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Here we see the Demon-class pirate lembus.   The Demon-class is from Gypsy Knights Games' upcoming Skull and Crossbones: Piracy in Clement Sector which will be available in PDF form on July 15.

Art by Ian Stead.  Demon-class designed by Michael Johnson.

The majority of pirates prefer to use vessels such as the Rucker or Atlas-class because those ships are commonly seen in most systems in Clement Sector.  Pirates can come into a system using something like this or a Jinsokuna Chirsahi-class yacht and not be immediately suspected of being up to no good.

Some pirates prefer to use a vessel which immediately strikes fear into their prey and announces to their target that they mean business.  For those sorts of pirates, the ship of choice is often the lembus.  The lembus, the name taken from a type of fast and maneuverable galleys used by pirates in the ancient Mediterranean, is a vessel designed for pirates and by pirates.  

Most lembi are made by small shipyards at pirate bases such as Refuge or Golgotha though rumors have it that the ships are also being made at pirate friendly worlds such as Gagnon (Cascadia 0308), Chance (Cascadia 0405), or even Tupolev (Superior 0710) or Selu (Sequoyah 0405).  Some lembi are designed and created from plans while others are simply extensive modifications to existing vessels.

The most popular lembus currently in production is the Demon-class.  Created by the minor shipyard at Refuge (Winston 0705), the Demon is the epitome of the pirate lembus.  A number of these have been created for pirates who can pay the price.  They are most often seen on the trailing frontier in places like Dawn, Winston, Cascadia, Franklin, and Peel Subsectors.

Here we see the Ironbard-class longship.  The Ironbard-class is featured in Gypsy Knights Games' upcoming Skull and Crossbones: Piracy in Clement Sector.  The PDF version will be available on July 15.

Art by Ian Stead.  Ironbard-class designed by Michael Johnson.

For those raiders and marauders who wish to attack a colony or station, some will modify an existing ship design for the attack.  However, for those who are serious about the venture and want to strike fear into the targeted population as they come in, there is no better choice than an Ironbard-class longship.

Inspired by the Viking longships of old, the Ironbard is designed to not only quickly insert marauders into a raid but to get them out again with a full load of plunder.

The original design request was to provide a raider vessel able to enter planetary atmospheres, fully maneuver, defend itself against space borne or groundside opposition and be able to land at any starport or landing field. A full marauder/raider force was to be carried for such raids and finally, the ship was to be able to load plunder swiftly, re-embark the raider force and depart at high acceleration before any system or planetary defense forces could react.

The shipyard at Refuge, well versed in pirate and raider lore, created the Ironbard-class longship. The design was a tribute to the Viking longships of old and the Ironbard provided all that was requested of a design. Production progressed rapidly as enthusiastic and wealthy pirate clan chiefs or single pirate captains able to afford the cost ordered the new ships to augment or replace their modified merchant vessels.

The Ironbard is the product of naval architects working at Refuge though it has been noted that similar ships have been spotted in the pirate fleets of The Skull and The Free Apes of Leonidas.  It has been theorized the pirates operating on the spinward side of Clement Sector have simply stolen the design.

Pirates come in all forms.  Pictured here is Gareth Stannis, the leader of Stannis' Raiders.   You can read more about Stannis' Raiders and other infamous pirates of Clement Sector in Gypsy Knights Games' upcoming Skull and Crossbones: Piracy in Clement Sector which will be available in PDF form on July 15.  A print version will follow shortly thereafter.

Art seen here by Bradley Warnes.

Stannis’ Raiders are a group of pirates and marauders dedicated to stopping the expansion of the Cascadian government into Tranquility Sector.  Led by Gareth Stannis, a former Cascadian congressman who was charged with corruption, the group wages war against any Cascadian interests outside the Cascadia system.  Many of those who follow Stannis are said to have been prisoners of the Cascadia government.

The Raiders have been known to attack Cascadian flagged merchant ships, CCA vessels, and even a Cascadian Navy frigate in the Argos Prime (Dawn 0205) system.  The Raiders are also believed to have attacked CCA forward bases in the Argos Prime and Dawn systems.  However, the Raiders have made a name for themselves as being careful to attempt to not kill anyone unaffiliated with the Cascadian government.
 
Gareth Stannis is currently the Cascadia Marshals Service most wanted man and his continuing evasion of the service has led to his growing popularity among those who wish to see Cascadia limited to their own system.  The Raiders are said to have three Demon-class lembi, an Ironbard-class longship, and two Palomino-class runabouts.

Rumors persist that Stannis found alien artifacts in an unknown system deep in Tranquility Sector and is using these artifacts to continue to elude the Marshals and the CCA.  Most dismiss these stories as sensationalism.

Pirates often have the ability to move freely in the frontier systems. Some will even be brave enough to attack into the more civilized areas.  However, you have to be a special kind of pirate to attack into well-protected systems such as those within The Hub Federation.

The captain of this Demon-class lembus is one of those pirates.

Here, we see him being engaged by HFS Wiegmann, a Kiviat-class patrol corvette.  The pirate will need all the luck he can get.

You can learn more about this subject in Gypsy Knights Games' upcoming Skull and Crossbones: Piracy in Clement Sector which will be available in PDF form on July 15.  The print book will follow shortly thereafter.

Art by Ian Stead.  Both the Demon and the Kiviat designed by Michael Johnson.