
- BGG rank
- BGG #12,420
- BGG rating
- 8.0
Black Seas: Master & Commander Starter Set
- 2 players
- 30–500 min
- Complexity 3.3/5
- 2019

Rules assistance for Black Seas: USS Constitution
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Black Seas: USS Constitution is an expansion for Black Seas: Rulebook released in 2019 for 2 players, 30–500 minutes per game, and ages 14 and up. It was designed by Gabrio Tolentino and its main mechanics are Dice Rolling and Simulation.
USS Constitution was one of six Heavy Frigates commissioned by the United States Congress in 1794 to protect American shipping against Barbary Pirates in the Mediterranean. These frigates were designed to outmatch the frigates of any other nation while remaining nimble enough to slip away from larger ships-of-the-line. These six frigates (Chesapeake, Constitution, President, United States, Congress, and Constellation. Chesapeake, Constitution, President and United States) were armed with 44 guns, normally a mix of long 24-pounders and 32-pound carronades. Across their service life, these ships would often end up over gunned, carrying upwards of 50 guns into battle. Revolutionary construction techniques gave the six frigates much thicker hull planking than their British or French equivalents, allowing them to soak up a tremendous amount of punishment. It also allowed them to carry a much heavier armament relative to their size, as seen by the arrays of 24 and 32-pounders carried on the 44 gun vessels. In the Game: USS Constitution should be in the thickest fighting on the table, leading the charge into the enemy battle line, using her exceptional survivability to weather the storm of shot and shell while blasting away with her own guns. While she might not be able to tangle with larger First Rates like Victory, she can hold her own in frigate actions, tying up the enemy fleet while the remainder of your ships go after other objectives or gain a more advantageous position. —description from the publisher
Black Seas: USS Constitution supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Black Seas: USS Constitution is 30–500 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Black Seas: USS Constitution for ages 14 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Black Seas: USS Constitution belongs to these categories: Wargame, Napoleonic, and Miniatures. Its main mechanics are Dice Rolling and Simulation. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Black Seas: USS Constitution are: Gabrio Tolentino. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Black Seas: USS Constitution as an expansion for Black Seas: Rulebook. Expansions add new content, rules or scenarios to the base game and usually cannot be played on their own, so you need Black Seas: Rulebook to use it. Check that your edition of Black Seas: Rulebook is compatible, as some expansions were revised between editions.