Legendary DIY 16th Century Trading Game: Wooden Ships & Gold Coins – Dana & Max #7
The following article is part of Informer.Digital’s DIY Games series, where fictional characters teach you how to make low-budget entertainment during times of extreme corporate thriftiness, ongoing budget cuts, and mystery buyout rumors. Any resemblance to actual Rice Krispie-based business dealings is purely hilarious.
Dana (grinning): Okay, so you ever hear Nelly and the Professor talk about 16th century online marketplaces and suddenly find yourself drawing sea routes on index cards?
Max: That episode sent us down a rabbit hole, and at the bottom?
A brand new DIY 16th Century Trading Game we like to call: Wooden Ships & Gold Coins.
Dana: It’s one of our most epic entries yet—a DIY 16th Century Trading Game that’s part sailing adventure, part economic strategy, and part Informer.Digital allegory, if we’re being honest.
Because when you hear someone’s trying to trade stale Rice Krispie treats and a crumpled coupon book for our entire platform… you either cry or build a pirate game.
Max: We chose pirate game.
Game Setup – Budget-Friendly & Seaworthy
Dana: You only need a regular deck of cards (no jokers), one six sided die, six index cards, and something to track gold and goods.
This DIY 16th Century Trading Game was built with scraps and scotch tape. Authentic to the times.
Max: Here are your six ports: Barcelona, Marseille, Rome, Tunis, Athens, Alexandria. Lay them out west to east.
Each player gets:
A small ship (carries 2 goods)
5 gold coins (use playing cards—Ace = 1, etc.)
2 free goods at your starting port
Dana: Shuffle all Jacks, Queens, and Kings—those are your Journey Cards. They’ll shape your fate, just like an unexpected memo from upper management.
How to Play – Risk, Reward, and the Winds of Chaos
Max: Here’s your turn structure in this DIY 16th Century Trading Game:
Declare your destination.
1 port away = 1 roll
2 ports = 2 rolls
3 ports = 3 rolls
4 ports = 4 rolls
5 ports away? That’s 5 daring rolls.
Draw a Journey Card before each roll. It might help. It might ruin you.
Roll the die:
1 = Storm (lose 1 good)
6 = Pirate attack (lose 1 good, 1 gold)
2–5 = Clear sailing
Adjust your destination if a storm or ambush hits you mid-voyage.
Sell your goods at your destination:
1 port = 2 gold per good
2 ports = 3 gold per good
3 ports = 4 gold per good
4 ports = 5 gold per good
5 ports = 6 gold per good
New goods cost 1 gold each
End your turn. Reshuffle the Journey deck every 3 turns.
Dana: It’s a DIY 16th Century Trading Game that plays like a historical road trip—with pirates, storms, and poor financial planning.
Journey Card Effects – Chaos in a Card
Dana: The real magic in this DIY 16th Century Trading Game is how every card adds drama:
Jacks = one-roll effects
Queens = journey-wide effects
Kings = money, storms, and regrets
Max: My favorite is the Queen of Hearts—you get to travel anywhere for free. Least favorite? The King of Clubs—surprise pirate attack. Just like our surprise finance review last month.
Jacks:
Jack of Spades: Favorable winds; on this roll only, numbers 1-6 are all clear sailing.
Jack of Hearts: Unfavorable winds; roll twice to determine weather and sailing conditions (Part 3 turn structure).
Jack of Clubs: Increased chance of pirate attack; 5 or 6 triggers a pirate attack this roll only.
Jack of Diamonds: Increased storm risk; 1 or 2 triggers a storm this roll only.
Queens:
Queen of Spades: Unfavorable winds across the entire turn; requires two rolls for every port on this journey.
Queen of Hearts: Favorable winds across the entire turn; clear sailing to any port for this journey only, no rolls or additional cards required.
Queen of Clubs: Pirate-infested waters; 4, 5, or 6 triggers a pirate attack this roll only.
Queen of Diamonds: Goods are half price at your destination (2 for the price of 1).
Kings:
King of Spades: Low Prices; sale price is decreased by 1 gold per good at your destination.
King of Hearts: High Prices; sale price is increased by 1 gold per good at your destination.
King of Clubs: Immediate pirate attack; lose 1 good and 1 gold.
King of Diamonds: Sudden storm; lose 1 good immediately.
Upgrade Your Ship – If You Can Afford It
Dana: Most DIY 16th Century Trading Games don’t offer this kind of progression, but we went full Renaissance tycoon. Sell high, spend wisely:
Small Ship: You start the game with this ship; carries 2 goods.
Medium Ship: Costs 10 gold; carries 4 goods.
Large Ship: Costs 20 gold; carries 6 goods.
Upgrade your ship anytime at your destination port after you sell your goods.
Max: Just don’t do what I did and upgrade before remembering I only had one good to trade. Rookie move. Blame the Journey Cards… or our nonexistent travel budget.
Winning the Game – Gold and Glory
Dana: After 10 turns, count your gold. The player with the most wins. If it’s a tie, play one more round—no mercy.
Max: This DIY 16th Century Trading Game works for families, roommates, coworkers, or that one neighbor who keeps asking if your company is for sale.
You can even expand it with new ports, surprise taxes, or “hostile takeover” cards. Just don’t trade your whole media platform for a sack of day-old snacks.
Dana: Big thanks to Nelly and the Professor for the inspiration—we never would’ve dreamed up a DIY 16th Century Trading Game like this if they hadn’t reframed the Renaissance as a shipping-fueled Etsy store.
Max: We’ll keep building more DIY games while our office budget gets… “restructured.”
So until next time—keep rolling, keep sailing, and whatever you do, don’t get outbid by a stale snack bar.
Mike worked in the radio industry for 35 years which means sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek, satirical, trash talking characters to remind you laughter is good for the soul! Let’s have some fun with entertainment, movies and TV, sports, budget food and games, lifestyle and we’ll get ridiculous.
