Ardent

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This story offers choices and consequences. From the start you have choices about your character which will influence the story in various ways, and during the story you will have options which will enable or disable subsequent parts of the plot.

The story assumes that you will be doing plenty of free pirating, privateering and general gameplay beyond what is set by the story. You will need to build up your skills and equipment, and those of your officers, if you are to survive the final battle.

The year is 1691. Spain's might is fading. France is flexing its military and diplomatic muscles, seeking to become the new dominant power. The rest of Europe does not like this and has joined together in the Grand Alliance. All the nations with power in the Caribbean are now at war with France. But at the moment this is of little concern to Captain Ardent, whose ship has just been boarded by the Spanish navy and who faces imminent arrest. But first Ardent faces the Inquisitor...

Side Quests:​ (top)

All side quests are available and can be played when convenient.

Main Story:​ (top)

The Inquisitor:
The Inquisitor will ask you three questions, the answers to which will determine your character.

"Who are you?"
. "I am Charles Ardent"
. "I am Helen Ardent"
You may play a male or female character. This will also dictate whether certain main other characters are male or female.

"What do you want?"
. "I want adventure, excitement and romance." - You're a hero along the lines of classic films. The game will assume that you're a good guy / girl.
. "Never mind all that nonsense. I'm a black-hearted sea-robber and am only interested in gold, gold and more gold!" - You're definitely not a hero! The game will assume that you're evil.

"Who do you serve and who do you trust?"
. "What part of 'PIRATES of the Caribbean' don't you understand?" - You're a pirate! Other pirates are your friends, all nations are hostile.
. "I serve only myself and trust only my sword. I won't start any fights but I will finish them." - You're Personal. Pirates are hostile, Spain is hostile, everyone else is Wary.

Imprisoned:​ (top)

After talking to the Spanish officer who is arresting you, you relocate to Havana prison. Prison warden Eldo Fiz visits you to feed you, waits a while, then walks away. A day passes, some of your crew die of maltreatment, then Fiz returns. After a few days of this, the prison commandant visits and passes sentence. You are executed.

But Fiz doesn't walk away. Check your questbook to see why you have a sandbag. Prison warden Eldo Fiz visits to feed you, waits a while, and you hit him with the sandbag. You can either stun him or keep hitting him until he dies. Then steal his sword, leather jacket and most importantly, key. (If you killed him and don't get the key, you won't get another chance and will need to restart the game.) Taking the key gets you out of the cell.

One of your officers notices that you're free. Another officer is in the next cell along from him. Walk to the cell door to release the second officer. Then walk into the corridor, where an Indian warrior asks you to release him. Do so - escape will be much harder without him, and he is critical to a major quest. Then fight three guards, which is much easier if you released the Indian as he's a vicious fighter, and currently immortal so try to let him get in front and be the target of the guards' muskets. After the guards you face the prison commandant, and this time you have to fight him yourself. Loot the body to get all your equipment, a letter (which triggers the "Payroll Ship" quest) and a key which will get you out of the prison. The "Imprisoned" quest ends when you leave the prison.

Crew Rescue:​ (top)

If you chose to play good and did not kill the warden, or if you chose to play evil and did kill the warden, one of your officers approves of your action. Several soldiers appear and run towards you. If you're reasonably lucky you can kill them without losing any officers. The Indian is no longer immortal so look after him! Do not try to get to the port yet; more search parties may try to hunt you, town guards will join in, and if you make it to the port you won't be able to steal a ship as you have no crew. Instead, go through the gate to the jungle.

Outside town, the Indian introduces himself as Two Dogs Fighting and offers a new deal - if you'll take him home, he'll take you to the slave camp where your crew are held. Accepting the offer triggers the "Take Two Dogs Home" quest. Follow Two Dogs as he leads you to the slave camp. Talk to the camp commandant, then fight him and the guards. If any of the crew survived, one of them will talk to you. If you chose to play as Charles Ardent, you receive a Spanish soldier's uniform.

Back in the jungle, Two Dogs reminds you of the deal. If you're good, you automatically agree to take him to Isla Mona. If you're evil you have the choice to refuse, in which case he'll attack you and you will not be able to do the "Mayan Temple" quest, so choose to agree. Return to Havana - from the slave camp exit, turn left, then right, then left. When you re-enter Havana the "Crew Rescue" quest ends.

Payroll Ship:​ (top)

The prison commandant's letter orders him to provide security troops for a payroll ship. After rescuing your crew, you send them to the port to steal a ship, while you go to the tavern to find out more. If you are Charles Ardent, change outfit to the Spanish uniform. Look for Bolimirus Carretero and talk to him to learn that the payroll ship is the 'Siroco' and will sail to Santiago in two weeks. What he doesn't tell you is that it will arrive two weeks after that, so you have at most four weeks from now to complete the quest.

Go to the port, where your crew have stolen a very small ship and disposed of the crew. Sail to Santiago. On arrival at Santiago, notice that there's nothing in port worth stealing so you need to pass some time in the tavern, and you'll also need to buy a map of Cuba from the store. If it's day, you can go straight to the store, otherwise go to the tavern first.

The store should have a map of Cuba in stock but occasionally you won't be able to buy it - perhaps the storekeeper recognised you, or perhaps he isn't selling maps. If not, you'll be able to steal the map if you return at night. Then run, either to the tavern or to the town exit, because a squad of soldiers will react. But normally you should be able to buy the map without any trouble.

