Pirate

Maritime piracy, attacking ships on the open sea and looting them or taking them for ransom is a widespread danger in the Eastern Archipelago of the Tescaries. Much of the strength of the Red Sails is aimed at countering piracy, but pirate activity still exacts a substantial toll on the profits of the Condominium and other traders in the region. The innumerable islands of the Eastern Archipelago are difficult to patrol and costly to bypass, providing hideouts and ambush locations for all sorts of buccaneers. The motivations for piracy range from Eterti beliefs to simple lust for gold. The line between the two can be blurry, and many Eterti consider themselves to be at war with the Condominium, and thus any attacks are acts of war and any loot the spoils of war, rather than profits of crime. Nevertheless, none can deny that for some clans, piracy has become a significant part of their livelihoods. Among the Tescarana, these fighters are often looked on with a mixture of jealousy and admiration, for not every clan is in position to take up arms against the Runberi. At the same time, others among the clans consider the Eterti creed to amount to self-serving justifications for plunder, and consider their professed goals of driving out the Condominium through raiding to be impossible. A few Eterti clans have even raided other Tescarana vessels that they believe to be in league with the Condominium.
Pirates that do not come from the clans are considered untrustworthy even by Eterti, for their motivation can only be simple greed. Nevertheless, foreign pirates and Eterti clans sometimes forge alliances of convenience. The Runberi consider them to be all the same, and the Red Sails have been attempting to stamp out piracy in the Tescaries for decades. Some archipelagan pirates have defected from the ranks of the Red Sails or the mercenary bands that preceded them, and are thus hated by all sides.

Vessels and Tactics

The tactics used by these pirates vary depending on what kinds of ships and weapons they have available. Tescarana pirates are often faced with cargo ships much larger and better armed than their own vessels, and in such instances cannot hope to challenge these ships without the element of surprise. Their knowledge of the archipelago aids them as they emerge from the cover of an island or a cove like a school of piranhas, too close and fast for cannons to be leveled on them. Throwing grapples onto the decks, the Eterti warriors climb onboard with frightening speed, besetting the defenders with the bows and hatchets.
Those pirates that have come in possession of cannon and a ship large enough to hold them can attempt to engage cargo ships on more open water. In such cases, the simple threat of a cannon barrage can be enough to force the surrender of a cargo vessel.

Type

Illicit

Used By

• Clan Scire