Dread Pirate Signature Edition

by Front Porch Classics

Product Features

• Roll The Dice Set Sail And Collect More Treasure Than Your Opponents
• Features Cast Metal Ships Doubloons Glass Jewels And A Cloth Treasure Map
• For 2 To 4 Players
• Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal Award 2003
• 2003 Gold National Parenting Publication Award Winner

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 10 x 6.5 x 12.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000089RUP
• Item model number: CL01014
• Manufacturer recommended age: 8 years and up
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #92,538 in Toys & Games (See Top 100 in Toys & Games)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Editorial Review

Here’s a new concept: the board game as heirloom. And Dread Pirate, packaged in a gorgeous, thick wooden treasure chest, with sturdy game pieces of metal and glass, has the quality to pull it off. The gold coins you will be competing for in the game have a satisfying heft to them, and clunk with authority when you drop them in a big pile. The game "board" is actually a sea map printed on heavy cloth (you will need a wide flat space to play, the cloth is about 2 by 3 feet), complete with archaic lettering and an authentic-looking sea-weathered appearance. As for the most important aspect, the game itself, its deceptively simple rules call for two to four players to sail around collecting treasure. The first to collect every type of treasure wins. But the possibility of mutiny, plunder, or some other type of disaster, keeps things interesting, and makes for plenty of strategic maneuvering. --David Stoesz

Product Description

Go back in time with the pirates sail the seas, find buried treasure, locate islands, and escape hungry sharks in this family fun Dread Pirate game. The game is a perfect pastime for anyone with an imagination and includes everything an ordinary pirate would need from ships and doubloons, to jewels and maps. In the game you will choose a ship and then take part in an exploration for your treasure along with the other players. At the end, whoever ends up with the most treasure wins! Everything you need to play comes in a handsome dark finish wood pirate chest that can be attractively displayed in any home, office or study. 11" L x 8-1/2" W x 5" H

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not worth the price!, May 24, 2004

By A Customer

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:2.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Dread Pirate Signature Edition (Toy)

My son was swept away by the description of this game he found in a mail-order catalog. Playing it is less enchanting. The game goes on and on, and those who are not winning are not having a particularly good time. Although Dread Pirate is extremely beautifully made, it is not a favorite. We've had an amazing amount of fun with better games, such as Zendo and Chrononauts, playing game after game. There are certainly much worse games out there than Dread Pirate, but there are also a few that are tremendously better. Buy this game if you are more interested in the quality and feel of the game pieces than in how much fun the rules are.

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From the Board Games Editor at BellaOnline.com, December 11, 2005

By 

Megan Romer (Lafayette, LA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dread Pirate Signature Edition (Toy)

Dread Pirate (Second Edition), by Front Porch Classics, is one of the most attractive and interesting games I've ever come across. It's not a game for the casual game-player, but for a real collector, this game is perfect. Front Porch Classics calls its games "coffee table games", meaning that they're attractive enough to leave on display while they're not being played.

The game does not come in a cardboard box, rather, it is in a beautiful wooden treasure chest. The game "board" is actually a large pirate's map, printed on a piece of fabric. Each player gets a solid metal ship (which are large-about 2 inches tall and an inch and a half wide from stem to stern!) which they move around the playing board by rolling the wooden dice or drawing a pirate card.

The object of the game is to collect doubloons and treasure by moving around the board, raiding other pirate's ships and ports. The treasures are small jewels, much like those which often come with mancala sets. The doubloons are real (and heavy!) golden metal coins which look quite like what one might imagine pirates' booty would actually look like. Each player keeps their collected treasures in gorgeous velvet bags as they play the game.

In addition to being a beautiful and fun game, Dread Pirate is also informative. The instruction booklet includes excerpts from the 1691 journal of Captain Arthur Howell, and each "Dread Pirate" card lists a fun fact about pirates.

Any avid game collector who appreciates attractive games that incorporate real materials and who enjoys clever strategy games will love Dread Pirate.

21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Pirate's Life for Me!, March 1, 2004

By 

Tracy R. Hickman "trhickman" (South Jordan, Utah, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Dread Pirate Signature Edition (Toy)

I am something of a fan of pirates. I have studied their history and think a good swashbuckling film is hard to beat. So I was very excited this holiday season when Santa brought our family the coffee-table game `Dread Pirate' by Old Century Classics / Front Porch Classics. What a game, matey!

First of all, it is awesomely beautiful with doubloons that shine, have heft and go CLANK when you play with them. The game board is a cloth `treasure map' and the ships are elegant. The dice are wooden and each player gets their own velvety bag to hold their plunder of jewels and coin. All this fits nicely into a wooden treasure chest. It's well worth the price by my book.

There were even some intriguing game play elements to the game, especially the `blind draw' for treasure. You can actually download the rules to the game in PDF form from their website so you can see what I mean.

Fair winds and a following sea ... and a must-see-to-appreciate game for the entire family.