Wooden Ships & Iron Men - Basic Rules
If you want to read the Simplified rules click here, or read the Introductory guide if you are new to the game or need some clarification.
INTRODUCTION
Wooden Ships & Iron Men is a tactical simulation of naval warfare during
the great age of sail. The game covers the period from 1776 to 1814 when the
great square sail ships-of-the-line dominated the oceans and the speedy and
durable American frigates gave world recognition to their young parent navy.
The game is played by two or more players each commanding a ship, squadron,
or whole fleet! Scenarios depict the famous naval engagements of the American
and French Revolutions and the Napoleonic Wars.
The Basic version, is based on the Basic game rules for the Avalon Hill board game
Wooden Ships & Iron Men. If you are familiar with the board game, there are some differences.
The following rules are not implemented in the Basic version:
- Most Advanced Game rules, such as wind change, full sails, different types of ammunition, wind effects, backing sails,
anchors, and reduced field of fire.
- Optional rules
- Critical hits
- Build your own scenarios
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE SIMPLIFIED VERSION AND THE BASIC VERSION
The Basic version adds several rules not found in the Simplified version:
- Drifting: Whenever the bow hex of a ship does not change or is not plotted to change
for two consecutive movement execution phases, during the second phase the ship
will drift one hex in the direction the wind is blowing.
- Grappling: any ship that occupies a hex adjacent
to a hex occupied by another ship, friendly or unfriendly,
may attempt to grapple. Grappled ships can start melee.
- Boarding parties: Ships which have been fouled or successfully grappled may form boarding parties
if desired. These parties may attempt to take over an enemy ship or defend against
a take-over in the melee phase. They can also be moved between two friendly ships.
- Melee: boarding parties fight for control of opposing ships or to defend themselves.
- Ship Capture: ships that lose in the melee phase or do not have defending crew can be captured by enemy boarding parties.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE BASIC VERSION AND THE BOARDGAME
- Can't pick target: The game automatically picks the target to fire at from among eligible candidates
based on the highest Hit Determination Table (HDT).
If multiple targets have the same HDT, it picks one randomly. Unless circumstances change, it will always pick the same
target due to technical reasons.
- Collisions: The winner of the collision always occupy the hex (in the boardgame in some cases the winner could choose to occupy the hex or let the enemy occupy it)
- Different broadside targets: Rigging or hull can only be picked per ship, not per broadside.
COMPONENTS
Mapboard (same as Simplified game)
The mapboard is the playing surface upon which the ships are maneuvered.
The hexagonal grid is used to determine movement, firing ranges, and
the positions of ships. A wind direction arrow is placed in the
center of the map, under the hexagonal grid.
Ship icons (same as Simplified game)
Every ship in the game is represented by an icon which spans two hexes, a flag and 3 letters.
The icon represents the ship's class, either Brig, Ship of the Line (SOL) or Frigate.
The flag identifies the ship's nationality.
The three letter tag under the ship is the first part of the
ship's name. This will help you match each ship with its ship chart
beside the map (or visible as a popup if you move the mouse
pointer over the ship's icon).
Your ships have the three letter tag written in blue on white.
Other players' ships have the tag written in white on blue.
Ship Chart

For every ship in the game there is a chart that describe the ship's
status, point value, movement allowance and other useful information.
The chart is divided into four columns:
- The first column shows the movement allowance and turning allowance
of the ship. In the example on the right, the ship can move
only with wind attitude A (2 hexes) and B (1 hex), due to the damage
suffered in the rigging section of the ship. See below for a
description of the wind attitudes.
- The second column contains (in the upper section) the name, type and owner of the ship.
Under this is a picture of the ship with the number of guns and carronades
available on each side of the ship. If the ship has lost any guns through battle damage,
those destroyed are reported with a red box while the guns still available are green.
Under this is the type of ammunition the guns are loaded with. The Basic version
uses only round shot.
The status of each broadside is also shown:
Round | The guns are loaded with initial broadside round shot. |
Round | The guns are loaded with round shot. |
Empty | The guns are empty. |
- The third column shows the ship's Hull status. As with
guns, damage is shown here as red boxes. When all the hull boxes are damaged (red), the ship will surrender.
