My play group and I may try our hand at historical RPG set on galleons and exploration in the post Renaissance, Elizabethan era up to the Colonial period before the revolutions in the USA and France. 

Black powder pistols, rapiers, The Three Musketeers, Count of Monte Cristo, and Pirates of the Caribbean sailing around in galleons like the Golden Hind and the original Ark Royal.

We like rules lite.  I'm thinking of using Mini-6 Bare Bones Edition with sword fighting using the Dueling Blades rules for D6 style rules.  But, always keep your options open. 

Any good games for this you can recommend?

Interesting Idea... I've thought for years about an RPG set in the age of Enlightenment.  Spent many years studying the French Revolution
and the Wars of Napoleon, and I've come up with ideas to make a game of it, but never went farther than that as the interest level is, sadly,
low to non-existent.

I'd probably try to graft GURPS onto Wooden Ships and Iron Men and Empires in Arms to create some RPG/Wargame hybrid that would surely
infuriate James Dunnigan, were he still alive.  But at least all the 15mm Napoleonics I've still somehow got would get to see some use.

As an RPG, would the PC's be agents of one government or another?  Soldiers?  Political Thinkers and Agitators?  While i love the era, the large
set piece battles don't translate well to RPG's... Though "La Revolution Francaise"  from Azur Wish games tried to blend a few genres together
with players leading one faction or another during the Revolution.  Only problem was that you need to know the period so well to even TRY to
play it that it'll remain unpunched on the shelf.

Flashing Blades RPG is supposed to be good.

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/585/Flashing-Blades

There was also another very specialized small game that I believe had some sort of one-player choose your adventure option. Maybe someone else can remind us.

I have never run it, but 7th Sea is a game specifically tailored to this kind of setting. Seems like it would be worth checking out.

Quote from: Zelen on April 15, 2022, 04:12:00 PM
I have never run it, but 7th Sea is a game specifically tailored to this kind of setting. Seems like it would be worth checking out.

The 2e version is pretty terrible.

Quote from: HappyDaze on April 15, 2022, 04:12:59 PM

Quote from: Zelen on April 15, 2022, 04:12:00 PM
I have never run it, but 7th Sea is a game specifically tailored to this kind of setting. Seems like it would be worth checking out.

The 2e version is pretty terrible.

What would you say went wrong with the second edition?  I have no particular devotion to or hatred of the game, I'm just curious.

The name I remember from the 90's was "Run Out The Guns", I think, which was the order for a ship to open the cannon portals and extend them, preparatory to a barrage.

Pirate game set in the Caribbean, IIRC.

Also, well, GURPS had Napoleonic Sourcebook. Not a GURPS man, but 3e covered EVERYTHING.

I'm planning on using Mini-6 with Dueling Blades because I like how that add-on handles sword fighting.   It is simply an opposed roll, and the margin of success determines what happens.  The most basic result isn't even damage. 

1-5 = loser pushed backwards in direction the winner chooses.
6-10 = a stun.  Aka a skill penalty for the next turn for the loser.
11-15 = a wound. Permanent skill penalty until healed. 
16+ = critical hit.  Either a GM created result, or I use a chart with some pretty horrible results. 

Another game I've heard of for good sword fighting is called Honor and Intrigue.  I'm not sure about this game.  It isn't rules lite.  However, because it isn't lite this makes the sword fighting rules quite detailed.  Having never played it I can't say if the game is fun or not. 

Honor + Intrigue is excellent. It's the 2d6 system from Barbarians of Lemuria adjusted to a swashy-buckly setting, with a very solid swordplay system to boot. It really is excellent.

I mention this one often as was a playtester for it. But of all things Furry Pirates is a surprisingly good Historical RPG on the age of sail. Rules are at the mid-range byt relatively eay to get the basics. Remove the Disney animal people element and its a straight up historical setting with a little magic. Works great for running Pirates of the Caribbean style campaign. Or the hedge magic can be dropped.

Same goes for its predecessor. Furry Outlaws which does the Robin Hood era historical also with the disney style animals. Also easy to drop and run it straight up historic. The magic system there is more extensive though. But still easy to drop and run it magic-less.

2e D&D has an age of sail book. With a fantasy twist. Possibly 2. Also easy to drop the magic as needed. Of Ships and the Sea is the only one I have currently. But pretty sure there was at least one other.

Quote from: weirdguy564 on April 15, 2022, 02:56:30 PM
We like rules lite.  I'm thinking of using Mini-6 Bare Bones Edition with sword fighting using the Dueling Blades rules for D6 style rules.  But, always keep your options open. 

That's what I would do.  For adventures, some of Paizo's Skull & Shackles AP could be adapted; I'd also recommend Monkey Isle https://www.amazon.com/dp/1078020035 as a fairly bare bones but fun mysterious island setting, I prefer it to Isle of Dread.

Savage Worlds offered Pirates of the Spanish Main (might have been a slightly different title). I don't know much about it though, as neither system nor setting are really my thing.

Speaking of Pirates of the Spanish Main. Some years ago WizKids put out a constructable minis game called Pirates of the Spanish Main.

The units are great for any high seas gaming. And it came with tiny little dice!

Quote from: Omega on April 16, 2022, 10:46:32 AM
Speaking of Pirates of the Spanish Main. Some years ago WizKids put out a constructable minis game called Pirates of the Spanish Main.

The units are great for any high seas gaming. And it came with tiny little dice!

IIRC, the Savage Worlds rpg of the same name included such a ship and encouraged using those mini rules for resolving naval combats.

Does anybody else remember an RPG from Yaquinto called "Pirates and Plunder"?  I owned it, but it disappeared years ago.  The stupid thing was, the first set of rules for it had no rules whatsoever for running ships, ship to ship combat, piracy or anything like it.  It strictly covered character generation and man-to-man combat.  That aside, I liked it.  It was just unfinished, and they never published any other rules for it.  It had a really good adventure included with it, but it was extremely railroady.