanben]

After the English had failed to achieve their objective with a raid on the Pirates through the whirlpool, they finally had their 10 masters and submarines repaired! The turns of waiting and organizing another raid were over, and it was time for another strike!

ATTACK!! The Fortaleza is given an AA to sail through the whirlpool and unleash her firepower! A custom equipment of mine was revealed to be aboard:

Bow Chasers
Faction Affiliation: Neutral
Type: Equipment
Point Value: 5
This ship gains two additional cannons that can only shoot from the foremost mast of the ship. The cannons follow the range of the foremost mast of the ship, but they have 4 rank and the Extended Range keyword. The cannons can only fire in a straight line directly forward of the ship's bow. Other pieces of equipment cannot be used with Bow Chasers.

The Fortaleza's gunports opened up, and the upgraded Devil's Maw fort was in range! The new bow cannons missed, but her regular cannons hit, damaging the Pirate investment. Lord Thomas Gunn is the new admiral of the fleet, and from HMS Dauntless he gave the Fortaleza +1 to her cannon rolls this turn. However, in my opinion the Bow Chasers should stay at a fixed rank that cannot be modified, similar to how they cannot be used with other pieces of equipment.

The Fortaleza then fired on the Rising Sun at point-blank range, dismasting the ship. However, the English were just getting started...


Ducie Chads gave HMS Leicester the SAT, and she came through the whirlpool! The Zeus was in trouble! The Leicester revealed some Bow Chasers of her own and scored 3 hits to take out 6 masts on the Zeus! Then it got even worse for the Pirates - the Zhanfu is back!


With a successful shoot and boarding party, the Zhanfu took the Zeus down to one mast and captured sac captain Havana Black with Captain Nemo! Then it was the Shui Xian's turn. A 3rd 10 master came through the whirlpool, and just like the Zhanfu the SX sacced for an extra action. The SX missed the fort despite Woodes Rogers' rare bonus ability, but the Zeus was dismasted!


This shows the entire ocean. The subs also came through the whirlpool, including the two new ones. The English were not going to fail in their objective again! The first raid was 2 10 masters and 3 subs, but this raid has 3 10 masters and 5 subs, with the Leicester backing them up to boot! Lawrence and Tia Dalma have teamed up to freeze the Zeus, cancelling her helmsman and oarsman abilities. On their turn, the Pirates built Dead Man's Point and hired some crew, while the French have been forced to retreat from the southeast area where the Pirates have the new fort.

[a7xfanben]

The English onslaught was so abrupt and powerful that there wasn't much the Pirates could do about it in the short term. The Pirates backed off, save for the Ranger, who missed two consecutive Broadside Attacks against the Fortaleza. The Fortaleza responded by sinking the Ranger and the Rising Sun. However, the Pirates managed to get two valuable ships out of harm's way: check out the Hai Peng and Prussian Crown sailing away from the battle.

As you can see, the Zhanfu captured the Zeus! The Shui Xian and Fortaleza teamed up to destroy the upgraded Devil's Maw fort, technically costing the Pirates 55 gold!

With that, my first objective was complete! This is from my strategy document, and thus I can't show my other strategies which are still in progress. Destroy the fort upgrade with the 10 master squadron, sinking 10’s with the subs if captured. Mission accomplished! The fort was no more, and the English hardly lost any masts (2 on the Shui Xian), let alone any ships. My thinking was that if the Pirates had a launch point near a whirlpool, they could launch ships with which to get revenge on the English by using similar tactics, since it was the English who started this conflict. That being said, keep in mind that the English still haven't declared war on the Pirates. In fact, there hasn't been a declaration of war in this game!


The capture of the Zeus gives the English a whopping SIX 10 masted ships! The fifth was actually HMS Union Jack, a custom 10 master from Pirates of the Kraken Sea. The battle squadron in the south is somewhat exposed, but it has enough firepower to defend itself. I suppose it feels exposed since I am the one controlling it, and each ship had a special purpose until now, since the situation is more stable at this point. The 10's have good crew complements aboard, while the Leicester and submarines provide good support in the case of an emergency.


It seems to be a good time to do a general overview of each fleet's situation.

