Black Flag! Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
• Setup
• Goal of the Game
• The Game
  • 1. New Ship
  • 2. Draw
  • 3. Play
• The Cards
• The Symbols
• Distance and Range
• Sinking a Ship
• Promotions
• The Flying Deutchmann
  • 4. Discard
• Adrift!
• End of the Deck
• End of the Game
  • 1. Wealth
  • 2. Sinking
  • 3. At the Edge of the World
• Notes on the Cards
  • Captains
  • Playing Cards

Contents

• 72 playing cards
• 14 Ship cards
• 12 Captain cards
• 9 Role cards
• 1 double-sided token: Flying Deutchmann / Davey Jones
• 36 Barrels
• 1 score board
• 2 Flag tokens
• 1 Treasure Chest token
• 19 Doubloons
• 8 player summary cards
• 1 "Victory Conditions" summary card

Setup

1. Place the score board in the middle of the table.
2. Place the Treasure Chest token on the "0" space of the scoring track on the board.
3. Separate the cards by their backs. Shuffle the Captain cards and the playing cards separately.
4. Deal 1 random Captain card face up to each player and give them a summary card. Place any remaining Captain cards back in the box.
5. Each player now searches in the Ship deck for the Ship indicated on their Captain card and places it face up in front of them. Then, shuffle the Ship deck and place it below the score board. Reveal 3 Ships, putting them face up in a row.
6. Each player takes from the supply as many Barrels as indicated by the Barrel symbol in the bottom right of their Ship card.
7. Each player now reads aloud to the other players their Captain's ability and the characteristics of their Ship.
8. Depending on the number of players, take the following Role cards and Doubloons:

Players	Roles	Doubloons
4	Admiral, Commodore, Ibberian Privateer, Brittish Privateer	7
5	Admiral, Commodore, Ensign, Lieutenant, Pirate	7
6	Admiral, Commodore, Ensign, Lieutenant, Ibberian Privateer, Brittish Privateer	8
7	Admiral, Commodore, 2 Ensigns, 2 Lieutenants, Pirate	9
8	Admiral, Commodore, 2 Ensigns, 2 Lieutenants, Ibberian Privateer, Brittish Privateer	10

9. Shuffle the Role cards and deal 1, face down, to each player. The Admiral reveals their Role and keeps it face up. All other players look at their Roles, but keep them secret.
10. With 4 or 5 players, put the Flag tokens on the corresponding spaces numbered "5" on the scoring track; with 6 or more players, put them on the "6" spaces instead.
11. Put the Doubloons taken during step 8 in the area of the score board marked with an Hourglass.
12. All remaining Doubloons are kept handy in a common supply.
13. Take the playing deck. Starting with the Admiral, deal each player a hand of 4 facedown cards; the 6th, 7th, and 8th players, if present, start with 5 cards instead.
14. Put the playing deck in the middle of the table. Leave space for a discard pile.
15. Keep the "Victory Conditions" summary card handy, with the side matching the number of players up.

Goal of the Game

Players take on the roles of buccaneers and captains who try to work together to bring the Treasure Chest back to their own "nation". Players are divided into national teams, which are initially secret, as follows:

• Kingdom of Ibberia: Admiral, Lieutenant (x2)
• Great Brittonia: Commodore, Ensign (x2)
• The Pirate and the Privateers: play and win alone

For players representing the "nations" of the Kingdom of Ibberia or Great Brittonia, the goal of the game is to move the Treasure Chest onto or past their own flag on the score board.

For the Pirate and the Privateers, the goal is to gather Doubloons and keep the Treasure Chest near the center of the board (see End of the Game).

The Game

The game is played in turns in clockwise order. The Admiral begins. A player's turn is divided into the following phases:

1. New Ship: If you don't have a Ship, you must take one.
2. Draw: Draw 2 cards from the deck.
3. Play: Play your cards!
4. Discard: Discard excess cards if you have more than 5 in your hand.

1. New Ship

If you have a Ship, skip this phase.

At the start of your turn, if you don't have a Ship, you must take one from the row of 3 face-up Ships on the table or draw the top one from the deck. Put your new Ship face up in front of you and take from the supply the number of Barrels indicated by the Barrel symbol.

