Here is a copy of the Sloop stat card, front and back, for your reference. If you wish to save and print it, each side should be 4″ x 6″. We recommend using a rigid card sleeve for your ship stat card, allowing you to use erasable markers to track damage, critical hits, and reloads during gameplay.

The Sloop is one of the larger two-decked ships in Blood & Plunder and its traits and attributes combine to make it one of my favorite ships.

Speed and Maneuverability

Sailing Strategy & Tactics Suggestions

• Using that 4 inch turn to maneuver is essential for both boarding and for using the ship’s cannons! Being able to turn a full 4 inches can mean the difference between getting within that crucial 3″ range for grappling, or setting up a raking shot!
• Fore-and-Aft-Rig makes Tacking a breeze! This allows the sloop to do things like flipping broadsides and sailing upwind much easier than square-rigged ships.
• The Sloop’s sail settings of 4″ and 2″ combined with Easy to Handle means you can speed up or slow down at a moment’s notice. You could technically go from 4″ to stopped (and vice versa) in two activation if you were successful with 2 sailing actions. That could really throw your opponent off!
• The Draft Value of 5 makes it fairly safe to sail over those Shoals but you don’t get the Shallow Draft rule like the Bark.

Firepower

Using Cannons on the Sloop

Having all of its cannons on the Fore Deck means that there is no need for the Broadside! Special Rule in order to fire off all your cannons in one go. This means that if you are taking a Standard Commander, you can take another Special Rule instead like Strict or Inspiring.

If taking Light Guns, you will need at least 6 sailors to crew them. If taking Medium Guns, you will need at least 9 sailors to crew them. it always helps to have crews larger than the bare minimum or reloading becomes difficult!

Using Swivels on the Sloop

With the most recent errata, Swivels can no longer fire in a 360 degree arc. They now have a 180 degree Arc with means that the pair of swivel guns in the front can only fire together if you are bearing down on your opponent, which is risky.

The two pairs of swivel guns on the Rear Deck can only fire each pair off thier respective side, and can only be fired together if your opponent is directly behind you (this is known as a bad idea since that means you are more than likely about to be raked!). However, the swivel guns make for a grest boarding deterrent since they can be used for Defensive Fire!

Durability

• The Sloop is no tank like the Frigate, but it’s a little tougher than the comparable Tartana and Corvette. At 4/5 Fortitude and Integrity, it can take a couple cannons shots before it starts to break apart. You should really use your speed and maneuverability to stay out of situations where you’ll be hit by too many cannons. Six hits will give a fresh Sloop a Critical Hit and that’s within the realm of possibility for a broadside from 12 cannon dice at 8-12″.
• That one more point of Integrity does give it an advantage over the other ships in its class but it’s still a fairly fragile ship.
• With stats of 3/4, the rigging is fairly fragile as well but the Simple Rig trait helps. If your rigging does take any substantial hits, it could quickly cripple you since the Sloop relies on speed and maneuverability. You really want to avoid the Broken Mast Critical Hit since you only have one mast…

Ship Durability Stats

Rigging

• Fortitude: 3
• Integrity: 4

Hull

• Fortitude: 4
• Integrity: 5

Ship Model Capacity

One of the other main advantages the Sloop has over other 2-deck ships is the space for 6 cannons. The ability to shoot 3 cannons at the same time and the ability to take Medium Guns (unlike the Bark) makes the Sloop a much better ship if you’re looking to get value out of artillery. This makes the Sloop a great choice for lower point games where you’re looking to use a good amount of Artillery. You can even make a decent 100 point Sloop list with a full compliment of Light Cannons and some Swivel Guns.

The Sloop has very non-standard deck sizes. The front deck is massive and can contain a full 27 models (with the 6 Light Cannons) making it ideal for 200 points games where unit size is capped at 12 models. This is pretty important since you will want to use all 12 models (or even 13 if you use a Master Gunner) to man a set of 3 Medium Cannons.

The back deck is much smaller and can only hold 16 models. This is enough space to hold 2 fairly decent sized units but if you want to take advantage of the full 4 Swivel Guns in the back, you’ll most likely want 10-12 models of gun crew making that last unit pretty small. I find that back deck can be a little frustrating but the front deck makes up for it.

Other Considerations

In the No Peace Beyond the Line rule book, you can pay some extra points to upgrade your sloop if you want. The Topsail upgrade gives you the Box Haul maneuver back and the Shallow Draft ability helps you be safe in shallow water like the Bark.

