Merchants & Marauders: Broadsides Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Components
• General Setup
• Player Setup
  • Mount and Load your Cannons
  • The Cannons
  • Zero In to Begin
    • Zero In
  • Starting Hand
• Goal and Playing the Game
  • Player Turn
  • Stage 1: Take two actions
    • Aim!
    • Hold!
    • Broadside!
    • Sheer Off!
    • Reload!
    • Repair!
  • Stage 2: Firing
    • 1. Determine Potential Damage
    • 2. Spend Shot
    • 3. Check for Cannon Penalties
    • 4. Check Target Cards
    • 5. Foe Gets Evade Option
  • Evasion
    • 6. Apply Damage to Zone
    • 7. Zero In
  • Stage 3: Draw 2 Cards
  • Winning the game
• The Cannons
  • The 18-Pounder
  • The Long Nine
  • The Carronade
• Experienced Sea Dog
  • Reputation Setup
  • Reputation
  • Dirty Tricks Setup
  • Dirty Tricks
• Damage Effects
  • Rigging Penalties
  • Hand Penalties
  • Cannon Penalties (during Firing)
  • Cannon Penalties (during Broadsides)
  • Losing your Captain and First Mate
  • Sinking
  • Disasters
• Player Reference for Stage 2: Firing

Overview

You are rival pirate captains, battling for control of an extremely profitable sea lane. Your goal is simple: eliminate the competition by sinking their ship or taking out both their Captain and First Mate! Load your cannons, aim, and fire!

Components

• 2 Player boards
• 2 Aim decks — each comprised of 42 cards; values 1-10 in four suits, plus two Wild cards.
• 30 Target cards
• 12 Cannon tiles (1 set of 6 tiles per player, each comprised of: 2 Carronades, 2 Long Nines, 2 18-Pounders.)
• 9 Reputation cards
• 24 Dirty Trick cards
• 1 Reference card
• 15 Shot discs
  • 5 Solid Shot — Best for hitting Planks.
  • 5 Chain Shot — Best for hitting Sails.
  • 5 Canister Shot — Best for hitting Crewmen.
• 6 Disaster tokens (3 for each player)
• 28 Plank markers
• 12 Sail markers
• 24 Crewman markers
• 2 Gunsights
• 2 Gunners
• 2 Captains
• 2 First Mates — Captains and First Mates count as Crewmen for all purposes except when specifically explained to be different.
• Many board markers
• 1 Draw bag
• This rulebook

General Setup

1. Each player chooses a color and takes the matching board. Place it in front of yourself on the side of your choice. (The side you choose, normal or ghost ship, has no impact on gameplay.)
2. Each player takes in their color: the Aim deck, the set of 6 Cannon tiles, the Gunsight, Captain and First Mate, along with a brown Gunner. Shuffle your Aim deck and place it face-down next to your board.
3. Fill your Deck spaces with Crewmen and your Captain and First Mate. Each player decides where they want to place their own Captain and First Mate (they may be in the same or different Deck zones). Fill the Rigging spaces with Sails and the Hull spaces with Planks.
4. Each player takes their set of 3 Disaster tokens, shuffles them face-down, and places one in each circle by their Hull zones.
5. Shuffle the Target cards and make a face-down draw deck nearby.
6. Fill the bag with shot discs and mix well.
7. Make a stockpile of board markers. Place the reference card nearby.

Player Setup

Mount and Load your Cannons

Take your set of six Cannon tiles. Pick the two you want and secretly place them face-down in your fore (front) and aft (back) cannon positions. (For your first game, we suggest taking at least one 18-Pounder.) When you are both ready, reveal your chosen cannons by flipping them face-up. Draw enough shot discs from the bag to fill your cannons, then load them into whichever cannons you want. Unused Cannon tiles are removed from the game.

The Cannons

All cannons are described in full on page 10. The brief description below is included to help you choose.

The 18-Pounder — Ideal for your first games, it offers a good balance between damage and ease of aiming.

The Long Nine — Easier to make more damaging shots, but must be reloaded after each shot.

The Carronade — What it lacks in precision, it more than makes up in damage capacity by allowing you to fire both shots at once.

