Arrow Keys or WASD — Steer thy vessel. Up to accelerate, down to reverse, left and right to turn. Thy rudder requires water flowing over it to work, so stopped ships cannot turn.

Q Key — Fire thy port broadside (left side of the ship).

E Key — Fire thy starboard broadside (right side). When near a port, E instead drops anchor to trade and refit.

Shift — Set full sail. Gain a large burst of speed at the cost of slower turning, and thy guns are stowed away until sails are struck.

M Key — Open the chart. Hover over ports to inspect their markets and plan profitable routes.

Esc — Pause the voyage.

Each port has plentiful goods (sold cheap, marked in green) and sought-after goods (bought at premium, marked in red). Buy low at producers, sail to those who demand them, and sell high. The larger the distance between markets, the greater the profit — but also the greater the peril.

Time passes on the trade winds. Thy calendar marks each month (three real minutes) and each season of three months. When a new season arrives — 🌸 Spring, ☀️ Summer, 🍂 Autumn, or ❄️ Winter — every port rerolls its specialties and regenerates all prices. A reliable sugar-producer in Spring may demand sugar by Autumn.

Watch the calendar card for the progress bar. When it reaches the end of a season, the whole market shifts beneath thy feet. Cargo in thy hold at that moment may suddenly be worth far more — or far less — depending on where thou art sailing.

Pirate ships fly the black flag and circle at cannon range. Position thy enemy abeam (directly to thy left or right) before loosing a broadside — cannons fire sideways, not forward. Each broadside shows a dashed cone depicting its range and spread. Upgrade Trained Gunners at any shipwright to tighten the spread, or purchase bigger ships for longer range.