Need pillaging ideas

[Blekingseka]

I am finding that the desire to wreak havoc from the seas has survived the numerous generations that separate me from my viking ancestors. I love the thought of quietly sneaking up on people to attack them in some way shape or form. Along with this comes the inviting of friendly conflict and possibly pursuit or retribution. I would love to start a brainstorm of ideas that would keep with the same spirit of pillaging, raiding, plundering, pirating, viking.... Only.... without the harsh consequences... So actual property damage, injury, etc. are out of the question.
What are we left with?

[Thorne]

http://www.norcalpiratefestival.com/EntryPage01.jpg

[boatbear]

You have to wonder about race memory. Your need to plunder is similar to my situation. I have German and Scottish ancestry. One part of me wants to form an orderly queue, and the other part wants to hack limbs off English people. Good luck with the plundering.
Charlie

[Paul Fitzgerald]

One part of me wants to form an orderly queue, and the other part wants to hack limbs off English people. Good luck with the plundering.
Charlie

I think a lot of people feel that way, maybe thats why there is a queue.
I'm half English and half Irish, so I often feel like hacking my own arms off.

[The Bigfella]

I'm half English and half Irish, so I often feel like hacking my own arms off.

I'm half English, half Irish and half Scottish. Is that why I have to type this with my nose?

[paladin]

I'm half native american and half scots/welsh/viking ancestry, is that the reason I have an urge to scalp white folks...and bury them up to their necks in anthills and cover them with honey.

[NealmCarter]

First off you must use AARGH and AVAST in your everyday speech. & secondly you need to have a small black powder cannon aboard. I carry a Winchester 10 ga. blank cannon aboard....real good attention getter and the blanks are readily available.

[DavidF]

When I was a kid my dad bought two sunfish. Not to race them but to fight them. Each boat carried a skipper and a crew member. The skipper's job was to get upwind and shadow the other boat. The crew then jumped over and tried to untie all the sheets and dismast the enemy boat. Skipper one then circles ready to pick up his crew. No need to cross a finish line. The winner is obvious. The loser does the dishes.

[Uncle Duke]

When I was a kid my dad bought two sunfish. Not to race them but to fight them. Each boat carried a skipper and a crew member. The skipper's job was to get upwind and shadow the other boat. The crew then jumped over and tried to untie all the sheets and dismast the enemy boat. Skipper one then circles ready to pick up his crew. No need to cross a finish line. The winner is obvious. The loser does the dishes.
Ha! That brings back memories....
My family bought 2 sunfish as well - 'Castor' (blue sail) and 'Pollux' (red sail). My sisters would go out in Castor and my brother and I would go out in Pollux, and we'd do similar things, with the added touches of popping the rudder off the other boat and/or yanking the daggerboard out and leaving it in the water.
Dropping the sail was verboten by mutual agreement, since someone once got 'clunked' in the head like that - but completely unsheeting it was encouraged.
Good times.:D:D:D

[Paul Pless]

First off you must use AARGH and AVAST in your everyday speech. & secondly you need to have a small black powder cannon aboard. I carry a Winchester 10 ga. blank cannon aboard....real good attention getter and the blanks are readily available.

don't forget to have on hand large quantities of rum

[RichardH]

What is needed is paintball cannon lashed to the bows of el Torro's. Besides one design scurmishses, San Fransisco Bay needs the occational maurading el torro. Plastic ones can only shoot blanks.

[outofthenorm]

I'm not up on my pillaging, but a good bombardment always makes my day - people are always surprised at how far you can throw a small water balloon with a lacrosse stick, aaargghh! Fire at will!

[Woxbox]

Our late, great Captain David Hiott, master of the Kalmar Nyckel, had a real piratical side to him. One day we sailed into Annapolis, uninvited, and set off a few cannon rounds at close quarters with the Constellation, which was tied up at the Naval Academy that day. Her fiberglass guns did not answer. Hah! We then turned into the harbor -- all under full sail -- and let off a round from a six-pounder where a few dozen tourists were gathered at the dock. They all jumped in unison despite the warning to cover their ears. Finally, one more resounding shot up Ego Alley, before circling back out of the harbor and away.

Now that was a blast. Maybe what's needed is a substantial swivel gun on every vessel. Let 'em know you mean business.

[Bill R]

Maybe what's needed is a substantial swivel gun on every vessel. Let 'em know you mean business.

Yup. Come in handy with the GD jet skis as well, especially the a*****e who thought it would be fun to see just how close he could pass me at full throttle today...

[The Bigfella]

Yup. Come in handy with the GD jet skis as well, especially the a*****e who thought it would be fun to see just how close he could pass me at full throttle today...

Just keep a couple of apples or oranges handy - its amazing how you can accidentaly drop them and they end up 15' away. 50' even if you are seriously thrown off balance ....

[Gary Bergman]

We find a lot of cannons helps a lot....

http://www.talesofthesevenseas.com/Royaliste2007A.JPG

Royaliste and Pride of Baltimore II in Prince edward Island

[Blekingseka]

That is a great photo!
But I don't think my 14' boat could really handle a cannon of any size! Maybe a future boat though.
has anyone ever tried attatching any sort of drag anchor to anyone elses boat?? I was thinking that if sneaking up on someone is possible, then one could attatch a 5 gallon bucket or grain bag by rope to the opponents boat. Seems like it would assure your ability to escape and outmaneuver.