Zero In to Begin

Pick a first player with the method of your choice. In turn order, both players Zero In. (You will Zero In many times over the course of the game and the process is always exactly as described here.)

Zero In

1. Place your Gunner next to the cannon you wish to fire (fore or aft); that cannon is now considered manned.
2. Place your Gunsight on your foe's board, in the zone you wish to target.
3. According to the number shown in that zone, draw as many Target cards from the deck.
4. Place these Target cards face-up in front of you, leaving enough room to the left and bottom of each card for you to play Aim cards later.

Example: Blue decides to Zero In her 18-Pounder, so she places her Gunner below it (1). She decides to target a Hull zone on Red's ship. She picks a Hull zone and places her Gunsight there (2). The targeted Hull zone indicates 2 Target cards, so Blue draws 2 cards from the deck (3) and places them face-up in front of her (4), ready for action!

Starting Hand

Both players draw 4 Aim cards from their own deck. (Keep your hand secret from your foe at all time!) You are ready to begin!

Once you're an experienced sea dog and have played a game or two, you'll also get to choose a Reputation and some Dirty tricks after Zeroing In (see page 11).

Goal and Playing the Game

Players alternate taking turns until one of them wins by dealing enough damage to their foe's Hull (10 Planks or more missing at once), or by eliminating both their foe's Captain and First Mate.

Player Turn

Your turn consists of three Stages in the following order:

1. Take two actions, at least one of which must be an Aim action.*
2. Optional: Fire!
3. Draw 2 cards from your Aim deck into your hand, and discard down to your hand limit if you exceed it (6 by default).

Changing Targets. You may skip Stage 1 of your turn to Zero In on a new zone. Discard all of your current Target cards and any Aim cards played to them, then Zero In on a different zone as explained on page 4.

Stage 1: Take two actions

Take two actions. At least one of these actions must be the Aim action. The first action must be fully resolved before proceeding to the second.

The actions are:

Aim! Place an Aim card by a Target card to improve your accuracy.

Hold! Draw a card.

Broadside! Discard a flush and shot discs to deliver a crippling blast to your foe.

Sheer Off! Discard a straight to force your foe to discard cards from their hand.

Reload! Discard a pair to refill your cannons with shots, or any 2 cards to add 1 shot.

Repair! Move Crewmen around to reposition or repair.

Experienced Sea Dogs: Some Dirty Tricks and Reputations grant you other actions. Those cards describe their effect in detail, and whether or not that effect costs an action.

Important: If you start your turn with no cards, your actions will have to be: Hold then Aim. You need to Hold to draw the card required for you to Aim, since you must do an Aim action each turn. Keep this in mind landlubber!

Wild cards are the best kind of cards. When you play a Wild card, it takes the place of any card of any suit.

Aim!

Play 1 Aim card from your hand to one of your Target cards on the table.

• Aim cards are played face-up to the left or bottom side of a Target card. When Aiming, you want to place cards that correspond favorably to the numbers on the Target card. The Aim cards you place will create a coordinate used to determine the damage of your attack when you Fire.
• Any card may be played to any left or bottom position, even if it doesn't match up with any numbers on the Target card.
• You may play a card to replace a previous card (discarding the old one when doing so).

Example: Red has these Aim cards in hand and the Target cards shown. He could play any of his Aim cards to the left or bottom of either Target. He decides to play his 6 as shown since it will combine with the earlier-played 9 to create a dead-center coordinate on that Target card.

Hold!

Draw 1 Aim card from your Aim deck into your hand. (You may exceed your hand limit of 6 cards at this point. Respecting your hand limit is only mandatory at the end of Stage 3.)

Broadside!

Discard a flush* and shot discs to fire in a wide salvo to cause widespread damage and disrupt your foe's aim. A flush consists of cards of identical suit, numbers irrelevant; minimum two cards.

