We’ve crossed the midpoint of the 2024 Summer of Plunder and it’s time for the Week 5 Campaign Map update. As we reach the midpoint of the campaign, significant changes have emerged across the map. New territories have been conquered, tenuous alliances may be developing, and raids and conflicts have ignited new hatred shaping the course of our ongoing adventure. Whether you’re a seasoned participant or just joining the Summer of Plunder campaign, this update will provide the latest information and prep for the upcoming week’s objectives.

The participation this week continued to be strong with 214 games played, marking a substantial increase from the 153 games in Week 3 of the 2023 campaign and 116 of 2022. This represents a continued upward growth trend in the Summer of Plunder!

Week 5 Objectives – Local Help” and “But You Have Heard of Me….”

Week 5 of the Summer of Plunder had separate objectives for Blood & Plunder and Oak & Iron. Both are geared towards adding specific characters or historical figures from the games.

Blood & Plunder Week 5 Objective:
Local Help = Use a Hostage/Advisor Character in your force (These are different than Fighting Man Characters)

Oak & Iron Week 5 Objective: “But You Have Heard of Me….”
Your force MUST include a named admirals (e.g. no generic admirals)

Week 5 Campaign Level Combat Results

We have narrative element of the combat resolution has been put on hold for a bit. It was difficult to write without minor spoilers so today we have raw data!

• Pirates beat the Dutch and claim Aruba (Dutch 2 – Pirates 3)
• Natives beat the Spanish and claim Boston (Natives 4 – Spanish 1)
• Spanish fend off the Natives and keep Cartegena (Natives 1 – Spanish 1)
• Spanish beat the Natives and claim Costa de Mosquitos (Natives 1 – Spanish 2)
• English beat the Natives and claim Fort Noorhooka (English 3 – Natives 1 – Spanish 2)
• Dutch fend off the Pirates and keep Guyana (Dutch 3 – Pirates 3)
• French fend off the Pirates and keep Martinique (French 1 – Pirates 1)
• Dutch fail to overcome the Defense of 2 Missisquoi. It remains Unaligned (Dutch 2 – Unaligned 2)
• English beat the Natives and claim Onondaga (English 2 – Natives 1)
• Natives beat the Spanish and claim Panama (Natives 3 – Spanish 1)
• English beat the Natives and claim Port Royal (English 2 – Natives 1)
• Spanish beat the Natives and claim Palmares (Natives 1 – Spanish 2)
• Pirates beat the Dutch and claim Saint Eustatius (Dutch 2 – Pirates 3)
• French beat the Pirates and claim Tortuga (French 2 – Pirates 1)
• French beat the Dutch and claim Trinidad (Dutch 1 – French 2)

Campaign Map Update At the End of Week 5

Raid Actions During Week 5

We had 2 raids this week and the results were so potent I took a screenshot! The English raided the Spanish and claimed a Victory Point. Spain got a rare result of 10 for the second week in a row and stole two Victory Points from the Natives. Spain has gotten a nice boost to bring them back in the game.

• English raid the Spanish = roll 9 –> +1/-1
• Spanish raid the Natives = roll 10 –> +2/-2

Trade Actions During Week 5

The Natives used a single command point to Trade.

Current Standings at the End of Week 5

At the end of Week 5:

• The Dutch have lost some of their holdings, but managed to maintain their grip on 1st place.
• The English are a close 2nd only a single point behind.
• The French has managed to keep a hold their capital and the Natives Apalachee and gain two new territories. With an 8 pt gain they are tied with the Spanish for 3.
• This was an incredibly rough week for the Natives. They dropped from 7 territories to 3 and were raided heavily by the Spanish.
• The Pirates are still treading water, They lost Tortuga, but gained two new with a single territory gained but gained Aruba and Saint Eustatius from the Dutch.
• Spain has had another strong week and are steadily clawing forward. They traded locations with no gain, but the 2pt gain with a Raid made for a positive gain.

So far across the 5 weeks the average points gain per week is 6.7pt.