A Ship card shows:

• Treasure Chest: the number of spaces the Treasure Chest moves when this Ship is sunk.
• Range: the maximum distance that you can attack.
• Ammunition: how many Attack cards you can play on your turn.
• Barrels: how many Barrels to take from the supply when you take the Ship.
• Name of the Ship.
• Special Ability (if any).

2. Draw

During this phase, draw 2 cards from the playing deck. If the deck runs out, see End of the Deck.

3. Play

Now you can play cards to your advantage or against the other players. For example, you might try to sink a Ship you think belongs to another team. With the exception of Attack cards, you can play as many cards as you like during your turn.

The Cards

There are five types of playing cards:

Action card, black-bordered. When you play one, resolve the effect as described on the card itself, then discard it. Useable only on your turn.

Defense card, blue-bordered. Play it out of your turn, by putting it into the discard pile when you are the target of a SHOT (usually found on an Attack card) or other effects, to cancel them. Effects other than SHOT that you can cancel are described on the cards themselves (e.g., Parley).

Attack card, red-bordered. This is usually an action that harms another player. When you play it, choose a target player who is affected by it, then discard it. During your turn, you may play a number of Attack cards equal to your Ship's Ammunition value.

Equipment card, green-bordered. This has a continuous effect. Play it face-up in front of you during your turn: From that moment on, it will have the effect described on the card itself. Note: You cannot use an Equipment card in your hand out of turn; you must first play it in front of you during your turn.

Multiuse card, multicolored border. This can be played for either of its two effects/colors, following the rules described above.

Symbols help identify the type of card.

The Symbols

• SHOT: This is the primary way to sink enemy Ships. Unless otherwise specified, you can only play a SHOT against a player if they have a Ship and only if they are at a distance equal to or less than your Ship's Range (see Distance and Range). When a SHOT hits, it generally causes the loss of Barrels to the target player (i.e., to their Ship).
• MISS: Cancels a SHOT effect. The MISS effect is usually found on Defense cards.
• BARREL: A Ship's integrity (its "hull points"), represented by wooden Barrels. When the last one is discarded, the Ship sinks.
• CANNON: A symbol present on your cards and/or Ship that causes the loss of an additional Barrel when your SHOT hits. Example: Andrew's Calypso Ship has the Cannon ability; in addition, among his Equipment, he has a Cannon card. Andrew, with a single SHOT, would cause the target to lose 3 Barrels if it hits.
• RANGE: This is the maximum distance within which you can launch Attacks or perform certain actions against other players. Your base Range value is the one shown on your Ship (see Distance and Range).
• AMMUNITION: This represents your Ship's offensive capability; that is, the number of Attack cards you can play during your turn.
• DRAW: Draw 1 card (from the deck, unless otherwise specified) and add it to your hand.

Some texts refer to cards that show one of these four symbols in their lower left corner (e.g., Parley, Duel, Francis Brake). Each symbol appears on 1 card out of 2, 1 card out of 4, 1 card out of 8, and 1 card out of 8 respectively.

Distance and Range

The distance between two players is the minimum number of spaces occupied by players who have a Ship that lie between them, counting clockwise or counterclockwise.

Example: All players have a Ship. Andrew is 1 space away from Frank and Barbara, 2 spaces away from Emma and Cody, and 3 spaces away from Daniel. (Seating clockwise: Andrew, Barbara, Cody, Daniel, Emma, Frank.)

Players who are temporarily without a Ship are not included in the distance calculation. Therefore, it may happen that some players "move closer" following a sinking and "move farther apart" when a player draws a new Ship.

Some cards can alter the distance or the Range between players.

Example: Andrew has a Sails card in play. Now Barbara must have a Range value of at least 2 in order to hit him. Andrew, on the other hand, is not affected and can hit Barbara with a Range of 1.

Example: Andrew has a Telescope card in play, which increases his Range by 1. His Ship, which has a Range of 2, can now hit Daniel.

