By Joseph Forster We're all patiently waiting for the Piratey goodness of Raise the Black to be delivered, but lo, out of nowhere, Firelock has announced a new book with a small line of new models! Huzzah! Blood & Plunder: Fire on the Frontier was announced on November 5th. New products include a new book, … Continue reading Fire on the Frontier Preview I
By Joseph Forster Terrain is a big part of Blood & Plunder, both to make game play interesting and to make your tables look good. 4Ground Publishing makes a lot of great stuff that works for Blood & Plunder and today we're looking at a set of 3 buildings that can be a great place … Continue reading 4Ground Terrain – Town Bundle 1
By Joseph Forster In my preparation for Raise the Black to be finished and delivered, I've been picking up some new terrain pieces to fill out my North American. In my web searches for 28mm terrain, I ran across the Acheson Creations website and I was pleasantly surprised by the range and focus of their … Continue reading Product Review – Acheson Log Cabin Ruin
By Joseph Forster Time for a quick battle report! This battle pitted my North American English Militia against Bryan's French Caribbean Militia in the Raid scenario. The Forces I played a 200 point North American English Militia force led by Samuel Mosely. The force ability for the North American English Militia faction is getting an … Continue reading Battle Report: North American English Militia vs. French Caribbean Militia
Global Campaign 2021: Summer of Plunder The Grand Prize Winner By Guy Rheuark In all its glory, here is the Prize Sloop, with custom flags of the winning nation: The Pirates. For the Jolly Roger ensign I used a variation of Calico Jack's standard, as it is my favorite, fun to paint, and pleasing from … Continue reading The 2021 Global Campaign Grand Prize
Campaign Newsletter 18th of September, 1690 World Campaign 2021: Summer of Plunder A Pirate Victory By Guy Rheuark After a three month campaign, the Brethren of the Coast managed to eke out a win by only two games. This campaign was close to the very end, with us receiving 17 entries on the last … Continue reading Final 2021 Campaign Newsletter
By Dan Carlson Ahoy there! It’s been awhile since I’ve chatted with you beautiful buccaneers! Having just finished up the last few articles for the Dutch Nationality, I figured it was time to do something hobby-related. It’s no secret that painting miniatures can be fun, but not everybody enjoys the act of painting. I prefer … Continue reading A Painting Guide for the Buccaneer Storming Party For Those Who Do Not Enjoy Painting
By Joseph Forster The successful Raise the Black Kickstarter project was just gearing up a year ago and now we can almost see it on the horizon. It looks like the shipping date has been moved back to January so we have a bit of a wait still, but it will be worth it! While … Continue reading Buyer’s Guide for Backers of Raise the Black
The Buccaneer's Companion organized play campaign has been out for well over a year now and it's time to do a review! Guy and I played the entire thing as Spanish and English, respectively. We started it in August 2020 and finished in December so we've had a while to reflect on the experience. In … Continue reading Buccaneer’s Companion Vol. 1 Review
Hi Gregory, and thank you for giving us some of your time and participating in this interview. Please introduce yourself as a person and as “a gamer.” Hi, I go by Greg or even “P”. I was born and raised in Los Angeles California, and currently reside in Tucson, Arizona, USA. I did a 21-year … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Player Spotlight – Gregory Padilla
By Joseph Forster The Boucanieres are here! Blood & Plunder fans have been waiting for these models since No Peace Beyond the Line was published 3 years ago! This unit represents the capable wives of the French Boucaniers. The Boucanier unit has been a great unit that I've used a lot but I must confess … Continue reading Completed Boucaniere
Campaign Newsletter 26th of August, 1690 The End is Nigh World Campaign 2021: Summer of Plunder By Guy Rheuark With two and a half months behind us Spain, England, and the Brethren of the Coast are tied for first place with 36 games each. France tails by a single game and the Dutch Republic is … Continue reading Global Campaign Newsletter VII
By Joseph Forster If you like playing Blood & Plunder at sea and you like to focus on cannons, the English Royal Navy is going to be one of the best factions for you! The Royal Navy combines excellent gunnery with stout English grit and courage, making it a very deadly sea faction in Blood … Continue reading Faction Overview – English Royal Navy
Campaign Newsletter 9th of August, 1690 World Campaign 2021: Summer of Plunder Five Swords Drawn By Guy Rheuark The Spanish Governor has asked for help, and the heroes of Spain have responded. England and Spain are now tied for first, with 32 entries each. Tied for third is The Brethren of the Coast and The … Continue reading Campaign Newsletter VI
By Joseph Forster The Summer 2021 Blood & Plunder Global Community Campaign has been awesome so far! It's been great to see so many folks out there playing games, painting minis, and setting up awesome boards. There's about a month left in the campaign (end date is 9/11/21) and we still have plenty of prizes … Continue reading Two Campaign Missions – Global Campaign
By Joseph Forster I've got another peek behind the scenes into the upcoming Raise the Black expansion for Blood & Plunder and I have a new preview article for you! There will be a dedicated section in Raise the Black for new Ship Upgrades reflecting the new technology and practices in sailing, shipbuilding, and fighting … Continue reading Raise the Black Preview – New Ship Upgrades
Campaign Newsletter 26th of July, 1690 World Campaign 2021: Summer of Plunder The Anglo-Dutch Alliance During this last campaign break in newsletters, the Dutch Republic has surged forward to tie with the English. This can only mean a return of the Anglo-Dutch alliance, last seen in 1678! The Brethren of the Coast are close … Continue reading Global Campaign Newsletter V
Campaign Newsletter 12th of July, 1690 Image credit: Dexter Hiede World Campaign 2021: Summer of Plunder Hoist the Colours! By Guy Rheuark The Brethren of the Coast have swept through the campaign, and show no sign of slowing down. They are in the lead with 22 games, with England in second, and Spain and … Continue reading Global Campaign Newsletter IV
By Joseph Forster Blood & Plunder is a great game and if you're reading an article on this blog, I probably don't need to convince you of that. The core rulebook lays out the rules, provides a solid set of scenarios, and presents a selection of Spanish, English, French, and Pirate factions to play with. … Continue reading Product Review – No Peace Beyond the Line
