Pirate, Corsair, and Sea Dog

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Horn of the Abyss Only available when the unofficial expansion, Horn of the Abyss, is installed.
Creatures-box-cove.png
Cove creatures
Level

1

Level

2

Level

3

Level

4

Level

5

Level

6

Nix Nix
Level

7

Towns-small-creatures-12-box.pngTowns-small-creatures-9-box.png
Castle
Rampart
Tower
Inferno
Necropolis
Dungeon
Stronghold
Fortress
Conflux
CoveNeutral
Factory
Town portrait Blank small.png
Neutral
Creature-box.png
Pirate
Creature Pirate.pngCreature Pirate.png
CreatureBackground Cove.png
8
6
Shots
4
3–7
15
6
Move
Ground
Size
1
Growth
7
312
208
Cost Per Troop
Gold symbol for text.png
225
Shoots. No melee penalty.
Creature-box.png
Corsair
Creature Corsair.pngCreature Corsair.png
CreatureBackground Cove.png
10
8
Shots
4
3–7
15
7
Move
Ground
Size
1
Growth
7
407
311
Cost Per Troop
Gold symbol for text.png
275
Shoots. No melee penalty. No enemy retaliation.
Creature-box.png
Sea Dog
Creature Sea Dog.pngCreature Sea Dog.png
CreatureBackground Cove.png
12
11
Shots
8
3–7
15
8
Move
Ground
Size
1
Growth
7
602
376
Cost Per Troop
Gold symbol for text.png
375
Shoots. No melee penalty. No enemy retaliation. Accurate Shot.

NOTE: The term 'Pirates' is sometimes used to refer to the nation of Regna.

Pirates, Corsairs, and Sea Dogs are the level 3 creatures of Cove. They can be recruited from the Frigate. Both the Upgraded Frigate and the Gunpowder Warehouse must be built in order to recruit Sea Dogs.

"Pirates - one of the main dangers trapping seafarers. They can be found in virtually every corner of the world, though, more often, they rob the coast and sea trade routes. Skilled pirates who deserved respect among Regnan captains called Corsairs. Their skill in fencing allows them to make lightning attacks on enemies who are not able to fight back. Sea Wolves are legendary Corsairs who robbed dozens of ships. Rumored that they keep their prey on the lost islands, which many in the Endless Ocean. Sea Wolves armed with perfect pistols that created by the best alchemists of Regna. Perhaps that is why these fighters shots so deadly." HotA Facebook post

Dwellings & Portraits[edit | edit source]

Dwelling-portrait-box-noexp.png
Frigate
Pirate (adventure map).gif
Corsair (adventure map).gif
Sea Dog (adventure map).gif
Pirate portrait.png
Mini Portrait Pirate.png
Corsair portrait.png
Mini Portrait Corsair.png
Sea Dog portrait.png
Mini Portrait Sea Dog.png

Heroes with a specialty[edit | edit source]

Special Ability: Accurate Shot[edit | edit source]

Accurate Shot gives Sea Dogs a chance to instantly kill one or more units in the enemy stack after the Sea Dogs shoot. This ability doesn't work if shooting at creatures behind walls.

  • This chance is 2% or 3% per Sea Dog in the stack (if shooting with/without range penalty), and is not cumulative. This means that, even with many Sea Dogs, there is a small chance that Accurate Shot does not activate after an attack.
  • Accurate Shot will always kill the topmost unit(s) in the stack, meaning that if the enemy stack survives after Accurate Shot occurs, the new topmost unit will always have full Health.
  • Accurate Shot cannot kill more enemies than are equal to 1% of the number of Sea Dogs in a stack (rounded up). For example:
    • 1—50 Sea Dogs may kill 0—1 enemy units with Accurate Shot (with range penalty)
    • 51—100 Sea Dogs may kill 0—2 enemy units with Accurate Shot (with range penalty)
    • 101—150 Sea Dogs may kill 0—3 enemy units with Accurate Shot (with range penalty)

Takeaway: It is extremely important for the number of Sea Dogs to get to a new '100 + 1'. Remember this when splitting Sea Dogs into multiple stacks or targeting enemy Sea Dogs.

Show Probability Tables

NOTE: This is based on the Binomial Distribution formula of combinations(n,k) * pk * (1-p)n-k where:

  • p: probability of Accurate Shot = 0.02 or 0.03
  • n: # of Sea Dogs
  • k: # of Accurate Shot victims
# of Victims (with range penalty)
# Sea Dogs 0 1 2 3 4
1 98% 2% - - -
50 36% 64% - - -
99 14% 86% - - -
100 13% 87% - - -
101 13% 27% 60% - -
150 5% 15% 80% - -
199 2% 7% 91% - -
200 2% 7% 91% - -
201 2% 7% 14% 77% -
250 1% 3% 8% 88% -
299 0% 1% 4% 94% -
300 0% 1% 4% 94% -
301 0% 1% 4% 9% 85%
# of Victims (with no range penalty)
# Sea Dogs 0 1 2 3 4
1 97% 3% - - -
50 22% 78% - - -
99 5% 95% - - -
100 5% 95% - - -
101 5% 14% 81% - -
150 1% 5% 94% - -
199 0% 1% 98% - -
200 0% 1% 98% - -
201 0% 1% 4% 94% -
250 0% 0% 1% 98% -
299 0% 0% 0% 99% -
300 0% 0% 0% 99% -
301 0% 0% 0% 1% 98%

Official Renders[edit | edit source]

User commentary

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Some may find the information in this section subjective or irrelevant.

Pirates are great tier 3 shooters with good stats and no melee penalty. Their only weakness is a low shot count (only 4), although it should be sufficient to kill most neutral creatures if split into multiple stacks. An Ammo Cart can also help greatly in prolonged battles.


Sea Dogs are without question the best tier 3 creature in the game. They have great stats and a ranged version of the Mighty Gorgon's death stare ability. This is balanced by the high cost of the Gunpowder Warehouse, which prevents them from being acquired too early in the game. Pirates and Corsairs should generally be upgraded to Sea Dogs before engaging enemy players.


Like with Mighty Gorgons, care should be taken to maximize Accurate Shot caps when splitting stacks of Sea Dogs. The cap is the real limiting factor: 33 Sea Dogs will never kill more than one creature with their ability, while 34 of them can kill two when shooting without penalty, 27% of the time. Likewise, 67 Sea Dogs is the minimum amount for a triple kill, but the chance of it already starts at 33%. Accurate Shots can be used as a ranged and "improved" version of Death Stare with ability to "snipe" Undead and Non-living creatures down at the cost of lower efficiency per growth ratio.


Sea Dogs are in fact very expensive (Unit price is 375g), combined with their regular T3 weekly growth rate, total cost rivals tier 6 creatures. It's not wise to use them in early games, as they are not cost effective.


See also:[edit source]