Sinking a Ship

When a Ship loses its last Barrel, it sinks and the game is paused briefly to carry out the following steps:

1. The Role card of the player whose Ship sank is revealed, if it was face-down. Note: Each Role card has a Doubloon on the back. A player whose Role is still face-down possesses this Doubloon. If their Role is revealed, this Doubloon is lost.
2. The Treasure Chest on the score board is moved as many spaces as the Treasure Chest value shown on the sunken Ship:
   • Toward the Flag of the faction opposing that of the sunk player. For this purpose, the Brittish Privateer counts as belonging to Great Brittonia and the Ibberian Privateer to the Kingdom of Ibberia.
   • Toward the Flag of the player who caused the sinking, if the Pirate was sunk. Note: If that player still has a hidden role, this will indirectly reveal their team!
3. Moreover, if the Admiral or the Commodore is sunk, the Treasure Chest is moved one additional space in the same direction, and a check is made to see if there is a Promotion (see below).
4. The player whose Ship was sunk discards their Ship card by placing it face down underneath the Ship deck. They may keep a maximum of 1 piece of Equipment in play in front of them, choosing which ones to discard if they have more.
5. The player who caused the sinking takes 1 Doubloon from the Hourglass and places it on their Captain card. If there are no more Doubloons in the Hourglass, take them from the general reserve instead (see At the Edge of the World).
6. Then check to see if the game ends due to "Sinking" (see End of the Game). If the game does not end, play resumes where it left off.

Example: Andrew's Ship is sunk, and his Role is revealed: A Brittish Privateer! Andrew's Ship has a Treasure Chest value of 2. The Treasure Chest is moved 2 spaces toward the Ibberian Flag.

Important: If a player does not have a Ship, they cannot be the target of any card until they get a new Ship, unless otherwise specified.

If you are sunk during your turn (e.g., due to a Duel), your turn ends immediately. Proceed as with a normal sinking then go directly to the Discard Phase.

Promotions

When an Admiral's or Commodore's Ship is sunk, they may lose their rank: Another player from their team might be promoted to take their place.

For the Ibberian team, if the Admiral is sunk:

• If no Lieutenant has been revealed, the Admiral retains their Role (no promotion occurs).
• If at least one Lieutenant has been revealed, then the Admiral swaps Roles with the first revealed Lieutenant, going clockwise. The Lieutenant becomes the Admiral and the Admiral becomes the Lieutenant; both keep their new Roles face-up.

For the Brittish team, the same applies between the Commodore and the Ensign(s).

The Flying Deutchmann

This token comes into play when a player plays the Flying Deutchmann card against a player of their choice. The player who played the card places it in the discard pile, then takes the Flying Deutchmann token and places it on top of the target player's Ship.

From now on, if you have the Flying Deutchmann on your Ship:

1. At the start of your turn, you must "reveal" a card: Turn over the top card from the deck, place it in the discard pile, and note which of the four symbols appears in the lower-left corner.
2. Now, if you wish, you may "respond": Reveal a card from your hand that has the same symbol as the card you just placed in the discard pile. The card you use to respond is only revealed, it is not discarded.
3. If you respond, the Flying Deutchmann moves to the next Ship in a clockwise direction (skip players who do not have a Ship).

If you do not respond, the Flying Deutchmann makes you lose 2 Barrels, then disappears (return the Flying Deutchmann token to the center of the table). If the Flying Deutchmann sinks your Ship by removing its last Barrel, follow the steps described in the Sinking a Ship section, with the following changes:

• The Treasure Chest is not moved, if the Pirate is sunk.
• No one receives a Doubloon: instead, discard one from the Hourglass to the supply.
• Since it is still the beginning of your turn, after checking for promotion, take a new Ship immediately and play your turn as normal.

If the Ship of a player who has the Flying Deutchmann sinks when it is not their turn, they immediately move the Flying Deutchmann token to the next Ship, going clockwise and does not take a new Ship until their turn.

4. Discard

During your turn, you may hold any number of cards in your hand. At the end of your turn, however, the maximum number of cards you are allowed to hold is 5. If you have more than that, you must discard cards from your hand, one at a time, until you are back within the limit. Then it is the turn of the next player in clockwise order.

Adrift!

If it's not your turn and you have no cards in your hand, immediately draw 1 card from the deck. If you run out of cards during your turn, do not draw a card immediately: Draw only after you've finished your turn, before the next player begins their turn.

Note: Before drawing a card for the Adrift! effect, you must wait until all effects of the last card played have finished. For example, if you are the target of a Duel card and run out of cards in your hand, resolve the Duel's effect in full, losing a Barrel, and only then draw the card for the Adrift! effect.

End of the Deck

Every time the deck runs out, remove 1 Doubloon from the Hourglass, returning it to the general supply. Then, move both Flags on the score board one space toward the center (e.g., if the Flags are on 6, move them both to 5). Attention: As explained below, if the Treasure Chest reaches a team's Flag during this step, the game is not over yet! Finally, shuffle the discard pile and form a new draw deck.