When you talk to the tavern keeper, he offers a free drink to celebrate an engagement. If you're Charles Ardent then the governor's daughter is engaged to the son of an English merchant; if you are Helen then the governor's son is engaged to the merchant's daughter. Either way, it triggers the "Kidnap" quest. Hire the tavern room.

The following day or night (depending on what time you hired the room), go to the port as if to board your ship. Instead you'll board a different ship. Talk to the angry captain and tell him about free drinks in the tavern. After relocating back to port, tell your officers to follow the sailor which the captain sent to check the tavern. Automatically walk to the next pier. Time passes. Observe the ship's crew run off to the tavern. Go back to the ship, where only a couple of deck hands remain. Fight them, then walk to the door on the left, which leads to the captain's cabin. Fight the captain. Note from ship's papers that the ship is the 'Tonina' and the captain was Esteban Rovapera. Leave the cabin. Two Spanish soldiers have heard the fighting and come to investigate. Talk to one of them and say that the ship is the 'Tonina' and you are Esteban Rovapera. If you say anything else, you'll be arrested, game over. If you get it right, you relocate to the dock, where your officers have returned and warn you that a mob is approaching - the crew are returning. Board the ship and sail to Port Royale, where you can hire a full crew. Return to Cuba. By this time the questbook should have updated to alert you that the 'Siroco' has sailed; if not, wait in the tavern or find other ways to pass the time until it does. Sail to Playa de Sierra Maestra. Land there.

At Playa de Sierra Maestra, tell your officer to post a lookout. Time passes, the 'Siroco' is sighted. Save game now! The next bit is very risky. If you don't already have a false flag, board ship and change flag to Spanish or anything friendly to Spain *before* you go to sea. The 'Siroco' should initially be friendly due to your false flag. Get into a good position to board, raise a pirate flag to initiate hostility, then board. (For preference, load the cannons with grapeshot before you change flag, then fire a broadside to weaken the enemy crew before boarding.) You'll need to board quickly because you're in range of Santiago fort and can not afford to chase the 'Siroco' around. After winning the boarding battle, swap ship to the 'Siroco', then sail away as soon as possible. The "Payroll Ship" quest concludes when you have captured the 'Siroco' or if you took too long to get to Playa de Sierra Maestra and the ship arrived in port.

Take Two Dogs Home:​ (top)

Sail to Isla Mona. There is no port, only a landing beach on the east of the island. Go inland to the central clearing, turn left and go through the wooden gate to the Taino village. The chief's hut is on the right. Inside, chief Soaring Hawk talks to you and you learn Two Dogs' secret. Two Dogs leaves you. Talk again to the chief to trigger the "Mayan Temple" quest.

"Take Two Dogs Home" concludes when you deliver Two Dogs to the chief's hut, if you betray him after you rescued your crew, or if he gets killed. Only a successful delivery will allow you the "Mayan Temple" quest.

Mayan Temple:​ (top)

Chief Soaring Hawk tells you of the legend of how the Taino came to Isla Mona from Hispaniola. He wants you to find a temple on Hispaniola and bring back evidence that the Taino were victims of the Maya, which would prove that the Taino did indeed come from Hispaniola. Accept the offer. Sail to Santo Domingo. In the tavern, find Mauricio Juradu and pay him to lead you to the temple. In port (or on the beach, if you moored there) Juradu will tell you that you need to go to Cape Francos. Sail there. Juradu will lead you to the temple area and stay near the exit back to the jungle. You will need to fight a lot of Indians to get to the temple itself, and several more inside.

Inside the temple, follow the skull/sun signs. If you've ever played "Tales of a Sea Hawk", the same signs in the Cozumel temple lead to where you place the idol, but you don't quite go the whole way. Your attention will be drawn to a room with tiled markings on the wall. In that room, find and pick up the Taino Rug. Return to the temple exit (which looks like a solid wall as the temple was designed for the stock game, where you don't leave the same way). Fight more Indians to get to the jungle, then return to the beach. Make sure you loot at least one bow and some arrows.

At the beach, your ship has disappeared. Find fisherman Doolin Becart and offer to pay him to take you to Boca de Hubon. If you're good and have successfully completed "Payroll Ship" you can travel for free. If you're evil you can kill Becart and steal his ship. Or just pay him. Sail to Boca de Hubon. Walk to the Buccaneers' Camp and go into the tavern. Mauricio Juradu is trying to recruit a gang to take over your ship. Challenge, fight and kill him to get your ship back.

Sail back to Isla Mona. Go to the Taino village, enter the chief's hut, and talk to him. He takes the Taino Rug. You get various accessories for the bow. Two Dogs offers to rejoin you as an officer. "Mayan Temple" concludes when you have returned and talked to Chief Soaring Hawk.

Kidnap:​ (top)

After learning about the engagement of the governor's daughter to the merchant's son (*), visit the governor to learn more. Walk down the sidestreet leading to the church to have your attention drawn to a window. Talk to a citizen (the sort of person who will give you directions, tell you about local people or spread rumours). Keep talking until you learn that all is not well with the forthcoming marriage. There are now two ways to get into Lucia de la Vega's (*) bedroom: by night or by day.

Night: acquire a lockpick and preferably at least two poisoned throwing knives. The story does not provide these, you'll need to either find them in random chests or buy them from sneaky traders. Kill the two guards outside the town hall. (Doing this by simply hitting them with a sword will trigger lots of reinforcements and you will probably die. Sometimes one of them detects the throwing knife, so save game before you start throwing.) Move to the town hall door. If you have a lockpick (it does not need to be equipped), you will hear the lock being forced, then relocate into the town hall.