(Basic game change) Under the hull section it will show with a green icon how many excess crew squares are onboard.
Prisoners captured during a melee are shown with a red icon.
- The fourth column shows Crew and Rigging of the ship. As with
guns, damage is shown here as red boxes. Hits are recorded from the top down such that when an entire section is lost,
the ship's gunnery will be affected (crew section loss), or its movement allowance will drop (rigging section loss).
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Game Log

This appears on the left column of a game page. It will not appear until some event has occurred,
so it may not appear for several turns.
Here you can find all the events that happened during the last five game turns. Enemy ships are red,
friendly are blue. Your own ships are bold.
It also lists which hit table was used and how it was determined with the
Hit Determination Table (HDT).
There is more about the HDT later.
Players should review the game log each turn to see if their ships are doing what they expected and find out who is
firing at or trying to grapple them.
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Movement input window

This is where you order movement, firing, grappling and boarding party options for all your ships. Detailed help
is available by clicking one of the "?" icons, so this section only highlights some of the most commonly used items.
First, the ship icon shows the ship's movement allowance in each attitude to the wind (more about that later), and its
current movement and turn allowance. In general, each hex moved or turned into costs one movement point.
If you attempt to move more than the current movement allowance, or turn faster than the ship is capable of, an error
message will pop up.
Some ships can turn more than once per turn, but must move at least one hex forward between each turn.
So a ship cannot turn twice in the same hex during the same turn. In the
example to the right, Malta can turn twice per turn (Turn: 2), while Britannia can only turn once (Turn: 1).
It's important to note that any ship can fire both of its broadsides in the same turn, but can only reload
one broadside per turn. The Load: option Any side will automatically reload any single broadside,
but if a ship fires both broadsides and you want to specify which one to reload, you should pick the right or left side.
If you don't, it will pick one randomly.
Grappling options (new for Basic game) can be set for friendly or enemy ships which are adjacent following
movement. There is more about grappling below.
If you want to transfer crew sections (new for Basic game) to any friendly adjacent ship, you must
unclick the "Skip TBP phase" checkbox. There is more about boarding parties below.
When you are satisfied, use the Move my Ships button. When all players have completed their orders, the computer
simultaneously moves them. Then the game continues with a new phase - boarding party input.
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Grappling and boarding parties (new for Basic game)

If two or more ships are fouled (joined by black lines) or grappled (joined by yellow lines), they can prepare
boarding parties to capture enemy ships. Adjacent friendly ships can transfer crew - they do not have to be grappled
or fouled, but you must unclick the "skip TBP" checkbox in the regular movement input window.
Grappled ships cannot move or turn in place, but can fire (if crew is available).
Note this is a separate phase, so the input window (below) may not appear immediately.
There are four types of boarding parties:
- No boarding party (NBP): Will function as normal, firing the guns, etc. NBPs do not defend against OBPs and
will surrender if attacked by OBPs.
- Offensive boarding party (OBP): Will try to board and capture an enemy ship.
- Defensive boarding party (DBP): Only defend against OBPs.
- Transfer boarding party (TBP): Transfer crew between friendly ships.
Boarding parties are built from crew sections. Specify the type of boarding party (NBP/OBP/DBP/TBP) for
each section and its destination (for OBPs and TBPs). Sections assigned to anything other than NBP will count as
a crew section loss for determing the Hit
Determination Table (HDT) (below). If all crew sections are assigned to something other than NBP, the ship
will not fire (due to crew being used elsewhere).
TBPs will act as replacements on the destination ship, replacing any red (lost) squares with green squares. They assume
the quality and owner of the destination ship. For example, if crack crew TBPs to an average ship, they become average and
belong to that captain. Extra squares will be shown as a green person icon below the hull section in the ship's status
window.
TBPs do not require ships to be grappled/fouled and they can be used to transfer crew and capture surrendered enemy ships.
