How Broadside works

What is Broadside?

Broadside is a first-person naval battle. You stand at the wheel on the quarterdeck of a small frigate, with sails, masts and ten cannons in front of you. Up to eight captains sail against each other – friends, bots or both. The aim is to sink as many enemy ships as possible before they get you.

Unlike most ship games, you don't simply hit the throttle here. You set the rudder and sails, and the wind decides how fast you go. Read the wind and you outsail everyone else and choose when and from which side to attack. Broadside runs in your browser, with no sign-up and no download.

Controls

Computer

• A / D – put the rudder to the left or right
• W / S – set or reef the sails (three steps: furled, half, full)
• Mouse – look around and aim
• Left click – fire a broadside
• Right click – spyglass
• Tab – logbook with the scores, Esc – menu

Phone

On a phone you steer with a stick and have buttons for fire, sails, spyglass and logbook. Swipe across the screen to look around.

Sailing with the wind

A ship in Broadside doesn't go where you want, it goes where the wind lets it:

• Across the wind you are fastest – up to 13 metres per second, a good 25 knots.
• Before the wind, with the wind at your back, you are a little slower.
• Straight into the wind you don't move at all. To get there, you have to tack: zigzag at an angle to the wind.

Rudder and sails take time to take effect. Without speed, a ship turns only slowly. Now and then a gust shifts the wind and freshens it. The wind gauge announces it a few seconds ahead – set your sails to the new wind in time and you pull away.

Cannons and hits

There are five cannons on each side. You always fire the whole side, gun by gun from bow to stern – that is the broadside. Where you look decides which side fires: look left and the port side fires, look right and it's starboard. A frigate can't fire forwards or backwards.

• Range: the higher you aim, the further the balls fly, up to a good 300 metres.
• Flight time: cannonballs fly as real objects with gravity and take seconds over long distances. You have to lead your target – aim where the enemy is going to be.
• Damage: every ship has 100 hull points, and every ball does 12 damage. A broadside that lands in full takes more than half.
• Reloading: after a broadside, that side needs three seconds. The other side reloads independently – turn around and you can fire again straight away.
• Ramming: ships that collide both take damage. Whoever rams with the bow gets off more lightly.
• Sinking: when a ship sinks, its powder magazine blows up and damages anyone too close. After four seconds you get a new ship that is protected for a moment.

Flotsam

Rings float on the water that you can collect. A collected piece reappears after a while.

• Green – repair: patches 40 hull points and puts out fires.
• Red – powder: your next two broadsides hit almost twice as hard and set the target on fire for five seconds.
• Yellow – fast reload: for twelve seconds your cannons reload in less than half the time.

Game modes and maps

You play free-for-all or in two fleets. The winner is whoever sinks 5, 10 or 15 ships first; after 5 or 10 minutes the match ends at the latest. There are two waters to choose from:

• Archipelago: palm islands at midday in a light breeze, clear visibility, lots of small cliffs between the islands.
• Fog Sound: cliffs and a lighthouse in the evening, with a freshening wind and far more haze. Enemies appear later, and the spyglass matters more.

Bots fill the match; alone, you sail against bots only. Each bot has its own skill: it turns broadside-on to its target, estimates the flight time of its balls, leads its shots and tacks when its desired course is too close to the wind.

Multiplayer

One player creates a game and gets a five-character code. The others type it in or open the invite link. The host's browser runs the battle, and the others connect directly to it (WebRTC); our server only passes on the code.

Strategy and tips

• Turn broadside-on. You can only fire from the side. Catch an enemy from the bow or stern while showing them your broadside, and you win the duel.
• Look for the wind advantage. Whoever has more wind controls the fight. Never sit head to wind – you are a sitting target there.
• Lead your shots. On long shots, aim well ahead of the enemy's bow. The spyglass helps you judge the distance.
• Use both sides. Fire, turn, and fire again straight away with the other side.
• Islands as cover. Behind an island, cannonballs can't reach you. But careful: run aground and you lose speed.
• Keep away from sinking ships. The magazine explosion also catches winners who are too close.

Common beginner mistakes

• Sailing straight at the enemy – bow first, you can't shoot.
• Trying to sail into the wind and stopping dead.
• Aiming at the ship instead of ahead of it. By the time the balls arrive, it's gone.
• Emptying both sides at once and then standing there with no loaded gun.

Frequently asked questions

Can I play Broadside alone?

Yes. Bots fill every empty slot, in the fleets too.

How many players fit in a match?

Up to eight ships, humans and bots combined.

What is saved?

Your name, sound, mouse sensitivity and field of view stay in your browser's local storage. There is no account.

Behind the scenes

The ship is built entirely in code, without a 3D model file: the hull is made from cross-sections along its length, with copper below the waterline, a light boot stripe, a black hull and a colour band for each player. On top come the deck, quarterdeck, ten cannons, two masts with square sails, a jib, shrouds and the wheel. The host and every player compute with the same function and the same inputs, and the spread of the cannonballs depends only on the player and the input – that is why everyone sees the same balls fly. Gravity is a little stronger than in real life so the arcs are snappier.