The Summer of Plunder is upon us; that annual circus of chaos and gaming glory. This year my focus is staying local, running a series of scenario games at my friendly gaming spot – Lazarus Games, in Harrisburg, PA.
I plan to make those scenarios available here on the blog, for those who would like to play along.
To kick off, I ran a scenario that I’ve taken to HMGS conventions in the past; “The Last Gentleman Pirate – the Battle of Cape Fear, 1718”. All that mouthful is to say:
Stede Bonnet’s Last Stand
Historical Background
In September of 1718, Stede Bonnet steered his sloop The Royal James into the Cape Fear River. There, he hoped to weather the coming storms, both literally and figuratively. Literally, in the sense that hurricane season was brewing in the Caribbean, a time when most colonial pirates turned Northward. Figuratively, because Woodes Rogers had just crossed the Atlantic with a fleet of British warships and a mission to eradicate piracy in the colonies.
North Carolina made a perfect hiding place to wait out the storm. The tangle of estuaries and coastal inlets provided several hiding places where a captain might careen his ship and divide the plunder amongst his crew. The shallow waters and treacherous sandbars made the coastal hideaways inaccessible to the large warships sailing with Rogers. Moreover, North Carolina’s small, struggling capital town of Bath was friendly to pirates. Governor Eden had a sweet tooth; once accepting a case of “sweetmeats” (candies) along with pounds of sugar and casks of molasses for rum, from Blackbeard himself. Eden had granted Bonnet the royal pardon extended to all pirates by King George, despite the fact that the pardon could not be applied to Stede’s actions as part of Blackbeard’s fleet at the blockade of Charles Town, South Carolina in May of that same year. The two captured sloops in tow (Francis and Fortune) as Bonnet entered the Cape Fear in September, were evidence of his disregard for the Pardon’s actual terms.
If Eden was a soft man, then Governor Robert Johnson of South Carolina was a hammer. Since the siege by the “Arch Pirate Blackbeard” as Johnson called him – the governor had kept an ear out for news of pirates in the region. When word reached him that Stede Bonnet was in the waters just a few days’ sail away, Johnson authorized Col. William Rhett to raise two crews of local volunteers to pursue him. With 130 men aboard two sloops, Rhett sailed for the Cape Fear. After a brief detour to pursue Charles Vane, Rhett entered the Cape Fear River after nightfall on the 26th of September.
Bonnet sighted the arriving sloops and – thinking them merchants – sent longboats to meet them. Upon discovering that the sloops were in fact pirate-hunters, the longboats turned back and informed their captain.
Bonnet now faced with a hard choice; he could either flee upriver, disbanding the crew ashore and try to blend into the local populace. While the crew might survive, Bonnet himself was too well-known, and would no doubt have been arrested at the first town he came to; an ignoble end for the Gentleman Pirate. Or, he could turn and fight. It would be a hard fight, but if the pirate vessels had a shallower draft, they might be able to outmaneuver the heavily-laden British ships over the sandbars and shoals, and make a break for the freedom of the Atlantic. No doubt, Bonnet pondered his choice into the small hours of the morning.
At dawn, Stede’s crew of 45 Pirates and a few pressed men from their prizes, set sail aboard the 3 sloops. Bonnet’s flagship was his own Royal James, with the captured Francis and Fortune alongside. They approached Rhett aboard the Henry, and his escort the Sea Nymph. As the ships closed the distance, Bonnet took to the deck with a pistol in each hand, threatening to shoot the first man who showed any sign of cowardice in the fight to come…
The Scenario
Stede Bonnet aboard the Royal James, along with Fortune and Francis attempt to make a daring escape past Col. William Rhett aboard the Henry, and it’s consort Sea Nymph which are blockading the shallow Cape Fear River.
Set Up:
4×6 (or larger) table.
The whole board is considered to be Shoal Terrain (Core, pg.59). The two long edges are Impassable. The table cannot scroll from any Impassable edge, or from the Attacker’s board edge.
Additional islands may be deployed at the players’ discretion.
The wind blows from the Defender’s board edge.
Scenario Rules
Low Tide – In the shallow Cape Fear, the low tide applies a modifier to any ship Draft Test. At the beginning of the game, this modifier is +5. Every turn, the modifier decreases by -1 (to a minimum of 0, on turn 6) as the tide comes in. Only apply Strike Points for Immobilized Flagships.
Tide Over (Raise the Black, pg.163) – The Defender’s board edge becomes the Tide Edge. If a ship would Drift, it will drift towards the Tide Edge, regardless of Wind Direction.
Optional: Leaders of Men (Raise the Black, pg.165) – both players may include any commander legal for their force at zero cost.
Optional: No Quarter (Core Rules, pg.128) – both players ignore Strike Points
Deployment
The Defender chooses one of the short board edges to deploy from, and sets up their ships within 6″ of the edge.
The Attacker sets up anywhere at least 24″ away from the defender, and cannot deploy Sailing Large.
