Swashbuckle: Tips and Strategy

Swashbuckle is a strategy card game that can be played at any level, but the best pirates need to be nimble, letting the cards dictate their most probable path to victory. 

At the beginning of each turn, a player is faced with a simple but delicate decision, draw one Coin card or two Action cards. This decision will be primarily influenced by the coins in your Coffer and Action cards in your Duffle. Questions you may ask yourself to help you determine this decision are:

• With one more Coin card, is it possible or likely I will have enough coins to purchase a Treasure card in the following Market phase?
• How many less Action cards do I anticipate having after my turn is over?
• What is the appropriate amount of Action cards I should have in my Duffle?

These questions after some time and experience will sharpen your decision. 

Following the Draw phase, it is a wise decision to immediately purchase a Treasure card, if able, with a few exceptions determined predominately by the Action cards you have and that have been played as well as the Treasure cards in front of you. 

A significant amount of the strategy will be which Action cards to play and when. During the Action phase, you may play up to two Action cards. Many Action cards pair well with other Action cards and utilizing them together may improve your relative position. One example is the Kraken and Run A Rig. When the Kraken is played first, an opponent will be forced to discard two Action cards which will likely be their more common cards. This will provide you the opportunity to play a Run A Rig with a higher probability of stealing a more powerful Action card. 

Ship Action cards which cannot be belayed can enable game changing turns. It is most likely smart to target and protect these cards. 

While patiently waiting on a "big" turn, you must weigh weakening your opponent, improving your Coffer, or preserving your Duffle. These more intricate decisions will ultimately depend on your positioning in the game and the Treasure card powers at play. 

While navigating the seas of Swashbuckle, each player must be attentive to opponents' maneuver and decisions and prudent to their own strategy.