User Guide

you defeat a top ten pirate in battle, he immediately falls to the bot-
tom of the list.
Pirate Havens
Pirate Havens are small temporary settlements scattered in out-of-
the-way corners of the Caribbean. Like other settlements, you can
get ships repaired and buy or sell goods (though pirate merchants
usually don’t have much to sell, or much money to buy your goods).
You can go to the tavern to collect gossip and perhaps acquire a spe-
cial item or map fragment, and you can divide the plunder.
Visiting the Captain
Instead of a mayor or governor, pirate havens are run by a captain.
When you visit a pirate captain, he may offer to attack a nearby city
for you. The pirate attack may reduce the city’s defences - making it
easier for you to conquer later on - or perhaps even capture and sack
the city. This offer is only available if you are on fairly good terms
with the pirates.
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Book Three Sid Meier’s Pirates!
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supremacy on the Top Ten Pirates list. The top ten pirates are
extremely dangerous. None of them like you much - especially if
you’ve dug up their buried treasure!
Unnamed Pirates
Unnamed Pirates originate at pirate havens. They act about as one
would expect pirates to - they attack cities or they lurk in well-trav-
elled sea lanes, seeking unarmed prey. At the start of the game they
are neutral to you and will leave you alone pretty much (unless you’re
a particularly juicy target, of course). If you begin attacking them,
they’ll become hostile and react accordingly when they see you.
Named Pirates
There are nine named pirates in the game, each representing an actu-
al historical pirate. They are listed on the Top Ten Pirates list, avail-
able in your information screens. All of these villains are dangerous,
and the ones at the top of the list extremely so. See the Pirateopedia
for details on each of the Top Ten Pirates.
Each Top Ten Pirate sails out of a specific pirate haven; you can find
them cruising the waters around their haven or in the haven itself.
Top Ten Pirates attack just about anything that moves.
Arms and Armament
The top ten pirates usually sail around in captured warships _ any-
thing from a sloop of war to a frigate. Their vessels tend to be loaded
with upgrades and carry a full compliment of crew. The crew’s morale
is usually very high.
If you face a Top Ten Pirate in a duel, you can assume that he’ll have
one or more special dueling maneuvers at his disposal.
You would be well-advised to wait until you have upgraded your ship
and acquired a number of combat-related special items before chal-
lenging one of these super-villains.
The Top Ten Pirates List
The Top Ten Pirates list can be found in the information screen or by
hitting F7. At the start of the game your name is at the bottom of the
list; as you gain fame and fortune you’ll move up.
One of your game objectives is to reach the top of the list before you
retire. Doing so requires the utmost effort _ plus a good deal of luck.
There is one extremely dangerous shortcut available to you: when
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