Once a day, a randomly selected town is blocked by a pirate blockade.
It is then only possible to enter the town if you fight your way through the pirate blockade.
To finally defeat a pirate blockade, a certain number of victories is required, which all players in a town must achieve together.
All players with at least one victory are rewarded with plenty of reputation. The amount of the reward depends on the number of victories. In the event of a tie, earlier victories count more. The reputation paid out increases with each town level. Additionally, after a victory you can collect the goods that the pirates were carrying.
A maximum of 5 pirate blockades can exist on the map at the same time.
As with the pirate quests, there are three different actions available during ship battles:
Full Broadside: All cannons fire straight ahead at the same time. You will only hit if the enemy ship is directly opposite your own ship. If this is the case, however, all cannonballs will hit. If there are enemy ships on both sides of your own ship, the broadside can fire in both directions at the same time. The range is significantly shorter than with artillery. With this tactic, you waste fewer cannonballs, but take heavy damage.
Tailwind: The ship accelerates for a short time. This allows you to get out of tricky situations. While Tailwind is active, the ship cannot be hit by enemy ships.
Artillery: Cannonballs are fired in a high arc over long distances. The accuracy is not perfect. If the enemy ships are too close to your own ship, the bullets will miss the enemy. This shot is particularly suitable for attacking from a distance in order to minimise your own damage. Artillery must be researched first.
Each time you win a pirate blockade battle, your opponents become stronger. Make sure you improve your ship over time so that you can hold your own against stronger opponents.
If the pirates seem too strong, you can call in an ally from your town and fight together. In this case, you receive the victory for the reputation leaderboard, and the looted goods are split 50–50 between you.