• The number of cards in your flush may not exceed the number of shot discs currently loaded in your cannons.
• For each card in your flush, choose 1 shot disc from your cannons and discard it to the bag. For each discarded disc, your foe must choose and discard 1 Aim card from their Targets (if possible), and must remove 1 marker of the matching color from anywhere on their ship (if possible).
• Damage from Broadsides might result in additional consequences. See the Damage Effects section on page 12 when necessary.
• Finish this action by using a board marker to cover the suit symbol on your Broadside track that matches the suit you played. You may not Broadside using a suit that is covered up.

Broadsides are subject to cannon penalties, if any are exposed on your ship. Remember to apply yours... and make sure your foe remembers theirs too! (Details in the Damage Effects section, page 12.)

Example: Red Broadsides using the 7 and 4 of spades. Red must spend 1 shot for each card, so he discards a Solid shot (brown) and a Chain shot (white) from his cannons. Blue must lose 1 Plank (for the Solid shot) and 1 Sail (for the Chain shot). Since there were 2 cards in Red's flush, Blue must also choose and discard two Aim cards from her Targets. As it happens, she only has one Aim card in play, so she discards it. Red covers up the spades symbol on his Broadside track; he will not be able to use spades to Broadside any more.

Sheer Off!

Discard a straight* to make a sudden course correction to fluster and spoil your foe's plans. A straight consists of cards in sequential order, suits irrelevant; minimum two cards.

• Straights wrap around from 1 to 10, (e.g., you could play a 3-card straight of 9-10-1).

When you Sheer Off, pull and discard the same number of random Aim cards from your foe's hand, plus 1. (E.g., if you Sheer Off with a 3-card straight, your foe loses 4 cards.)

• Finish this action by using a board marker to cover the numbers on your Sheer Off track that match the numbers you played. You may not Sheer Off using a number that is covered up.

Sheering Off is subject to Rigging penalties, if any are exposed on your ship. Remember to apply yours... and make sure your foe remembers theirs too! (Details in the Damage Effects section, page 12.)

Example: Blue Sheers Off using 7, 8, 9, 10 from her hand. Red must lose 5 cards (4-card straight + 1); he currently has six cards in hand. Blue blindly chooses five cards for Red to discard into his own discard. A devastating blow to Red's immediate capabilities! Blue covers up the 7, 8, 9, and 10 on her Sheer Off track; she will not be able to use those numbers to Sheer Off any more.

Reload!

As the battle progresses, your cannons will likely run out of shots, or might hold shot types that you don't wish to fire; you'll need to Reload. There are two types of Reload: Single Shot Reload and Full Reload.

• Single Shot Reload! Discard any 2 cards. Discard any remaining shot discs you wish from your cannons to the bag. Draw one shot disc from the bag. Load that disc into either of your cannons (you are permitted to first freely move around any shots remaining in your cannons).
• Full Reload! Discard a pair of cards (a pair is two cards with the same number). Discard any remaining shot discs you wish from your cannons to the bag. Draw as many discs from the bag as there are empty spots in your cannons. Load those discs into your cannons however you want (you are permitted to first freely move around any shots remaining in your cannons).

Single Shot Example: Red discards two unpaired cards to perform a Single Shot Reload. He draws a Canister shot (black) from the bag. Considering his options, he moves the remaining Solid shot from his 18-Pounder to his Long Nine and then loads the new Canister into his 18-Pounder.

Full Reload Example: Blue discards a pair (7♣ + 7♦) to do a Full Reload. First she discards a Chain shot from her Carronade to the bag as she doesn't want it. Then she draws 4 shots from the bag. She gets 1 Solid, 1 Canister, and 2 Chain shots. Unthrilled with that draw, she loads both Chains into her Carronade and the other two shots into her 18-Pounder.

Repair!

Discard any 1 to 3 cards to move as many Crewmen around to help out on the Decks and to repair Rigging and Hull damage. Each card discarded allows you to make one move with a Crewman.

• A Crewman moves along the rope line from a Deck to an empty space in an adjacent Deck, or from a Deck to an adjacent damaged Rigging or Hull Zone.
• When you move a Crewman to a damaged Rigging or Hull zone, that Crewman marker is discarded and a Sail or Plank is returned to that zone.
• Your Captain and First Mate may be moved, but only to other Decks.
• You may never move the last Crewman out of a Deck zone (this includes your Captain or First Mate).

