Swordfight

Swordfighting is the art of doing combat with a blade. Commonly abbreviated as SF, it is a popular pastime for many a pirate. Swordfighting, besides being a tournament event, a parlor game, and something that can be done at any time through a challenge, is also a part of sea battles. After a ship has been grappled, a swordfight ensues. The victor of this fight takes booty from the other ship.

One can also start a brawl at the brawl table in the inn. It functions similarly to a Sea Battle, through there won't be any black blocks for "damage" for either side.

Controls
Though controls can be customized under the options screen, the default controls are as follows:

Gameplay
There are two different types of pieces: solid blocks and cutout "breakers" that cause connecting solid blocks or cutouts to shatter. There are also four colors: red, green, yellow, and blue. Each of these colors also has a distinct shape and a recognizable outline. You will also see grey blocks throughout the course of a swordfight. On ships, you may also see solid black blocks or jug-shaped blocks. Sword pieces fall from the top of the screen. Breakers will shatter all connecting pieces of the same color and send an attack proportional to the size of the shatter to your opponent. These attacks are described in detail below. The art of swordfighting comes in the ability to fill your opponents screen up with your breaks faster than he or she fills up your screen.

Achieving the Greatest Breaks
Pieces of the same color in blocks solidify into a large block if they are arranged in a 2 x 2 or greater formation. Vertical blocks produce vertical swords; horizontal blocks produce horizontal swords (which can be difficult to overcome if well-placed). These swords remain an immovable image of a sword for one turn, they become a mass of grey blocks the next turn, the next turn those grey blocks will show a sword image (like regular pieces but without the color), and finally they turn into regular pieces on the fourth turn.

Minor Breaks (Sprinkles)
When you shatter pieces that were not formed into large blocks, they become single grey blocks that fall on your opponent. These, too, can be devastating if placed correctly. Without using a chain, you create one sprinkle block for every two loose blocks shattered. Breakers count as loose blocks.

Chaining
The most devastating breaks come from "chains". You will notice that when a block is broken, the pieces above it fall onto the pieces below. Being able to make double, triple, bingo, donkey, vegas, or greater chains, will multiply your attacks.

A 2x2, which normally sends a 1x4 vertical sword, sends a 2x4 vertical sword if broken during a double, a 2x6 on a triple, a 2x8 on a bingo, a 2x10 on a donkey, etc.

A 2x3, which normally sends a 2x3 horizontal sword, sends a 2x6 vertical sword if broken during a double, a 2x9 on a triple, a 2x12 on a bingo, a 2 width sword taller than the playing field on a donkey, etc.

Sprinkles are multiplied. Breaking a breaker and three loose blocks creates 2 sprinkles on a single, 4 on a double, 6 on a triple, 8 on a bingo, 10 on a donkey, etc.

Large chains can be extremely devastating, dropping large swords, massive amounts of sprinkles or both. The most powerful chain is the instakill, or a chain instantly eliminates the opponent by causing the game to drop a sword that completely fills the opponents 4th column. Sprinkles cannot instakill. However, it is possible to make a sprinkle combo so large that the sprinkles all but fill the opponent's screen, causing the the opponent to lose within a few turns.

How Breaks Strike Opponents
Note: Strikes against NPPs do not follow these rules.

To learn more about how strikes affect opponents, read the excellent forum posts by Tedv, Robertdonald, and Jack in the External Links section below.