Photo Credit: Dexter Heide World Campaign 2021: Summer of Plunder England Rules the Waves The first month of the campaign has ended, and after a tumultuous battle, England is the winner with an amazing 18 battles being played. Tied for second is both Spain and The Brethren of the Coast with 16 battles, with … Continue reading Global Campaign Newsletter III
The Spanish masonry fort in St. Augustine, Florida as long been on my list of historical sites to visit and I was finally made it! Built in the late 17th century, Castillo San Marcos helped the Spanish maintain their presence in Florida into the mid 18th century, withstanding two significant sieges, first in Queen Anne's … Continue reading Castillo San Marcos Tour
Campaign Newsletter 24th of June, 1690 World Campaign 2021: Summer of Plunder A Week of War By Guy Rheuark It has been the second week of the campaign, and the war has been truly joined. While France is in the lead, it is the narrowest of leads, with England, Spain, The Dutch Republic, and The … Continue reading Global Campaign Newsletter II
By Joseph Forster I got a chance to travel to Florida and see some of the historical Spanish locations throughout the state. First on my 3-day tour was the mission and fort at Mission San Luis in Tallahassee. Here are some pictures from my afternoon with Rufus DeVane at the San Luis Mission Park. The … Continue reading Mission San Luis Tour
By Guy Rheuark After my last experiences building 4Ground Publishing’s terrain, notably the Treadwheel Crane, I was eager to build some more. My terrain collection is mostly from Gale force 9, and my own crafted woodland terrain, and sorely lacked buildings of any sort. Luckily, 4Ground sent bloodandpigment.com some of their terrain to try out. … Continue reading 4Ground Terrain – Mediterranean Village and Scatter Terrain
Hi Paulina and thank you for giving us some of your time and participating in this interview. Please introduce yourself as a person and as a gamer and painter. Hello everyone! Thanks a lot for inviting me to such a great action. So maybe first things first. As a person I am currently a PhD … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Player Spotlight – Paulina Viluir
Campaign Newsletter 16th of June, 1690 World Campaign 2021: Summer of Plunder A World at War The first week of the campaign is drawing to a close, and the community has come together to play at war, and France has slowly risen to the front by just one entry. Players have submitted Land games, Sea … Continue reading Global Campaign Newsletter I
By King Go Siph Pho Stir Join the Natives in the 2021 Blood & Plunder Global Community Campaign! War has begun! The Ugly White Man has come out to fight, forgetting that the land is not theirs. The Spanish try to teach us ways of peace but fail to defend us or provide weapons and … Continue reading Global Community Campaign: Native Call to Arms!
By Joseph Forster Development continues on the Raise the Black expansion and it looks like the Queen Anne's War portion of the expansion will really expand the options for Native players. Some old factions will be updated for the new timeline and there will be several more new factions representing specific tribes ranging from Canada, … Continue reading Raise the Black Preview – The Cherokee
Blood & Plunder Global Community Event Rules World Campaign 2021:Summer of Plunder Welcome to the first Global Campaign for Blood & Plunder (and Oak & Iron), hosted by Firelock Games, Blood and Pigment and NDNG's Tales of the Sail. What follows are the rules we are using for this campaign. If you have any questions, … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Global Community Campaign Rules
Get ready for a Blood & Plunder Global Community Event! World Campaign 2021:Summer of Plunder Grab your miniatures and ready your ships, because bloodandpigment.com, NDNG's Tales of the Sail, and Firelock Games are hosting a Global Campaign this year! Help your Nationality fight for supremacy, and have a chance at winning loot in the process! … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Global Community Campaign
By Dan Carlson While some people prefer fighting at sea, there’s a surprising amount of folks within the Blood and Plunder Community that prefer to fight on land. That role typically falls to factions based around Militias. For the Dutch, there are two flavors of militia: Caribbean Militia and North American Militia. Today, we’ll be … Continue reading Faction Review – Dutch North American Militia
By Joseph Forster I've been painting a bunch of African Warriors lately and I wanted to share 6 different paint combinations I've used with some success. Skin is always a little tricky to paint realistically and African skin tone is a whole different challenge. On top of that, these Firelock African Warriors models are mostly … Continue reading 6 Methods for Painting African Warriors
Hi Guy and thank you for giving us some of your time and participating in this interview. Please introduce yourself as a person and as “a gamer.” I’ve been gaming since 1982 when I discovered D&D and some of the other early RPG games. Gaming was a big part of my teenage years as I … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Player Spotlight – Guy Bayes
By Joseph Forster Thank you to everyone who entered characters in our commander/character contest! We got lots of fun and interesting entries and I discovered some new names through this as well! It was very difficult picking winners but it had to be done. We have selected 3 winners to receive the contest prize of … Continue reading Create-a-Pirate Contest Winners
By Joseph Forster Cannons were commonly cast both from iron and bronze during this era of history. It appears that the blackened iron was the most common type of naval gun used by both pirates and navies but bronze had its advantages and sometimes they would leave them bare or polished for show. I've found … Continue reading Bronze Cannons Painting Guide
By Joseph Forster I've just finished a massive 4Ground terrain project and I'm eager to share it with you! Today we'll be looking at three large buildings from the 4Ground La Haye Sainte collection. This set of buildings is made to represent a farm in France that was the location for a notable battle in … Continue reading 4Ground Terrain -La Haye Sainte Buildings
By Dan Carlson Author’s Note: For a good time if you are of-age, take a shot or a drink every time you read any form of the word “versatile” in this article! While some people prefer fighting at sea, there’s a surprising amount of folks within the Blood and Plunder Community that prefer to fight … Continue reading Faction Overview – Dutch Caribbean Militia
By Guy Rheuark Here are five new fan-made sea Scenarios for Blood & Plunder. Each is a little more complicated than the Scenarios found in The Blood & Plunder Core Rulebook, and will test your crew's sailing skill and your commander's determination. In each Scenario you will also find two Optional Rules that change how … Continue reading 5 New Sea Scenarios and Advanced Sea Terrain Placement Rules