Persuade Grigorio Formoselle to take you to the bedroom. Talk to Lucia (*). You can say that this is a kidnap, or if you got the rumour about Lucia (*) not being happy with Piers (*), you can offer to rescue her. Either way, relocate to the town hall main room and persuade the governor to let you leave.

Outside, a guard challenges you. If you told Lucia (*) that this is a kidnap, she will call for help and you'll have to fight the guards along with all the reinforcements. If you said that it is a rescue, she will vouch for you and the guard will let you go. Head to the port.

Day: sail to Port Royale. Ask the tavern keeper about the wedding. He will tell you where to find the Downing house (through the gate by the town hall. Talk to Piers Downing (*) and accept a job to deliver a letter to Lucia de la Vega (*). Sail to Santiago, go to the town hall and talk to Grigorio Formoselle, who will take the letter. Return to Piers Downing (*) and tell the truth, that you had to hand the letter to the servant - if you try to lie, he will know and will not hire you again. If you tell the truth, you will get a job to deliver a second letter along with a ring. Sail to Santiago, go to the town hall and talk to Grigorio Formoselle, who this time will take you to the bedroom.

Talk to Lucia (*). She reads the letter and is not happy. You have the options of asking for a reply and then returning to Piers (*) to be paid, saying that this is a kidnap, or offering to rescue Lucia (*). If you take the reply then you will not get into the bedroom again except by the night method. If you offer to rescue and have a bow and arrow, you can tell Lucia (*) to watch the window, leading to the Bow Rescue. Otherwise you relocate to the town hall main room and persuade the governor to let you leave.

Outside, a guard challenges you. If you told Lucia (*) that this is a kidnap, you'll have to fight the guards. If you said that it's a rescue, she'll vouch for you. Your cover story is that you're here to buy a wedding ring and the guard will insist on escorting you. All exits except the store are blocked and the guard will get suspicious if you try to go anywhere else. Enter the store, leave the store, talk to the guard. In the port area, move forward until Lucia (*) talks to you, then run to the ship. The guard will follow and try to attack. If you kill him, the other guards will join in, but if you're on the dock then they're far enough away that they can not get to you soon enough.

Bow Rescue: If you followed the Day method and have a bow and arrow, you can offer to help Lucia (*), then tell her to watch the window. At night, go to the side street leading to the church. You auto-equip the bow, hear an arrow being shot, then relocate to the bedroom. Talk to Lucia (*), and relocate back to the street. Talk to Lucia (*), then head for the port. A guard will challenge you. Lucia (*) persuades him to let you pass. Go to the ship.

At the ship: Before you can board, Lucia (*) asks your intentions. If you said this is a kidnap, your only choice is to say that she will be a prisoner until you can arrange a ransom. If you said that it is a rescue then you also have the option to say that she will be a guest in your cabin until you decide what to do. You can now board the ship.

Ransom: Lucia (*) is now a prisoner in your ship's hold. Go to Santiago town hall and talk to the governor to negotiate a ransom. Accept it. At night, sail to Playa de Sierra Maestra. Talk to Grigorio Formoselle. Lucia (*) will be released and you will receive the agreed ransom. Never visit the Santiago governor again, he intends revenge and has taken some serious fencing lessons!

Guest: In your ship's cabin, talk to Lucia (*). The first time she will mention writing a letter. The second time she will have done so. After that, initially your only choice will be to offer to release Lucia (*). After a week, you can also offer to hire her as an officer or propose marriage, but the marriage proposal will not be taken seriously until at least two weeks after departure. She will only agree to sign on as an officer if you have made peace with Spain.

Take the letter to the governor of Santiago. He is surprisingly forgiving; your questbook gives a possible reason.

Take Lucia (*) to San Juan. You can either sail into port under a false flag or land at the beach; either way, Lucia (*) leaves you as soon as you arrive in San Juan. When you go to sea, Lucia (*) moves to the plaza with the town hall and church, where you can find her again if you return to San Juan. Town life is very boring compared to the time aboard your ship...

The Kidnap quest concludes when you have obtained the ransom, hired Lucia (*) as an officer, or successfully proposed marriage.

Marriage:​ (top)

If you talk to Lucia (*) in your cabin at least two weeks after getting her out of Santiago, or after revisiting her in San Juan, you can propose marriage. There are conditions.

• You must be at peace with Spain.
• You must prove your love. This can be done the following ways:
  • A gift. Lucia will accept any brooch, pendant or necklace. Suitable gifts for Edmundo are the swords you took from quest enemies - the prison warden's cutlass, the prison commandant's light tizona, the snow brig captain's tizona or the payroll ship captain's Spanish cup-hilt rapier. The sword must be polished to Excellent standard. But a cutlass is still just a cutlass and will be scorned. The others are acceptable.
  • Logic. Explain what you've done for Lucia (*). This won't work in the cabin but will work in San Juan as you've done more for her there.
  • Sweet talk. If your Leadership is high enough, you can say something flattering.
• You must have a wedding ring. Only a gold ring will do - a bronze or silver ring will be regarded almost as an insult.

When all the above are fulfilled, return to Santiago to seek the governor's permission. Initially this is denied - he does not want his daughter marrying a pirate! And he wants a lot of money. If you refuse, Lucia (*) gets upset and so does the governor. If you don't have the money, you can go away and get it by whatever means you like, so long as it doesn't end with you becoming hostile to Spain again. (So if you're going to raise the money by piracy, be careful - don't attack ships owned by Spain or her allies.) When you have enough money, you can agree to pay it and to renounce piracy. You can then choose one of your officers to be an escort. The escort will be chosen from any of your active shore party officers, but if you would prefer someone else, you have the option to leave the dialog, assign someone else to your shore party, then talk to the governor again to pick that officer. Or you can decline to have any escort at all.

