NOW BRING ME THAT HORIZON!

With the Blood & Plunder "Raise the Black" on the Horizon, I won't lie I'm getting more and more excited - the plastics are looking great.

And frankly ASSUMING they match well in scale with the Metals, I REALLY cannot wait.

Combine that with the fact theres a two-player starter set on the Horizon - the future is VERY bright for Blood & Plunder!

Fuller Information can be found here - https://www.firelockgames.com/raise-the-black-kickstarter/

AVAST! A Birthday Haul (Part Two)

I've only dabbled with Blood & Plunder so far, a very small crew - no Ships, and only PDF's of the Rules.

But as of NOW - I can take to the High Seas! (FINALLY).

Thanks to my Family (and it having been my Birthday)!

I'm a Happy Pirate!

The Bulk of it was from Gaming Figures (VERY fast shipping), the Gorgeous Book was from Wayland Games (great, but not as fast as Gavin LoL) - it would all have come from Gaming Figures, but the Big Red Rulebook went out of stock sadly.

AVAST! A Birthday Haul (Part One)

Thanks to my lovely Mrs, I was able to secure my desired Debonn Crew for Freebooter's Fate - and whilst they came with a strange mix of 1st and 2nd Edition Cards in English (leaving me in a weird place for playing games LoL) they are truly gorgeous.

Minimal Cleanup as usual with any Freebooter Miniatures, its hard to tell how lovely they are "in the flesh" as bare pewter is really hard to take a good picture of (especially with my inability to actually TAKE a good picture LoL).

I'm so pleased (and lucky) to own these, they are now a cherished part of my Freebooter's Fate Collection!

Iconic Ships from Pirates of the Caribbean Movie Series

If you ever fancied modelling the Iconic Ships from Pirates of the Caribbean and wondered where to start, FEAR NOT - I Captain Blackwood am here to help!!! (OK, its me really - sorry, got carried away there).

In this post, I'll cover the Ships from the Pirates of the Caribbean Movie series - and indicate either what real-world ships they are based on, or give you the inspiration for them!

The Dying Gull

Starting with the most recent first, the latest ship to be introduced into the timeline of the Pirates of the Caribbean is the Dying Gull! Seen in the Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales - the Dying Gull is designed after a single-masted sloop class and is portrayed by the Rainbow Gypsy which is a Scottish trawler. This Dying Gull features eight gunports, one swivel gun, and no visible cannons.

The HMS Interceptor

Pictured is the Ship "The Lady Washington" before it was repainted and dressed for the Movie.

Appearing in the very first installment of the Pirates Of The Caribbean Movie Series, the HMS Interceptor was a  brig in the Royal Navy serving His Majesty King George II. This brig was believed to be the fastest vessel commissioned by the Monarch. In reality, the HMS Interceptor is portrayed by a replica of the Lady Washington ship which a Brig that sailed the waters of the Caribbean through the island of Saint Vincent during the latter half of the 18th century.

The Queen Anne's Revenge

This ship appeared in Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is based on the nonfictional merchant sailing vessel which was launched from England in 1710 and was named the Concord. A year after the ship's launch, it was captured by the French and used as a slave ship. In 1717, near the island of Martinique, that the ship was captured and used as a vessel by pirates. By 1718, the notorious (real) pirate, Edward Teach, or better known as Blackbeard, captured the ship and ran it aground at Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina. The Queen Anne's Revenge in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is a modified Frigate.

The Flying Dutchman

The Flying Dutchman is one of the most notable fictional ships in the whole of the Pirates Of The Caribbean series. It is a combination of a galleon and fluyt ship which is a Dutch sailing vessel that is originally designed as a cargo vessel. One of the inspirations for the Flying Dutchman's look is the 17th-century real-life Swedish warship called the Vasa (you can read about my post about the Vasa here - https://keelhauling-4-fun-and-profit.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-vasa-almost-perfectly-preserved.html). This ghost ship was also inspired by the legend story of the ship with the same name or De Vliegende Hollander in Dutch. Although considered as 17th-century nautical folklore, many notable people in the 20th Century have reported sightings of the Flying Dutchman.

The Black Pearl

The ship that features the most is Captain Jack Sparrow's, Black Pearl. From the film's background, the Black Pearl was originally a merchant vessel that belonged to the East India Trading Company that was hijacked by Sparrow. Originally called "The Wicked Wench" it is an odd hybrid of a galleon and an East Indiaman.

THE VASA - AN ALMOST PERFECTLY PRESERVED 17th CENTURY WARSHIP!

The Vasa Warship can be found at the Vasa Museum in Stockholm, Sweden. The ship when built (in 1626) was the most "hi-tech" design when it set sail, unfortunately it sunk in 1628.

It’s believed that the Vasa sank because the gun deck was simply too heavy, and apparently this mistake was the result of it being designed and built by someone with no experience building such a well-armed ship.

It’s so well preserved that it provides a glimpse of life at sea during the 1600’s almost never seen.

The ship was preserved because it sunk in the harbor where it was docked to shelter it from storms. 

The ship was moved to the museum in Stockholm in 1988.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/bizarre-story-vasa-ship-keeps-giving-180964328/

Captain Morgan for Blood & Plunder

Captain Morgan has always been one of my Favourite Historical Figures.

Sir Henry Morgan born in Wales on the 24th January 1635, Harri Morgan was a Welsh privateer, plantation owner, and, later, Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica. Based in Port Royal, Jamaica - he raided settlements and ships on the Spanish Main, becoming a very wealthy man, eventually purchasing three large sugar plantations.

Morgan died a rich man (on 25th August 1688), and as Lieutenant Governor - was given a State Funeral, and an amnesty was declared so that Pirates and privateers could pay their respects without fear of arrest.

Anyway, this is my Take on the Great Man - Miniature (obviously) by Firelock Games as part of their Blood & Plunder Range.

THE RETURN OF THE SON OF 'AAAARRR, THERE SHE GROWS!'

I've not blogged for a couple of days, I've had a fairly bad Sinus Infection - so I've been staying quiet and (when the pain allows) doing bits of hobby.

My Freebooters Fate Pirates are stripped and re-undercoated, and I continued with some other "Piratey" Projects - including doing more on my Jungle/Island Scatter Terrain for my Freebooters Fate, Pirate, and Ghost Archipelago Games.

As you can see, PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE - just the base of the Trees/Plants, the Ground, and the Static-Grass to do!