These are fun options but I wouldn’t consider them “auto buys” and will be useful only if your scenario makes it extra helpful or you have some crazy plans!

I think the Sloop works best at around 200 points. At that level you can buy cannons for it and still have room to put plenty of men on the ship. It works at 100 but it’s certainly no a full ship. You can buy elite troops and actually fit 300 points into a Sloop if you want!

Traits and Special Rules

The Sloop has a few Traits and Special Rules that makes it stand out, but is not overly complex, making is a great choice for newer players.

Fore-and-aft Rig

Fore-and-aft Rig: When this ship attempts a Tacking Advanced Maneuver, it may roll two d10 for the Test, and use the best result. This ship cannot perform the Box Hauling Advanced Maneuver.

Tacking is when a ship tries to turn across the Wind’s Eye (essentially attempting to cross the direction from the which the wind is coming from). This Trait allows the Sloop to do this with ease. If you have a unit with the Expert Sailors Special Rule, the Target Number for this test without any modifiers for being a Dedicated Action is 4+, meaning you get to roll two dice with a 70% chance to pass the test.

Simple Rig

Simple Rig: This ship’s Sail Setting may be changed using a Standard action instead of a Dedicated action. Additionally, apply a +1 penalty when taking a Shoot Test to hit this ship’s Rigging. This penalty is not applied to the additional dice, only the initial hit.

Simple Rig makes changing sails a literal breeze. Normally changing the sail setting is a Dedicated Action, meaning that changing the sails is the only action the unit can take (it cannot take any free actions either) during its activation. Simple Rig overrides that, allowing a unit to take other actions after adjusting the sails. This adds to the action economy of your crew, and allows a unit like Kapers to change the sail setting and then fire their muskets in the same activation!

Sweeps (2)

Sweeps (2): May move up to 2” under oars while sails are set at speed 0” and the Sweeps are crewed.

Sweeps on the Sloop are rarely useful, but do allow some movement if your opponent has shot away your mast. Factions like Spanish Corsairs increase the amount from 2″ to 3″, but this iss till situational at best since the Sloop doesn’t have a Windward Penalty.

Generic Upgrade Options for the Ship

The Raise the Black expansion book adds a number of new “generic” upgrades available to any ship in the game. Let’s take a look at them one by one.

Anti Grappling Measures (3 pts)

A unit attempting to Grapple a ship with this equipment receives a +2 penalty to the Grappling Test.

The Anti Grappling Measures have no effect on a Grappling test from a ship that is either 1) a boat (any size 1 ship), or 2) if the skids of the two ships are within 5” of each other. (For clarity a unit making a Grappling action must still occupy a section within 3” of their target.)

If you have the points to spare and are running a list that wants to deal damage at a range like cannons or muskets, this can be useful since you have the ability to maneuver into a position that will turn your opponent’s 5+ Grapple Test (60%) into a 7+ (40%) Grapple Test. It can be useful if you know your opponent isn’t bringing boats, but can be a waste of points if paired with the wrong faction.

Freshly Careened Hull (4 pts)

A ship with this Trait may take a single move immediately after being deployed – the ship itself being moved at its starting Sail Setting and speed (with usual modifiers for wind speed/direction). Additional Sails, the Swift Trait and any Sailing Master abilities are not applied to this move.

This upgrade is a must have if you are planning on boarding. That extra 4″ move after deployment gets you closer to your intended target, making your job much easier.

Sloop Alternate Rigs

There’s two new variations of the Sloop in No Peace Beyond the Line. The Privateer Sloop emphasizes speed and agility even further and the Heavy Bark takes away a little of that speed and gives it some more durability.

Privateer Sloop

• The Privateer Sloop is a little more fragile than the standard Sloop, but it gains the Swift trait and increases its top from speed from 4″ to 5.” If you want a super fast ship, this is the way to go! It forfeits a point of Integrity and it costs 1 point less to include in your force.
• If you want to stay away from you opponent, this is an ideal ship. The new update to the  Swift rule requires you to have a unit assigned to the Sheets and Braces which makes this powerful extra inch of speed cost more, but it’s still really fun to speed around the board in a Privateer Sloop! Just don’t get hit by those enemy cannons!

Heavy Bark

• This version of the Sloop has an extra point of Integrity which brings it up to a 4/6 which is as stout as a Brigantine.
• It gains a -1′ windward penalty and loses the Fore-and-aft Rig trait. That loss of the Fore-and-aft Rig makes Tacking more difficult but also gives you the Box Haul maneuver again.
• I think this would be a good choice if you plan to try to go toe-to-toe with a larger cannon ship. You still get some good speed and a turn of 4″, but you have some extra Integrity to keep you going.