Spend a few nights in the tavern - rent a room, then time passes automatically until it's time to head for the church. In church, walk up to the priest. Events proceed automatically. If you picked an escort, he congratulates you. The governor talks to you. Return to the town hall. There is a shot and Lucia (*) falls. The governor talks to you. Go outside and find a witness - any of the citizens of Santiago will do. Look for a soldier who has no musket and talk to him. The dialog will end with a fight. A genuine soldier will try to arrest you; let him talk to you. Teleport to the residence. The governor talks to you. Time passes. Lucia (*) has recovered and proposes that you help her get revenge on Piers Downing (*), who hired the assassin.

The Marriage quest concludes when Lucia (*) makes her proposal. This leads to Convoy Strike.

Abduction:​ (top)

This can trigger in different ways depending on what you do with Lucia (*) after the Kidnap quest.

• Release in San Juan: about a month after you release Lucia (*) in San Juan, return to the area with the church and residence. Isidro Edinho will talk to you and tell you that Lucia (*) has been taken by an armed gang.
• Hire as officer: when you approach any Spanish port, or a beach from which you can walk to one, Lucia (*) gets homesick and wants some shore leave, which you grant. Do whatever you came to do, then return to the port or beach. One of your crew will be standing by the pier or boat. Talk to him - Lucia (*) has not returned. Return to town and talk to the tavern keeper, who will tell you how Lucia (*) was taken.
• Ransom: after getting the ransom, sail to Port Royale and talk to tavern keeper Charles Windem, following the usual dialog sequence for quest information. Lucia (*) and Piers (*) have married in Santiago but there was a reception in Port Royale which didn't quite go according to plan. Go to the house of Gilbert Downing and ask about wine. You won't get any, but when you leave the house, local citizen Robert Blewett tells you about the house and dungeon. Go into the dungeon.

If you ransomed Lucia (*) then you miss out on the next few bits.

If you have learned that Lucia (*) has been taken by an armed gang, sail to Santiago and talk to the governor. He has not received a ransom demand, so you don't know who abducted Lucia (*) or why. If, at the beginning, you told the Inquisitor that you're a pirate, sail to Tortuga; if you chose to be Personal, sail to La Grenade smugglers' fort. Find and talk to Garfield Leighton. Exactly what he says depends on your status with Pirates but the outcome is the same - he will find out what happened to Lucia (*) and in return, you will rescue Wilfred Roscoe.

Sail to Guadeloupe. If you enter Point a Pitre under a false flag, talk to one of your officers, who will move your ship to Anse Casse-Bois. During daytime, go to the Barracks. A guard challenges you. You can either go to the governor to buy a pass, bribe the guard, or fight the guards, which will lead to a battle with all the town guards plus reinforcements, so don't do it unless you're feeling lucky. If you've done the "Church Help" side quest and didn't kill Yedam Kinne, you can also go to Bridgetown and pay him for a fake pass.

Whether by presenting a pass, bribery or violence, go into the Barracks, through the Guardhouse and into the Prison. Find the cell containing Wilfred Roscoe and talk to him. Fight the guards. Roscoe is free and changes into a uniform. Go back through the Guardhouse and Barracks. (If you bribed the guards, or if you had a fake pass, you will need to fight them here.) Go to Anse Casse-Bois. Sail to Tortuga / Smugglers Fort. Go to the tavern. Talk to Garfield Leighton, who tells you that Lucia (*) was seen being brought into Port Royale.

Sail to Port Royale. Talk to tavern keeper Charles Windem. Lucia (*) and Piers (*) were married in Port Royale church. Go to Gilbert Downing's house and talk about the marriage. When you leave, local citizen Robert Blewett will tell you about the house and dungeon. Go into the dungeon.

This is a map of the dungeon. The red cross shows the concealed entrance to the old Inquisition prison. This will not be available until this point in the storyline, so don't bother trying to find it earlier.


Go into the prison and find Lucia (*) in a cell. If you have a lockpick, you can open the door now. If not, go to the prison door, which leads to Gilbert Downing's house. Talk to Gilbert Downing, who gives you a lockpick. Return to free Lucia (*). Go to Gilbert Downing and talk to him. Lucia may ask to go to the church, in which case, go to the church and talk to Father Bernard about the marriage.

If you ransomed Lucia (*), she will suggest that you do not go back to Santiago, and will propose the convoy mission right here - go to Convoy Strike.

If you did not ransom Lucia (*) then sail to Santiago and talk to the governor. Lucia will now propose the convoy mission.

Abduction concludes when Lucia (*) proposes the convoy mission.

Convoy Strike​ (top)

Sail to Speightstown and talk to the tavern keeper. The convoy has gone to Cartagena.

Sail to Cartagena and talk to the keeper of the tavern in the main town area. (You can talk to the keeper of the tavern nearer to the port as well if you like.) Go to the hotel and talk to Mary Seacole. Abequa talks to you. If you do not have a bottle of wine or rum, you can buy one from the tavern in the main town area. Abequa will accept either wine or rum and tells you the convoy has gone to Curacao. Sail to Willemstad.

Talk to Lucia (*) in your cabin about plans to take the convoy. Teleport to the port. Unless you have married Lucia (*) already, teleport back to the cabin and talk about alternative plan. Teleport back to port.

