Claw & Keel

There's a sail on the horizon. Is she carrying a prize worth fighting for, or more guns than your crew can handle?

Fit your ship, choose a target, then watch the fight play out automatically.

Claw & Keel is in development. This page describes what I'm building toward. Features marked planned may change or may not make the first release.

Your ship has only so much room. Pack in quick-reloading guns, support a few accurate cannons, or reinforce the hull for a longer fight.

Placement matters. Put supporting crew and gear beside the pieces they help, check the links, then see how the setup holds up in battle.

From an earlier build, shortened.

Claws, beaks and questionable morals.

Recruit animal pirates and give them a useful place aboard:

• Gunner: helps adjacent guns aim faster and hit more often.

• Powder crew: helps an adjacent powder locker serve its guns faster.

• Carpenter: gets more hull strength from adjacent planking.

More crew types and larger hulls are planned, along with equipment evolution: combine equipment and carry it through battle to create something new.

Earlier-build spyglass presentation preview, captured separately with the interface hidden.

A glimpse of the planned voyage: scout a target before deciding whether the prize is worth the risk.

Follow rumours, explore islands and choose encounters along the way.

In the planned treasure system, a good haul will take up deck space too. Making room for it may mean leaving useful equipment behind.

Selling your spoils in port and choosing what to bring aboard next are part of the planned voyage.

Meet some of the faces of Claw & Keel. Raven is one of the rival captains in the planned voyage, and a selectable role for her is planned too.

Planned player battles: asynchronous PvP against other players' saved ships. You won't need to be online at the same time.

Sail Again, Know More

The plan is for each voyage to start with a fresh build, while discoveries and recipes carry over, giving you new combinations to try on your next ship. Cosmetic rewards are planned too.

Hey, I’m Cale, and I’m making Claw & Keel. I want it to be a pirate game where you get attached to your crew, keep tinkering with your ship, and take on a fight you probably shouldn’t.

AI tools have helped with development, including some of the art and audio. If the game gets enough interest and support, I’d like to bring in other people to help make it better.

There’s still plenty to build. Thanks for taking a look.