By Joseph Forster Here's a battle report on a non-standard game, but first, some history! The British campaign against Spanish Florida was one of the first major events in Queen Anne's War. Governor James Moore of South Carolina mustered a significant force of colonial militia and Indian allies and marched and sailed down the American … Continue reading Battle Report – St. Augustine Cattle Stampede
Hi Jozef and thank you for giving us some of your time and participating in this interview. Please introduce yourself as a person and as “a gamer.” Hello there! I am from a small town in Slovakia and I have been interested in board games, history, sci-fi and making and painting stuff since childhood, so … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Player Spotlight – Jozef Hudacek
By Guy Rheuark On the fringes of Spanish society in the 17th century existed the Spanish Corsairs. Named after the raiders and privateers of the Mediterranean, these Privateers did not always have a letter of mark, and sometimes believed that they didn’t need one. Much like the Guarda Costas, Spanish Corsairs were opportunists, attacking with … Continue reading Faction Overview – Spanish Corsairs
We're excited to announce a new contest here at Blood & Pigment! For this event we're asking players to design and submit their own custom historical Commanders or Characters. We're calling this a Design-a-Pirate contest but it covers more than just pirates. We're looking for fan-made designs for commanders and characters for any and all … Continue reading Blood & Pigment Design-a-Pirate Contest
Hi Lee and thank you for giving us some of your time and participating in this interview. Please introduce yourself as a person and as “a gamer.” HI I’m Lee Upton a member of Leicester Phat Cats and the guy usually dressed as a pirate at UK wargaming shows. I have been playing wargames for nearly … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Player Spotlight – Lee Upton
By Joseph Forster Last year we reviewed the Ports of Plunder line of 4Ground buildings and terrain and I'm still very happy with that complete set. I recently learned there are more pieces that weren't included in that set but fit right in! Today we're going to look at the Spanish Town Hall from the … Continue reading 4Ground Terrain – Spanish Town Hall
Hi Brian and thank you for giving us some of your time and participating in this interview. Please introduce yourself as a person and as “a gamer.” I live in Minnesota and have been playing/painting miniatures since I was in 8th grade. I started with Airfix plastics, WW2, Napoleonics and Civil War. Eventually I got … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Player Spotlight – Brian McLaughlin
By Guy Rheuark The recent partnership between Firelock Games and 4Ground Publishing has produced an extensive series of exciting terrain for Blood & Plunder. The kits that are initially available are relatively cheap, fun to assemble, and look good out of the box. Of all of the buildings and piers, the crane stood out the … Continue reading Fan-Made Treadwheel Crane Rules and Scenario
This interview is part of a series of articles spotlighting players in the Blood & Plunder community. Please enjoy this written interview with David Stanley. Hi David, and thank you for giving us some of your time and participating in this interview. Please introduce yourself as a person and as “a gamer.” I have been … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Player Spotlight – David Stanley
By Joseph Forster I'm back with some more MDF buildings from 4Ground Publishing. When I first started collecting terrain for Blood & Plunder, a couple 4Ground buildings were among my very first purchases and since then I've come to count them as my favorite source of buildings and terrain accessories for the game. I thoroughly … Continue reading 4Ground Terrain – New France Cabins
By Joseph Forster No matter how much terrain I collect or create, it seems like there's always something else I could use. Or something else I need. In all seriousness I don't need any more terrain but a new piece always adds interest to a board and it's nice to have options. I've been meaning to buy the … Continue reading Terrain Building: Making River and Stream Terrain
This is the first in a series of articles spotlighting players in the Blood & Plunder community. Please enjoy this written interview with Dexter Heide. Hi Dexter, and thank you for giving us some of your time and participating in this interview. Please introduce yourself as a person and as “a "gamer." My name is … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Player Spotlight – Dexter Heide
By Guy Rheuark Setting up terrain for Blood & Plunder, as listed in the core book, can be a little uncertain. How much terrain is enough? How much is too much? The only guidance you get is to follow the scenario, but few scenarios mention terrain. I usually end up setting up terrain based … Continue reading A New Way to Determine Terrain Setup
By Joseph Forster The Native factions in Blood & Plunder offer a very different way of playing the game. They have glaring weaknesses but also strengths in areas that the European factions lack. I think the Kalinago are a prime example of this combination of strength and weakness. With very mobile units, impressive firepower with … Continue reading Faction Review – Caribs (Kalinago)
By Joseph Forster It's time for another look at one of the upcoming new factions we will be getting in the upcoming Raise the Black (and French & Indian War I) expansion. Firelock Games has given me the details on the upcoming French Raiders faction which will be a centerpiece of some of the early … Continue reading New Faction Preview – French Raiders
By Guy Rheuark At the end of the Unaligned and Peripheral Powers section in No Peace Beyond the Line lies a curious entry. The Black Caribs faction. Black Caribs, or Garifuna, have an interesting history. Ostensibly they are listed as a separate people than the Native Americans of the Caribbean, and those of Saint Vincent, … Continue reading Faction Review – The Black Caribs
I've been given permission to share some details from one of the new factions in the upcoming (and ever impending) French & Indian Wars Vol 1 (previously known as Queen Anne's War) expansion. Let's explore a new Spanish faction! Historical Background Before we look at the game rules and details for the Spanish Mission Garrison, … Continue reading New Faction Preview- Spanish Mission Garrison
We're doing a quick giveaway to promote our YouTube channel. https://youtu.be/kHTUGvIZiRo Giveaway Rules: Comment on the video linked above to enter. You can use "Piece of Eight" as a easy comment. You could also tell us what you would enjoy seeing on our channel! We would appreciate it if you liked this video, shared it, … Continue reading Historical Fortune Coin Giveaway on YouTube