Lucia (*) is now in a cloak. You are in a Spanish uniform. If you have extra ships, Lucia (*) will tell you to go to the shipyard to get rid of them - you will not be able to continue until you do. Then go to the residence - make sure you are still in Spanish uniform! Talk to the governor. Your attempt to bluff him fails and Lucia (*) saves the situation. Go to the port, where a squad of Dutch soldiers marches towards the dock. Go to the dock, teleport to the ship crew quarters, and find Lucia (*) in a cabin. Talk to Lucia (*), who changes out of the cloak. Talk to the Dutch sergeant. Teleport to the cabin and talk to the captain. Teleport to the residence and talk to the governor.

When you leave the residence, Lucia (*) asks who you want to take your own ship back to Santiago. You can pick any officer in your shore party apart from Lucia (*). If you want to use a different officer, use the "Passengers" interface to temporarily put that officer into your party, talk to Lucia (*) again, pick that officer, then put your party officer back in the party. Go to the tavern and hire a crew for the Phaeton. You may need to stay overnight and hire some more to get the crew up to full strength. (It is now safe for you to change out of uniform. If you're playing Helen Ardent, you'll change out of uniform automatically when you go onto the ship anyway.) Go to the port. Lucia (*) will talk to you in the cabin.

Sail out of Willemstad. You can go to worldmap, or direct-sail to Aruba or Bonaire. If you go to worldmap, you can exit back to sailing near a different island or on open sea. Any of these will trigger the battle against the convoy ships. The other Heavy East Indiaman, Assurance, will not surrender, but the pinnaces might. When you have defeated the convoy, sail to Santiago and talk to the governor. You will need to hand over a Heavy East Indiaman. Lucia (*) proposes a trade deal. Next day, Lucia (*) volunteers to take command of the Heavy East Indiaman to give to the governor of Willemstad as well as present the trade deal. (If you have a full fleet, Lucia (*) can not join and will tell you to get rid of something at the shipyard to make space.) Sail to Willemstad. Talk to the governor. Return to Santiago. Talk to the governor. You may keep Lucia (*) as an officer or leave her at home.

(If you managed to get Lucia (*) killed before you reached Curacao, the attempt to bluff the governor will fail. You will have to sail to Jamaica to trigger the fight with the convoy, which will now have both Heavy East Indiamen. You will not need to sail to Santiago. If you do, you get one chance to apologise. Don't press your luck!)

Convoy Strike concludes when you return to Santiago and tell the governor about the successful trade deal. (Unless you got Lucia (*) killed, in which case it concludes when you defeat the convoy.)

The Battle of Isla Mona​ (top)

Sail to San Juan, Santo Domingo, Tortuga, Port Royale, Turks Island or Nevis Pirate Settlement. Wilfred Roscoe will meet you in port. Teleport to the tavern, where Roscoe tells you the French have taken over Isla Mona.

Sail to Isla Mona. Fight the frigate. Land and fight some French soldiers on the beach. Go to the Indian village and fight some soldiers, then talk to Chief Soaring Hawk. Go to the abandoned fort and fight the soldiers there. Upstairs, talk to Valerian Decaux.

Reinforcements are on the way. Go to the Indian village and talk to Chief Soaring Hawk. If you captured the frigate and kept your own ship, or if you have more than one ship in your fleet for any other reason, go to the beach and talk to the captain of one of your other ships, who will be near the tower. He will take the rest of your fleet to Santo Domingo. Return to the fort.

A crewmember tells you the French are on the way. Go to the pass and fight them. The Indians will help. When the battle is over, you can go to the village and talk to Chief Soaring Hawk, though this is not mandatory. Go to the beach, where a French officer tells you to go to the flagship. Make sure you are in French uniform when you do - you should have automatically changed into one after the battle in the pass.

Sail away with the French fleet. If you're feeling stupidly brave, you can try to take on a 3rd rate warship and two frigates with just your one ship. Otherwise you'll automatically detach from the fleet at next nightfall.

If you sent ships to Santo Domingo, the Battle of Isla Mona concludes when you sail there and rejoin them, otherwise it concludes when you leave the French fleet.

Treachery at Port Royale​ (top)

While you were aboard the French flagship at Isla Mona, the fleet commander will have outlined a plan in which Piers Downing (*) will help them launch a sneak attack on Port Royale. You have one month to get there to warn the governor. If you take too long, or can't be bothered to help, the attack goes as planned and Port Royale is taken by France.

Sail to Port Royale and talk to the governor. He doesn't believe you. If you have previously made peace with England, he just refuses to listen. It's up to you to save Port Royale. Wait until nightfall, then go to the area with the church and Gilbert Downing's house. Watch as a gang emerges from the dungeon entrance and goes to attack the guards. Join in the fight. When the gang are defeated, an officer shows up. He doesn't believe you helped his men. If any soldier survived, he'll vouch for you, and the officer gives you money to stay in the tavern until morning, then you can visit the governor. If no soldier survived then the officer thinks you're one of the gang and you spend the night in prison, then are summoned to the governor, who now knows the truth. You get some reward money.

If you haven't previously made peace with England then, when you try to warn the governor about the attack, he has you arrested. The following day, you're summoned to the governor, who thanks you for your help and gives you a free amnesty.

Treachery at Port Royale concludes when the governor has rewarded you, or if you fail to save Port Royale and the invasion succeeds.