TBPs can also be ordered against enemy ships which have not surrendered yet, but they will only take effect if the enemy ship surrenders
during the fire phase
When you're satisfied with your boarding parties, click the Use these parties button. When all
players have completed the phase, the game continues with the computer resolving movement, firing, damage and melee combat.
Boarding Party Limit
If a ship has extra crew squares on board (as shown by
the green person icon under the hull section), they are not eligible for assignment to boarding parties and
do not show up during the boarding party phase. Instead, they will automatically fill in lost crew squares, which can
then be assigned to boarding parties.
MOVEMENT RULES
Determing Movement and Turning Allowance (same as Simplified game)
A ship's movement allowance depends upon ship type, rigging damage and the ship's attitude to the wind.
There are four possible attitudes: A, B, C and D. Each letter represents a different position of the ship
in relation to the direction that the wind is blowing.
In the diagram to the right, wind is blowing from the north (top).
The first ship, in attitude D, is facing into the wind. As such, it has no movement allowance and can only turn.
The next two ships, in attitude A, have wind blowing into all their sails, so this attitude gives the most movement
points. The ships labelled C are facing somewhat into the wind, but can still move, though obviously slower.
Finally, a ship in attitude B has wind blowing only into its stern sails.
The charts below show the movement allowance for a ship of the line (left) and a frigate (right). The maximum
movement allowance is for a ship in attitude A, with the allowance being reduced by one for each successive attitude.
It is further reduced by one for each rigging section lost. Regardless of its movement allowance, a ship may
always turn once per turn. EXCEPTION: Fouled ships and riggingless ships (see below).
The movement allowance is the maximum number of hexes a ship may move in a movement phase.
Ship of the Line (SOL) |
Frigate |
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Examples:
- A ship of the line (left) starts the movement notation phase
in attitude C. Its movement allowance is 1.
- A frigate (right) starts the movement notation phase
in attitude A. Its movement allowance is 4.
- A ship of the line starts the movement notation phase
in attitude B. It has lost one rigging section. Its movement allowance is 1.
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Movement Mechanics (same as Simplified game)
Movement points may not be accumulated from one turn to another nor may
they be transferred between ships. A ship never has to move, nor use all its movement points. The number
of hexes a ship may move is up to the player within the limits of its movement allowance.
A ship always pivots around its bow. Since each ship icon occupies 2 hexes, as a ship turns
to point to a new hexside, the stern will swing into a new hex.
The movement allowance for each wind attitude also limits the number
of hexes a ship may move while in that particular attitude. Example: A ship
in attitude A has a movement allowance
of 4. If it turns to attitude C, it may only move one hex in that direction
as the movement allowance for this attitude is 1. It may turn back to attitude
A after moving one hex in C and finish its move in attitude A.
This does not work in reverse, so a ship starting
its turn in Attitude B has a maximum movement allowance of 2 (for example) even if
it moves to attitude A later in the movement phase.
This does not limit the number of turns in any attitude (other than the
limit of 1 per hex traversed), just the number of hexes into which a ship may
move.
A ship which has a movement allowance of 0 may still turn in place 60 degrees.
When a dismasted ship (lost all rigging) is drifting, it will have to wait 1, 2 or 3 turns between each 60° turn depending on its turning ability:
A ship with turning ability of 3 waits 1 turn.
A ship with turning ability of 2 waits 2 turns.
A ship with turning ability of 1 waits 3 turns.
Fouled ships (see below) cannot move or turn.
A ship which turns into attitude D (into the wind) must immediately stop and may not move
or turn for the remainder of the movement phase, even if it has movement factors
remaining.
Collisions and Fouling (same as Simplified game)
If two or more ships (enemy or friendly) are found to be in the same hex
at the same time during movement, a collision takes place and all movement
ends for all ships involved.
Only one ship can actually remain in the collision hex. If the bow or stern
of one ship was already in the hex when one or more other
ships attempt to enter that hex, the ship occupying the hex remains. The other
ship moves back to the hex it occupied just prior to the collision.
If the stern of a ship enters a hex in a turning maneuver at the same point
in the movement phase as the bow of another ship, the bow enters the hex. The
turning ship moves back to its previous position. In all other cases that might
occur, a random winner of the collision is chosen and the other ship has to move back.