This post is long overdue! It's been more than a year since Firelock Games came out with a line of resin terrain. I've had them painted for months but just haven't got them up here on the blog. Let's take a look at the 4 pieces of terrain included in the Village Bundle. The four … Continue reading Firelock Terrain – Village Bundle
By Joseph Forster This is the 4th and final part in a full series of articles on force building in Blood & Plunder. In the first article we looked at some general tips on generic force building, in the second article we looked at building for land games and then we looked at the various ways to … Continue reading Force Building IV: Building for Amphibious Games
This is part 3 in a full series of articles on force building in Blood & Plunder. In the first article we looked at some general tips on generic force building, in the second article we looked at building for land games and now we get to look at building for games at sea. With … Continue reading Force Building III: Building for Sea Games
By Joseph Forster This is part 2 in a series of 4 articles on force building in Blood & Plunder. In Part 1 we looked at some basic ideas for building any force, and this article will build on that content. Here we will briefly go over some ideas for making forces specifically suited to … Continue reading Force Building II: Building for Land Games
Force building is a huge part of a miniatures game like Blood & Plunder and with the depth, variety and scope of this game, there is a lot to explore and absorb! It can be intimidating and overwhelming when first jumping into the game but it quickly becomes very interesting and satisfying and can even … Continue reading Force Building I – Basics and Universal Guidelines
By Joseph Forster Representing huge dugout canoes made of single logs, the Piragua is the largest boat in Blood & Plunder and fills a fun between-a-boat-and-a-ship place in the game. Faster, more maneuverable, and tougher than both the canoa and longboat, the Piragua is an interesting boat to include in your force and is a … Continue reading Ship Overview – The Piragua
By Guy Rheuark The French Buccaneers were one of the most feared factions in the Caribbean during the 17th century. Most likely leaving France as economic, religious, or political refugees, these interlopers started on Hispaniola and Tortuga hunting wild cattle and boar, working with the natives and learning how they smoked meat on a boucan. … Continue reading Faction Overview – The French Buccaneers
By Joseph Forster With the new Later North American Tribes factions already on the Force Builder, I've been wanting to get these Braves models painted so I can try the new factions! I recently finished up 3 sets of the Braves models and I just wanted to share a couple pictures. I kept my first … Continue reading Completed Braves
We made it to the end! This is the last of the six scenarios in the Organized Play Buccaneers' Companion campaign that follows the English Pacific Adventure over 1680 and 1681. Guy and I have played all these scenarios choosing to play them in a variety of ways, sometimes using the suggested force lists, sometimes … Continue reading Battle Report: Buccaneer’s Companion Scenario VI – Arica
By Joseph Forster The Ostend Privateer faction is one of the smaller Spanish factions in Blood & Plunder, but its combination of strengths from both the Dutch and Spanish nationalities make it a very strong naval faction, in spite of having fewer force building options than most other naval factions of the major European powers. … Continue reading Faction Overview – Ostend Privateers
By Joseph Forster I'm working on creating some scenarios designed around some of the great 4Ground terrain made for Blood & Plunder and here is a quick report on a game testing one of these scenarios. This is a 100 point amphibious battle centered around the Wooden Port Set from 4Ground, played against my friend, … Continue reading Battle Report: Supply Raid – Kalinago vs Spanish Militia
By Guy Rheuark This is the fifth battle in the The Buccaneer's Companion Vol. I. It has been a long campaign for the brave Spanish defenders. We defended against the English buccaneers in Portobello, killing them to almost a man. They retaliated and took one of our ships, in what is now known as The … Continue reading Battle Report: Buccaneer’s Companion Scenario V – La Serena
By Joseph Forster Cannons are an exciting part of historical naval warfare and they will be central to many games of Blood & Plunder. In this article we will be looking at how cannons function in the game and going over some tactics that will help you get the most out of your big guns. … Continue reading Strategies and Tactics in Blood & Plunder: Cannons and Artillery
By Dan Carlson “The French were the first to singe the Spanish beard in the New World. The English, under Queen Elizabeth, were to set the beard aflame. But it is the Dutch in the early seventeenth century who truly scourge the whispered Spaniard from head to toe.”- pg 102 from Blood and Plunder: No … Continue reading The Dutch Nationality and Factions
By Joseph Forster Blood & Pigment is two years old! This last year has been exciting and we've grown a lot here at Blood & Pigment. Over the past year the blog got 71,756 visits with the Getting Started with Blood & Plunder and the 2020 Photo Contest posts being the most popular. We hosted … Continue reading Blood & Pigment Blog Update and YouTube Launch
Here's another fort report! This one was fast and brutal with less finesse or nuance. This was a 300 point game played with my friend Bryan and our local game store, Geeks & Games in Oregon City. The Forces I've had a lot of experience playing Spanish in the fort recently so this time I … Continue reading Battle Report: Storm the Fort – Dutch Privateers vs English Caribbean Militia
By Guy Rheuark After learning to play Blood & Plunder and buying your first miniatures there are a wealth of strategies and tactics that not only make each game exciting moment to moment, but let you carry lessons you learn from one game to the next. Gameplay isn’t the only way to learn, though. You … Continue reading Strategies and Tactics in Blood & Plunder: Playing the Game
By Joseph Forster We've reviewed the entire Port of Plunder line of 4Ground products here and now we're looking at a newer kit that Firelock doesn't event stock yet (I believe and hope they plan to). This is the Wooden Port Set and it contains two small warehouses, one large open walled warehouse and a … Continue reading 4Ground Wooden Port Set
The Raise the Black Kickstarter is in its final hours! Back it now if you haven't already! Up your pledge just a little to grab an extra box of militia, natives, regulars or cavalry! As of now (3 hours to go), the campaign still needs $15k to fund the plastic cavalry box. We want this … Continue reading Raise the Black Final Hours!
