A Pirate's Word Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Objective
• How to Play
  • Setup
• About the Gems
• About the Ship cards
• Game Structure
  • Phase 1: Excavation
  • Phase 2: Decision
  • Phase 3: Market
  • Phase 4: Resolution
  • Phase 5: Upkeep
• End of the Game
• Artifact Clarifications
• Achievements
• Variants of Play
  • Simplified Variant
  • Two-Player Variant
• Summary
  • Setup (3–8 players)
  • Game Phases (5 rounds, 5 phases each)
  • End of the Game (after round 5)

Components

• 1 round marker
• 1 cloth Bag
• 1 Skull token
• 8 Chest screens
• 1 Dagger
• 8 Rat tokens
• 180 Gems (12 Golden, 24 Purple, 36 Blue, 48 Green, 60 Red)
• 47 cards (24 Ship cards, 8 Island cards, 12 Artifact cards, 3 help cards)

Objective

Your goal is to collect Gems by cooperating with others or raiding them. At the end of the game, the player with the most Victory Points from the Gems in their Chest wins the game.

How to Play

Setup

1. Give each player 1 Chest screen (to hide their Gems) and 3 Ship cards: 1 Red and 2 Green whose numbers add up to 17 (any combination works).
2. Place 1 Island card on the table between each pair of players.*
3. Place the appropriate help card in the center of the table (according to player count), and another one on the opposite side to show the Gem values. Place the round marker and put the Skull token on space 1.
4. Shuffle any set of 4 Artifact cards (A, B, C, and D) face down in the center, then flip them face up and place the Rat tokens next to them. Return the rest of the Artifact cards to the box. For your first game, use the 4 cards marked with a star (☆).
5. Put all the Gems into the Bag, then give the Bag and the Dagger to the player who most recently tricked someone. That player goes first. You can also choose it randomly.

*Use the reverse side of the Island cards for color-blind players.

About the Gems

Each Gem has a value depending on its color, shown both on the help card and inside the Chests. Golden Gems are worth 4 Victory Points (VP), Purple Gems are worth 3 VP, Blue Gems are worth 2 VP, Green Gems are worth 1 VP and Red Gems are worth -1VP. As you can see, the more valuable they are, the scarcer they become.

• 4 VP (Golden): 12 pcs.
• 3 VP (Purple): 24 pcs.
• 2 VP (Blue): 36 pcs.
• 1 VP (Green): 48 pcs.
• -1 VP (Red): 60 pcs.

About the Ship cards

During the game, you will always have 3 Ship cards: 1 Red and 2 Green. All Red cards (Raid) are identical, but each Green card (Cooperate) has a unique value that determines priority when dividing Gems from the Islands.

Game Structure

A game lasts 5 Days (rounds), and each Day has 5 Phases. Use the round marker to mark the current Day.

Phase 1: Excavation

The player with the Dagger draws Gems at random from the Bag and, starting with their left-hand Island, places them clockwise on each Island card as shown on the help card.

The help card for 3 to 6 players (titled "3 to 6 Pirates" on the card) shows the number of Gems to place on each Island:

Day	Gems placed on each Island
Day 1 (No Market)	4
Day 2	5
Day 3	6
Day 4	7
Day 5	8

Important: The number of Gems on the Islands increases each Day.

Example: In a 4-player game, on Day 2 the player with the Dagger must draw and place 5 random Gems from the Bag onto each Island.

Editor's note: The Gems-per-Island figures for 7–8 players are not printed anywhere in this rulebook. They appear only on the separate help card for 7–8 players, which is not reproduced here.

Phase 2: Decision

Each player secretly chooses 2 of their 3 Ship cards and places them face down (Ship side up). Place one card next to the Island on your left and the other next to the Island on your right.

During this phase, you may talk as much as you want to negotiate or bluff your neighboring pirates. If you prefer not to talk, you can simply play your cards in silence. This phase should be kept relatively quick—don’t get stuck in endless discussions.

