So You Want to Be a Pirate?

You may have seen the exciting news. The folks at Kingsisle have announced their new game the very original "Pirate101"! You can go to the Pirate101 website and sign up for a chance to join the closed beta, and you can also drool over really beautiful images.
But you've seen all that now. I bet you can't wait to become a pirate and swashbuckle your way to fame and glory. I bet you've already picked out the class of pirate you're going to play and everything.

But there's a whole lot more to being a pirate than wearing an eyepatch and not bathing! And if you don't want to look like a landlubber, you better start studying now.
First you better catch up on your pirate literature. It would be best to start with Rafael Sabatini's The Sea Hawk and Captain Blood. Along with Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island they are THE pirate books to know.
Then after reading up on your pirate lore, you should probably start watching pirate movies. There are as many choices as there are fish in the sea, so here are some suggestions, that I know are a jolly good time:



And here's one for The Sea Hawk which won't let me embed it. (Boo!)





Yes as you watch you're way through the pirate films of history you can learn about the great songs of Cole Porter and--- Hey! Who put that last one there? Sheesh. That's hardly a pirate film. Well I guess that The Harvey Girls was hardly a western...
ANYWAY.
You'll also want to work on your evil pirate laugh, and your swashbuckling skills like everyone's favorite villain Basil Rathbone here (yet another video that won't let me embed it. I ask myself, what is the world coming to!?).  And of course you're dramatic death scenes, but I highly doubt that you will ever be as good as the lovely Basil.

For those of you who are the more interested in the science of pirates (you must be the navigator or something eminently practical like that) I highly recommend watching the "Pirate Special" of Mythbusters (Season 5, Episode 2). Try pillaging your local library for that one. And if you want to know about what real pirates' lives were like at sea, you might check out this interesting article. Um, needless to say, I'll just stick with the interesting folklore, and less of the extreme hardship.

Finally you'll want to know how to talk the talk, now that you've been learning how to walk the walk. Here is a video which covers the basics.  Also at your disposal are many fantastic study aids like this handy Pirate Speak translator. 

In no time you'll find yourself ready to cast off for pirate adventures! Arrrrgh.
~Heather