Here's a brief battle report on my first game using the 6th Rate Frigate. I've been playing through the Buccaneer's Companion campaign with my friend Guy but we took an intermission to get this beautiful ship to the table. I've had it finished for a couple months and I needed to try it! The ForcesI … Continue reading Battle Report: Escort at Sea – English Royal Navy vs Brethren of the Coast
The Raise the Black Kickstarter will be wrapping up in a few days and we wanted to celebrate by giving away a 6th Rate Frigate! This beautiful ship closely represents the Queen Anne's Revenge, Blackbeard's famous Frigate that he used as his flagship during 1717-1718. The fast Sloop found in Raise the Black is ideal … Continue reading The Queen Anne’s Revenge – Double 6th Rate Frigate Giveaway!
Today we're proud to offer some fun optional rules for using the Casualty Markers for Blood & Plunder! These rules are not-at-all official and are purely fan made, but they might add some spice to your games and give you a reason to paint up those dead guys that have been hanging around your painting … Continue reading Tokens of the Dead – Fan-Made Casualty Marker Rules
By Joseph Forster I'm back with some more of 4Ground's amazing Ports of Plunder terrain series. I recently wrote on the Hovel set and the Port Houses set and now I'm taking a look at the docks and some of the other portside accessories. Here I have a setup using the Large Dock Bundle, the … Continue reading 4Ground Ports of Plunder Docks, Crane and Barrels
By Liam Taylor It could be said that the great warships of the English Royal Navy in the latter half of the 17th and through to the 18th century might be characterized by the Lion. The Lion stands proudly as the figurehead on Albion’s warships throughout the period, its looming muscular power threatening to smash and tear its … Continue reading Leopards of the Seas – Bermuda Sloops in the Golden Age of Piracy
By Joseph Forster The English Caribbean Militia is a hardy and aggressive faction that gives the English player in Blood in Plunder solid options for fighting on land and even venturing out to sea if necessary. This faction was originally published in the core rule book but has since been updated in No Peace Beyond … Continue reading Faction Overview – English Caribbean Militia
How I Stopped Making Horrible Messes and Learned to Love the Render PowderI've been working on a lot of 4Ground terrain lately and I wanted to share some technique and tips that I've picked up along the way. Much of the Ports of Plunder line of product comes with a "Render Powder" that has to … Continue reading 4Ground Render Powder
Ships are huge part of Blood & Plunder but they can be an intimidating hobby project, especially if you're new to miniature gaming or don't have a lot of painting experience. With resin hulls and wood and elastic rigging pieces, they aren't your standard Games Workshop gaming miniature. This painting guide is my attempt at … Continue reading A Beginner’s Guide to Painting and Rigging a Bark
Ahoy there! Cap’n Dan is back to bring you a Blood and Pigment Exclusive Sneak Peek at one of the Commanders and Factions coming in the next big expansion for Blood and Plunder: Raise the Black! We are going to be looking at the most famous pirate in history: Edward “Blackbeard” Teach and his unique … Continue reading Raise the Black Preview – Edward “Blackbeard” Teach
By Joseph Forster The English Buccaneers lead by Sharp, Hawkins, and "Zombie" Coxon have raided Portobello, tangled with the Guarda Costas, and stormed the Spanish fort at Santa Maria. The English have set their sights on Panama but they await reinforcements. The Spanish armadilla has spotted the English Buccaneers and has sent a fleet of … Continue reading Battle Report: Buccaneer’s Companion Scenario IV – The Battle of Perico
By Guy Rheuark Ships are one of the most striking things about Blood & Plunder. Being able to play out an epic duel between two captains, brought to life on a tabletop, is one of the things that brings people into this hobby and this game. The ships serve the purpose of a grand centerpiece … Continue reading How to Paint and Rig a Sloop
We got to release an exclusive set of Beta Rules for the Palisade Fort (and some other fortifications) and we want to celebrate by giving away a complete 8-piece fort kit! All you need to do to get your name in the pool is drop a comment either on this post on this blog or … Continue reading Palisade Fort Giveaway!
