One of my favorite parts of Blood & Plunder has always been how seamlessly history and gameplay come together. For this year’s Summer of Plunder 2026, I wanted to lean into that idea for Port Royal by creating a series of scenarios inspired by some of the Caribbean’s most infamous pirates and their final, defining moments.
The first installment, Stede’s Last Bargain, is featured in the 2026 Summer of Plunder and recreates the desperate battle at Cape Fear in September of 1718, where the self-proclaimed “Gentleman Pirate” made his last stand against Colonel William Rhett’s militia. Rather than simply fighting over objectives, both sides are forced to contend with shifting tides, desperate boarding actions, and asymmetric victory conditions that capture the feel of the historical engagement.
Before diving into the scenario yourself, community member, Bosun Hopper (Discord Name) recently gave it a playthrough and wrote an excellent battle report covering the game from start to finish. If you’re curious how the scenario unfolds on the tabletop—or just want to see it in action—be sure to check out their report below.
If you’d like to play Stede’s Last Bargain yourself (along with the rest of the Summer of Plunder 2026 Organized Play content), you can find the scenario further below and download the official Organized Play Kit from Firelock Games’ Downloads page.
“Stede’s Last Bargain is a fun scenario – Bonnet’s men won my game by being lucky on rolls in their reactions (both in getting to react and in causing actual damage), while the Militia wound up suffering the ignominy of constantly taking shots with Drill but never successfully inflicting a casualty and only rarely causing fatigue. The basic strategic look wound up being the pirates spraying aggressively in the first phase of the battle, where they have numbers and, just barely, a range advantage, to keep the militia numbers down before Phase 2 started, then playing the long game afterwards of holding cover in defense of depth before their fallen commander, and only attacking when the opportunity presented itself for more close range gang tactics. However, had the objective for the Militia allowed making Bonnet a casualty through firing, they would have lost, as the one solid set of roles for all three phases (reaction, shooting, and damage) wound up happening for the Militia on him when he boldly stepped forward into the open without cover and promptly got shot… but since they had to take him in melee, it didn’t take.” -Bosun Hopper
Unsure which faction to start a campaign? Check out our faction deep-dive articles to get a feel for each faction vying for control of Port Royal.