More Hebridean Piracy

Our club has gone Viking ship crazy at the moment, with lots of them being painted for the game Fjord Serpents. So this kind of influenced my decision as to what Galleys & Galleons game to host last night. Hebridean birlinns are kind of a successor to the classic Viking vessel, so with three of us scheduled to play I went with my three-player scenario in which two Hebridean lairds attempt to get as much loot as possible from three passing merchant ships.

I played the merchants, Caesar took the red-sailed birlinns of Angus Redshanks and Daniel the blue-sailed vessels of the Laird of Skye.

The wind was behind the merchant vessels, which allowed Angus Redshanks to come in from their beam and left Daniel having to use sweeps to intercept them.

An opening shot from one of teh merchants did nothing to deter Redshanks' vessels.

Constant weather changes frustrated Daniel's approach; as he turned onto a faster intercept course, the wind moved with him. Maybe the other laird had employed wizardry.

One of the red-sailed ships swooped in and grappled a merchant.

Soon another merchant was grappled. Both ships put up a surprisingly decent fight ...

... but the first one quickly surrendered and Angus began the process of looting it.

The third merchant ship evaded the ships of Angus Redshanks, but now had to run through the Laird of Skye's line. 

It was grappled (top left of the picture) but before the boarders could swarm over the gunwales the merchant crew cut the grapples and sailed off, making their escape. Once more, ill-fortune dogged poor Daniel. Meanwhile Caesar was whittling down the crew of the second merchant ship.

It struck. 

One of the red-sailed ships made a run through it past Daniel's vessels, and he failed to stop it.

Caesar quickly subdued and looted the second merchant ship, which gave him six pieces of cargo. The other three had escaped on the third ship. One of Daniel's ships pursued a Redshanks ship with a single piece of cargo. There was much exchange of small-arms.

Daniel managed to board ...

... and the Redshanks vessels struck.

So the game ended with six pieces of cargo captured. Caesar got five of them, whilst Daniel got one. The merchants escaped with three.

To be fair Daniel was extremely unlucky with wind-changes, activation rolls and even the initiative order once or twice. It was just one of those games.

Still, it was a fun three-player game; always a difficult setup to cater for.