By Joseph Forster Here are rules for the Palisade Fort! We have an exclusive pre release ruleset at Blood & Pigment! Liam Taylor and I have been working on these rules for Firelock Games on and off for months now and I'm excited to offer the Blood & Plunder community this fortifications supplement now. This … Continue reading Fortification Supplement Beta Release
I've finished building another set of 4Ground buildings from their Port of Plunder series and I couldn't be happier. I started with the Hovel set and they were fairly simple and a good first experience for me. This set of 3 Colonial Port Houses was more complex and took more time, but building on the … Continue reading 4Ground Ports of Plunder Colonial Houses Set
By Bryan Longoria If you’re new to Blood and Plunder you may not know about the exclusive figures floating around out there. Here’s a quick round up of exclusive miniatures to date. Howard Pyle The Howard Pyle exclusive miniature was the 35k stretch goal from the original Blood and Plunder Kickstarter. It’s the perfect miniature to use … Continue reading Blood and Plunder Exclusives and Special Releases
October is coming! The Raise the Black Kickstarter campaign is now less than a month away! Included in that Kickstarter is a brand new ship, the Bermuda Sloop. The Must Contain Minis blog recently did a spoiler article on this new ship and it looks beautiful! We now have spoilers for the full stats (subject … Continue reading Bermuda Sloop Hot Takes
By Joseph Forster Firelock Games recently partnered with 4Ground to create a whole new line of Port of Plunder terrain and buildings for 28mm games set in the Caribbean. The folks at 4Ground very kindly sent me a selection of these products and I've been working away at building them up and I'm very pleased! … Continue reading 4Ground Terrain – Port of Plunder Hovels
A Hitherto Undiscovered Description of the Battle of El Real Santa Maria, Where in the Well Trained Spanish Militia Fought Against the Vagaries of the English Buccaneers and their Traitorous Allies By Guy Rheuark This is a battle report for the third battle of the Buccaneer’s Companion Vol. I, a free expansion that Firelock Games … Continue reading Battle Report: The Buccaneer’s Companion Scenario III – The Battle of El Real Santa Maria
Here's a new scenario! I've had the privilege to help with some of the play testing for some of the new product coming out from Firelock Games and this scenario was a lot of fun and I wanted to share it with the community. Like anything that is unreleased, this scenario is still a work … Continue reading New Scenario Preview – Ambush!
By Guy Rheuark Expeditionary Forces are military groups European powers would gather and send to other countries. Often a mix of professional soldiers, militia, and mercenaries, the practice of forming these groups by the French carried on into the 20th century. In Blood & Plunder, the French Expeditionary Forces faction is the closest thing the … Continue reading Faction Overview – French Expeditionary Forces
There's a giveaway but first some updates and blog news. Blood & Pigment has been growing! We now have 3 semi regular writing contributors (Dan, Guy and Joseph) and we've recently taken on Bryan as a new and valuable member of the crew. He brings some more online savvy, graphics and video and excellent photography … Continue reading Blog News & Marker Dice Facebook Giveaway
This was a solo game testing out a new scenario from the upcoming Queen Anne's War expansion. This scenario is still a work in progress and feedback is still relevant and helpful at this point (August/September 2020) so please chime in if you have any thoughts! For this solo game I basically of used the … Continue reading Solo Battle Report: Capture the Settlement – Northeastern Woodland Tribes vs North American English Militia
This is the second game in the set of 6 historical scenarios released by Firelock Games as an Organized Play kit in the first quarter of 2020. You can find a battle report on the first scenario here. I'm playing this campaign with my friend Guy who will be contributing Battle Reports on some of … Continue reading Battle Report: The Buccaneer’s Companion Scenario II – The Navio de Aviso
By Guy Rheuark A Record of the Brave Spanish Militia of Portobello Fighting the Cruel English Buccaneers I had an opportunity to start a play through part of The Buccaneers Companion, Firelock Games 2020 organized play expansion with Joseph Forster. It is exciting to play as the Spanish in this campaign. Historically they lost every … Continue reading Battle Report: The Buccaneer’s Companion Scenario I – Portobello
Like so many painters, I've been experimenting with GW's Contrast line of paints over the past several months. I've had mixed results and I've seen a wide variety of results out there in the hobby world. I have a lot to learn about how to use these new paints but I've got to a point … Continue reading Indian Fighters – Contrast vs Standard Paints
By Guy Rhueark After learning to play Blood & Plunder and buying your first miniatures there are a wealth of strategies and tactics that not only make each game exciting moment to moment, but let you carry lessons you learn from one game to the next. Gameplay isn’t the only way to learn, though. You … Continue reading Strategies and Tactics in Blood & Plunder: Deciding What to Bring to War and Making a List
I have an epic battle report for you today! This was a 400 point amphibious game using a large wooden palisade fort manned with cannons and plenty of Spanish muskets vs the French Navy in a Corvette and the massive Galleon with my friend, Guy Reuark as admiral. I've been working on play testing rules … Continue reading Battle Report: Amphibious Raze – French Royal Navy vs Spanish Tercios
The Galleon is the largest ship (currently) available to use in Blood & Plunder and it is truly a beast! At 26" long and 24" tall, it truly dominates a gaming table and intimidates its opponents. It is by far the toughest and most heavily armed ship in Blood & Plunder but it is also … Continue reading Ship Overview – The Galleon
I've been working away on my 6th Rate Frigate for a couple months now and I finally got it finished (almost). It was a big project but noticeably less work than the mighty Galleon. Here's some pictures of the finished ship along with a few tips and things I learned while making it.It's a beautiful … Continue reading Completed 6th Rate Frigate
With my 6th Rate Frigate finished I can apart getting some of the newest models painted up. The models from the latest batch of Firestarters are awesome/ great dynamic poses, distinctive style to their gear and dress and fine detail for painting. In an effort to get models painted and to the table, I've been … Continue reading Completed Indian Fighters
