Hi all! Due to an edit i made, this fleet was only 78 points, so i added 2 equipments that you can leave on your HI and swap for the ones on your ships to get better performances adapted on the situation you're facing. I listed them in the "events" section.
For my deathmatch fleet, i tried something strange...an all-english fleet. After all, english are the best in combact (not to mention they're also my favourite faction!)
We only have 2 ships, but, believe me, they are great ships!
Our first ship is the classic HMS Titan... a great ship, with the possibility of 2 extra action per turn, oarsman, helmsman + a captain that can boost the cannon rank of one of the two ships! To get rid of nasty enemy crew, there is the equipment "stinkpot shot", that shuts down every ability on the enemy ship, and additionally, i added a grape shot to eliminate permanently a crew on a target ship.
The Dreadnought is not a classic combo: 26 points were too much...so far! A flaw in WK's ruling regarding the new FS oarsman, made this ship invincible in deathmatches. How? Let's see. Brother Virgil allows crew from every nation. We need him to add in Commander Steven Decatur, that protects crew from being eliminated, as well as 33 % odds of an extra action. Those odds become higher thanks to the reroller (owen). Gunn is captain+ helmsman...powerful ship, but the best has yet to arrive... Oarsman + Dreadnought + Ralph David, in fact, assure that you can't lose a deathmatch. Why? The ship cannot be derelict, thanks to oarsman, and neither can be sunk for David's ability. Still, she's so powerful because she can shot even when she has no masts (thanks to the oarsman, that states "this ship cannot be derelict" her ability will never shut!).
Explodin shot is there to assure a shot with a fire mast: if you play against two or three ships together, you will sink one normally, then use fire shot against the other. You can also eliminate a crew, and Gryffin Owen let you reroll a wrong result. But even if you are sunk, you will not lose Dreadnought permanently, so you don't have anything to lose.
Thinking about it, the Titan is almost unuseful when compared with Dreadnought. Having the Dreadnought combo in this kind of games, means that, whatever happens, you can't lose-because you will never be left without any ship.
Now the question is: is it fun to play with a fleet that cannot lose? I think it isn't, still, this fleet is the best i could provide for a deathmatch.
ciao! Fede
edit: since my appointment with the tooth doctor (is it dentist in english?) skipped, i will explain how to beat this fleet:
Since crew cannot be eliminated from Dreadnought, you'll have to cancel it. Titan carries two equipments to cancel crew, so it's difficult to approach this fleet. When you play ziotoo4's cinco the mayo for the first time, you will most likely win. But on the second time there are two ways to send the never ending ship to the bottom of the sea:
1)With a canceller: sink the titan and then cancel Ralph David (still, also Dreadnought has an assassin equipment...)
2)With the stinkpot shot equipment. It will shut down every ability, and it cannot be cancelled, so...you could use it against Dreadnought to put her in trouble
If you're unlucky, you could find one of these 2 setups in your first time (for example, Vlad's fleet had the stinkpot shot! :-().
So this fleet isn't invincible forever...but, after all, every fleet is less powerful when it loses the surprise effect ;-)
Section: Ship #1 (7 miniatures)
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Grape Shot (F&S)
Collector's Number: 107
Faction Affiliation: Equipment
Rarity: U
Type: Equipment
Point Value: 1
Miniature text: Once per turn when this ship is given a shoot action, one of her cannons can shoot a grape shot. Declare which cannon will shoot the grape shot before rolling a d6. If it hits, eliminate a crew instead of a mast. If the cannon roll is a 1, remove Grape Shot from the game.
1
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HMS Titan (PofSM)
Collector's Number: ES-001
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: R
Type: Ship
Point Value: 17
Cargo Space: 5
Base Move: L
Cannons: 2S-2L-2L-2L-2S
Miniature text: Once per turn, roll a d6. On a 5 or 6, this ship may be given an extra action. Link: Admiral Robert Blake.
1
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Helmsman (RotF)
Collector's Number: 077
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: U
Type: Crew
Point Value: 2
Miniature text: Helmsman
1
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Oarsman (F&S)
Collector's Number: 126
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: C
Type: Crew
Point Value: 1
Miniature text: Oarsman
1
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Sir Christopher Myngs (PofSM)
Collector's Number: EC-002
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: R
Type: Crew
Point Value: 3
Miniature text: Once per turn before you give this ship an action, roll a d6. On a 5 or 6, this ship may be given the same action twice. Link: Myngs Marauders.
