Islands of the Caribbean: Factions of the West Indies: Spoiler: New Spain One of the largest empires on Earth, and by far the richest, Spain has a massive colonial empire in the Americas, with rich colonies like Mexico, Puerto Rico and Cuba sending fleets filled with treasure back to the mainland. Despite these advantages, Spain is in a period of decline - the massive amount of gold and silver it produces has led to rampant piracy, and the strain of controlling such vast territories means that corruption is incredibly common. Signature Character: Helena Marquez - Conquistador Spoiler: Kingdom of England England is a small nation, but it has a sizeable colonial empire in the Americas. The Thirteen Colonies, Jamaica and the Bahamas are all English possessions. Currently, England is at war with the French. Signature Character: Oliver Northcutt - Former Pirate and Governor of St Kitts Spoiler: Kingdom of France France, ruled by the warlike and perverted Louis XIV, the Sun King, is currently fighting a war against most of Europe. Since French resources are strained, the French in the Americas, in their colonies like Quebec, Louisiana, Martinique and Haiti, largely outsource the war to pirates and privateers. Though most of Europe is at war with France, in the Americas they're mostly only fighting England. Signature Character: Madame Le Montalban - Royal mistress and True Ruler of Tortuga Spoiler: The Dutch Republic The United Provinces, or Dutch Republic, is a small European nation with a massively oversized colonial trading empire. Dutch trading ships sail across the entire world, bringing massive wealth back to Europe. Signature Character: Dietmold Van Ruyter - Wealthy Merchant Spoiler: Pirates and Privateers With a colossal war currently raging in Europe, none of the major powers have been adequately able to maintain law and order in the colonies - indeed, many of them pay scoundrels and ruffians to do their dirty work for them. It's the golden age of piracy, with more captains than can be counted and whole cities acting as havens for any pirate who seeks safety, pleasure and a place to sell stolen goods. Signature Character: Arnold Pointer - Retired Pirate/Advisor Spoiler: Natives The Taino, Caribs, Aztecs, Mayas and other peoples that originally populated the West Indies have been decimated by disease and colonisation, but they still exist. Mistrustful of outsiders, the native peoples could prove to be valuable allies to pirates, or dangerous foes. Signature Character - La Bruja Mestiza Ship Classes: Regular Ships: Spoiler: Sloop A sleek, fast ship often used for raiding by pirates, with an impressive top speed and a decent sized hold for carrying cargo. The low crew and gun count makes a proper battle against a warship effectively suicide, but on the other side of that coin, a properly armed warship would have trouble catching up to something as fast as a sloop. Max Speed: 150 Max HP: 300 Min Crew: 20 Max Crew: 100 Max Guns: 12 Max Hold Capacity: 300 Spoiler: Brig A very popular pirate vessel, the Brig is a "Jack of all-trades" ship. It has good speed, a decent crew capacity and does well in a fight - though it would struggle against true warships. All in all, the prospect of crossing a pirate brig is a terrifying thought for most merchants. Max Speed: 120 Max HP: 500 Min Crew: 50 Max Crew: 170 Max Guns: 20 Max Hold Capacity: 250 Fear Rating (Combined with your captain's reputation, determines the chance that an enemy will simply give up rather than fight you): 1 Spoiler: Fluyt A Dutch-designed vessel, the Fluyt is the king of merchant ships. With an unparalleled hold size, Fluyts are used to carry cargo across the world, and are decently fast for their size. Unfortunately, the drawback to this is that they have minimal combat capacity. Max Speed: 100 Max HP: 500 Min Crew: 110 Max Crew: 250 Max Guns: 10 Max Hold Size: 1500 Spoiler: Slaver A ship once used for hauling human cargo across the Atlantic. Slave ships are merchant vessels like the Fluyt, but they sacrifice some of the vaunted hold size for combat ability. Many sailors fear them - stories abound that such ships are haunted by the spirits of the multitudes that have died aboard. Max Speed: 100 Max HP: 750 Min Crew: 110 Max Crew: 250 Max Guns: 25 Max Hold Space: 800 Fear Rating: 1 Equipment +1 Ships: Spoiler: Caravel Spoiler: Caravel The ships that first brought Europeans to America, Caravels are an old design, and probably at the end of their lifespan, but there's a reason they continue to be used after centuries. They're rugged enough to survive journeys of exploration, pack good firepower and carry enough space in the hold for trade. Max Speed: 100 Max HP: 1200 Min Crew: 150 Max Crew: 350 Max Guns: 30 Max Hold Space: 1000 Fear Rating: 1 Spoiler: Ship of the Line Spoiler: Ship of the Line Bristling with guns and men, a ship of the line is a modern design, made for war. Fast and powerful, the ship of the line is, put simply, a killing machine. Max Speed: 110 Max HP: 1000 Min Crew: 300 Max Crew: 600 Max Guns: 50 Max Hold Space: 500 Fear Rating: 3 Spoiler: Galleon An old Spanish design, the war galleon is the most heavily gunned ship that sails upon the seas of the West Indies. Slow, but filled to the brim with guns and men, the galleon's strategy is simple: Outlast and outgun anyone stupid enough to not run away. Max Speed: 80 Max HP: 2000 Min Crew: 500 Max Crew: 1000 Max Guns: 100 Max Hold Space: 750 Fear Rating: 5