Objective
- Defender wins immediately if any Defender ship carrying Stede Bonnet would sail off the Attacker’s board edge.
- Attacker wins immediately if Stede Bonnet is removed as casualty
- Attacker gains a Strike Point if any Defender ship carrying Stede Bonnet is upwind of all Attacker ships at the start of any turn.
Game Length – The game lasts 8 turns
Historical / Recommended Forces
Defender: 3x
Golden Age Pirates: Grapeshot
- Standard Untested Pirate Commander & 4 Roundsmen
exchange Brace of Pistols for Buccaneer Guns (gain Ball & Shot) - 5 Jamaican Privateers
- 8 Pirates
- Balandra
3 pairs of Light Guns
The Pirate commander may add the following characters to their ships:
- Maj. Stede Bonnet – The Royal James
- George Ross (Master Gunner) – The Royal James
- Cpt. Peter Manwareing / Cpt. Thomas Read (Captured Merchant) – The Royal James
- Ignatius Pell (Boatswain) – any
- David Herriot (Sailing Master) – any
- Robert Tucker (Scheming Quartermaster) – any
Attacker: 2x
British Militia: Pirate Hunters
- Standard Untested British Commander & 5 Able Seamen
Exchange Brace of Pistols for Firelock Muskets, add Pistol Sidearms - 6 Provincials
- 8 Sea Dogs
Downgrade to only Standard Melee Weapons - Bermuda Sloop
3 Pairs of Light Cannons, Reinforced Bulkheads
The British player may add Colonel William Rhett aboard The Henry at no additional cost.
The Historical Outcome
Historically, this was almost the end for Stede. The Gentleman Pirate steered The Royal James too close to the western bank of the river and ran aground on the sandy bottom. Against him, Rhett’s Henry also ran aground. The ships settled such that Bonnet’s deck was tilted away, providing cover to the pirates – while Rhett’s deck was angled towards them, leaving the British exposed.
The battle raged for hours, as both sides exchanged small-arms fire and attempted to refloat their ships. Being further downstream, the tide worked on the Henry first, helping to float Rhett’s ship. Moving around between Stede and shore, the Henry brought her broadside guns to bear against Bonnet’s deck, turning the tables decisively. After a few more moments, the fighting came to a close. Stede had ordered his gunner, George Ross, to fire the magazine in order to avoid capture. Less dramatic heads prevailed however, and George was stopped by other members of the crew. The survivors were captured.
But this was not quite the end for the Gentleman Pirate, yet. Ashore, Stede, along with his sailing master David Herriot, managed to escape from where they were held at the home of Town Marshall, Nathanial Partridge. For some reason, bosun Ignatius Pell was left behind – causing the long-suffering man to turn witness for the prosecution (King’s Evidence)
Bonnet’s escape was short-lived, as he only made it to Sullivan’s Island, in Charles Town Harbor. Governor Johnson sent Rhett against him once again, and Bonnet was recaptured after a brief skirmish just a few days later (Port Royal game, anyone?)
Incredibly, the documentation of Stede’s trial is held by the US Library of Congress, and they have seen fit to upload it to their database. If you’d like to read it for free, you can find it on their website, both to read on screen or to download in pdf form. It is an interesting document, to be sure. Pirates were certainly a complicated group of fellows – gentlemen or otherwise.
As A Convention Game
This scenario makes for an excellent Convention Game with 5 players. The provided lists are designed to be simple, and easy to understand even for new players. I recommend using the “Simultaneous Activation in Army Scale” method of activating, from the Big Game article.
In a multiplayer game, both sides should start with 5 Fortune.
Be sure to remind the players that 100% of the ships which took part in this engagement ran aground at some point during the battle. It is not a question of if your ship will run aground, but when. Fortunately, the recommended ships are all Simple Rig and can change sail setting as a Standard Action, making it slightly less painful. Shallow Draft also makes it less likely that the ships will run aground altogether.
The tactical debate for the British players is always whether they should play “goal line defense” or if they should try to rush for Bonnet’s ship. The former affords them more control of the board and more chances to shoot at or even rake the approaching pirates – however it gives them very little time to react if Bonnet does slip through their net. In contrast, charging headlong for The Royal James requires sailing upwind, and there is always the risk of a ship running aground and providing a gap for the pirates to escape.
The Pirate players on the other side are tasked with only Stede’s survival. However, I like to incentivize the Pirates to all get their ships off the table. With incentive, they think a bit more like Pirates – they might outnumber the British, but they are individually outclassed. A British ship catching a pirate alone is a surefire trip to the gallows. Do they really like Stede that much?
A Parting Shot
This scenario is always a wild game to play with multiple players, and is handy because none of the historical forces require more than a starter box worth of minis. The follow-up scenarios will be a little more involved; Perico Bay 1680, a massive Great Swamp Fight variation, and a Wreck Recovery game. Stay tuned!