Corsair
A Corsair is one of the most common terms used to describe interstellar pirates.
- Due to the very high numbers of Vargr corsairs, the term is strongly associated with that sophont species.
- Please also see: Corsair Band and Corsair Vessel
Description (Specifications)[edit]
A Corsair is a ship whose objective is the capture of other ships for their crew, passengers, and/or cargo as loot (i.e. Sophonts, Goods, carried sub-craft, or the Vessels themselves). This may be formally undertaken as an Act of War, under a recognised Letter of Marque or informally by non-warships in aid of a warring state (or by anyone under any circumstances) as an act of Piracy.
Vargr worlds are typically more nuanced in (or less concerned with) their distinctions between Legitimate and Illegitimate warfare (c.f. Imperial Rules of War) than the Imperium and these differences of cultural opinion have resulted in Vargr Heroes being Vilified in Human territories and declared nothing but Pirates.
Associated Terminology[edit]
Hierarchy (Vocation)[edit]
| Privateer Ranks (Commerce Raider: Corsair / Privateer) |
|---|
| Officer Rank |
| R10 /O6+ » (Varies) |
| R09 /O5 » Group Leader |
| R08 /O4 » Leader |
| R07b/O3b» Captain |
| R07a/O3a» Captain-Lieutenant |
| R06 /O2 » First Lieutenant |
| R05 /O1 » Second Lieutenant |
| R04b /O0» (Third Lieutenant) / (Warrant Officer (Bosun)) |
| Ordinary Rank |
| R04a /WO» Warrant Officer (Chief) (various positions / titles) |
| R03 /E4 » Sergeant / (Mate) |
| R02 /E3 » Corporal / (Able Crew) |
| R01 /E2 » Henchman / Raider / Reaver / Marine |
| R00 /E1 » Apprentice Henchman / Raider |
| R00 /E0 » Lackey / Recruit |
Corsairs and Privateers often use a paramilitary seniority system of "ranking", though the specifics can vary. Ranks listed in italics in the chart at right tend to be specific to more formal and "official" Starmerc Privateers or Naval Auxiliary Commerce Raider organizations. Common "Pirate" and freebooter ranks are much more simplified and can vary more widely, but typically include only the non-italicized ranks shown (or linguistic equivalents).
These ranks have no legal basis and are generally not recognized as equivalent to the Military rank by any formal military system.
Privateer Vessels (types)[edit]
Those Corsairs fortunate enough to be well funded will typically employ vessels of the P-Class Corsair Vessel Mission Group in their operations, if they can afford them and find a means to purchase one without raising undue suspicion. Other Pirates will simply employ whatever ship they have at hand and hit targets that they believe they can overpower.
Please see:
History & Background (Dossier)[edit]
Corsairs do not like fighting against well-organized and comparably-equipped defense units—they prefer preying on the weak and attacking by surprise.
Corsairs in pre-Rebellion times were bands of pirates who raided both ships and worlds for goods. Many Corsairs of the period were in fact Vargr, who in the region of the Vargr Extents were semi-legitimately organized in a para-military fashion as a larger for-hire private naval defense and reaction force when they could receive a contract, and as roving bands when they could not.
Within the Imperium during the Rebellion period, with the failing naval powers unable to suppress them, many armed ships turned to raiding to support themselves. As was usually the case, the bulk of corsair recruits were military deserters, criminals, and desperate individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. Many of the raiders of this period could trace their origins to traditional pirate bands, organized crime, backgrounds of inhuman poverty and violence, or even mental illness. Many of these "corsair societies" adopted appropriately macabre, ritualized methods of announced assassination, which discourages casual attempts at assassination and thereby stabilizes a band's leadership.
During the Hard Times era, it was the starmercs who first divided opportunistic free-booting "raiders" into three general types:
- Vikings: Large bands of well trained, usually ex-military and well-equipped, Raiders.
- Corsairs: Smaller bands of Pirates, usually with only one ship. Less disciplined and trained than Vikings, but more numerous.
- Rippers: The most dangerous groups, composed of bands of murdering sociopaths who kill all whom they raid or who cross their paths.
Note that all "raiders" who worked within a single system during this period were of the corsair variety. Vikings were too smart to stay in one place, and rippers either self-destructed or were hunted down and exterminated.
Corsair bands in 1126 retained an increased number of dependents, who were stashed in a safe place immediately before a "hit" or brought along for the ride. The crowding and filth aboard such corsair hulls was legendary.
References & Contributors (Sources)[edit]
- Marc Miller. Pirates (Far Future Enterprises, 2025), .
- MegaTraveller Hard Times
- Journal of the Travellers' Aid Society 21 in Article: "The Pirates of Tetrini"
- "Pirates and Pirate Bases," MegaTraveller Journal 4
- Planetary Survey 3: Granicus