When a collision occurs, the rigging of the involved ships may entangle and
be fouled, locking the ships together. For each collision, the game determines
fouling automatically. Fouled ships are shown on the map joined by two black lines,
as depicted in the image to the right.
Fouled ships cannot move or turn in place, but can fire. On following turns, the game will automatically
determine if fouled ships become unfouled. If so, the black lines are removed and the ships
involved can move and turn normally.
There is a 50-50 chance that collided ships will foul, and a one third chance that
fouled ships will unfoul. Players can pick unfouling options in the move input window
with the Unfouling pulldown list.
- all: The game will determine unfouling from all ships normally.
- friend: Only attempt to unfoul from friendly ships, but remain fouled to enemy ships.
- enemy: Only attempt to unfoul from enemy ships, but remain fouled to friendly ships.
- none: Remain fouled to all ships.
Drifting (new in Basic game)
Ships which do not change their bow hex for two consecutive turns will drift. Note that a turn (only)
does not change the bow hex, so a ship which only turns in place is eligible to drift.
Ships of the line (SOLs) will drift one hex every other turn. Frigates and smaller ships will drift one hex
every turn. Struck ships drift according to their size and can foul other ships if they collide.
Drifting is in the direction of the wind with both the bow and stern moving together so the
ship retains its position relative to the wind.
Drifting happens after regular movement and is noted in the game event log.
Grappled or fouled ships drift together.
COMBAT RULES
Firing (same as Simplified game)

Ships may fire cannon broadsides at enemy ships in their field of fire and within
range. Firing and damage determination is carried out automatically by the computer. Firing is
simultaneous, so any damage received will not count against a ship until the following turn. A broadside
which has fired is shown with dark smoke on that side. The reloading broadside has grey smoke. In the
example to the right, both sides have fired, but only the right broadside is reloading.
Players may order their ship(s) to fire at the hull or rigging. Note that the move input
window only has one area where this can be specified, so you cannot, for example, specify hull for
one broadside and rigging for the other. Also, hull shots can only be ordered if the range is
five hexes or less. Any shot at a range of six or more hexes will automatically be aimed
at the rigging, regardless of what the player ordered.
In some situations, players might not want to fire, usually to preserve an initial broadside
so it will have greater impact later. To do so, there is a section of the move input window that reads
"Fire if HDT is at least" followed by a pulldown list. Pick the minimum table you want. If the
game calculates a HDT of at least that high for the ship in question, it will fire, otherwise it won't.
Note this stays in place for following turns, so if you set it high one turn, you might need to reset
it later to a lower threshold or your ship may not fire.
Fire Eligibility (same as Simplified game)

Each ship has a right and left (in naval terminology, starboard
and port) broadside. These broadsides are effective only from their side of
the ship. Each broadside has a play, or area over which its cannons
can reach. The maximum range of a broadside is ten hexes. The play of each
broadside is shown in the diagram to the right.
The two broadsides are independent; any blocking
of one field has no effect, whatsoever, on the other field of fire.
A ship may fire at a single enemy ship in a broadside's field of fire
subject to two conditions:
- The ship being fired upon must be the closest in number of hexes to the firing
ship of all ships in the field of fire.
- If the closest ship happens to be friendly or surrendered, the field of fire is blocked and the
ship may not fire that broadside in that turn. If an enemy ship is the same distance away as a friendly or surrendered one,
the enemy ship may be fired upon.
If there is more than one ship which qualifies as the closest, the game chooses the one with
the highest Hit Determination Table. If multiple ships are the same distance and have equal HDTs, the game
chooses one randomly.
A ship may fire both broadsides during the same combat phase, if both sides are loaded.
Carronades are a special type of gun. They can only be fired at ships within
the two hex range. Carronade gun squares are added to the regular broadside
capability.
Fire Procedure (same as Simplified game)
The game automatically handles all the details of firing. The procedure is identical to the board game,
so if you're already familiar with it, or not interested in the details, you can skip this section.
