I don’t know yet

As I mentioned at the beginning of this project, I have a 6′ x 4′ blue neoprene mat that is just not cutting the mustard for me.   It’s too blue for my liking and probably more Atlantic Ocean than the Caribbean.  Secondly, the ships are quite large, and things will get cramped really quickly on a 6′ x 4′ table.

So, with those two points in mind, I ordered a larger mat to use as the base for the playing surface.   Considerably larger in fact.

Cigar box battle mats looked to have an ideal solution with a Carribean Waters mat measuring a decent 6.5′ x 15′

The mat arrived the other day and I was quite surprised at how quickly it was delivered to me here in Western Australia.   It’s a cloth mat which makes it much lighter than my other neoprene mats and folds up quite small.   The best part is that it doesn’t appear to crease at all.

My plan from here is to run with one mat over a 6′ x 14′ table and then if that starts to feel a little small add another mat alongside it on a separate table.  There would have to be a gap between the two tables though so the ships can be reached to allow movement.   If a ship sails off one map along the long edge it will appear on the other mat along the long edge, possibly in the following turn.  I’d have to work on how that will work in the game.

That would give a total playing surface of 12′ x 14′.  I can’t imagine needing to go any bigger than that, although stranger things have happened at sea as they say.

On top of the mats, I will build up islands and land masses to add variety.   The idea is that there should be possibly 3 islands which trade goods in a triangle formation, A pirate hideout of sorts, a cannibal island (or at least a place that appears to be unoccupied by the civilised world) and a few other pieces that can be placed around to provide both obstacles for ships to navigate and potential cover from incoming cannon fire.

I have a few large ships in my collection that can pack a decent amount of firepower so some places where smaller ships can slip through would be a good idea too.

Keeping islands small and land masses somewhat modular will allow me to use those parts in smaller setups for skirmish-level games.  If I also stick to a similar colour palette with things it will increase the modularity of terrain pieces.