Pirates are criminal smugglers, thieves, and murderers who work in crews on plundered ships and space stations. Most of these gangs lay low in the Ghost Belt and raid the Midbelt (and sometimes even the Heartworlds) for supplies and people to ransom.

Each pirate crew is a different faction, though different pirate gangs sometimes band together to take on bigger threats or achieve larger raids. Other times they go to war with each other over territory, supplies, and old grudges. Such wars are brutal and show no mercy to those in the crossfire.

Most crews consist of many pirate grunts who answer to several mates who answer to a captain. The captain leads with absolute authority and plans all the raids. When a captain dies or steps down, it is customary for the entire crew to vote on who their new leader should be or for the mates to fight for the position.

The largest group of pirates is the Porde Pirate Collective, which you can read more about in “Organizations.”