Crewmen (including your Captain or First Mate) may always be freely moved around within a Deck zone. You don't need to perform a Repair action for that.

While we're on the subject, Sail markers may always be freely moved around within a Rigging zone. You don't need to perform a Repair action for that either.

Example: Blue has some damage to her fore Rigging zone which is making it hard to Evade and Sheer Off. She decides to Repair. She discards 3 cards and then makes three moves with her crew.

1. Crewman from the Main Deck climbs into the fore Rigging and repairs 1 Sail.
2. Crewman in Aft Deck moves to the Main Deck.
3. Crewman from the Main Deck climbs into the fore Rigging and repairs 1 Sail.

Stage 2: Firing

After your actions, you may Fire.

• Firing is optional, even if all of the left and bottom positions on the Target cards of your manned cannon are filled. Conversely, you may choose to Fire a cannon even if there are empty left and bottom positions on its Target cards.
• Only your manned cannon may fire (the one has your Gunner next to it).
• You may not fire if the no-firing penalty is exposed on that cannon's Deck.
• You may not fire if that cannon has no shot discs in it.

Firing is a multi-step process. You must follow these steps in order.

Example: These are Blue's Target cards and the Aim cards played to them. She decides to Fire.

1. Determine Potential Damage

Count the number of markers (Sails/Crewmen/Planks) remaining in that zone. Put a board marker on the damage track of your player board to reflect this number; this is your potential damage for the shot.

Blue is firing at Red's Hull zone. There are 4 planks remaining in the zone, so the potential damage is 4.

2. Spend Shot

Pick one shot from the firing cannon and return it to the bag. If the shot color does not match the zone you are shooting at, subtract 1 from the damage track.

Best shots = Canister/Crewmen, Chain/Sails, Solid/Planks.

Blue is firing her 18-Pounder, which is loaded with Canister and Solid shots. She spends the Solid shot to avoid a damage penalty.

3. Check for Cannon Penalties

If the firing cannon's Deck zone has any cannon penalties exposed (a Crewman does not cover that space), subtract the indicated amount from the damage track. (Only penalties on the firing cannon's deck are counted; penalties on the other deck are ignored.)

The firing cannon's deck has an exposed penalty. Blue subtracts 1 from the damage.

4. Check Target Cards

One at a time, resolve all of the firing cannon's Target cards; each Target card will have an effect on the damage your attack does. For each Target card, find the coordinate created by the Aim cards in its left and bottom positions, then check the Cannon tile to see what the result means for that cannon.

Possible shot outcomes:

• Perfect shot: No effect on damage.
• Good shot: -1 to damage.
• Poor shot: -2 to damage.
• Miss: -3 to damage. (A miss occurs when only one card has been played to the Target card or if two cards were played without achieving even a Poor shot.)
• Early shot: -4 to damage and defender loses 1 Aim card. (An early shot occurs when there are no cards played to the Target card; your foe loses 1 Aim card due to the unexpectedness of such an attack.)

This target card has an 8 played to the left and a 7 to the bottom. Looking at the point where those two numbers intersect on the grid, we see that the result is a triangle. Checking the 18-Pounder tile, this result is a "Good" shot, which results in -1 to the attack's damage.

Continuing our example, Blue achieved the Good shot described above (-1 to damage) and also a Perfect shot (no effect on damage) created by the 9 and 6 played to the other Target card. Combined, the effect to her attack's damage is -1.

5. Foe Gets Evade Option

Your foe may reduce the attack's damage by Evading. Evasion may result in damage being subtracted from the damage track. (The Evasion process below is described from the perspective of the Evading player. It's easier to explain that way.)

Evasion

When your foe fires a cannon at you, you may reduce the attack's damage by discarding a straight flush (a straight of the same suit) or a straight to evade the attack (minimum 2 cards in either case). Finish the Evasion by using a board marker to cover the numbers on your Evasion track that match the numbers you played. You may not Evade using a number that is covered up.

Evasion is subject to Rigging penalties, if any are exposed on your ship. Remember to apply yours... and make sure your foe remembers theirs too! (Details in the Damage Effects section, page 12.)