• The Dutch had one of their lowest weeks, but a modest score.
• The English had a solid week and good recovery from the previous weeks performance.
• Steady gains were made by the French
• The Natives got rocked. With their loss of Locations and a hefty raid by the Spanish they posted the lowest point gain of the campaign to date.
• The Pirates have earned a consistent 6 points for 4 of the 5. While consistent, it’s left them a little behind the curve. Slow and steady may be enough to win the race… but they may need to adjust sails to gain some speed.
• After starting at the bottom of the back, Spain has posted two solid weeks and is making its way back to the middle of the back.

Current Location Ownership by Nation

Based on territories alone, the English are in first with 8 Locations. The French and Spanish are tied for second, though France has the advantage of owning two capitals. The Natives have dropped from a former high of 7 to last with just 4 locations.

The Dutch attempted to claim one of the last two Unaligned locations but were rebuffed. These two remaining locations are likely going to make a major difference in the final outcome of the campaign – either through ownership of combat.

Week 6 Objectives – “The Quick and the Dead”

Looking forward to Week 6 of the Summer of Plunder, it runs from July 7th (Sun) -July 13th (Sat). Again the objectives this week are slightly different for Blood & Plunder vs Oak & Iron. We’ll discuss them both briefly and give a little commentary on some suggestions for use in your force building.

Blood & Plunder Weekly Objective

Blood & Plunder Week 6 Objective: “The Quick and the Dead”
Play a Land or Amphibious game with at least one Unit with the Quick or Skirmishers attribute. OR

This week we’re asking you to play with a specific subset of Special Abilities on units. These abilities are great for quick strike units that are great at guerilla warfare.

Blood & Plunder Rules for Quick

Quick is an special ability that allows units to make a free Move action when activated on a Spade card.

QUICK: If this unit is activated with a ♠ SPADE, and it is not Engaged in a Melee Combat, it may immediately take a free Move action.

Blood & Plunder Rules for Skirmishers

SKIRMISHERS: When this unit is activated with a ♠ SPADE or ❤ HEART:

• If the unit takes a Move action and then attempts one or more Ranged attacks, it may take a free Move action back to its original position after the ranged attacks are resolved.
• If the unit Charges an enemy unit it may take a free Move action back to its original position after the free Fight action is resolved. In this case, the enemy unit cannot pursue the Skirmisher unit.

Some commanders also have a Special Ability of Guerrilla Commander which gives all Units in Command Range Skirmishers. This is an extremely powerful ability that can make for some powerful combos.

GUERILLA COMMANDER: Friendly units within this Command Range of this Commander gain the Skirmishers Special Rule.

Blood & Plunder Units That Qualify for the Weekly Objective

There are currently 8 characters available in the game that you can choose from for use in this week’s game objectives. Here is a quick breakdown of where you can find the rules for the models and links to more details for them on our website.

British

• Frontier Militia (Quick)
• Militia Cavalry (Quick)
• Native American Emissary (Quick)
• Benjamin Church (Mobile)

Dutch

• Boslopers (Skirmishers)
• Militie Cavalerie (Quick & Skirmishers)
• Zvarte Militie (Quick)

French

• Milice à Cheval (Quick & Skirmishers)

Commanders:

• Bernard-Anselme d’Abbadie de Saint Castin (Quick)
• Charles Toré (Guerilla Commander)
• Experienced Standard French Commander (Guerilla Commander)
• Seasoned Standard French Commander (Guerilla Commander)

Natives

• Warriors (Quick & Skirmishers)
• Young Warriors (Quick)

Commanders:

• Chief Gray Lock (Quick)
• Peter Brant (Quick)
• Red & White Chiefs (Quick)
• Experienced Standard Native American Commander (Guerilla Commander)
• Seasoned Standard Native American Commander (Guerilla Commander)

Pirates

• Flying Gang and Golden Age Pirates can take African Warriors (Quick & Skirmishers) as a Support unit.

