Captain's Log

"On returning to the ship from business in the port, I was informed that 
my ship was raided, and my daughter Katherine has been kidnapped by 
Bloodthroat the Pirate.  He demands a ransom of 50,000 pieces of gold 
within thirty days or he will sell her into the harems of the Coast.  
Now I must raise the ransom, and try to rescue my beloved Katherine."

Welcome, Captain, to the Pirates of the Barbary Coast, a strategy/action 
game based on the days of the pirates around the coast of Africa.  You 
will need to trade goods in the ports to raise the sum necessary to 
ransom your daughter.  On your voyages between the ports, you will often 
be attacked by other pirates.  You can choose to fight these battles or 
run from them.  If you are able to sink the pirate ship, you may board 
it to either read the captain's log or take accumulated booty.

The captain's log may contain information about which goods are getting 
good prices where, or where they can be bought cheaply, or it may give 
clues to the location of Bloodthroat's hideout.  The accumulated 
treasure on the ship may be small or large.  You decide what to do.

In port you may sell your cargo, buy new cargo, repair the battle damage 
to your ship, buy supplies or hire a crew at the general store.  You may 
also bribe the storekeeper for trading information or clues.

The treasure is located on one of the islands, as is the hideout of 
Bloodthroat.  When you think you're ready, sail to the islands to hunt 
for either or both.  But be prepared!!

Use the time between scenes to make notes on the trading values you've 
discovered, any clues you might have gained and the strategy you intend 
to use.  There is more to Pirates of the Barbary Coast than you might 
first suspect.  Successful trading has always paid off best for those 
who remember what other people forget!


CHOOSING YOUR OPTIONS

In most scenes, you have many options.  Use your joystick or keyboard to 
the move the arrow around the screen until it rests on the function you 
want.  Then press the fire button to make your selection.

LOADING THE CANNON

In your regular sea battles you may only fire your 15 cannons one at a 
time.  If you decide to engage Bloodthroat in a battle you may broadside 
him.  However, before you can fire your cannons you must load them in 
the same way as did sailors on the actual ships (i.e. put in the powder, 
tamp it down, put in the ball and brush out the barrel).  Using the on 
screen arrow, make the following selections:

     1.  LOAD

     2.  Select each cannon you wish to load by number
         (They will change color when selected)

     3.  Select the following IN ORDER:
         POWDER....hanging just to the right of the cannon
         CANNON....just below the railing
         PUSH ROD..hanging next to the powder
         CANNON....just below the railing
         BALL......stacked to the left of the cannon
         CANNON....you know where it is by now
         BRUSH.....hanging to the left of the cannon
         CANNON....it's still there

If you didn't miss anything the cannon indicators (below the numbers) 
will turn green to show they are loaded and ready for action.  If you 
goofed, then select UNLOAD to clear and then LOAD to start over.  With a 
little practice you'll get the hang of it.


TO FIRE A CANNON

Set the elevation by selecting the up/down arrows.

Select the cannon you wish to fire by moving along the deck with the 
left/right arrows.

Select FIRE and the fuse will burn for a second before the cannonball 
sails out across the screen.  An information message will appear above 
the UNLOAD command and tell you if the shot was a hit or a miss, or long 
or short.  Raise or lower the cannon elevation as appropriate on your 
next shot.

If you hit the other ship hard enough and often enough, your First Mate 
will alert you that the other ship if going down and may be boarded.  
When boarding the ship you can fetch either the information from the 
Ship's Log OR seize its booty.  You won't have time for BOTH so choose 
wisely!!

If you choose not to fight, you may select FLEE to leave.

THE FINAL BATTLE WITH BLOODTHROAT

If you find Bloodthroat while cruising through the islands the First 
Mate will alert you by saying "Someone's here!".  Should you choose to 
enter that lagoon, it's unwise to do so without having all available 
cannons loaded.  If necessary go back out to sea (i.e. select another 
destination) and load all the cannons you can muster on the return trip.

Once you enter the lagoon Bloodthroat will confront you and ask whether 
you came to pay or fight.  If you haven't enough gold you'll have to 
fight.  Shoot as quickly as you can to find the right elevation and once 
you've found it, select BROADSIDE and hope you are fast enough and 
strong enough to win!


OTHER HINTS

Remember to feed your crew!!!  This requires 1 unit of rations per man 
per day.  If you have, say, 30 crewman and you set out on a 7 day sail, 
you'll need 30 X 7 units of food to keep them alive.  When you have 
money to spend, stock up on food!!  Also remember that you need at least 
16 crewman to run the ship.

If you happen upon an island that matches your treasure map you might 
choose to search it and try to find the treasure.  Hints as to its 
location might be obtained from sea battles or by bribing a storekeeper.  
There will be a number of spots where it might lie and each is marked 
with an "X".  Try them if you dare but beware.

The Master Traders were very wise by always looking to make their best 
profits based upon the law of supply and demand.  Prices changed 
regularly as word spread that certain items were bringing high prices at 
certain ports.  As many more people began trading certain items, market 
gluts caused prices to fall.

You can both BUY and SELL the same item in the same port but remember, 
the Master Trader sells higher than he buys.  Remember, PRICES 
CHANGE!!!!

Good hunting, Captain!

