The Pirate Kings

"There is nothing more freeing than looking upon the Seas and knowing they are your playground. I rule the Seas, and I may do as I please. It's as simple as that."
-Captain Rose

Intro

During the height of the Golden Age of Piracy, the Seas were railed by Pirate Kings, legendary pirates who were the biggest and the best - symbols of the free and rebellious spirit of pirate kind. Each had a rise and a fall, and each has a unique story to tell. Many people still hold these stories close to their hearts, treating them as gospel (especially The Order of the Old Legends). A Pirate King is the pirate on the Seas who has more wealth than any one person has ever had before. After a point, the only way somebody could achieve this was to gain the treasure of a previous pirate king. A pirate king didn't technically need to engage in piracy in their time as king, just so long as they gained some of their wealth using piracy.

The Pirate Kings

Below is a list of the pirate kings, what they did during their reigns, how they died, and anything else of note.

Captain Rose

(793 to 796)
Though his official reign as Pirate Kings began in 793, it in truth lasted much longer. Captain Rose is the single most well-respected pirate in history, responsible for a number of things that shifted the direction of Six Seas history. His death was mysterious and is still debated to the day.
For more information see: Captain Rose

Thaler of the Low Tides

(796 to 801)
Thaler was a friend and quartermaster to Captain Rose, and he is the one who recovered his treasure. Thaler (a half-elf) was best known for his strategic prowess. He had amazing capabilities to use limited resources to his advantage and usually overcame his foes not by firepower, but by forcing them into surrender, or sometimes into making themselves sink.
Thaler was so nicknamed because the location of his lair was well known. Low Tide Bay was home to a small stronghold that supposedly held the majority of Thaler’s wealth. It was besieged many times, but its sturdy walls and magical defences protected it from harm each time. Conquering Low Tide Bay became such a crowning achievement that even after Thaler died it took a whole year for somebody to claim his treasure.
It seemed like Thaler knew he was going to die far before his death. In the coming weeks and days, he was not himself and put extra care into ensuring his ships were well equipped with heavy firepower. One morning, out of the blue, a sea monster rose from the water and snatched him from the deck before a soul could react. This was the last time he was ever seen.

Al-Majala, the Elusive

(802 to 806)
Not a huge amount is known about Al-Majala (hence the name) - in fact, basically nothing aside from small pieces of their exploits as Pirate King. Al-Majala is likely an alias, though it is believed that they were indeed Salimstinian. Their race and gender are both unknown, though they are believed to have been human-sized (not a dwarf, halfling, gnome, etc.).
Al-Majala claimed their first major piece of wealth by finally cracking the defences of Low Tide Bay, taking the whole of Thaler’s treasure for themselves and leaving. While the previous two pirate kings were feared among traders, Al-Majala inspired a whole different kind of fear. They were like the boogeyman. A ship that was due to arrive in port would be found drifting, with every person aboard having their throat cleanly slit, without a struggle, and with no treasure left on their bodies.
Despite their elusiveness, other pirate captains spoke with them on a few occasions (never learning their true face or name). Al-Majala showered them with gold and jewelry, asking them to spread it amongst pirates (which the captains rarely did). They wanted to not have a bad reputation among pirates and offered these gifts as a sign of goodwill.
Al-Majala died a sudden death. The news came in the form of a simple open letter to the Harpsbilgian Empire:

“I have ended the life of Al-Majala, the most wanted pirate on all of the Six Seas. It was not an easy feat. I demand a reward. Five million gold should be enough. Fail to satisfy this request, and your empire will sorely regret it.
Humbly, Yuel of The Tundra’s Knuckles”

It was true, Yuel had killed Al-Majala and thrown them to sea. With the sudden death of the Boogeyman, the merchants were elated, but that elation would not last long.

Yuel, The Ice Queen

(806 to 813)
Yuel grew up in northern Nihakeshi, first in the mountains, and later sailing through ice flows. She learned the harsh ways of the north, and how to navigate at sea like no other. She also was a sorcerer of incredible skill, who somehow inherited some kind of elemental power from the north. She came to the Six Seas seeking two things: company, and notoriety. She soon amassed a crew and took up bounty hunter work.
She took up the position of Pirate King suddenly, after seizing the personal fortune of Al-Majala after killing them. She put up a request to the Harps for compensation but was shunned. She had no other option (she thought) but to seek retribution for the disrespect. Yuel would spend the remainder of her life destroying any Harpish ships she could find, and any trading ships which she thought would trade to the Harps.
Due to her sorcery, Yuel was able to create ice nearly at will. She would use this to her advantage by creating ice flows about her ship, such that her ship was near untouchable (as she alone had the skill to navigate them). She would further use this ice magic offensively, freezing other ships in place for boarding, or launching ice volleys at the crew of other ships. This earned her her nickname.
Tales of her harsh savagery spread far and wide across the seas, and once again, the pirate king was being hunted from all sides. It took a few years before Yuel was outsmarted, but it happened eventually. A Harpsbingian naval general, Liam Goldmay, used several of his ships to put her in a pincer attack, using mages with fire specialties to counter Yuel’s own magic. The Harps closed in on Yuel, who had spent the last 7 years killing countless of them. In one final effort, Yuel sunk her own boat, denying the Harps their treasure, then ensconced herself in nigh-unbreakable ice in an attempt to preserve her own life. Liam Goldmay took the ice, and tied cannonballs to it, casting her off to sink to the depths. Some believe her to still be alive, frozen in time somewhere in the southern Wild Sea.