[Geoffrey Harris]

C. S. Forester thought of it. In Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies a drogue is bent onto the rudder of a slaver in port under cover of darkness, stopped with yarn. Next day at sea, the yarn breaks, the rudder gives up the ghost, and the slaver comes head to wind and is caught aback, losing part of its rig.

[Per]

The viking era ended circa 1080 when the stubborn swedes finally stopped sacrificing people to their gods and started to go on crusades instead. Same killing raping and looting but under "new regime".
They liked being drunk not like one skunk but like a whole bunch of skunks, but since strong alcohol was yet to be invented and wine does not grow here yet they drank lots and lots of beer, and then some more.
There was not very much shooting with cannons. The chinese still sat on the gunpowder-patent.
However it´s true that they were outstanding and bold sailors and they were not exactly shy about this. There is reason to believe that the Norwegians were the boldest and most daring sailors among them. They knew how to use bow, spear, axe and sword and they LOVED TO SHOW OFF!
Only a hint.

[Thad]

Some of these activities (all?) could get you arrested. Didn't know the boat was up to raiding yet, or floating either.

[Woxbox]

To date, it's still legal to fire empty cannon rounds and shake windows for miles around. Even that may change. The Kalmar Nyckel fired a welcoming salute on her arrival in Washington, D.C., two years ago and was severly rebuked for it. Some people have no sense of fun.

[skuthorp]

an institution invented to satisfy the lust bequeathed from our very mixed ancestry for beer, bulls**t, mayhem, sex, beer,beer, ute's, beer.........
Study the link, look for others, I think you'll find that the B & S Ball offers all that you desire.
http://www.thepluckedduck.org.au/PhotoGallery.html
http://www.elmoresummersendoff.org.au/Photo%20Album%2006/
check the idea out, you might even make a quid or two!

Ian, I'm surprised you hadn't thought of this

[Per]

To date, it's still legal to fire empty cannon rounds and shake windows for miles around. Even that may change. The Kalmar Nyckel fired a welcoming salute on her arrival in Washington, D.C., two years ago and was severly rebuked for it. Some people have no sense of fun.

The eastindiaman Götheborg (Look for SOIC) that made a trip Göteborg China and back recently fire their cannons whenever they arrive or leave. LOTS OF THUNDER AND SMOKE. Big fun. No complaints.

[Blekingseka]

Not sure that's what I had in mind Skuthorp.
And don't worry Thad, the boat's not done yet. We're only almost ready to start working on the inside (flip the boat). I'll let you know when it's finished.
Hmm..... I wonder if I could cast a really tiny little cannon...
I think sneaking on board at night and fastening a flag high on a mast would be effective..

[Blekingseka]

Anybody know of any reconstructed Roman triremes? especially a small one...

[P.I. Stazzer-Newt]

http://www.saxontheweb.net/images/pedalos-bari-smll.jpg

[ron ll]

Years ago when I had a Blanchard Senior Knockabout, a friend and I (after a few beers I'm sure) wrote up a set of rules for a type of "Capture the Flag" game, but we never got around to organizing it. Basically all participating boats (sail) would be issued a set of three colored flags each on a small styrofoam float with a length (maybe 20' or so) of cotton string to trail aft. If you were trailing a blue flag, you could fly any sail you wanted. If someone captured your blue flag (by cutting it off with their bow) you would trail your yellow flag and were limited to two sails. Red flag, only one sail, no flags left, out of the game. If you could cut off and retrieve someone else's higher colored flag, you could trail it and carry the corresponding sails.

We had thought of some way to equalize it so that the larger, faster boats didn't always have the advantage, but I don't remember what it was now. Maybe the higher maneuverability of the smaller craft would solve that, don't know.

Okay, it probably needs a lot of refinement maybe after a few more beers, and I suppose styrofoam is no longer appropriate. Also, I suppose signed legal releases might be in order.

[paladin]

We would play cut off the flag on every third sunday of the month....Mitchie Barcia and I had two completely reconditioned Tiger Moth aircraft, one Bucker Jungmeister (My toy) and three stearman biplanes....we would dogfight.......75 feet of crepe paper tied to the tail skid and off we would go dogfighting....the other dude was ded when one of us chopped off his crepe paper with our propellor.......in those escapades you saw some very serious and innovative flying..........

on boats....my best toy was an M-79 grenade launcher with the HE round that leaves the barrel, travels about 250-300 meters and explodes in the air like a grenade....we never aimed for the decks, even though it was just concussion and smoke...strictly boat sides and rigging

[krissteyn]

If I remember correctly - some silly sailor from Sailang Anarchy boasted of taking a deflated tube and installing it round the fin keel of a rival vessel. after inflating it, the only noticable bit was the slightly increased boyancy and the very poor performance and the totally mystified crew...

kris

dont worry be heppy

[BrianW]

You guys are pretty cool after all. :)