Evading with a Straight Flush

Subtract 1 from the attack's damage for each card you used to Evade. (For example, if you discard a 3-card straight flush, subtract 3 from the damage track.)

Evading with a Straight

Subtract 1 from the attack's damage for every 2 cards you used to Evade, ignoring remainders. (For example, if you discard a 5-card straight, subtract 2 from the damage track.)

Example continued: Red decides to Evade the attack. He discards an unsuited 3 and 4 from his hand: a 2-card straight. This reduces the attack's damage by 1. (1 point for every two cards spent.) Red covers up the 3 and 4 spaces on his Evasion track.

6. Apply Damage to Zone

If any damage remains on the damage track, you have caused damage to your foe... nice shooting! Resolve the damage by removing that number of markers (Sails/Crewmen/Planks) from the targeted zone, defender's choice.

Sometimes taking damage (whether by cannon fire or from any reason) will result in additional consequences. See Damage Effects on page 12.

When the dust settles, all of Blue's efforts have amounted to a single point of damage to Red's Hull. Red removes one Plank from the zone. Better than nothing!

7. Zero In

Discard all of your current Target cards (and any Aim cards played to them), then establish the next target for yourself by following the Zero In process, as shown on page 4. (You may Zero In on the same zone you just attacked, if you want.) Then proceed to Stage 3.

Stage 3: Draw 2 Cards

Draw 2 Aim cards from your Aim deck into your hand. Then, if you have more cards in hand than your hand limit (which is 6 by default), you must now discard any excess cards of your choice. If your Aim deck ever runs out, shuffle your discard pile to form a new Aim deck.

If any Hand penalties are exposed in the Main deck of your ship, your hand limit will be lowered as indicated. Remember to apply yours... and make sure your foe remembers theirs too! (Details in the Damage Effects section, page 12.)

Winning the game

You win the game in one of two ways:

1. By eliminating both your foe's Captain and First Mate.
2. By sinking your foe's ship; this occurs when there are 10 or more planks missing from all Hull zones combined at one time.

The Cannons

There are three different cannons in the game. The 18-Pounder, the Long Nine, and the Carronade. Each weapon has unique properties described here.

The 18-Pounder

The 18-Pounder is the "standard" cannon found on fighting ships of this size. It loads 2 shot discs and has a balanced spread of Perfect, Good, and Poor results. It is the most basic of the weapons. We suggest playing with at least one of these for your first game.

How the 18-Pounder "sees" a Target: a small central Perfect zone, surrounded by a Good ring, surrounded by a Poor ring.

The Long Nine

The Long Nine loads only a single shot disc. It cannot achieve Good shots; hits will be either Perfect or Poor. That said, with its wider range of Perfect shots, you'll achieve perfection with it more often than with any other weapon. It's harder to hit with and requires more frequent reloading, but when it hits, it's usually deadly.

How the Long Nine "sees" a Target: a wider central Perfect zone, surrounded by a Poor ring.

The Carronade

The Carronade loads 2 shot discs. It has a very wide range of Good results (and a little strip of Poor), but cannot score a Perfect result. Very easy to hit with it, but you won't be able to line it up for flawless attacks. The Carronade fortunately has one unique ability that allows you to overcome this problem: the Double Shot.

How the Carronade "sees" a Target: a very wide Good zone covering almost the whole grid, with a thin Poor ring at the edges.

Double Shot

If your Carronade is loaded with 2 shot discs when you Fire, you may choose to spend both discs to increase the attack's damage. Announce this after you Check Target Cards (step 4 of Firing). Remove the second disc from the Cannon tile and return it to the bag. If that disc's color matches the zone, add 2 to your damage track.* If it doesn't, add 1 to your damage track. Resolve the rest of the attack as normal.

*Not to exceed the original potential damage of the attack.

Experienced Sea Dog

Once you've played a game or two and know your crew well enough, you will have gained quite the reputation and will have picked up a few dirty tricks. You may play with either or both of these additions. When playing with both, do the Reputation Setup step first.

Reputation Setup

After Zeroing In at the end of Player Setup, deal each player 3 Reputation cards. You and your foe examine them without letting the other player see them, and select one of the three to keep.