Gonzales, the Rolling Thunder

(815 to 822)
A native to Sin Oro, Gonzales found piracy as an excuse for his love for destroying things (specifically with cannons). He worked hard and found himself a galleon loaded with the most powerful (and loudest) guns that could be found. By the time the ship was done, it had nearly twice the cannons that a normal galleon would. By his sheer firepower, he eviscerated merchants, navy men, and pirates alike.
Gonzales found the pirate king’s treasure by pure luck - not to say that he wasn’t worthy of it. He was in the right places at the right times (and he destroyed the right ships that possessed the right clues). Being crowned the pirate king didn’t sate Gonzales’ lust for destruction - quite the opposite, he decided to use his title as an excuse to destroy more things. He spent the majority of his time as pirate king doing just what he was before - fucking other people up.
It’s still debated if Gonzales’ death was sabotage or an extremely unlikely (if fitting) accident. A part of his jacket became attached to a cannonball that was being fired. As it fired, his jacket went with it, and so did he because he was in said jacket. He was launched directly into another ship (which sunk), splattering into mush in the process. The mechanics of how this happened still baffle technicians.

Gilgamesh, the Charitable

(824 to 826)
Gilgamesh was arguably not even a pirate in true essence. He was simply a dockworker who would make off with portions of ships’ cargo. He, by pure luck, lifted the key clue to finding the treasure from a more worthy group of pirates, whose names have unfortunately fallen from the history books.
After finding the treasure, Gilgamesh couldn’t fathom how much wealth he had just acquired. He wanted for nothing, and he realized what was so fun about stealing was that you were working towards something. With nothing to work towards, Gilgamesh decided to start giving the fortune away. He spent the next year and a bit visiting rundown settlements and handing them large amounts of money, telling them to use it well lest they feel his wrath.
Legend says he didn’t steal a copper during his time as Pirate King, but this is contested because he was known to make frequent stops at prosperous settlements with no apparent purpose.
Legend also has it that Gilgamesh met his end because of his excessive spending of the treasure. Supposedly, he was about to spend the last piece of gold that Captain Rose ever held when he died. It was a sunny day, yet a single bolt of lightning came down from the sky and smote him, killing him instantly. Lightning continued to strike him hourly until the crew was forced to throw his corpse overboard.

Vigo, the Last True King of Pirates (aka Vigo the Vindicated)

(827 to 832)
Vigo is regarded by historians as not only the last true Pirate King but also one of the best. It was seemingly destiny that Vigo would become Pirate King; he was raised on Captain Rose’s ship Th Sweet Kiss. Rose himself acted as a mentor for him, and Vigo had a knack for piracy from a young age.
Seemingly, the sea herself willed Vigo’s ascent. After the death of Gilgamesh, legend has it, a message in a bottle washed up in front of Vigo which contained the directions for how to become the Pirate King. It didn’t take too long for this to happen.
Vigo earned his title after an incident in Port Rose. The Council of the Rich had become filled with slimy political types. Apparently, Vigo, enraged by the degeneration of the settlement, walked up to the council and slaughtered almost every member. This led to him being labelled as a power-hungry villain, and he was banned from Port Rose for the rest of his time as Pirate King. However, it later came to light that most of the members he slaughtered were plants from Harpsbilge, and he had in fact saved the settlement.
Vigo operated with honour, usually sparing the lives of those he robbed. He plundered enough to refill the Pirate King’s Fortune beyond the levels that it was at before Gilgamesh spent an obscene amount of it, thus earning the title for himself in true.
Vigo met an unfortunate end. A Harpsbilgian plant was placed on his ship and after a few weeks on it, was rocked overboard. Vigo jumped in after him to save him. The plant saw her chance to strike and stabbed Vigo in the gut as he tried to save her. Though this did not kill him, it winded him. The plant dunked his head under the water, and Vigo drowned then and there. The plant was then shot by the crew and left to sink to the bottom of the sea alongside Vigo.