The game does the following to calculate and resolve firing:
- Count the number of hexes to the target by the shortest possible
route. It may be to either the bow or stern hex, whichever is closest. This
is the range.
- Count the
number of guns squares on the broadside firing. Do not include damaged gun squares
in this count. Also, do not include carronade squares unless the range is two
hexes or less.
- Consult the range tables of the Hit
Determination Table (HDT), cross gridding
the number of gun squares firing with the range in hexes.
- Continue to the right on that line and apply the HDT modifiers (see below). These are variables
that will increase or decrease the hit table. All modifiers are cumulative. The Optional Modifiers are not used.
- If, after using all modifiers that apply, Table Zero or above has not been reached,
the ship will not fire. This is noted in the event log as unable to fire.
- If a table number higher than
eight has been reached, use Table Eight, as this is the highest allowed.
HDT Modifiers (same as Simplified game)
The following increase or decrease the damage potential by influencing the hit table used.
- Crew quality. Crews can be either poor, green, average, crack or elite. Poor and green crews
reduce the hit table while crack and elite crews add to it.
- Rake. Raking will increase the hit table, depending on the
number of gun squares firing. A ship is in a raking position anytime an opposing
ship lies within the play of its broadside, but it lies outside the play of
the opposing broadside.
- Crew Losses. For each complete crew section lost, the hit table is decreased by one.
- Initial Broadside. The first time a ship fires a broadside, it
will be the most carefully packed and aimed that it will fire. Each ship has
two initial broadsides, one for each side. An initial broadside
increases the hit table as shown on the HDT, depending on the number of
gun squares in the broadside.
Damage (same as Simplified game)
At this point, the game "rolls" a die by generating a random number which is cross-referenced
to the hit table number determined above. Each hit table has a hull or rigging column. The die
roll is applied to the appropriate column based on what the player ordered (hull or rigging)
for the firing ship. Or, if the range is six hexes or more, the rigging column must be used.
There are four types of hits: H (Hull), G (Gun), C (Crew), and R (Rigging).
At the end of the turn, the number and type of hits are automatically marked off by the game in
the appropriate sections of the target ship's chart. See below for a description of damage effects.
All firing is reported on the game's event log along with how the
Hit Determination Table (HDT)
was calculated (number of guns, crew quality, rake bonus, etc.) and the die roll.
Damage Effects (same as Simplified game)
- Hull Hits
When all of a ship's hull squares have been marked off, that ship will
surrender by striking her colors. The ship is considered to be
in such danger of sinking that it cannot be sailed or the guns worked for the
remainder of the game. The game will no longer allow a struck ship to be fired at.
They are still afloat, so other ships can collide with them and even foul.
Note that a partially damaged hull operates normally, so a ship with even one hull
square remaining can move and fire as if it was undamaged.
An example of a struck ship is to the right.
- Crew Hits
Crew hits are taken out of the first section until all of its crew squares
are gone, then from the second section, and finally from the third section.
For each crew section lost, the hit table (above) is reduced by one.
When all crew squares on a ship are lost, the ship cannot move or fire.
Whoever fired at it receives points accordingly. However, the ship is
still a target and can be fired at.
- Gun Hits
Gun hits are marked
off the side closest to the firing ship, although if gun squares on the closer
side are all marked off, gun squares on the opposite side are marked off.
If a ship has both carronades and guns on the hit side, carronades are hit first.
When raked, both sides of the target ship are equidistant to the firing ship,
so the game randomly picks which guns are lost.
A ship's ability to fire will degrade as it loses guns, as shown in the
Hit Determination Table (HDT).
When all gun squares are marked off, the ship will surrender if an enemy ship
manages to fire a broadside on it from an adjacent hex and there are no friendly ship
of the same or larger class as the firing ship within ten hexes.
This is known as surrender by firepower.
- Rigging Hits
The rigging squares are divided into either three sections (for ships of the line)
or four sections (for frigates). All rigging hits are taken out of the first section until
it is destroyed, then out of the second section, etc. Each complete rigging
section marked off drops the ship's movement allowance by one hex in all
attitudes to the wind. When all rigging sections are gone, the ship cannot move and it can only turn
at a reduced rate when drifting (see Movement Mechanics).