When you are both ready, reveal your Reputations to each other. Place your Reputation where it will be visible during the game.

(Unselected and unused Reputation cards are removed from the game.)

Reputation

Each Reputation provides a unique benefit that you will be able to take advantage of during the battle. The Reputation card itself describes all the details of the Reputation's power. Do not forget to apply the effect of your Reputation during the game!

Draw 3, keep 1.

Dirty Tricks Setup

After Zeroing In at the end of Player Setup (or after choosing your Reputation), deal each player 3 Dirty Trick cards. You and your foe examine them without letting the other player see them, and select one of the three to keep. Do not show it to your foe. Repeat this step until you have a total of 3 Dirty Trick cards in your hand. Keep your Dirty Tricks secret from the other player until you use them.

(Unselected and unused Dirty Trick cards are removed from the game.)

Draw 3, keep 1. Do it three times.

Dirty Tricks

Dirty Tricks grant you helpful but limited powers during the battle; they're usually discarded once you use them. Each Dirty Tricks card describes exactly when you may use it, and what it does when you do.

Some Dirty Tricks require an action to play, others don't. Some may even replace an Aim action.

Dirty Tricks are not considered to be cards that are "in your hand" by game actions that affect cards in your hand.

Damage Effects

Taking damage to your ship for any reason (usually cannon fire, but also Broadsides, some Dirty Tricks, and Disasters) may result in additional consequences. Always bad... make sure your opponent is applying their Damage Effects!

Rigging Penalties

For each -1 Rigging penalty exposed in your Rigging zones, resolve your Sheer Off and Evade attempts as if you had played one fewer card than you actually did.

Example: If you have one -1 Rigging penalty and you perform a 2-card straight flush to Evade, resolve it as if only one card had been played, and thus Evade only 1 point of damage.

Hand Penalties

For each -1 Hand penalty exposed on your Main Deck, treat your hand limit as being one lower. (You may exceed your hand limit at any time except at the end of Stage 3, when you must discard down to your hand limit.)

Cannon Penalties (during Firing)

For each -1 Cannon penalty exposed in the Deck attached to the cannon that is firing, subtract 1 from the damage of your attack (Step 3 of Firing).

An exposed no-firing symbol on a Deck means that the cannon attached to that deck may not fire.

Cannon Penalties (during Broadsides)

For each -1 Cannon penalty exposed on your Decks, resolve your Broadside attempts as if you had played one fewer card than you actually did.

An exposed no-firing symbol on a Deck means that shot discs loaded into that Deck's cannon may not be used as part of a Broadside. (This will also affect how many cards you are permitted to spend in your flush.)

Losing your Captain and First Mate

If you lose both your Captain and your First Mate, your foe wins the game immediately.

Sinking

If your Hull zones are ever missing 10 or more Planks in total at once, your ship sinks and your foe wins the game immediately.

Disasters

If a zone of your Hull is ever reduced to zero Planks, it causes a Disaster. Flip over the Disaster token in that Hull zone to discover what the additional effect will be. There are three different Disaster tokens.

• Rigging Falls! (3x) — Lose 3 Sails of your choice.
• Deck Collapses! (3x) — Lose 3 Crewmen of your choice.
• Hull Shatters! (2x) — Lose 2 Planks of your choice.

Damage taken from Disasters may trigger further Damage Effects including other Disasters. Remove Disaster tokens from the game after resolving them. Each Hull zone can experience only one Disaster per game even if Planks are somehow returned later and then reduced to zero again.

Player Reference for Stage 2: Firing

Resolve these steps in order.

1. Determine Potential Damage: count the number of markers remaining in that zone.
2. Spend Shot: pick one shot from the firing cannon and return it to the bag.
3. Check for Cannon Penalties: subtract the indicated amount from the damage track.
4. Check Target Cards: one at a time, resolve all of the firing cannon's Target cards.
5. Foe Gets Evade Option: your foe may reduce the attack's damage by Evading.
6. Apply Damage to Zone: resolve the damage by removing that number of markers from the targeted zone.
7. Zero In: as explained on page 4.