You ever get the urge to take out more than one pirate at the same time? I normally pick up two at a time and knock their heads together, but there are other options. Throwable weapons, for example.

My favourite type of throwable is the firebomb. I guess this doesn’t ‘kill’ in the old-fashioned sense, and you can’t use it to punch a hole in a ship, but when you chuck one it’ll set fire to anything nearby. Fire hurts pirates, obviously, and anyone they bump into while they’re burning might catch alight too. Fire doesn’t spread on land, but it will eat its way through your ship if you don’t put it out.

Oh, you can launch firebombs from your cannons, too. Try it. It’s wild.

Blunderbombs are a little different, and take their name from all the blunderbuss pellets inside ’em. Score a direct hit on an enemy with one of these and they’ll take damage, as will anyone caught in the blast area. The knockback effect will send ’em flying too, so you can blow someone clean off a ladder or over the edge of a cliff if you have good aim. Blunderbombs fired out of cannons hit even harder and can leave a ship rocking on the waves, though they won’t actually tear any holes in it – you’ll want to rely on good old-fashioned cannonballs for that.

Here’s the thing to be wary of when it comes to throwables: you may not be able to accidentally slice your shipmate’s arm off during a swordfight, but anything you throw can hurt you and your crew as well as your enemies. If you’re willing to take the risk, your ship will have a small supply of throwable weapons aboard when you set out, and you can find more in barrels and the usual places. If you’re very lucky you might even dig up a crate of firebombs, which can hold as many as 20 of ’em. Happy days.