Phase 3: Market

In this phase you may bid with Gems from your Chest to try to use one of the 4 Artifacts in the center of the table.

• First round (Day 1): Since no one has Gems at the start of the game, skip this phase.
• Other rounds (Days 2-5): Conduct the auction and use the Artifacts before revealing the Ship cards.

Artifact Auction: Secretly put into your closed fist as many Gems as you wish to bid from your Chest (behind your screen) to try to use the Artifacts. When everyone is ready, raise your fists toward the center, then reveal simultaneously and count the total value of your Gems.

The 3 players with the highest bids return their Gems to the Bag (in order) and must use 1 Artifact each, starting with the highest bidder. In case of a tie, resolve clockwise starting from the player with the Dagger.

The rest return their bid Gems to their Chests. Important: You may bid with an empty fist if you don’t want to spend Gems, and you may even include Red Gems. However, the total value of your Gems must always be greater than 0 in order to use an Artifact—and you return the Gems to the Bag.

Example: When revealing their fists, Barbara has bid with 1 Golden Gem and 1 Red (3 VP), Mark has bid with 2 Greens (2 VP), Martha has bid with 1 Blue (2 VP), and Mario has bid with 1 Green (1 VP). In this case, Barbara would be the first to return her Gems to the Bag and use an Artifact. Mark and Martha both bid the same, but since Martha is closer clockwise to the player with the Dagger, she goes second and Mark goes third. Since 3 players have already used Artifacts, Mario takes back his Gems and does not use any Artifact.

Using Artifacts: When someone uses an Artifact effect, place Rat tokens on all affected Island or Ship cards. Then flip that Artifact card face down, making it inaccessible to the other players for the rest of the Day. Any card already marked with a Rat token cannot be targeted by another Artifact.

Example: Barbara uses the Foresight Spyglass which lets her “Secretly peek at 1 other Ship & move 1 Island Gem.” She places 1 Rat token on the Ship she peeked at, another Rat on the Island where she took the Gem, and another Rat on the Island where she placed it. Finally, she flips the Artifact face down. Now it’s Martha’s turn, but she cannot use the Foresight Spyglass, nor can she affect any Islands or Ships that already have Rats.

Illustrated steps:

1. Execute the effect: Secretly peek at 1 other Ship & move 1 Island Gem.
2. Place the Rats: Put Rat tokens on all affected Ships and Islands.
3. Flip the Artifact: It is blocked for this round.

Phase 4: Resolution

In this phase, reveal the Ship cards played face down in Phase 2 (Decision) and resolve each Island according to the two cards placed there:

• 2 Greens: You decide to cooperate. Both players share the Island Gems starting with the higher-value Green card, taking 1 Gem at a time. Keep in mind that if there is an odd number of Gems, the starting player takes 1 extra Gem. Important: After dividing, both players swap the Green cards they played to close the deal and return them to their hands.
• 1 Green and 1 Red: Someone have been raided. Regardless of the Green card value, the player who played the Red card takes all the Gems from that Island. Important: No card swapping here—both players take back the card they played.
• 2 Reds: Greed has corrupted you! All Gems on that Island are lost and returned to the Bag. Both players take back their Red cards.

All Gems you gain during this phase are placed in your Chest (behind your screen).

Example: On Island A (Green-Green), Barbara shares the loot with Mario. She has the higher value, so she chooses first. She takes a Golden, he takes a Purple, she takes another Purple, he takes a Green, she takes another Green, and he takes a Red. Finally, they swap their Green cards. On Island B (Red-Green), Mark raids Mario and takes all the loot. There is no card swap here.

The example illustration labels Island A as "Cooperation" and Island B as "Raid".

Phase 5: Upkeep

Once all Islands are resolved:

1. Return all Rat tokens to the center.
2. Flip all Artifact cards face up again.
3. Pass the Bag and the Dagger to the next player clockwise.
4. Move the Skull token forward 1 space on the round marker.

You are now ready to begin next Day’s first Phase again.

End of the Game

After Day 5, the game ends and you begin final scoring. Reveal your Chests and count the total value of your Gems.