Combat Strategy & Tactics Suggestions

Choosing an Overall Strategy

• I consider the Sloop one of the best ships in the game but I also consider it one of the most multipurpose ships in the game. You can easily use it as a cannon ship in lower point games, a boarding party ship at any point level and you can effectively use it as a fast and maneuverable platform for marksmen. If you were to buy one ship for your Blood & Plunder games, this would be my recommendation. You can do anything with it!
  • Great Guns – Part 1 = focuses on Cannons and or swivels
  • Fast Boarding – Pt 2 = closing quickly and boarding
  • Small Arms – Pt 3 = muskets and guns

General Tips and Suggestions

• The large Fore Deck allows you to place both cannon crew and a musket unit on the same deck, this means two units will be taking saves, giving your cannon crew more longevity.
• Take advantage of your maneuverability! The Sloop can make some sharp turns and retreat upwind if needed with very little difficulty.
• The Sloop is so versatile, that you aren’t forced to play in a particular way. at 200-250 points you will comfortably outgun other ships in your class and have the speed and turn ability to weave in adn out if things get dicey.
• If you want to use it as a boarding ship, use the Privateer Sloop, drop the cannons and fill the front with something like Freebooters or Flibustiers and some Marins on the swivel guns and then put a few muskets in the back and a sailor unit with a Sailing Master to help you catch your prey.
• If you want to use it as a cannon ship, you can load it with Medium Cannons and 12-13 cannon crew (at 200 points with a Master Gunner)  with some support rifles or swivels. You could even use the Heavy Bark version if you want some extra health. Using Dutch for this purpose might be really good since you get Expert Artillery Crew, Expert Sailors and you can use Strict to make your cannon shots more accurate now!
• If you want to load a ship with Marksmen, you can use a standard Sloop or Privateer Sloop and just run from your enemy. Load that back section with the full 4 Swivel Guns and some Boucaniers and fire backwards as you run. You can occasionally turn and fire your cannons into the pursuing ship without losing too much forward momentum.
• You could use the Privateer Sloop well as a Pirate ship flying false colors since you could use Swift to help close that last few inches before your cover is blown.

Blood & Plunder Force Builder – Sloop Lists

Here’s a wide variety of Sloop lists varying from 100-300 points and emphasizing different play styles. All these lists use the new updated costs from the 1.3 Errata but the Force Builder doesn’t have those costs so I adjusted as necessary. I don’t know what will happen to the totals when the Force Builder is updated but the force won’t have to change.

Dutch 100 Point force with 3 Light Cannons

Portuguese 150 Coast Guard with 3 Light Cannons

English 200 Point Buccaneer Musket list with 26 rifles and 2 Swivel Guns

English Pirate Hunters 200 Point force with 3 Light Cannons

French Buccaneer 200 Point Boarding Party with lots of musket firepower

Brethren of the Coast 200 Point 28 Elite Buccaneer Guns

Dutch 300 Point packed Sloop

Sloop Video Review

You can watch a full sloop review here:

Check out all our other ship reviews, painting guides, rigging guides and ship stats on our Ultimate Guide to Blood & Plunder Ships page.

Conclusion

The Sloop is probably my favorite ship and I would easily count it as the best ship in the game for anything 200 points and under. It’s maneuverable, it’s fast and never slows down, even while tacking! It’s a little fragile but it has a little more lasting power than all the other 2-deck ships in the game.

No matter your play style or faction (excluding Natives), I think a Sloop is an excellent purchase if you plan to play any naval games. A Sloop belongs in every fleet!

Product Recommendations

• Resin Sloop from Firelock Games
• No Peace beyond the Line Expansion Book, which contains the two alternate rig from the sloop as well as added upgrades

Additional Content Suggestions:

• Sloop Video Review on YouTube
• Ultimate Guide to Blood & Plunder Ships
• Sea Force Building Tactics:
  • Great Guns – Blood & Plunder Sea Tactics Part 1
  • Fast Boarding – Blood & Plunder Sea Force Building Pt 2
  • Small Arms – Blood & Plunder Sea Tactics Pt 3
  • Low Profile Boats – Blood & Plunder Sea Tactics Pt 4

Original Article by Joseph Forster

Updated and Revised by Dan Carlson