I finally played a French faction! Here's a quick 200 point battle report pitting my French led by Francois L'Olonnais against my friend Bryan's Portuguese led by Francisco Dias Velho. The Forces I chose to play the Flibustier Nau, Francois L'Olonnais's personal force. This faction is a much more limited version of the French Buccaneers … Continue reading Battle Report: Land Escort – Flibustier Nau vs Portuguese Bandeirantes
I have another battle report for you and this was a fun one! Here we have a 200 point land game testing the massive 65 model Spanish Horde vs a 32 model Native force led by legendary King Golden Cap. I played the Natives as Attacker in the Breakthrough scenario vs my friend Guy Rheuark … Continue reading Battle Report: Land Breakthrough – Golden Island Tribe vs Spanish Militia
The Historical Miniatures Gaming Society hosted an online convention over the July 24-26 weekend and I was able to participate in an interview with Mike Tunez and the Tales of the Sail guys from the No Dice No Glory team. Our specific task during the interview was to ask Mike Tunez what we can expect … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Spoilers from Cyber Wars Interview
Here's a 100 point battle report. It's been a while since I played a 100 point, and even longer since I played a small game like this at sea. This is a 100 point naval game using the Plunder scenario, played with friend (and blog contributor) Guy Rheuark. This was the first game in a … Continue reading Battle Report: Sea Plunder – Brethren of the Coast vs Dutch Navy
Thanks to everyone who participated in the photo contest hosted here on Blood & Pigment over May and June. I got a lot of great entries and it was very difficult narrowing it down to just a few winners! 25 people participated by sending a total of 131 entries! I selected a first, second and … Continue reading 2020 Blood & Plunder Photo Contest Results
By Guy Rheuark In Blood & Plunder each nationality has certain distinctives that make it interesting and unique. Joseph Forester has been writing a series of articles that look at distinctives of individual factions (there are several factions within each nationality i.e Spanish Militia are very different from Spanish Corsairs) and those articles get into … Continue reading The French Nationality and Factions
african warIt's been a full three months since I got a play a game with a real live opponent! My local game store was able to open up a few of their gaming tables recently and I met up with my friend Guy to play his 200 point game. Both of us had fresh … Continue reading Battle Report: Amphibious Escort – Black Caribs vs French Caribbean Troupe à Cheval
The 2020 Photo Contest is nearing a close here on June 30. It's been great so far! I've got a lot of good submissions but I would still happy to get more! You have a chance to win some awesome historical coins that were being used during this Golden Age of Piracy. If you're still … Continue reading Blood & Plunder Photo Contest Update – Ends June 30th
I've been doing a few games with the Palisade Fort recently and in this solitaire game, I test it in an amphibious scenario where it has to go up against a ship that can bring more cannons to bear on it. I increased the game size to 250 and used a much larger version of … Continue reading Solitaire Battle Report – English Buccaneers vs Spanish Miltia
I'm back with another COVID solo game. Firelock Games sent me some fort bastions to run through some play test games and here's my first game using them. These bastions are basically enlarged and fortified corners for the Palisade Fort and give platforms and clear fields of fire for artillery inside the fort. As it … Continue reading Solitaire Battle Report – English Buccaneers vs Portuguese-Brazilian Tercios
New Proposed Native Characters for Blood & PlunderBy Guy Rheuark I recently started playing the native nationality in Blood & Plunder and found that they offer a very different and fun way to play. As a historical gamer, playing the natives also inclined me to research the natives of the period, how they lived, dressed … Continue reading The Need for New Characters for Natives
It's been hard to get games in over the past couple months. It's been good to see people get a lot more painting done while being locked away at home but I still hunger for that that occasional dose of real gaming! Firelock Games has quickly put together an excellent set of solitaire rules to … Continue reading Solitaire Battle Report – Westo Natives vs Dutch Navy
By Dan Carlson & Joseph Forster Are you sick and tired of playing with English or French Units? Does you nemesis at you local game store play the Spanish so well it infuriates you? Those Advanced Maneuvers chipping away your rigging like shots at a Tortuga Tavern? If any of theses apply to you, I … Continue reading Faction Overview – Dutch Privateers
How to Make Piers for Blood & Plunder the Easy (Slow) Way By Guy Rheuark With a full third of the game scenarios being amphibious, it is important to have places ships can dock. While you might think your sloop can just belly up to a sandbar, drop anchor, and throw grapples, it cannot. Any … Continue reading Terrain Building: How to Make 28mm Piers
I haven't been able to actually play a real game of Blood & Plunder for several weeks now so I set up a solo game using the Palisade Fort for a second time. Last game was 100 points but I upped it to 200 for this game. At 200 points the fort takes up a … Continue reading Solo Battle Report – Caribbean Tribes vs English Caribbean Militia
I picked up another piece of terrain from Gale Force Nine's Battlefield in a Box series. This piece isn't as good of value at a MSRP of $35, but it's a very nice piece that gives you some instant interest on your battlefield. It's nice to have some variation in elevation and for some reason … Continue reading Easy Terrain – Large Rocky Hill
The Palisade Fort popped up on the Firelock Games website a while back and I just finished getting it painted. The official rules for this fort haven't been released yet but they're in beta testing and should be out soon! The Palisade Fort set comes with 4 corners, 3 straight sections and one gate (it … Continue reading Completed Palisade Fort & Test Battle Report
How do you store and transport your miniatures? Many Blood & Plunder players have been in war gaming way longer than I have but I've noticed there's a good number of players (including myself) that don't have much if any miniature game experience. One of the things I've noticed veteran miniature gamers always have is … Continue reading Miniature Storage and Transport