The one who hoarded the most Victory Points sails away with victory! If there’s a tie, the winner is the tied player with the highest-value Green card.

Artifact Clarifications

• Restorative Rum Bottle: Secretly look at a Ship card in another player’s hand. Return it to them, then you may rearrange your own Ship cards, including the one you have in your hand.
• Foresight Spyglass: Secretly look at 1 Ship card placed next to an Island. Return it, then you may move 1 Gem from any Island to any other Island.
• Smuggling Barrel: Draw 2 random Gems from the Bag and place them in your Chest. Then return 2 other Gems from your Chest to the Bag.
• Accursed Treasure Map: Draw 2 random Gems from the Bag and place them on the same Island. Then return 2 Gems from that Island to the Bag.

Editor's note: The effect text of the other Artifact cards, such as Double-Edged Sabers and Solid Gold Hook, is printed only on the cards and is not reproduced in this rulebook.

Achievements

• The Impeccable: Finish a game with no Red Gems in your Chest.
• Expert Traitor: Successfully raid in all 5 rounds.
• Golden Tongue: Finish with 5 or more Golden Gems in your Chest.
• Collaborator: Win a game without ever playing a Red card.
• Auction King: Be first in the 4 Artifact auctions.
• Greenhorn: Be raided by both your neighboring pirates at the same time.
• Hidden Rat: Place 8 or more Rat tokens during a single game.
• Novice Buccaneer: Finish with 10 or more Red Gems in your Chest.
• No tongue: Win a game without talking during the Decision phase.
• Iron Fist: Win a game without using any Artifact.

Variants of Play

Scan the QR code to discover more ways to play. (The QR code is not reproduced in this text.)

Simplified Variant

If you want a lighter version of A Pirate’s Word for your first games or to introduce new players to strategy games, simply ignore Phase 3 (Market) and everything related to Artifact cards and Rat tokens. Leave those components in the box.

Two-Player Variant

To play A Pirate’s Word with 2 players, make the following changes. All other rules remain the same:

1. Ship card Setup: Each player starts with 5 cards: Player A: 1 Red, Greens #1, #3, #6, #8 and Player B: 1 Red, Greens #2, #4, #5, #7.
2. Island Setup: Instead of placing 1 Island between players, place 4 Islands in a row in the center.
3. Excavation & Decision: Each round, fill all 4 Islands with Gems as in a normal game. Both players compete over all 4 at once, playing 4 of their 5 cards (1 per Island).
4. Number of Gems: Use the same Gem count as in an 8-player game (see help card). (The 7–8 player help card is not reproduced in this rulebook; see the editor's note under Phase 1.)
5. Market Phase: The first player to use an Artifact that round not only flips and blocks it, but must also flip and block another Artifact (without using its effect).

Summary

Setup (3–8 players)

1. Each player gets 1 Chest screen and 3 Ship cards (1 Red + 2 Green adding to 17).
2. Place 1 Island between every 2 players.
3. Place the Help cards and round marker in the center.
4. Place 4 Artifacts (A, B, C, D) and the Rat tokens in the center.
5. Give the Bag and Dagger to a random player.

Game Phases (5 rounds, 5 phases each)

1. Excavation: Fill the Islands with Gems according to the help card.
2. Decision: Place 1 Ship card next to each Island beside you.
3. Market: Bid with Gems to use Artifacts. Only the top 3 bids (above 0) win. Place Rats where you intervene. Flip used Artifacts face down.
4. Resolution: Flip Ship cards and obtain the corresponding Gems.
   • 2 Greens: Cooperation & swap
   • 1 Green and 1 Red: Raid
   • 2 Reds: Nobody wins
5. Upkeep: Return Rats, flip Artifacts face up, pass Bag & Dagger clockwise and advance Skull 1 space in the round marker.

End of the Game (after round 5)

1. Count the Gems in your Chest.
2. The player with the most Victory Points wins.
3. If tied, the winner is the player with the highest Green card.