Hey all,

I've been slowly working my way through the advanced rules, trying to wrap my head around the game's flow, and there's one element that vexed me dearly.

In the advanced rules, boarding takes place "at the end of the Planning phase, after actions are revealed" (page 39).

The effect of this is that you should never plan a boarding action unless you are already in base-to-base contact with a hostile ship. Even if, at the beginning or your turn, an enemy ship is within musketry range, there's no reason to ready a boarding party (even if its just to defend yourself).

This makes the choice to plan the boarding action a no-brainer. Unless your ship is on fire and sinking and you only have two crew actions, playing a boarding action seems mandatory as long as you are base-to-base; otherwise an opponent could intentionally kill of your entire crew without taking a single casualty. And if you're not base to base, you should never plan a boarding action.

I'm suggesting a house rule in which the boarding action resolution is moved to the end of the combat phase, after movement, cannon fire and musket fire. So if there's a hostile ship close on your starboard quarter, but not yet close enough to grapple you. You, as the captain, must decide whether to assemble a party to repel boarders (knowing you still might maneuver free of your pursuer), or to assign them to more crucial tasks and hope you can keep clear of the hostile ship.

I think that creates a more interesting and thematic decision.