End of the Game

The game can end in three ways:

1. Wealth

If the Pirate or one of the Privateers collects 4 Doubloons, they win immediately! Note: Remember that your facedown Role card is worth 1 Doubloon.

2. Sinking

When a Ship sinks, if the Treasure Chest reaches or passes one of the Flags, the team that owns that flag wins! Note: A sinking victory is only achieved after sinking a Ship. If the Treasure Chest reaches or passes a Flag at any other time (e.g., as the Flags get closer because the deck has run out), the game does not end yet. The outcome of the match can still be turned around!

3. At the Edge of the World

As soon as there are no more Doubloons left in the Hourglass, flip the Flying Deutchmann token to the side with Davey Jones and place it in front of the player to the left of the active player (unlike the Flying Deutchmann, this token is placed in front of the player, not on their Ship).

Davey Jones works similarly to the Flying Deutchmann, with a few differences:

• Davey Jones also goes in front of players who do not have a Ship, who must still reveal and respond.
• If a player can respond, they must do so; there is no choice in the matter.
• As soon as someone fails to respond, the game ends immediately (Davey Jones does not take Barrels away).

Note: During this time, it is still possible to earn Doubloons by sinking an opponent's Ship, taking them from the supply. Each player whose Role is still hidden at the end of the game reveals it and takes a Doubloon from the supply.

Then, check where the Treasure Chest is located on the scoring track:

• Space 2 or beyond (3, 4...) closer to the Ibberian Flag: The Kingdom of Ibberia's team wins!
• Space 2 or beyond (3, 4...) closer to the Brittish Flag: Great Brittonia's team wins!
• Space 0: 5/7 players: The Pirate wins! 4/6/8 players: The Privateer with the most Doubloons wins! In case of a tie, the Ibberian Privateer wins.
• Space 1 of the Ibberian side: 5/7 players: The Pirate wins if they have more Doubloons than the member of the Ibberian team who has the fewest; otherwise, the Kingdom of Ibberia team wins. 4/6/8 players: The Ibberian Privateer wins if they have more Doubloons than the Ibberian team member who has the fewest; otherwise, the Kingdom of Ibberia team wins.
• Space 1 of the Brittish side: 5/7 players: The Pirate wins if they have more Doubloons than the Brittish team member who has the fewest; otherwise, the Great Brittonia team wins. 4/6/8 players: The Brittish Privateer wins if they have more Doubloons than the Brittish team member who has the fewest; otherwise, the Great Brittonia team wins.

Notes on the Cards

Captains

• Annie Bonnie: Against her, Equipment does not work, not even during the other players' turns. Example: She ignores an opponent's Cannon if she is hit by a SHOT.
• Bart Robbers: His ability counts toward the Range and is included in the total Ammunition available for his turn.
• Blackbeer: He can activate his ability once during each player's turn, including his own.
• Francis Brake: He cancels the effects of cards only for himself. It does not affect the Equipment other players have in play. Example: You can always use your own Sailor to avoid losing a Barrel against Francis Brake.
• Henry Moghan: His ability is not a SHOT, so it cannot be avoided with MISS.
• William Kid: His ability works only with SHOT coming from Attack cards.

Playing Cards

• Defense cards: They also work against cards or abilities that trigger SHOT effects. Example: The abilities of Eddy Englund and Bart Robbers, or the Order card.
• Flying Deutchmann: If the token is already in play, you may move it onto a different Ship. If Davey Jones has entered the game, apply only the Draw effect.
• Leak: You can activate its black-bordered effect only during your turn.
• Parley: It has two alternative defense effects. It does not work against the other players' Equipment.
• Sailor: It only works against SHOT effects. It doesn't work against cards like Duel, Kraken, or Storm. It doesn't work against the Flying Deutchmann either.
• Sails: Everyone else sees you as if you were at a distance of +1, but you continue to see them at the normal distance.
• Swivel Gun: When used as an Attack card, it counts toward the total number of Ammunition for your Ship.
• Telescope: It increases your Ship's Range by 1, but the distance remains unchanged.
• Tortuga: Count all the players, including those who don't have a Ship.
• Transfer: You can play this on yourself. The player who receives the Barrel may go above the Barrel value of their Ship.