Plunder

A game of Elizabethan strategy. The year is 1587 and Spain is preparing a massive Armada. To finance this enormous fleet, the Spaniards are running gold from the American continent back to Spain. Your task is to patrol the seas and prevent the gold reaching Spain in the time allocated.

Ferocious sea battles are enacted. After each salvo, damage and casualty reports are shown so that you may decide to re-engage the enemy or retreat. If you win, you will need the gold you plunder to pay for the damage to your ship and shanghai more crew.

You are determined to be more successful than your hated rival Sir Francis Drake. There are three levels of difficulty and two types of game.

Object Of The Game

You are the captain of a British galleon. You have been commisioned by Her Majesty to stop the Spaniards running gold from the New Lands to Spain. To earn a knighthood you must achieve one of the following:

Gold pieces stopped Short Game Level 1 20,000 (60 turns) Level 2 40,000 Level 3 60,000

Long Game Level 1 40,000 (120 turns) Level 2 60,000 Level 3 120,000

Information Available

A high resolution chart of the Atlantic Ocean is displayed showing your position. Continuous reports showing:

1. Gold St
   Number of gold pieces stopped
2. Turns
   Number of turns elapsed
3. Gold
   Number of gold pieces on board
4. Weather
   Weather conditions in the area of your ship
5. Morale
   Number of victories. This factor will affect the morale of your crew and their fighting effectiveness.
6. Weaponry
   The number of cannons operational. Note: Maximum number allowed is 30.
7. Men
   Number of men on board. Note: Maximum number allowed is 400.
8. Ships
   A measure of the soundness of the ship.
9. Can'Lost
   Number of cannons destroyed in last attack.
10. Men Lost
    Number of men lost in last attack.
11. D.P. Lost
    Number of Damage Points lost in last attack.

Decisions Required

1. When to attack or not.
2. Whether to fire cannons or go alongside and board the enemy vessel. (If the enemy is too damaged, the enemy will sink and the gold will be lost!)
3. When to return to a port to make repairs and replenish the crew.
4. Whether to explore uncharted islands or abandoned ships.
5. Whether to trade in the bazaars of the port.

Playing The Game

When the game starts, you are in command of a ship which appears on a high resolution map of the west of Europe, the Atlantic, northwest Africa and the east coast of America. Through use of the cursor movement keys, your ship is manoeuvred about the map. What the weather is like determines how easy it is to find the Spaniards. When one is found though (and there are four types of ships) the lookout informs you that one has been spotted. You are then given the option of attacking/retreating and then firing/boarding. If you decide to attack, a graphic display of your choice of combat is then enacted. The fight is conducted over a number of rounds. At the end of each, a result of the action is shown.

Dotted around the map are seven ports marked in red. On entering the location of a port, a graphical representation of the harbour is displayed. The player must then manoeuvre his ship through the other ships in the harbour and land against the dock. At the dockside is a marketplace where various services/goods can be purchased. The various prices are all set up at the start of the game, and vary from port to port. Trading goods from one port to another is one way of obtaining gold to finance repairs.

Hints On Play

If your ship has less than eleven Damage Points left, it will sink. If your crew falls below 20 then the crew will lose control of the ship, and the ship will sink. Spanish ships are easier to find when the weather is calm or mild, then when the seas are stormy.

Spanish warships have more firepower than galleons or merchant ships or troop ships. Avoid engaging in the early stages of the game.

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