In the turbulent waters of the Caribbean, fortune often favored the bold. In the “Dueling Convoys” scenario, two merchant fleets find themselves on a collision course along the Jamaican shipping lanes. Both crews are thirsty for the easy profits of seizing the other’s precious cargo. The Captains must make decisions that may put their own fleet at risk, in hopes of gaining even more profits in this high-stakes game of naval strategy and piracy.
“Dueling Convoys” Scenario Details
The “Dueling Convoys” scenario thrusts players into the heart of a sudden and unexpected naval engagement between two merchant fleets. Each fleet will be carrying a variety of cargo types like Rum, Sugar, Payroll or Weaponry. Each cargo type has its own set of advantages and risks.
Capturing enemy cargo becomes vital, with Strike Points at stake for each ship taken. There are also 3 Optional Rules available, allowing you to further customize the game. The scenario spans 10 turns, with the primary goal being to capture as many enemy Merchant Cargo Tokens as possible.
SETUP:
- Do not use the standard game setup rules; instead, use the setup and deployment rules as outlined below.
- Each player may select a single piece of terrain from the terrain pool of any type (rocks, shoals, or islands).
- Neither player gets a Conditions card (blue cards like Advanced Intelligence, Local Pilot, etc.).
- May play any Point Value game, 50-100 pts recommended.
- Two ships in each player’s force must select 1 of the following cargo types and assign them to any two of their ships. Place an Objective Marker on each ship that has Merchant Cargo onboard.
Merchant Cargo Options Table
| Cargo Type | Effects |
|---|---|
| Rum | Once per game, this ship may remove 1 Fatigue, but gets a -1 Die on all Skill Tests for the rest of the game. |
| Sugar | The ship gets the Merchants Ship Upgrade card automatically (may still take 2 other upgrade cards). Once per game, it may remove 1 Fatigue. |
| Fine Goods | The Ship gains a free Brilliant Captain, but because of its fragile cargo, it has a Max Fatigue & Damage of 6 instead of 7. It may not take Additional Crew or Stout. |
| Common Trade Goods | No effect |
| Payroll | This ship gains the Marines upgrade card for free. If this ship is Captured it inflicts 1 additional Strike Point. |
| Tobacco | This ship gains the Skill 1 Upgrade for Free, but If 2 or more (Skull) results are rolled when hit by a Broadside Attack, this ship takes 1 extra point of damage in addition to any other damage or effects from the Attack. |
| Foodstuffs & Supplies | After creating an Initiative hand, add the “Double Rations” Initiative card to your hand. Valuable: If this ship is Captured or Out of Action, the controlling Force gains an extra Strike Point. May not be taken on a Ship of the Line, Frigate, or Flagship. |
| Slaves | After creating an Initiative hand, add the “Double Rations” Initiative card to your hand. Valuable: If this ship is Captured or Out of Action, the controlling Force gains an extra Strike Point. May not be taken on a Ship of the Line, Frigate, or Flagship. |
| Heavy Weapons | The ship gains the Additional Guns upgrade for free, but may not increase its Speed Rating beyond its printed values for any reason |
SCENARIO RULES:
- Ships may be Captured or recaptured (e.g. freed) per the standard core rules on pg 23.
- Any ship that escapes off the longest edge of the board opposite its own deployment zone is “safe” and counts as “active” when counting the ship total when Checking for Withdrawal (pg 23). If the ship was Crippled before escaping, the player still suffers 1 Strike Point.
- Merchant Cargo:
- If a ship becomes Out of Action, and Objective Tokens aboard are permanently lost and removed from the game.
- Tokens on Captured Ships may be transferred to other ships using an Action.
- A ship (and its Landing Party) may carry a number of Objective Tokens equal to the ship’s Fortitude. (e.g. a Light Galleon with a Fortitude 3 may carry 3 Objective tokens).
DEPLOYMENT:
- The Defender deploys with the Larboard deployment card.
- The Attacker deploys anywhere on the opposite half of the board and may not place any of their ships within Cannon Shot of an opposing ship.
OPTIONAL RULES:
- Smugglers: Any ship may take the Swift upgrade even if it’s not available on the standard stat card. If the ship does not have access to the upgrade, its cost is equal to the ship’s Fortitude -1 (minimum 1 Pt).
- Aim Above the Water Line: The narrative goal is to capture the ships rather than sink them. Players may optionally ignore the results of any Critical Hits from damage. The Attacker must declare the intention BEFORE the attack roll is made (or declared indefinitely for the course of the game).
- Preserve the Prize: Any enemy ship that sinks while containing a Merchant Cargo aboard inflicts a Strike Point on the attacker for each Objective Token lost. The Strike Point is applied to the attacking ship, rather than the target ship’s owner. This is a penalty for losing the prize ship, as it leads to a waste of resources and makes the fight for naught.
GAME LENGTH:
10 Turns
OBJECTIVES:
- Capture as many enemy Merchant Cargo Tokens as possible.
- The game ends when one player has twice as many Strike Points as they have available ships and Merchant Cargo tokens. (e.g. 2 ships + 1 Merchant Cargo token must take 6 Strike Points to withdraw).
Product Referral Links
This scenario focuses on using several optional rules, many of which pull from the cards available in the Expansion Deck Vol 1. for Oak & Iron. If you haven’t purchased this expansion option for the game, consider supporting us by using our Firelock Games affiliate link to make your purchase. We get a small percentage of sales for any product sale from our site.
The deck includes:
- 21 Admiral Cards
- 3 Initiative Cards
- 26 Ship Upgrade Cards
For more info on this deck, check out this article: Oak & Iron Expansion Deck Vol 1 – What’s in It? Is It Worth Buying?
You can also get the digital downloadable PDF version for $9.