If all rigging squares are marked off, the ship will surrender to the first enemy ship which can
rake its hull if and only if no friendly ship of the same or larger class as the firing
ship is within ten hexes. This is known as surrender by immobility.
All of the above conditions must be met. As an example, if a 1st SOL
rakes a ship that lost all of its rigging squares, another friendly 1st SOL must be within ten
hexes to avoid the surrender. A 2nd SOL is not the same class as a 1st SOL, so
a 2nd SOL or frigate will not qualify. Also, the shot must be a rake aimed at the hull. Since
shots can be aimed at the hull only if the range is five hexes or less, the firing ship must be at least
that close and order the hull to be the target.
A shot aimed at the rigging may produce hull hits, but this does not qualify as a hull rake.
Reloading (same as Simplified game)

Ships have their broadsides loaded in the beginning of the scenario. The first
time each broadside is fired it is called an initial broadside and receives a
bonus due to the extra care and time that went into loading it before the engagement started.
A ship can load one complete broadside per turn. Only one side can be loaded,
not both. A broadside can be loaded in the same turn that it is fired, and fired again
during the following turn, or any later turn. Thus it is possible for the same
broadside to be fired every turn.
Reloading is handled automatically by the game according to orders given in the Load:
pulldown list. Any side loads either broadside and is sufficient if only one broadside fires.
Left or Right can be specified if the player wants one particular side to fire during
the next turn. If both broadsides have fired and Any side is specified, the game picks one
side randomly.
The ship icon is shown with black smoke on any side which has fired. The reloading side is shown
with gray smoke. In the example shown here, both broadsides have fired while the (ship's) right broadside is reloading.
In the Basic game, only roundshot may be reloaded.
MELEE PROCEDURE (new in Basic game)
Boarding Parties During Melee
After movement and firing, surviving crew may melee in an attempt to board and capture enemy ships.
Boarding parties are specified during an earlier phase explained above. Briefly, entire crew sections
can be assigned to boarding parties.
There are a few possibilities concerning what will happen:
- OBP vs. OBP: The strength for each OBP is calculated (see below) and they fight it out. If either
side wins, it then faces a DBP if one was ordered. If not, the ship is captured.
- OBP vs. DBP: The OBP will board the defending ship. The strengths are calculated in the same manner,
but the DBP will only defend its ship, not board the enemy ship.
- DBP vs. DBP: No melee takes place.
- OBP vs. NBP: The OBP captures the ship without a fight. NBPs are assumed to be performing their normal duties.
OBP = Offensive boarding party, DBP = Defensive boarding party, TBP = Transfer boarding party, NBP = No boarding party
Note that transfer boarding parties (TBPs) joining a ship will not be eligible to participate in melee combat
on the turn they transfer.
Melee Resolution
The game now calculates the strength of each boarding party by multipying the number of crew squares (not
sections) by the quality of the crew according to the table below:
- Poor crew: 1 point per square
- Green crew: 2 points per square
- Average crew: 3 points per square
- Crack crew: 4 points per square
- Elite crew: 5 points per square
For example, the ship shown below would have 30 melee strength points (6 squares X 5 points each for elite crew).
The game then simulates a die roll for each side and applies it to the
Melee Resolution Table.
Losses are applied to each side, starting with the lowest numbered crew section. For example, crew section
1 takes losses before section 2, etc.
This continues for up to three rounds of melee combat. The game recalculates the total melee strength
and die rolls and applies losses for each round.
If, at any point during the melee resolution, one side's total melee strength is more than the other's by a
3:1 margin, that side wins and captures the ship. They are called a prize crew and are considered to be
on the deck of the captured ship. Captured ships are shown with a red ship icon under the ship's name (see image
to the right). Losing crew squares are taken prisoner and remain aboard their original ship. This is shown as a
red icon below the hull section on the captured ship (6 in the example to the right).
If neither side reaches the 3:1 threshhold after three rounds of melee, it continues on the following game
turn. No more than three melee rounds are ever fought in one game turn.
