Up to a hundred pirate ships, one sea (pick the fleet size on the title screen; bigger fleets get a bigger map). Sink or outlast every other pirate. After 4 minutes a storm starts closing in on the middle of the map; its wind tears at any ship caught outside the circle, even one sitting in port.
Sailing
Phone: drag anywhere on the left side to steer toward that direction. Set sails with ▲▼.
Keyboard:AD or arrows steer, WS raise and lower sails.
Ships need speed to turn well. Running with the wind is fastest (see the wind arrow).
Hitting land at speed damages your hull.
Broadsides
Cannons fire only out of the left (port) and right (starboard) sides, never forward. Turn your side toward the enemy.
Every gun on that side fires at once, then reloads. The dotted lines on each side of your ship show range: green is ready, red is reloading.
Q fires port, E fires starboard, Space fires both, or click toward a ship to fire that side.
Loot and repairs
🟫 Floating wood piles patch your hull. Sail over them.
🟨 Merchant ships (cream sails) carry gold. Sink one and sail over the wreck to loot it.
🪙 Coin piles float all over the sea: easy pocket money. Merchants are the big payday.
Sunk pirates drop most of their gold too.
The navy
🟦 Navy warships (white sails, blue hulls) escort merchants and patrol the sea lanes.
Attack a merchant or the navy and you're wanted for 45 seconds: every warship nearby hunts you. Strike fast or pick merchants sailing alone.
The navy fields bigger ships as the match goes on.
Ports and upgrades
Slow down inside a port ring and press ⚓ DOCK (F). You can't be shot in harbor.
Hull: more health and more gun ports, but heavier and slower to turn.
Guns: one more cannon on each side. Each gun adds weight.
Sails: more speed to carry a heavy ship. A big ship with small sails is a sitting duck.