Jolly Rodger
Players 2 to 6Period Age of Sail
Scale Abstract
Components
1 16½”x10½” long box1 19½”x19½” mapboard (consisting of
7 irregularly shaped “puzzle” pieces on thick cardboard)
75 die-cut counters
1 8 page illustrated rulebook in four languages
1 wind disk
1 white plastic counter tray
1 six-sided die
Card Manifest
72 6 sets of counters differentiated by color (10 treasure chests; 1 frigate; 1 galleon)2 storm markers
1 wind marker
I.Team’s translator says
“The gallions transport the douboolns of the Banco de Espana to the islands, but the change of winds, sudden storms or opponent pirate ships can make any attempt vain.” (sic)The reviewer says
“[The International Team] games must really be seen to be believed; the graphics and color is simply stupendous. Most of them appear to have been printed using a six color process, and all of the counters and boards are laminated, which makes the pieces even glossier ... If you attempt to judge their value on the price versus the number of components and pieces, certain of the games, such as Jolly Roger, are going to get bumrapped. Jolly Roger has few counters, and an average-size board, and only a few pages of rules ... One problem seems to be shared by all of the games’ rules: for the most part, the translations are lousy ... Most of the rules are simple enough that good common sense is usually sufficient to slog through the sticky portions. Unfortunately, some of the errors require divine inspiration and/or revelation to interpret.” T.J. Kask in The Dragon 35.Comments
The object of the game is to use your galleons to travel to coastal cities, sack them, and bring treasure back to your pirate island. Each player also controls one or more frigates which can sink other ships. The winner is the first player to have a certain number of doubloons in his treasury.While some of the International Team games could be categorized as wargames, Jolly Roger is clearly a family strategy style game. Combat is accomplished by simply moving your frigate over another ship to sink it. Ships which are sunk lose any doubloons they were carrying and are returned back to their island harbor. Movement of ships is affected by the varying wind and storms.
One last note for those who like to tinker with game design -- even if you are dissatisfied with the oddly phrased IT rules, Jolly Roger offers a great looking set of components for putting together your own lighthearted pirate game.
Collector’s Value
When I hear International Team, I tend to think of their games packaged in over sized flatboxes (such as Iliad, profiled in the last issue of Simulacrum). However, a series of smaller IT games was imported into the U.S. in the early 80’s. These smaller games came in boxes that were similar in size to traditional mass-market boardgame boxes. These smaller IT games were strategy games with a thin veneer of theme. I would not describe any of them as wargames. There seems to be less interest in these titles compared to the larger IT games. Perhaps one reason for this is the growing plethora of thinly themed games currently being produced. Boone does not list any prices for Jolly Roger.Other long box I.Team games
Conquistadores; Gipso; Magic Wood; Medici; Ra; Tabu.Back to Simulacrum Vol. 4 No. 2 Table of Contents
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