Waltzing Walt

(834 to 839)
Walt was a young man from a rich Harpsbilgian family who decided to take up piracy on a whim because he liked the idea of lovable rogues living a fun and free life on the seas. Walt departed with a sizable fortune but quickly squandered it. But thanks to his wit and increasingly good investments, he was able to recover much of it over the next few years and was doing well for himself.
Waltzing Walt was known much more for his decadent dance parties than his actual piracy. Though he was indeed a pirate, after his wealth was recovered his piracy’s main purpose was to create a flotilla of party boats. These parties were something that any traveller of the Six Seas hoped to attend at least one of. They were a one-of-a-kind experience, with amazing live entertainment, many many drinks, company from all across the world, and fantastical diversions.
Walt came into possession of the treasure thanks to his parties, a mysterious guest gave him a tip that led to the treasure. Walt didn’t change much after becoming Pirate King, though his parties did continue to ramp up in extravagance. He spent five leisurely years at pirate king before he met his fate.
A pyrotechnics show at one of his parties went awry, and the vessel that Walt was on was set aflame. Many jumped overboard, but Walt tried to quench the flames and burned alive on his ship, sinking to the depths of the sea with it.

Glaysia, the Sleepless

(841 to 849)
Galysia was a reclusive pirate who was good at her job because of how much care she put into every detail of what she did, not because she robbed a lot of ships. Apparently, nobody knew she was chasing the Pirate King’s Treasure until after she got to it simply because she went to extreme lengths to hide it.
Glaysia was an incredibly paranoid woman. So much so that, infamously, she would stay awake at night, sitting just behind her door because she feared assassins would come for her at night. It’s arguable her paranoia that kept her alive for so long - 8 years as Pirate King is incredibly impressive.
She was nigh unkillable. Her ship was reinforced & filled with warding glyphs, her crew was very well vetted, watches were at full attention all hours of the day. Additionally, Galysia had accumulated a tolerance for almost all poison, carried with her dozens of scrolls of counterspell, magical armour, rings, boots, and more, all to protect herself.
Unfortunately, because of this paranoia, she rarely got up to actual piracy, and she didn’t spend her wealth on enjoyment, just more protection. Thus, she isn’t remembered as a very good pirate, just one who was good at staying alive.
Seemingly, most pirate kings die poetically. Glaysia’s death was such a case. Her paranoia was countered by the reckless stupidity of Jean-De-La-Croux Lafammel, who rammed her ship at full speed, got off, and faced her in melee combat with zero magic or special advantages. Glaysia was unprepared for something so reckless and fell to him. Lafammel took her skull as a prize and made off with the treasure, leaving the rest of her body to sink with her ship.

Jean-De-La-Croux Lafammel, the Regal King of Pirates

(849 to 853)
Lafammel was an incredibly prideful and decadent elf who surrounded himself with jewellery and visible luxuries at every moment. He was a reckless idiot at the best of times who didn’t think before taking action. How he gained a loyal crew is debated to this day, but the consensus is that half of them were secretly out for his neck, and the other half were infatuated with the chaos he produced.
Lafammel became Pirate King quite suddenly, shocking everybody on the seas, especially those who knew him. He was quick to spend much of the treasure on actual kingly attire. His ship was decked out with royal rugs, furs, tapestries, gold candelabras, splendid red paint, and more. He spent every night feasting and every day commanding his “subjects” (the captains of the individual ships in his fleet).
He remained King of Pirates for an incredibly long time considering his ignorance and incompetence, but after four years, his first mate, Old Drowned William, finally poisoned his wine. After Lafammel was dead, William threw the body in the sea and assumed the position of captain without any explanation.

Old Drowned William

(853 to 856)
William was an incredibly unexceptional pirate. He lacked charisma, good planning, a large skillset, or a truly reliable crew. Not to say that he was a bad pirate, but there were many others far more deserving of the title of Pirate King.
William knew this, and soon after taking the position took up the bottle to cope with it. Stories say that he was sober no more than once a month. So, he was nicknamed Old Drowned William for his age and the fact that he would drown himself in alcohol.
William lived as the unexceptional Pirate King for almost 3 years before his crew had enough. One of them wanted the treasure for herself and started a mutiny. The crew, eager for a change and for a share of his treasure, chained William up and threw him to the ocean to drown - a fitting end for his name. His crew moved to get his treasure, but when they got to it, it was gone. Not a single copper was left for these wholly unworthy pirates.

The Future of the Pirate Kings

It has been 67 years since the death of Old Drowned William, and 67 years since the last Pirate King. Some pirates still hold hope that another king will rise, that the treasure will be found, but with each passing year, that hope dwindles more and more. As the Golden Age of Piracy continues to decline, it seems as though Pirate Kings are just a thing of the past.

Well... perhaps.