*
Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
March 29, 2024, 11:03:31 AM

Login with username, password and session length

Donate

We Appreciate Your Support

Recent

Author Topic: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700  (Read 4816 times)

Offline Patrice

  • Mastermind
  • Posts: 1769
  • Breizh / Brittany
    • "Argad!"
Some pics of a privateers and pirate game we played last Saturday at "Festival Scorfel" in Lannion (Brittany, France).
The context was c.1700 in Saint-Domingue (in the west part of Hispaniola that became French in 1697).



Um, it's not really an AAR, just a few pics and explanation, because all the mysteries were not resolved in this game, there will be another game to follow, and some players have found infos that others still do not know; so I cannot explain full details online.

In a previous game (actually played a few years ago, but still in our memories)…
http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=34623.msg406613#msg406613
…Monsieur de Kertheiz, an officer of Compagnie Franche de la Marine (Marines), and Monsieur Le Hir de Lostbraz, a privateer captain, did save the life of a young man that the British wanted to hang as a spy.

At the beginning of our game, Monsieur Biennofont, the father of this young man, invites them both to a party to thank them. He lives in his plantation in Saint-Domingue:





Some other people, who live in a nearby village, have also been invited: a priest; a doctor; the garrison officer, François du Breuil (lieutenant of a "compagnie détachée de la Marine") who brought with him Monsieur Becquefleur a merchant recently arrived. At the plantation they meet Monsieur Biennofont, his son Aymé (who was saved from hanging in the other game), his daughter Honorée, and their cousin Mademoiselle Clotirisse de Toulvarère (a well-known female NPC in our games…)



Monsieur Biennofont makes a little speech, then everyone eats and drinks. Some of the newcomers can see that a Black maid looks at them with curiosity.

The roles :
Nicolas: Becquefleur, merchant; and lieutenant du Breuil officer of a "compagnie détachée de la Marine" in garrison (he plays both roles as these two characters have become very friend while drinking at the local inn).
Ehouarn: Lostbraz a privateer captain.
Laurent: Kertheiz, officer of a "Compagnie Franche de la Marine".
Marianne: Black maids.

Monsieur de Lostbraz asks Mademoiselle Clotirisse to visit the plantation; she is happy to say yes, wishing some different distractions than what she could get with her cousin Honorée. Monsieur Becquefleur tries to accompany them, but Lostbraz refuses and ousts him away. Some time later, Monsieur de Lostbraz and Mademoiselle Clotirisse have an enjoyable moment (but very short: two red hearts mean only two game turns) behind the indigo basins.



Everything looks calm in the village of Saint-Yves:



Monsieur de Kertheiz has chosen the best room at the inn (first floor). Monsieur Becquefleur, the merchant, has very recently bought the plank house with a grey roof; he is told that the previous owner has been assassinated, and slaves say that three days later his ghost came to make noise in the house.



Kertheiz notices that the garrison has a very low morale: lieutenant du Breuil spends his time drinking at the inn, and the soldiers are ill-disciplined; only their sergeant appears serious.

Kertheiz neatly drills his men near the small bastion to shame the local garrison:



A small boat from the nearby Spanish colonies coasts, the San Guacamole de la Constipación, comes from time to time to trade; his crew sells barrels of rhum "that have been forgotten by a ship sailing to Spain", or silver tableware "that did fall from a ship", etc…  Some villagers and Monsieur Becquefleur come running. Lieutenant du Breuil shuts his eyes: he has free meals at the inn.



After talking with a Black maid at the plantation, Lostbraz and some of his men go to the Grande Morne (a large hill) and bring food to some marooned slaves…



…who give them permission to cross their hill without a fight, but refuse to join them.



The two Marine officers are now in very bad terms. Du Breuil puts his own (NPC) sergeant under arrest in the bastion. Kertheiz's men continue to walk and drill near it.



Then Kertheiz leads his men to the hill near the village and begins to build gabions and stockades.
Du Breuil comes out of his bastion and sits at the inn… and finds himself surrounded by four soldiers of Kertheiz who have orders to arrest him. But he resists, takes his pistol and speaks so loud that the whole village gathers to look at the event. Kertheiz decides not to insist.

Then a group of NPC newcomers enters the table and run towards the village. They shout in English!



