Broadside Attack keyword:  Answers to frequently asked questions

(Current as of “Pirates of the Barbary Coast”)

 Broadsides Attack: When a ship with this keyword is given a shoot action, you may choose to reduce each of her cannons to (S-range) and shoot at only one target. Roll only one six-sided die; the result must be higher than each cannon’s rank. If it is, all cannons hit, and the ship also gets one extra hit. No other abilities may apply to this action. 

1)  Requirements for using Broadsides Attack (BA):

--The ship must be given a shoot action.  It may be a free or a non-free shoot action. 

--ALL of the firing ship’s available cannons must be within S-range of the same target after being reduced.  This value cannot be modified. 

--ALL available cannons of this ship must be able to draw a clear line of fire (LOF) to the same target. 

2)  General usage of Broadsides Attack (BA):

--A roll for BA is successful (hits) if the result is higher than ALL available cannons on the firing ship.  If the result is less than or equal to the rank of one or more cannons on the ship, the entire BA roll is unsuccessful.  (Example:  If a ship has cannons with ranks of 2, 3, and 4, you must roll a 5 or greater to hit.) 

--If a BA roll is successful the number of hits produced is equal to the number of available masts on the firing ship, plus one.  (Example:  If a ship has 3 masts, a successful BA roll will produce a total of 4 hits.) 

--If one or more of a ship’s masts have been eliminated or replaced by fire masts, those masts are not included when checking the range or LOF to a target, when rolling to see if BA hits, or when determining the total number of hits.  (Example:  If a ship has cannons with ranks of 2, 3, and 4 but the rank-4 mast has been eliminated, BA will be successful on a roll of 4 and will produce a total of 3 hits.) 

3)  The “no other abilities” (NOA) clause:

No other abilities may apply to the shoot action in which BA is used.  This includes but is not limited to:

--Abilities that modify the die roll.  (+1 to cannons with a captain, +1 against X ships, friendly ships within S get +1, X ships get +1, etc.)

--Abilities that modify the cannon range.  (Double this ship’s cannon range, this ship’s cannons have L-range, etc.)

--Abilities that affect the LOF.  (Junk keyword, other ships do not block LOF, etc.)

--Abilities that allow re-rolls or a roll again.  (Re-roll any die roll, Cannoneers, etc.)

--Abilities that trigger upon a successful hit. (eliminate two masts, eliminate a crew/cargo, you choose which mast, etc.)

--Negative abilities that trigger after a miss or on a certain die roll. (eliminate a mast when this ship rolls a 1 on a cannon roll.)

--Abilities that allow a ship to fire from eliminated masts.

--Abilities that replace or apply to an individual cannon (Chainshot, Firepot, Smokepot, and Stinkpot Specialists, etc.)

--Defensive abilities that do not prevent a ship from being given a shoot action (this ship ignores the first hit, L-range cannons cannot hit this ship, two hits are required to eliminate one masts, Relics, Cross of Coronado, etc.)

--Reactive ability cancellers (Nemesio Diaz – see exceptions below)

--Other abilities that apply or take effect during a shoot action.  (Musketeers, Neptune’s Trident, etc.) 

4)  Exceptions to the “no other abilities” (NOA) clause:

            Action Generators

                        --Captain ability

--Additional actions (extra action, same action twice, two actions)

                        --Dry Powder UT

Reason:  Action generators are unaffected by the NOA clause because they provide only the shoot action that is in turn used by BA.  Other than producing it, they have no other effect on the action itself.    

            Ability Cancellers

--Preventive ability cancellers (Monsieur LeNoir, Lawrence, etc.; all except Nemesio Diaz)

                        --Stinkpot Specialists

Reason:  The NOA clause is only in effect while BA is active, and BA is only active during a shoot action.  If BA is cancelled before that shoot action is given to a ship, it does not become active and therefore the NOA clause cannot be applied.  Nemesio Diaz cannot cancel BA because his ability applies after the target ability is activated, at which point the NOA clause is already in effect. 

            Shoot Action Prevention.

--“This ship cannot be shot at by ships within S of her” (Nubian Prince, Desert Wind, Tripoli, etc.)

--Wet Gunpowder

Reason:  The NOA clause is only in effect while BA is active, and BA is only active during a shoot action.  If an ability prevents an opposing ship from targeting a another ship with a shoot action or it prevents a shoot action entirely, BA cannot activate against that target and the NOA clause does not take effect.           

            Independent Actions

--Marine keyword

Reason:  A shoot action given to a crewmember with the Marine keyword is completely independent from a shoot action given to a ship.  A Marine’s “cannon” is not included in any way when a ship is given a shoot action using BA, and the Marine may still be given its own shoot action normally. 

Indirect Effects

--Eliminate a treasure to add a 3S cannon (Carbon Charlie)

Reason:  Carbon Charlie’s ability is only in effect while the cannon is being created.  Once it has been added to the ship it becomes a permanent part of that ship and remains in effect even if Charlie leaves the ship, is cancelled, or is eliminated.  Since Charlie’s ability is not in effect during a shoot action, the NOA clause does not apply to any cannons created by his ability.  Any and all cannons he created are included when rolling to see if BA hits and when determining the total number of hits.

Thank you to Woelf for compiling this list

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