The best Ship Construction book

[Hussar]

While they're 3e books, the rules still work pretty well: Living Imagination's Broadsides!! (for combat) and Pirates (for ship construction rules) are probably the most comprehensive out there. I've used Mongoose's and FFG's rules, but, neither are as complete as Living Imagination's. However, on the downside LI's rules are very tactical, meaning that ship to ship combat is SLOW. However, their ship construction rules are bang on and the treatment they give to ships all the way from catamarans to galleons is top knotch. Since LI's been out of biz for a while though, I'm not sure how easily you can get copies.

 

[DM_Jeff]

A second vote for the Living Imagination books Pirates! and Broadsides. Both really well done in treating the topic with interesting ideas.

-DM Jeff

 

[HeapThaumaturgist]

I used Corsair! as the rules basis for my Airships! game. (I loves me some exclamation points, I guess)

It worked quite well for us ... of course I had to change and add a few things to account for the third dimension and flight, but I distinctly wanted an Age of Sail flavor to that game and it served our needs.

It presents well the "Eggs With Sledgehammers" aspects of naval combat, but my party's skill was able to turn the tides. They were skipping about in a merchant sloop and managed to hand it to several larger merchant vessels and a warship that might have taken them out of the sky. After the battle with the warship they DID have to set down for some emergency repairs.

--fje

 

[GMSkarka]

I used Corsair! as the rules basis for my Airships! game. (I loves me some exclamation points, I guess)

It worked quite well for us ... of course I had to change and add a few things to account for the third dimension and flight, but I distinctly wanted an Age of Sail flavor to that game and it served our needs.

Cool! Contact me, wouldja? gms@adamantentertainment.com

I'm looking for some flying-ship rules for a forthcoming release, and was planning on adapting the CORSAIR rules. I'd love to get a look at what you did. If I can use it, I'll credit you and pay you for it.