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Pirate Themed Board Games

Fifteen men on a dead man's chest! Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!

Oh, the life of a pirate! Sailing the Seven Seas, capturing ships and stealing all the finery on board, swashing your buckles and yo ho ho-ing a bottle of rum!

Dating back to ancient Greece, seafaring thieves have long been a part of our collective memory. As such, pirates are often more creatures of legend than actual sailors. Mind you, legends that can make for some good board games.

These games see you setting out on the high seas in search of fame, glory, and more than a little loot.

Libertalia: Winds of Galecrest

2022

A reimagined update of the classic pirate game Libertalia, this edition brings new art, a new Reputation system, better loot, and even a solo mode.

YOHO (You Only Hang Once)

2022

You Only Hang Once is a card game where players are pirates hoping to blame their fellow pirates for stealing all the loot, while hoping to make off with all that loot yourself.

Feed the Kraken

2021

A social deduction game with three hidden factions: sailors trying to reach the mainland, pirates wanting to sail into the Bermuda Triangle, and a cultist trying to raise The Kraken from darkest parts of the sea.

Extraordinary Adventures: Pirates

2019

A deck-building game that sees you as a pirate captain, ransacking merchant ships and selling off the goods, all in a race to Trinidad.

Forgotten Waters

2020

A narrative-driven Crossroads game where players sail the seas together in search of adventure and plunder to achieve both a group and personal goal.

Dead Reckoning

2020

Players each command a pirate ship and crew to loot, trade, and capture islands to stockpile the greatest fortune. Each game will see you discovering more secrets of the seas.

Tiny Epic Pirates

2021

Select actions from around the Captain’s wheel to sail, plunder, and hide your treasure.

Merchants & Marauders

2010

Plunder riches, upgrade your ship, trade, complete missions and crush your enemies all in a race to the ten glory points needed to win the game.

Dead Men Tell No Tales

2015

Battle the undead skeleton crew of a famed pirate ship and make off with its gold or die trying.

Pirate Fluxx

2011

I’m not a huge fan of card games, but I do love a game of Fluxx. This Pirate-themed version includes Surprise cards and, of course, a Talk Like a Pirate rule.

Shiver Me Timbers

2021

A Euro-style game that has each player choosing their own winning condition, then race across a modular board to trade, loot, and treasure hunt their way to their goal.

Tortuga

2014

A dice-driven, set collection game that sees you trying to get your loot to the safe harbors of the pirate haven on Tortuga while fighting off your fellow pirates who are each trying to do the same—and capture your loot as well.

Rum and Bones

2015

Players control up to five characters at a time in a battle to destroy opponents’ ships and make off with Davy Jones’ pieces of eight.

About the author

Tom Franklin

By day, I'm a mild-mannered IT Manager with a slight attitude. By night I play guitar & celtic bouzouki, board games, and watch British TV. I love abstracts, co-ops, worker placement and tile-laying games. Basically, any deep game with lots of interesting choices. 

You can find my middle grade book, The Pterrible Pteranodon, at your favorite online bookstore.

And despite being a DM, I have an inherent dislike of six-sided dice.

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