If you foiled the French plot, proceed to The Hunt for Piers Downing (*). If you did not foil the French plot, proceed to Santiago Threatened.

The Hunt for Piers Downing (*)​ (top)

After rewarding you for saving Port Royale, the governor tells you that there is a reward for bringing in Piers Downing (*). Go to Gilbert Downing's house and talk to him. Then go and talk to the harbour master Laurence Wellman.

Sail to Philipsburg, St. Martin. Talk to either Adam Groot or Hubert Decker, who are the permanent residents of Philipsburg port. Find the underground passage (sewer) which leads to Marigot. Either talk to the tavern keeper, or go to the port and talk to Aubert Boogard or Pierre Dunere. Observe the big warship in port.

Optional: sail to Antigua to report the warship to the admiral.

Go to Point a Pitre, Guadeloupe - either enter the port under a false French flag or land at Anse Casse-Bois and walk to town. Talk to the tavern keeper about Piers Downing (*) and the Entreprenante. Then talk to Felix Prost. Go to the town centre where Piers Downing (*) will be standing near the residence. Talk to him. When he summons a guard, you can either surrender or fight until you're arrested anyway.

In prison, talk to the guard. Hit him to knock him out, steal his sword and escape the cell, then fight the other guards. Hint: they have muskets, so hide round the corner. That way they may not get to shoot at you before you can attack with the sword. When you've defeated them, go to the guardhouse, where you'll get your equipment back, and then leave the prison. Talk to one of your officers.

Optional: go to the side of the naval academy and break in through a window. Find a chest, where you'll get battle orders for an assault on Port Royale. Remember where you came in because you'll be going out the same way - the front door is locked. If you're lucky, you can get to the brothel before the guards get to you, but if you are hit then you're arrested and go back to prison. In that case Piers Downing (*) takes you to the governor.

If you didn't burgle the naval academy, or if you did burgle it and then evaded the soldiers, you can get back to your ship. Piers Downing (*) has got there first. You're locked up in your own hold. If Lucia de la Vega (*) was an officer, she'll now switch sides and join Piers (*). Or maybe not...

After some days, Lucia (*) kills one of the guards, releases you, and hands you a knife to kill the other one. Talk to Lucia (*). Get your equipment back and re-equip your choice of weapons, then go to the ladder.

Teleport to the deck. Fight the remaining enemy crew. Teleport to Port au Prince dock. Talk to Lucia (*). Go into town, past the residence, and turn left. Look for the back door to the residence. If it's daytime, go to the tavern to wait until night. You can now break into the Archive and find a document with the governor's signature, which Lucia (*) needs to forge a document.

If Lucia (*) was not an officer when you were captured then it will be a crewmember who releases you. From Port au Prince, walk to the Buccaneers' Camp and find the house of Pablo Escriva. He needs a specimen of the governor's signature as well, so if you haven't already stolen it from the Archive, you'll need to go back and get it.

Wearing the French uniform you got during Battle of Isla Mona, go into the fort and into the second courtyard. Your officers and some crew are there, and so is a French officer, who will talk to you. If you have the forged document, you can persuade him to release the prisoners to you. Otherwise you'll have to fight him, and also fight the soldiers in the first courtyard on your way out.

The Hunt for Piers Downing (*) concludes when you have released your officers and crew and returned to your ship, and leads to Battle Royale.

Battle Royale​ (top)

This is triggered if you foiled the earlier attempt to invade Port Royale. Having rescued your crew and officers in Port au Prince, you can either sail to Antigua, to Santiago or straight to Port Royale.

It is also triggered if you allowed the earlier invasion to succeed and you have completed "Santiago Threatened". In that case, go straight to "The Battle".

If you try to visit both Antigua and Santiago, you will arrive at Port Royale too late. The French have already taken it. Sail to Santiago and talk to the governor. He tells you to sail to Havana to talk to the admiral. Go to the Havana admiralty, a building which looks like the Port Royale residence. Admiral Jusepe Guimaraes tells you to evacuate Governor de la Vega. Return to Santiago, go to the residence and talk to the governor, who refuses to leave. When you return to your ship, you will fight the Dauphin Royale and probably her escorts.

If the admiral of Antigua still owes you money, or if you stole the battle orders from the naval academy, you can sail to Antigua and talk to him. He offers you a mission to evacuate the governor of Port Royale. Sail to Rocky Shore - do not sail straight to Port Royale or you'll run straight into the invasion force. That won't wreck the game but you will miss out on the evacuation. From Rocky Shore, walk into town, to the residence, and talk to the governor. He fetches his wife and you talk to her. Walk back to Rocky Shore. When you put to sea, you will fight the Dauphin Royale. If you win the battle, the governor will talk to you in your cabin and ask you to help defend the fort. Teleport to the fort and join in the battle. When the French are defeated, the fort commander appears and talks to you. Teleport to the residence.

If you sail to Santiago instead of Antigua, go to the residence and talk to the governor. If you have room in your fleet, he lends you two fast galleons to help. Sail to Port Royale, where you will fight the Dauphin Royale and probably her escorts.

If you sail straight to Port Royale, you will fight the Dauphin Royale and probably her escorts without any assistance.

The Battle:

Originally the Dauphin Royale, a royal man of war, is escorted by a Fleuron class 3rd rate and two Kreyser class frigates. These are the same ships you met during "Battle of Isla Mona". If you defeated them there, they will not be present here. Or, if you went to the admiral of Antigua, he sent a task force which failed to damage the Dauphin Royale but did sink the escorts. Either way, you will only have to face the Dauphin Royale by herself. If the escorts are there, try to deal with the Dauphin Royale first. Her admiral is an excellent leader and the other ships will not surrender while she is still in the battle. If you sink or capture the Dauphin Royale, the other ships may surrender after taking enough damage.