1
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Stinkpot Shot (F&S)
Collector's Number: 108
Faction Affiliation: Equipment
Rarity: U
Type: Equipment
Point Value: 1
Miniature text: Once per turn when this ship is given a shoot action, one of her cannons can shoot a stinkpot shot. Declare which cannon will shoot the stinkpot shot before rolling the d6. If it hits, do not eliminate a mast; instead, the target's crew can't use their abilities this turn.
1
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Thomas Gunn (F&S)
Collector's Number: 026
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: R
Type: Crew
Point Value: 9
Miniature text: Loyal: England, Captain. Once per turn give any ship in your fleet +1 to all of her cannon rolls. Link: HMS Apollo
Section: Ship #2 (8 miniatures)
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Brother Virgil (PofSM)
Collector's Number: EC-009
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: C
Type: Crew
Point Value: 3
Miniature text: Crew of any nationality may use their abilities on this ship. Link: Countess Diana Doone.
1
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Commander Steven Decatur (PofBC)
Collector's Number: 094
Faction Affiliation: America
Rarity: R
Type: Crew
Point Value: 7
Miniature text: This ship’s crew cannot be eliminated unless she sinks. Once per turn, roll a d6. On a 5 or 6, this ship may be given an extra action. Link: Intrepid.
1
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Commodore Rhys Gryffyn Owen (PofBC)
Collector's Number: 058
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: C
Type: Crew
Point Value: 0
Miniature text: Limit, Ransom. Choose one English crew during setup; this crew is linked to that crew. Once per turn, you may reroll any die roll you make for this ship; you must use the second die roll result. Link: HMS Granville.
1
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Exploding Shot (F&S)
Collector's Number: 109
Faction Affiliation: Equipment
Rarity: U
Type: Equipment
Point Value: 1
Miniature text: Once per turn when this ship is given a shoot action, one of her cannons can shoot an exploding shot. Declare which cannon will shoot the exploding shot before rolling the d6. If it hits, the target's controller replaces one mast with a fire mast and eliminates a crew. If the cannon roll is a 1, remove Exploding Shot from the game and eliminate a mast from this ship.
1
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HMS Dreadnought (PofR)
Collector's Number: 025
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: R
Type: Ship
Point Value: 26
Cargo Space: 5
Base Move: S
Cannons: 3L-3L-3L-3L-3L
Miniature text: This ship's cannons may not be eliminated (masts still may be). If derelict, she cannot shoot. Link: Admiral Robert Blake.
1
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Hermione Gold (RotF)
Collector's Number: 059
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: C
Type: Crew
Point Value: 5
Miniature text: "Captain, Helmsman."
"Conscripted to the English for acts of piracy, Hermione uses her tremendous skills as a captain and helmsman to keep her employers happy in their battle against those who oppose the Crown. But it is her knack for piracy (under the good Union Jack) that keeps the crew very, very happy."
1
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Oarsman (PofSM)
Collector's Number: EC-OA
Faction Affiliation: England
Rarity: C
Type: Crew
Point Value: 1
Miniature text: If derelict, this ship gains a base move of S. This crew takes up no cargo space.
1
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Ralph David (RotF)
Collector's Number: 060
Faction Affiliation: America
Rarity: C
Type: Crew
Point Value: 1
Miniature text: "Hostile:Pirate, Eternal."
"When word came to him that his new bride had been killed by Blackheart, something broke inside David. This long-standing “gentleman of the south” began to sell off his land to gather a personal fleet to rid the seas of pirates. His money ensures he always has a ship ready and willing to go to “war.”"
Section: Events (2 miniatures)
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Chain Shot (F&S)
Collector's Number: 106
Faction Affiliation: Equipment
Rarity: U
Type: Equipment
Point Value: 1
Miniature text: Once per turn when this ship is given a shoot action, one of her cannons can shoot a chain shot. Declare which cannon will shoot the chain shot before rolling the d6. If the shot hits, do not eliminate a mast; instead the target can't move on her next turn. If the cannon roll is a 1, remove Chain Shot from the game.
1
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Spanish Letter of Marque (F&S)
Collector's Number: 102
Faction Affiliation: Equipment
Rarity: R
Type: Equipment
Point Value: 1
Miniature text: This ship can use Parley against Spanish ships. If this ship shoots at a Spanish ship, remove Spanish Letter of Marque from the game.