Captured Ships
Any ship which is captured can be used normally by the prize crew on following turns. They retain their
original quality, but all captured ships suffer a -2 penalty on the
Hit Determination Table (HDT)
(but no penalty for crew section losses).
If the prize crew ever transfers off or is killed, the original crew takes over. Similarly, if the prize crew ever
falls below a 1:6 margin with the original (imprisoned) crew, the prisoners will revolt and retake their ship. For
example, if there are 12 prisoner squares, at least two prize crew squares must remain aboard at all times or the
prisoners will retake the ship.
If a crewless ship has friendly crew transfer aboard, the ship retains its original captain.
Boarding Party Limit
One issue not clearly addressed by the original board game rules was how to handle transfer boarding parties (TBPs)
during a melee. The Basic version handles them as follows. If a ship has extra crew squares on board (as shown by
the green person icon under the hull section), they are not eligible to directly participate in melees and do
not show up during the boarding party phase. Instead, they will automatically fill in lost crew squares, which can
then be assigned to boarding parties.
This could have an unexpected consequence if a player loads up a small ship with lots of extra crew. For example,
suppose a ship starts with three crew sections of three squares each. If ten squares are later transferred over, the
maximum number of squares eligible for boarding parties is still only nine (three sections of three squares each).
If that ship attempts to capture a ship with a much larger crew (or higher quality crew), it might instead be
captured itself because the game does not take extra crew squares into account when determining the 3:1
victory ratio for melees. Losses will be filled in from the ten extra squares after the three rounds of melee
are fought, but not between rounds. Thus, if the 3:1 ratio is met, the ship could be captured and the extra
crew squares will instead become prisoners because they can not be directly assigned to any type of boarding party.
SCORING SYSTEM
The points for a ship forced to strike are split evenly between the players involved in the final shot.
For example, if one player has two ships involved and another has only one, they each receive half the point value
of the struck ship.
A captured ship is worth twice the point value to the capturing player. If more than player is involved in
a melee, the one with the most melee points (crew squares * quality) has control of the captured ship. If
a ship is later recaptured, the original capturer loses those points.
Note that in rare situations it is possible to receive points for causing more than one type of surrender.
A ship which loses her crew is worth her full point value, but can still be fired upon. That same
ship might strike later, again awarding her full point value to those in the final shot.
ENDING THE GAME
Victory conditions depend upon the scenario. Any special conditions will be
written in the appropriate scenario.
As soon as the victory conditions are met, the game ends and is listed on the player's
My Games section of this site.
General victory conditions will be split
into two categories - those for single ship scenarios and those for multi-ship
scenarios.
Single Ship Victory Conditions
Single ship scenarios end when one ship surrenders. The
other player is the winner. If both ships surrender simultaneously, it is a draw.
Multi-Ship Victory Conditions
Each ship has a point value in its status area. A player which forces the surrender
of an enemy ship is awarded this point value. Captured ships are worth double this value.
At the end of the scenario, all points are counted and the player still able to fight with the
highest amount is declared the winner.
Multi-Player Victory Conditions
For games with more than one player on at least one side, each player on the winning side is credited
with a win. The highest scorer's name is bolded on the list of finished games.
Timeout
If no one fires for several turns, the game will begin a five-turn timer which is highlighted
in the game's event log. If neither side fires, or is able to fire, for the next five turns, the
game will end. Victory conditions as listed above apply to determine the winner. In this case,
the winning coalition is the one with the most victory points still able to fight.
Surrender
A player may surrender at any time using the move input window. In a two player game, the game ends and
the other player is declared the winner, regardless of points scored so far.
In a multi-player game, the surrendering player's ships remain on the map but can no longer be targeted.
In either case, the surrendering player loses all points scored so far.
USEFUL LINKS
You can read the board game rules in other languages:
ITALIAN Rules: http://www.arsm.it/articolo.asp?id=53.
FRENCH Rules: http://naval.histofig.com/-Wooden-Ships-Iron-Men-.html
Please keep in mind that the game you can play on this site is
slightly diffrent from the original board games. The differences are
explained above.
CREDITS
This page was adapted from the original one by Longneck.
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