Here are the English in the north. From left to right: the Baochuan is being used as a gold ship, since she can empty an entire island each trip! HMS Durham (with valuable Lord Cutler Beckett aboard) is her guard ship. I love how campaign games get so big that you can simply assign a ship to guard another ship, like a personal bodyguard. The Dauntless is heading home, hoping to pick up some additional crew. That's what the Union Jack has just done, and she has some very good crew indeed. Her current setup gives +2 to her cannon rolls via Admiral James Norrington and Griffin. Many other ships are running gold. It looks less necessary now that the English have the largest fleet, but early in the game I made it a point to have "treasure runners with teeth". The English gold system is not a vulnerable one, because many of the gold runners have more than 2 masts, and a handful of them carry a captain in addition to a helmsman, providing more flexibility in the case of raids or attacks. The English have plenty of natural hybrids, and among their current ranks running gold are the likes of HMS Dover, Hyena, Metal Dragon, Swallow, Scots' Pride, and the Tiger's Eye. At the lower right, HMS Titan guards Ramsgate, in the case of an attack by the French or by a fleet through the nearby whirlpool. HMS Rye guards the Titan, giving the English two cancellers in one spot (Bratley is aboard the Titan). At the upper right, smaller English gold runners have handled the reefs rather well. There isn't much point in sailing the larger ships to that hazardous island, and so the 1 and 2 masters do the job. It's also the furthest island the English are currently harvesting, but with 6 ships running gold it's reasonably efficient.


The center area, showing the entirety of the French fleet. They have fallen on hard times of late, as their raid on the Pirates didn't go as well as planned. They were thwarted in trying to get another island in their possession, losing two capital ships in the process. However, the Nayru and Nautilus have survived intact, and they and their cancellers provide France with some good weapons and defense. France simply needs to optimize her gold system and avoid a war with either of the other two factions (aka not making them angry lol), and she could begin to make major strides in this game.


The Pirates in the south. As you can see, their territory has been encroached upon by the English, who have essentially cut off two of their valuable islands. The English didn't foresee their attack going so well and being able to cut off some of the Pirates' resources, but the Pirates are still a strong faction, as evidenced by their many capital ships and powerful named crew. The English were particularly annoyed by the Pirate usage of "OP" game pieces, such as the UPS gold strategy. The capture of the Zeus and elimination of things like the Rising Sun (UPS) and Flying Dutchman (Eternal) may serve to level the playing field going forward, which is exactly what the English were after. However, factors such as Emperor Blackheart threaten to throw things out of balance once more, and if the Pirate shenanigans continue, it may inevitably lead to war....


The entire ocean. Notice how the English attack has dramatically reshaped the south - the northwestern part of the southern hemisphere is all of a sudden nearly devoid of Pirate activity. The Shui Xian quickly built Fort Royal on the island where the Devil's Maw stood, giving the SX and Zeus a place to repair. The Zeus moves S+S towards the fort on oar power, an ominous sign. Why so ominous? The ghostly crew of the Devil's Maw lay there, along with plenty of sacrificial oarsmen. It may be only a matter of time before the English loose Calico Cat on her former fleetmates....


Finally, the topics of UT placement and forts repairing via shipwrights have come up. No consensus has been reached, but it's likely that some of the "light" UT's will make an appearance at some point.

[el_cazador]

a7xfanben wrote:

The center area, showing the entirety of the French fleet. They have fallen on hard times of late, as their raid on the Pirates didn't go as well as planned. They were thwarted in trying to get another island in their possession, losing a capital ship in the process. However, the Nayru and Nautilus have survived intact, and they and their cancellers provide France with some good weapons and defense. France simply needs to optimize her gold system and avoid a war with either of the other two factions (aka not making them angry lol), and she could begin to make major strides in this game.

I lost two actually. It went awfully.

[a7xfanben]

Another day, another turn. The French are running gold almost exclusively due west to due east, as you can see from the orientation of their ships. The Nautilus has surfaced to repair near the French home island.

In a devastating turn of events, Emperor Blackheart rolled a 6 to use the Leicester! The gunship nearly dismasted the Zhanfu, and now only one of the four 10 masters in the area has all of her masts. It was a blow to the English cause, but it only served to make them extremely angry.

In the meantime, another gold replenishment was done.

[a7xfanben]

Exciting developments in the southwest! The Gladius Dei and Devil Ray came out of the fog to ram the Corcoran, hoping to dismast the sub hunter and therefore eliminate her as a threat to themselves. The Dei was completely ineffective, but the Devil Ray got an EA from Count Gustov and succeeded with both rams!

With an AA, the Leicester used her Bow Chasers to smash masts off the Foresight!! The English are gunning for Emperor Blackheart, and for good reason. While the English have built up their battle fleet with sheer firepower and a possible numbers advantage, EBH threatens to throw everything off course with a single lucky die roll. Lord Thomas Gunn doesn't see that as fair, and thus has ordered EBH's execution. HMS Apollo and HMS Union Jack have arrived through the whirlpool, the latter having been given an EA from Mycron to do so. The Zhanfu and Zeus (double Z! lol) repair, while the Shui Xian and Fortaleza are too far away to reach the Foresight.


