Best use of privateers

[Nikis-Knight]

What's the most effective use of privateers you've had in a game?
Last night I got liberalism and used it to get astronomy, went to chemistry asap, and pumped out privateers. I'm up to about 80 gold per turn. I'm sure someone can top that! Any interesting stories?

 

[CivDude86]

Blockading backwards Civs. The ones that will build a bunch trimeres/caravels to take out 1 privateer then you go replace it then realize your stuck with destroyers. Maybe they should be permanent like in Civ3.

 

[Kaenash]

Blockading backwards Civs. The ones that will build a bunch trimeres/caravels to take out 1 privateer then you go replace it then realize your stuck with destroyers. Maybe they should be permanent like in Civ3.

sarcasm = on

Yes, because the age of piracy never ended and nations in modern times are creating cannon loaded privateers. Plus a wooden masted wind powered vessell can continue to blockade modern shipping ports effectively.


sarcasm = off

bad idea.

 

[Rusty Edge]

Have you put a Great General in a privateer yet? It's cool to see how far you can promote one when you're being faced with a steady supply of inferior ships, and exciting when you have to double them up against frigates and airships.
Of course, once you see a transport it's time to put most of the privateers into port for destroyer promotions, although you can extend their useful life by using them against somebody else's technically backward vassal .

 

[stratego]

I don't know if it's the same as back in Civ 3, but then I used to stack my privateer with stronger ships. When the AI attacks, the stronger ships fight back. It was sweet to see their destroyer try to attack my privateer when I countered with my Battleship. No diplomatic hits.

 

[the_elf]

I don't know if it's the same as back in Civ 3, but then I used to stack my privateer with stronger ships. When the AI attacks, the stronger ships fight back. It was sweet to see their destroyer try to attack my privateer when I countered with my Battleship. No diplomatic hits.

I haven't actually tried that, but I think that they've significantly improved this concept from Civ3. I would presume that Privateers end up in a seperate stack from your other, nation-flagged, naval units.

Effectively, Privateers have no nationality, and I would presume that they would show up as black or gray. Just a free XP battle waiting to get taken on by a frigate, or whatever.

GG on a Privateer! I love it! Great idea! I'm going to have to give that a shot.

Has anyone else experienced/tested defending your Privateers with your other naval units?

 

[Nikis-Knight]

I think AI will single them out, just like if you had units in an ally's city, and someone at war with him but not you attacked, your units would not be attacked.
I haven't hooked a GG onto a privateer, but if you have an early war, settling GG's in a coastal city gives you good privateers right off the bat. It's nice getting combat II or navigation right away.
Hmm, Viking Privateers would be pretty sweet, free navigation.

 

[Sovetskysoyuz]

Issue with putting a GG on a Privateer: couldn't they look back through the log to figure out who had that particular GG, since the name of the Warlord goes on the unit?
Unless you renamed the unit... but then the "X has died in combat" message would give it away if the Privateer died.

 

[wiglaff]

if you have allied units stacked with privateers, they are ignored and privateers are attacked. no war.

 

[jkp1187]

sarcasm = on

Yes, because the age of piracy never ended and nations in modern times are creating cannon loaded privateers. Plus a wooden masted wind powered vessell can continue to blockade modern shipping ports effectively.


sarcasm = off

bad idea.

[SARCASM]

Yeah, because piracy, like, totally ended with Blackbeard, and there's no such thing as pirates in the 20th century.

[/SARCASM]

http://www.vigilorisk.com/piracy_reports.php




Truthfully, though, I agree that the privateer unit should become obsolete, just like the frigate and ironclad -- not only because the unit itself is outdated, but also because modern nation-states, by and large, no longer issue Letters of Marque to privately-owned ships to hunt down enemy warships and merchant vessels at sea.

It would be somewhat interesting if a modern pirate vessels, available only to the barbarians, would sporadically appear to harass civs foolish enough to eschew a navy in the modern era....

 

[Innawerkz]

^^

AI: "Hmm... who do those Privateers belong to?"

I remember reading Privateers were not stackable with your own ships, so I have never tried. Too bad that still wasn't the case.

 

[Spiceweasel]

What's the most effective use of privateers you've had in a game?
Last night I got liberalism and used it to get astronomy, went to chemistry asap, and pumped out privateers. I'm up to about 80 gold per turn. I'm sure someone can top that! Any interesting stories?

80 gold per turn? Forgive my naivete, but does that mean you actually get money for sinking ships with privateers?! I had thought it was just a way to prune the enemies' navies.

 

[phungus420]

You get money for blockading ports. Anywhere from 2-6 gold per turn I've found, depending on the trade status of the city. I'm sure people have found cities that you can get even more then 6 from, but I haven't yet. Blockading is really good, not only do you hinder your opponents economy, but you also get paid to do it.

 

[Landstander]

80 gold per turn? Forgive my naivete, but does that mean you actually get money for sinking ships with privateers?! I had thought it was just a way to prune the enemies' navies.

I imagine the money is from blockading ports.

 

[Sepstrup]

You get money for plundering trade routes. By blocking their cities.

 

[Dan Quale]

As long as you are at war with the civ, When they attack, the stack the battleship will be selected, so privateers are still somewhat useful for the gold stealing forever.

 

[Rusty Edge]

Issue with putting a GG on a Privateer: couldn't they look back through the log to figure out who had that particular GG, since the name of the Warlord goes on the unit?
Unless you renamed the unit... but then the "X has died in combat" message would give it away if the Privateer died.

I like to rename it Francis Drake or Henry Morgan or something. I'd say you have a valid point.


For the record, I read about the GG idea this sub-forum weeks ago, and couldn't wait to try it.


I figure stacking is a give-away to nationality. Of course if you're blockading a peacetime rival with closed borders, you can't very well use frigates to escort them anyway.

 

[MagisterCultuum]

I'm pretty sure I've seen the AI attach my hidden nationality raiders while on the same time as non-HN Mamalukes in the Crossroads senario, so I imagine it works the same way for privateers.

Couldn't you use any warship to blockade those you are at war with and get the same effect?

 

[Aussie_Lurker]

You can use other ships to blockade ports you are at war with-but ONLY Privateers can blockade cities you're NOT at war with &-IIRC-only Privateers can gain gold from blockading trade routes.

 

[Martinus]

I don't know if it's the same as back in Civ 3, but then I used to stack my privateer with stronger ships. When the AI attacks, the stronger ships fight back. It was sweet to see their destroyer try to attack my privateer when I countered with my Battleship. No diplomatic hits.

This would happen only if you were at war. During peace-time the AI ship would simply attack the privateer and leave alone the other ships (it's the same situation if there are units of two civs on a tile, and the attacker is at war with only one of them - he will ignore units of the civ he is at peace with). Obviously, in MP the fact that your ships are on the same tile as the privateer is a dead give-away that the privateer is yours.