Minor Powers

• African Warriors (Quick & Skirmishers)
• European Militia Cavalry (Quick)
• Coromantee Warriors (Quick and Skirmishers)

Commanders:

• Experienced Standard Renegade Commander (Guerilla Commander)
• Seasoned Standard Renegade Commander (Guerilla Commander)
• King Jeremy II – Miskito Zambo Commander (Mobile)
• Scottish Militia = ALL Units in this Faction gain Quick.

Spanish

• Caballeria (Quick & Skirmishers)
• Caballeria Lancero (Quick & Skirmishers)
• Hostigadors (Skirmishers)
• Lanceros (Skirmishers)
• Milicianos Indios (Quick & Skirmishers)

Commanders:

• Cristobal Arnaldo de Issasi (Guerilla Commander)
• Francisco de Fuentes de Galarza (Guerilla Commander)
• Gaspar de Oviedo (Mobile)
• Experienced Standard Spanish Commander (Guerilla Commander)
• Seasoned Standard Spanish Commander (Guerilla Commander)

Use a Local Guide to get Quick

Can’t find the perfect unit for your force? Try adding a Local Guide to your Command Unit and problem solved! Any Nation can use that Advisor to complete the objective.

You can proxy any model as a guide, or she is now available in Resin in the Civilians 4pk from Firelock Games. As a bonus, she makes a great model for Queen Nanny of the Maroons.

Oak & Iron Weekly Objective

Oak & Iron Week 6 Objective: “The Quick and the Dead”
At least 50% of the ships in your Squadron MUST have Swift or Fast.  The “Gusts” event card is in play the entire game (draw additional events as normal).

In Oak & Iron the following ships qualify for the Weekly Objective:

Including the “Gusts” Event

In a typical game of Oak & Iron event cards are drawn when there is a tie on Initiative and the effects are discarded at the end of the Turn. For this week’s objective the Gusts Event Card is in play the entire game. When Gusts is in play all ships increase their Speed Rating by a +1 for the entire game.

It’s important to note that this card effects both the Windward and Sailing Large speeds. That means most ships in the game will be traveling at a Speed 4 or 5.

Suggestions for dealing with Wind

• Consider lowering your sail setting to Minimal Sail to lower your base speed by 1.
• With high wind it can favor boarding actions as you are able to close on your opponent quickly.
• If you have the wind gauge and your opponent has to sail upwind, you will have an even greater advantage and can keep your distance even easier.
• If you suffer a bad deployment draw for starting positions, consider taking as much terrain as possible for your Setting card. This can limit your opponent’s ability to run and get away. They may have to go over shoals or around islands.
• You may want to skip the Favorable Wind and Swift Vessels initiative cards, because they will have minimal benefit … although it is an Initiative 5 card.
• Because the Speed 4 and 5 tools have smaller turn radiuses, the Fleet Maneuver initiative card gives you a free Turn 1.

You can get additional tips and some of the strategy guides on TimberAndSail.com:

• Movement Strategies: Top Tips for Sailing in Oak & Iron
• Deployment Guide: Top Strategy & Tactics for Oak & Iron

Conclusion for the Week 5 Campaign Update

As Week 5 of the Summer of Plunder 2024 campaign draws to a close, our there have been some dynamic shifts on the map this week. It’s been interesting to see things pan out on the map and in the Discord. National strategic planning and tenacity displayed by all participants continues make the game interesting. The balancing mechanics and options to crab bucket and pull the leader back down have successful so far.

And whether your nation has seized new territories, fortified their strongholds, or regrouped for the next big push, your contributions are shaping the ever-evolving landscape of the campaign. We hope you are enjoying the new system.

Until next week, may your summer be full of plunder and your games full of memories and fun!

Article by Jason Klotz

Additional Recommended Reading

• Summer of Plunder Updates Hub – all of the updates from previous weeks.
• All the Info and Rules for the 2024 Summer of Plunder Event
• 2024 Summer of Plunder Entry Form
• 2024 Summer of Plunder Map
• Call to Arms! posts from Summer of Plunder Commanders
• Objective List for 2024 Summer of Plunder
• Prize List for 2024 Summer of Plunder