Um, and then it went very fast, and I've no more pictures (yet?). The English pirates were welcomed with heavy and unexpected fire from the hill that Kertheiz's men had just fortified; they ran in the village and searched a house, then they had to withdraw with heavy casualties. At the same time, the whole crew of Lostbraz broke into the inn, seized the innkeeper and his wife (shouting aloud: "where are the jewels?") and ran away taking these two persons with them by force. Kertheiz and his men tried to run after them but were not fast enough. Game end. Players are told that a few days later: the garrison sergeant disappears; the villagers send a complaint to the Governor about Lostbraz behaviour; merchants report that the British in Jamaica are bloody furious and say that a small raid of their privateers, who were sent to catch and punish a jacobite spy and traitor, was met by a full-scale French ambush, and they want a big revenge…

Mystery solved in next game?
« Last Edit: October 07, 2015, 07:41:27 AM by Patrice »

Offline AdamPHayes

  • Mad Scientist
  • Posts: 600
    • Wargame Warrior
Re: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700
« Reply #1 on: October 02, 2015, 04:35:44 PM »
That looks like great fun!

Offline von Lucky

  • Galactic Brain
  • Posts: 8796
  • Melbourne, Australia
    • Donner und Blitzen Wargaming
Re: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700
« Reply #2 on: October 03, 2015, 12:06:34 AM »
Agree. Love the shark.
- Karsten

"Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality."
- Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

Blog: Donner und Blitzen

Offline Captain_Hook

  • Bookworm
  • Posts: 67
Re: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700
« Reply #3 on: October 06, 2015, 11:20:06 PM »
Looks great! What rule sets are you using. I'm on a quest to find  decent set of rules.

Offline FramFramson

  • Elder God
  • Posts: 10681
  • But maybe everything that dies, someday comes back
Re: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700
« Reply #4 on: October 07, 2015, 03:23:38 AM »
Great story leading up to the fight too.


I joined my gun with pirate swords, and sailed the seas of cyberspace.

Offline Patrice

  • Mastermind
  • Posts: 1769
  • Breizh / Brittany
    • "Argad!"
Re: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700
« Reply #5 on: October 09, 2015, 11:19:12 PM »
Thanks guys  :)

Looks great! What rule sets are you using. I'm on a quest to find  decent set of rules.

« Argad ! » my own ruleset (always free and always unfinished) it's a toolbox if you want a simple movement and fast combat system for RPG-minded adventures (run by a game-master who does all the work, and that means you). :D

Great story leading up to the fight too.

Um, yes  ;) but the story is not finished yet (and I still must imagine a few more details before the next game...)

Offline Marine0846

  • Supporting Adventurer
  • Galactic Brain
  • *
  • Posts: 6608
Re: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700
« Reply #6 on: October 11, 2015, 12:32:11 AM »
A game period you don't see much.
Great story, look forward to seeing what happens next.
Semper Fi, Mac

Offline Momotaro

  • Mastermind
  • Posts: 1320
Re: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700
« Reply #7 on: October 12, 2015, 05:30:47 PM »
Looks like a splendid game!  I love the shark too!

Offline Gibby

  • Scatterbrained Genius
  • Posts: 2352
Re: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700
« Reply #8 on: October 12, 2015, 05:46:24 PM »
Very cool! Love the good old Golden Age of Piracy. What make are the soldiers? They look ideal for the era.

Offline Patrice

  • Mastermind
  • Posts: 1769
  • Breizh / Brittany
    • "Argad!"
Re: Pictures of a privateers and pirates game, Saint-Domingue c. 1700
« Reply #9 on: October 15, 2015, 04:29:50 PM »
What make are the soldiers? They look ideal for the era.

The soldiers in white uniform are Front Rank (other miniatures were a mix of Foundry, Old Glory, etc)
« Last Edit: October 15, 2015, 04:51:24 PM by Patrice »

 

Related Topics

  Subject / Started by Replies Last post
18 Replies
4489 Views
Last post May 24, 2008, 01:02:43 AM
by carlos marighela
9 Replies
4982 Views
Last post June 25, 2008, 04:27:15 AM
by Mad Doc Morris
12 Replies
8243 Views
Last post May 07, 2010, 05:58:57 AM
by Cacique Caribe
29 Replies
7082 Views
Last post September 16, 2011, 09:54:18 AM
by Melnibonean
5 Replies
2529 Views
Last post September 28, 2015, 11:01:02 PM
by Patrice