The Pirates have sent most of their gunships west. However, the English may give them more trouble, as two more Pirate hunting gunships have been launched - HMS Victoria and HMS Diamond. The English will have justice!

[a7xfanben]

CG2 has continued once more! Xerecs and I took our turns to complete the round and I did a gold replenishment at the end.

The Pirates went on the run after being attacked by the English. Emperor Blackheart tried to get away aboard the Foresight, but the Leicester was given an AA to sail over the Sargasso Sea (rolling a 3 to not get stuck) and fire! With Ducie Chads' help, her powerful guns sank the Foresight, and EMPEROR BLACKHEART IS DEAD! This fulfills another one of my objectives as the English. Mission accomplished! EBH didn't roll many 6's before his demise (unlike Davy Jones in CG1), but one was all it took for the English to snap. The crippled Zhanfu is still repairing, and will be for quite some time. A weapon as powerful as EBH needed to be eliminated, and now the English and French (who also wanted EBH dead) can sail the seas without having to worry about having their capital ships too close together.

However, the situation may actually get much more interesting. The Leicester needed some support down in the deep south of the ocean, and the 10 masters were willing to assist. The Shui Xian used a sac action to sink the Prussian Crown, another ship on the English hit list. Now that the PC and Corcoran have been taken out of action, the English get closer and closer to being able to run unrestricted submarine warfare against the Pirates if they need to. Speaking of which, the Gladius Dei and Devil Ray managed to dismast the Cursed Blade with a series of rams; the Cursed Blade and Windjammer are visible at the extreme left of the picture.

The Fortaleza was next on the scene with an AA, but missed both her shots against the Longshanks. HMS Union Jack, England's latest 10 master, also arrived with an SAT from Commander Spencer Portland. However, the Pirates have considerable force amassed at their home island, most notably with the Rampage (a custom Merc 5 master with built-in cancelling) and two Jade privateer 6 masted junks.

[el_cazador]

I finally got back into the swing of things by purchasing a fleet admiral, Amiral Gaston de St. Croix.

[xerecs]

So it's my turn now?

[a7xfanben]

Exciting developments unfold!

Another round of turns took place today. The Pirates went after HMS Leicester, seeking revenge for the death of Emperor Blackheart. The Longshanks and Grand Temple (the latter with help from Tsai's SAT) dismasted the English gunship and captured Henry Ducie Chads with Dragon Eyes, at which point Woodes Rogers (aboard the nearby Shui Xian) hailed the Pirates:

Woodes Rogers: I would like to point out that we are not after the elimination of the Pirates. We have objectives that need to be met, but open war is not our primary goal with you scum.
* L Tool moved by Xerecs*
<a7xfanben> - WR: In other words, perhaps we can work out some terms?
<Xerecs> - Genny Gallows: You killed the Emporer.
<a7xfanben> - I think this is the first convo of this type lol, similar to CG1 heh
<Xerecs> - GG: But we can listen,
<a7xfanben> - WR: As needed. He ruins everything for everyone but yourselves.
<Xerecs> - One Extended shot from Ningpo on that ten
*** <Xerecs> rolls Red D6 -> [2] ***
<Xerecs> - miss
<Xerecs> - GG: We have quarrel with the French
<a7xfanben> - WR to himself: Even as they continue to fire...
<a7xfanben> - XD
<Xerecs> - GG: Blasted Frogs
<Xerecs> - GG: T'was one shot
<Xerecs> - GG: and it missed
<a7xfanben> - WR: You are still more powerful than the French. If certain things don't happen soon, that may change.
<Xerecs> - GG: You can take the Leicester back,
<Xerecs> - GG: But the Polaris and Sigurd are important to us.
<a7xfanben> - WR: We are not interested in a talentless Viking....
<Xerecs> - GG: I would not call him talentless.....
<Xerecs> - GG: I quite fancy him
<a7xfanben> - Lawrence: Blackheart is not the only nuisance in your fleet
<Xerecs> - GG: To what other nuisance to you refer?
<Xerecs> - GG: Captain Sparrow?
<a7xfanben> - WR: A certain junk, let's call her "Hai Peng"?
<a7xfanben> - WR: Him as well.
<Xerecs> - GG: Is oyur issue with the ship or with er captain?
<a7xfanben> - WR: Both are unnatural...
<a7xfanben> - WR: I would hardly expect the Pirates to be surprised that His Majesty's Navy wants Sparrow dead.
<Xerecs> - GG: Killing Sparrow would result in a cursed version of imself.
<Xerecs> - GG: Neither are in our best intrests
<a7xfanben> - WR: We're not asking you to kill one of your own.
<a7xfanben> - WR: Simply keep him in a jail cell where he belongs.
<a7xfanben> - WR: If not, Beckett will not simply keep him in a jail cell...
<Xerecs> - GG: But he brings us such nice shiny things......
<Xerecs> - GG: I've heard he is going to the Dead Man's Point.......
<a7xfanben> - WR: With unnatural powers that will lead you to your own doom.
<Xerecs> - GG: I can arrange for im to be......Detained
<a7xfanben> - WR: Good. We hope for hostilties to cease.
<Xerecs> - GG: Mind you, I cannot stophim from using his 'unnatural' powers one last time once he arrives.
<Xerecs> - GG: But after that it sould be simple to keep him there
<Xerecs> - GG: Your giant ships off our coast make us quite Nervous Woodes
<a7xfanben> - WR: Unless he escapes... or should I say when you LET him escape in his usual fashion?
<Xerecs> - GG: Only a Pirate could keep him permanently in place.
<a7xfanben> - WR: How could we make demands without a show of force?
<Xerecs> - GG: For only a Pirate can truly know the mind of another Pirate
<Xerecs> - GG: Impressive display Woodes, you took one of ours to make it so.
<a7xfanben> - WR: Gives us Ducie Chads in the meantime; his hatred of Pirates will make him kill himself before you can get him back to the ransom market.
<Xerecs> - GG: Alas i truly do not know how to give im back, he's fallen to the Dragon Eyes, a truly mysterious fellow.