Santiago Threatened​ (top)

This plot thread is triggered if you failed to prevent the French invasion of Port Royale during Treachery At Port Royale.

Go to Port Royale residence. Talk to Piers Downing (*), who has been rewarded by the French by being made governor. Fight the soldiers which Piers (*) summons. If Lucia de la Vega (*) is with you, talk to her when you leave the residence.

Go to Santiago residence. Talk to the governor. He wants you to find out what the French are planning next by breaking into Point a Pitre naval academy, Guadeloupe.

Sail to Guadeloupe, go round the side of the academy at night, and break in through a window. Find a chest, where you'll get battle orders. Return to where you came in - don't bother with the front door, it's locked. If you're lucky, you can get to the brothel or even to your ship before the guards get to you, otherwise you're arrested. In prison, talk to the guard. When he enters the cell, hit him to knock him out, steal his sword and escape the cell. Fight the other guards. Hint: they have muskets, so hide by the corner so they can't shoot at you before you can attack them with the sword. When you have defeated them, go to the guardhouse, where you'll get your equipment back. Leave the prison, talk to one of your officers, and return to your ship.

Sail to Santiago. Talk to the governor. He tells you to take the battle orders to the admiral in Havana. The admiralty is the building which looks like Port Royale's residence. The admiral asks you to return to Santiago to evacuate the governor, and if you have no additional ships of your own, assigns two fast galleons to assist. Return to Santiago, where the governor refuses to be evacuated but asks that you look after Lucia (*).

Santiago Threatened concludes when Admiral Jusepe Guimaraes tells you to evacuate Governor de la Vega, and leads to Battle Royale.

Epilogue​ (top)

If you are unable to marry Lucia de la Vega (*) then, if you capture the Dauphin Royale, you will duel Piers Downing (*) in her cabin. If you sank rather than captured the Dauphin Royale, and the battle is at Port Royale, Piers Downing (*) will appear in the residence; after talking to him and the governor, you will duel him there. If you sank the Dauphin Royale and the battle was at Santiago, you will duel him in your own cabin.

If the battle was at Port Royale then you can go to the residence, talk to the governor and be rewarded with money and the offer of an English Letter of Marque. Then sail to Santiago.

Governor de la Vega of Santiago will also reward you - whether indirectly by defeating the French at Port Royale, or directly by defeating them here, you have saved Santiago from invasion. You get money, the offer of a Spanish Letter of Marque if you don't already have one, and if possible, the offer of marriage to Lucia de la Vega (*). The wedding proceeds mostly the same way as in "Marriage" - mostly... (You don't want all the surprises spoiled, do you?)

Imperial Escort​ (top)

To start "Imperial Escort", you must have completed "Battle Royale" and must have at least the Spanish rank of "Capitán de Corbeta". In Havana Admiralty, talk to Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes. He will offer a mission to escort the 'San Lorenzo', a ship carrying an envoy from the Holy Roman Empire. Accept the mission.

Sail to San Juan. On the dock, look for Constantino de Malaspina. Talk to him. Transfer to the cabin of the 'San Lorenzo', where you are introduced to the envoy - Electress Maria Antonia of Austria, daughter of Emperor Leopold. Teleport ashore. Escort both of them to the town hall. Constantino de Malaspina tells you to be on the dock the following morning. When you talk to him, he tells you that the next destination is Santo Domingo.

On arriving in Hispaniola waters - or at Isla Mona, if you go there while direct-sailing to Hispaniola - a French squadron attacks. (If the 'San Lorenzo' is sunk, the mission fails and you will be arrested if you ever again visit a Spanish port. The same applies if Maria Antonia is somehow killed on land.)

Sail to Santo Domingo port. Constantino de Malaspina and Maria Antonia meet you on the dock. Go to the town centre. On the way to the town hall, you are attacked by a gang. While you are distracted, someone approaches from behind and tries to take Maria Antonia. If you react quickly enough, you can attack the kidnapper, who will flee if he is hit. (Or Maria Antonia might fight him off, though this is unlikely.) After two days, return to the port, where the 'San Lorenzo' is missing. Sail to Havana and report to Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes. Or, if the kidnap was successful, Constantino de Malaspina tells you to return to Havana to report to Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes.

Sail to Havana. Talk to Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes. Transfer to Havana Prison. While you are in prison, Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes comes to talk. You are in even more trouble - he thinks you were responsible for the kidnap! Because of his association with you, the governor of Santiago is also under suspicion.

Your next visitor is either Lucia de la Vega (*) or Grigorio Formoselle, depending on what happened to Lucia (*) earlier in the main storyline. You are sprung from jail. Check the desk where the prison commandant is out cold and retrieve your equipment. Outside, talk to whoever rescued you. Walk to Punta de Maisi beach. Talk again to the rescuer. If that's Lucia (*), she stays with you as an officer; if it's Grigorio, he leaves. Either way, you now have a barque.

Sail to La Tortue. In La Tortue tavern, talk to Garfield Leighton. Qb update. Go to the town hall and talk to the governor. If you are hostile to France, go to the tailor to buy a disguise - not strictly necessary but a good idea. Sail to Port au Prince. Visit the governor. If you bought the disguise, make sure you're wearing it. Failing that, if France hates you, wear the uniform you got during "The Battle of Isla Mona". (If you're not in disguise and France hates you, the governor calls for guards and you have to fight your way out. If you are in your uniform, the governor does not recognise you but has no useful information. Either way, outside the town hall you are attacked by Jaime Lezcano and his men. Kill the gang, then Jaime Lezcano surrenders and tells you where Electress Maria Antonia is being held. Skip the next bit about the spy and sail to Cuba.)

