Libertalia, the beloved pirate game designed by Paolo Mori, is getting a new edition in 2022. Libertalia: Winds of Galecrest will be published by Stonemaier Games with pre-orders opening on March 2nd and fulfillment starting a few weeks after.
Originally published in 2012, in Libertalia 2-6 players take control of pirate crews competing to pillage a ship of doubloons, jewels, and treasure maps. The players' crews are made up of the same 30 members, each with their own special ability. The game comprises 3 campaigns, and each player will receive the same crew members for each campaign. The campaign consists of 6 rounds of players choosing a crew member to send to the target ship. Three crew members from a player's hand will not be chosen for the campaign, and are kept for the following campaign. This interesting hand management mechanism means that players start with identical hands, but their cards will diverge over the course of the game as players choose different crew members.
The new edition tweaks the setting to a more fantastical adventure, with players commanding competing crews of sky pirates sending crew members to explore islands. This means new art and components. Winds of Galecrest will increase the crew size to 40 cards and also makes rules updates, including a revamped tiebreaker system. The new edition remains a Paolo Mori design. The new art is by Lamaro Smith.
Libertalia has been a mainstay on Zee's Top 100 Games of All Time, and has also appeared on Tom's Top 10 Pirate Games, and Zee's Top 10 Games Begging for an Expansion.