Here's the situation after the Pirate turn. 6 Pirate gunships have their bows pointed to the west; the Rampage has turned around and away from the battle.


At this point negotiations broke down. Almost all the English ships in the southern hemisphere have Pirate-hating crews aboard. In addition, the large crews of the powerful 10 masters had grown restless. The Leicester had taken care of the main objective - eliminating Emperor Blackheart. The English and Mercenary crews were itching for some action, and the Grand Temple's dismasting of the Leicester (and subsequent capture of Chads by Dragon Eyes) put them over the top. The Fortaleza surged forward and it was on! With an AA the Fortaleza shot about 9/20, taking the Grand Temple and Grand Path down to 3 masts each. The Shui Xian was given a sac action to move and shoot twice as well. Her first broadside sank the Longshanks, while her second broadside dismasted the Grand Temple and Raven's Neck and sank the Greed's Hammer. Then at long last it was time for the English 10 master: HMS Union Jack! The Union Jack had a triple cannon bonus against Pirate ships: +1 from Governor Lynch, +1 from Griffin, and +1 from Admiral James Norrington! This also meant that she had a +2 cannon bonus against ships of any faction, but against Pirates, 2's hit on all of her cannons! Commander Portland's SAT roll failed, but Mycron gave the ship an extra action to bail him out. The Raven's Neck and Ningpo were sunk in short order. Then the Union Jack had to maneuver so that some guns were in range of the Grand Path, but so that the UJ wasn't in range of the Rampage's built-in cancelling ability. This was accomplished, and the Grand Path was sunk! With 2 L-range guns in range of the Rampage, the UJ rolled a pair of 6's to damage the dangerous vessel. Finally, all 4 aft cannons on the UJ scored hits on the Ladron, making the Ladron the final Pirate ship to sink on the turn, one of six I believe. The English ended their turn by advancing even more Pirate-hating ships: HMS Apollo, HMS Victoria, and HMS Diamond are on their way. In addition, you can see the Mercenary subs advancing, without the Prussian Crown and Corcoran to oppose them.


The ocean. In a single turn the 3 English-controlled 10 masters in the deep south fired off around 50 shots to absolutely devastate the Pirate resistance. The English are still not interested in war, as they have made their demands to the Pirates clear:
<a7xfanben> - 1. Don't use Captain Jack Sparrow for the rest of the game.
<a7xfanben> - 2. Scuttle the Hai Peng.
<a7xfanben> - The English will be taking the Rampage as a prize of war; resistance will mean the end of the Grand Temple, Polaris, Dragon Eyes, Tsai, and Andersen.
<a7xfanben> - If the two demands are not met, the English will have no choice but to use force. In that case anything that gets in the way will be eliminated.
<a7xfanben> - TIME TO CAPITULATE!!!!!!!