If you are in disguise, or if France does not hate you, the governor introduces the spy Gilles Clouzot. Sail to San Juan. Talk to Uasco Mazinho. Board your ship and go to the cargo hold, then talk to Uasco Mazinho again. Return to San Juan port and talk to Gilles Clouzot, who now takes Uasco Mazinho's name, position and dialog files. (The real Uasco Mazinho remains in your hold though he does not show up as either a prisoner or passenger.) Sail to Port au Prince, make sure you are wearing your disguise, then talk to the governor.

Whether from Jaime Lezcano or from governor Isabelle de Cussy, you now know that the ship which took Electress Maria Antonia headed for Cuba; you may already know that it's at Peninsula de Zapata. Sail to Peninsula de Zapata and fight the ship. If you successfully defended the Electress in Santo Domingo and the 'San Lorenzo' went missing, that's the ship you face now, otherwise it's the kidnap gang's own ship. Moor and go inland to the cave. For preference, be in possession of an ether bottle. (If you don't have one and Lucia is present, she'll suggest that you go to Havana, where she can persuade the trader in the port to sell her one. The trader will not sell it to you, though. Return to Peninsula de Zapata and the cave.) Go to the cave, automatically throw an ether bottle if you have one, then go in.

Exactly what happens next depends on whether you threw an ether bottle and whether you captured Jaime Lezcano in Port au Prince. If you have already captured him then he's already told you the purpose for the kidnap of the Electress, otherwise he'll tell you now when you negotiate with him. Outside the cave, talk to Electress Maria Antonia. Then sail to either Santiago or Havana.

If you sail to Santiago first, a group of soldiers try to arrest you and Electress Maria Antonia sends them away. Go to the town hall, talk to Emiliano de Guzmán, fight him and his guards. Sail to Havana.

If you sail to Havana, whether or not you went to Santiago first, a group of soldiers arrests you. Teleport to the admiralty. Talk to Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes and Electress Maria Antonia. Your officers and rank with Spain are restored. Depending on how many ships you had before you were first arrested and how many you have now, your original ships may be returned or you may be told to get rid of some of your current ships to make room for your original fleet. (If you did not previously go to Santiago, you are given command of a squad of soldiers to arrest Emiliano de Guzmán. Sail to Santiago. Go to the town hall. Talk to Emiliano de Guzmán. Fight him. Return to Havana and talk to Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes.)

To Catch a Spy​ (top)

Only available if you have completed "Imperial Escort", you did so by visiting the governor of Port au Prince while in disguise or genuinely friendly to France, and you took a mission to put a spy in San Juan.

Talk to Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes. Not knowing who the spy is or how he got to San Juan, Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes offers you a mission to find the spy. Receive a document. Sail to San Juan.

Talk to the governor. You have a choice - lure the spy onto your ship and deal with him yourself, or bring Uasco Mazinho ashore and let the soldiers take the spy.

If you choose to lure the spy onto your ship:
Talk to the 'Uasco Mazinho' in the port. Move to the end of the pier. Teleport to your deck. Talk to 'Uasco Mazinho', who reverts to being Gilles Clouzot. Fight him. Teleport to the cargo hold and talk to the real Uasco Mazinho. Then make your own way to the port.

If you chose to release the real Uasco Mazinho and let the soldiers arrest the spy:
Board your ship, go to the cargo hold and talk to Uasco Mazinho. Go to the port and talk to either of the soldiers by the gate. Watch as he goes to the fake 'Uasco Mazinho', who then gets into a fist fight with the real one. Talk to the soldiers, then to Gilles Clouzot, who kills himself.

Return to the governor. Then sail to Havana, go to the admiralty and talk to Almirante Jusepe Guimaraes.


(*) If you are playing as Charles Ardent, you will meet governor's daughter Lucia de la Vega and merchant's son Piers Downing. If you choose to play as Helen Ardent, you will meet governor's son Edmundo de la Vega and merchant's daughter Valerie Downing instead. The walkthrough would get messy if it mentioned everyone every time so it assumes you are Charles, the default choice. The plot is the same either way, only the names have changed.

Easter Eggs:​ (top)

On the way from Havana to the slave camp, one of the jungle scenes has a mound with a tree. Standing by the tree is a monkey. Unlike most monkeys, this one is friendly. Too friendly. It attaches itself to your party permanently and greets you every time you walk to a new scene. To get rid of it, you will need to complete the side quest "Strange Things Going On in the Archipelago". The monkey has some friends on the Animists' island.

After talking to Chief Soaring Hawk about quests, you can talk to him about the island. He will tell you a bit about Isla Mona's history. This is part genuine history, part game history with a reference to the "Assassin" storyline, and part made up for this storyline.

After taking you to Boca de Hubon (and if you didn't kill him), Doolin Becart continues to Port au Prince. You can find him in the port. He'll offer to sell you some fish, which translates to Food which is cheaper than at the store, though only in small amounts. If Two Dogs is with you, he will say something possibly amusing.

During the story, Gilbert Downing has probably told you about his plans for the Inquisition prison. By the time the story has finished, he has finished those plans. Go and visit him, pay the entrance fee, and see who is in there now.