My friend Guy recently finished up his Galleon so we decided to get crazy and try a 1000 point game using the Army Scale rules. Each of us built a force consisting of 3 companies totaling 1000 points. The last game I played with the Galleon was at 300 points and it was not nearly … Continue reading Battle Report – 1000 Point Galleon Duel
By Dan Carlson Ahoy there mateys! Cap’n Dan is back for another article! Here, I will be going over the newest ship in the Firelock Lineup (as of March 2020): The 6th Rate Frigate! As Blood and Plunder’s very first Rated Ship, its quite a doozy! SpeedThe 6th Rate is essentially an upgraded Light Frigate. … Continue reading Ship Overview – 6th Rate Frigate
This was my first game with the Galleon! At 300 points, the Galleon wasn't maxed out by any means, but it gave me a good feel for how to use it in standard sized sea games. The Forces At 300 points, both my friend Bryan and I were able to take some powerful commanders in … Continue reading Battle Report – Armada de Barlovento vs Flibustiers de Graff
Characters are a fun part of Blood & Plunder and it's always good to find a miniature to play the part. Firelock made a nice pack of minis to cover several of the special characters made available in No Peace Beyond the Line but it only has minis for 4 of the many characters you … Continue reading Spiritual Leader Models
Terrain is an important part of Blood & Plunder and it's something I can't manage to stop collecting! A nice variety of terrain options makes your games interesting and fresh. You can make a lot of your terrain and making something yourself makes your gaming table unique. You can often save some money making it … Continue reading Easy Terrain – Large Pine Wood
Firelock Games has recently released several pieces of resin terrain and I'm starting to get some painted up. This is a quick review and painting tutorial for the Farmed Field piece that sells for $10.00. The painted example on the website looks fine. It looks like they primed and then brushed on a coat of … Continue reading Firelock Terrain – Farmed Field
In Blood & Plunder each nationality has certain distinctives that make it interesting and unique. I’ve been writing a series of articles that look at distinctives of individual factions (there are several factions within each nationality i.e Spanish Militia are very different than Spanish Corsairs) and those articles get into the nitty-gritty details of units, abilities, and strategies. This … Continue reading The Unaligned “Nationality” and Factions
I've been meaning to get some of these elite English soldiers painted up for a long time. I finally finished a set! This English unit uses the French Milice de Caraibes models since they have the same set of equipment. As an English player the fact that a 4 point French Militia model has the … Continue reading Completed Veteran Freebooters
In Blood & Plunder each nationality has certain distinctives that make it interesting and unique. I've been writing a series of articles that look at distinctives of individual factions (there are several factions within each nationality i.e Spanish Militia are very different than Spanish Corsairs) and those articles get into the nitty-gritty details of units, abilities, and strategies. … Continue reading The Spanish Nationality and Factions
In Blood & Plunder each nationality has certain distinctives that make it interesting and unique. I've been writing a series of articles that look at distinctives of individual factions (there are several factions within each nationality i.e English Buccaneers are very different than English Caribbean Militia) and those get into the nitty-gritty details of units, abilities, and strategies. … Continue reading The English Nationality and Factions
I had a chance to fight another battle with my Logwood Cutters force. This was my experiment using them at sea and it turned out to be a very entertaining game with my friend Kevin. The Forces I used basically the same set of troops I used on land in my last battle report, merely … Continue reading Battle Report – Logwood Cutters vs Pirate Hunters
I just finished up another set of Dutch Zeelieden. I don't have a full Dutch faction painted yet but these sailors are some of the best in the game and they can be used in so many seagoing factions. I haven't done a lot of painting over the last month but I did manage to … Continue reading Completed Zeelieden
I've been wanting to get some more experience with some of the Unaligned factions and I recently got to play this land game using the Logwood Cutters faction vs my friend Kevin playing the English Caribbean Militia for the first time. My local game store, Geeks & Games in Oregon City hosted us for this … Continue reading Battle Report – Logwood Cutters vs English Caribbean Militia
The Logwood Cutters faction is basically the land-based "piratey" unaligned faction in Blood & Plunder. This faction is primarily a shooting faction with strong ranged models with Buccaneer Guns as core units and a variety of sailor and elite marksmen as support units. Firelock's website description of the Logwood Cutters reads: Logwood cutters were rough … Continue reading Faction Overview – Logwood Cutters
Wargamers are always on the lookout for terrain! I recently discovered a couple products from Wizkids that impressed me and I thought I would share them here. Wizkids has been producing massive amounts of miniatures over the past few years and they've recently started releasing some fun terrain elements as well. I've bought some of … Continue reading Easy Terrain – Wizkids Homestead
By Guy Rheuark Based on Saint-Domingue and a smattering of other islands, France controlled some of the most wealthy sugar plantations in the Caribbean. The people who lived in these towns were well acquainted with defending themselves from the Spanish. It is in these towns the Boucaniers retired and thrived, lured by the French crown … Continue reading Faction Overview – French Caribbean Militia
A couple people asked me for some details on the the paints I used on my Galleon so I'm putting together a "rough guide" for painting this big ship. This isn't a super detailed guide since I didn't take notes or appropriate pictures as I worked on it over the last few months but I … Continue reading Galleon Painting Guide
This game was a test game for a new scenario coming out in the next rule book that will be covering more 18th century forces and scenarios. This was a casual 200 point land game with my friend Guy. The Forces I've been playing English in our current campaign so I took this chance to … Continue reading Battle a Report – Spanish Tercios vs. French Caribbean Militia