Official:Doubloons

Doubloon Oceans

Doubloons

What are doubloons?

Doubloons can be considered "credits" or "tokens". They are used on a doubloon ocean to deliver purchased items and to pay for certain aspects of gameplay. Doubloons are essentially a "micropayment" currency that allows players to enable specific aspects of a Puzzle Pirates character, as an a la carte alternative to the traditional "all you can eat" subscription model.

Doubloons are owned by a particular account. They are available on all of your pirates across all doubloon oceans, but are not available on subscription oceans.

What are the doubloon oceans?

Currently Meridian, Emerald, Opal and Jade are doubloon oceans. See the Payments FAQ for more information about different ocean types.

Buying Doubloons

How do I get doubloons?

Doubloons may be purchased from the Puzzle Pirates billing system using a variety of payment methods, or traded with other players on the Doubloon Exchange for pieces of eight. The Doubloon Exchange is accessible in-game from your pirate's info page, or from the lobby of any island's Bank.

How much do doubloons cost?

Doubloons are available in the following packages:

• $2.99 for 12 Doubloons (~$0.25 per doubloon)
• $9.99 for 42 Doubloons (~$0.24 per doubloon)
• $19.99 for 90 Doubloons (~$0.22 per doubloon)
• $49.99 for 240 Doubloons (~$0.21 per doubloon)
• $99.99 for 500 Doubloons (~$0.20 per doubloon)

Spending Doubloons

How do I spend doubloons?

Doubloons are mostly spent in-game when finished goods are delivered. As an example, when purchasing a new sword from an ironmonger, you will be quoted a price in pieces of eight to begin the order, and a price in doubloons to collect the finished product. Not everything requires a doubloon delivery fee, however: fundamental items like rum and cannonballs cost pieces of eight only.

In addition, we also sell some special doubloon-only items, primarily from the Palace Shoppe accessible from your pirate info page, or any island's Palace. Examples of these items include Officer Badges that allow pirates to command shipboard voyages, or Labor Badges that allow pirates to seek employment at shops. There are also small doubloon charges on services such as starting a crew or building a new shop.

Why did you choose to implement doubloons?

When we first decided to implement the doubloon system back in 2005, free-to-play online games were virtually unheard of here in the United States. Some of the goals we hoped to accomplish with those bold first steps into the unknown were...

• Offering potential players the basic Puzzle Pirates game for free.
• Allowing players to pay incrementally for the parts of the game that they use.
• Allowing players to easily gift other pirates premium access to the game.
• Facilitating exchange between players who are time rich and players who are time poor.
• Generating enough revenue to keep the doubloon oceans and Grey Havens in operation.
• Preserving and fostering our existing subscription oceans.

Years onward, we can safely say that we've been successful in achieving all of those goals and then some, thanks to the help of players just like you! We're proud to have been trailblazers in the vast free-to-play frontier, and hope to continue to provide top quality service and entertainment for many years to come.

Is the game "pay-to-win"? Can I buy my way to success on a doubloon ocean?

Not really. Puzzle Pirates is a game with many objectives. For most players, the game is about the success of their pirate in terms of their personal puzzling skills and the feeling of community that they foster with their crew and flagmates. Neither of these are amenable to being purchased with doubloons. It is one of the great strengths of Puzzle Pirates that "material" items are not the pivotal judge of success.

Can I transfer or trade items or doubloons between oceans?

Doubloons you have purchased are available account-wide, and thus can be spent on any doubloon ocean on which you have a pirate. That said, all of Puzzle Pirates' oceans are considered distinct and separate. There is no way to transfer your pirates between oceans, and no approved means of trade between oceans. Grey Havens explicitly forbids players from making trades between oceans and will enforce the Terms of Service in this respect.

Can I give doubloons to other players?

Yes! We expect that players will often give mates a few doubloons for this, that, or the other. They can be traded via the normal trade interface, or gifted to players remotely using the /tip command.

Interestingly enough, the /tip command was originally designed for players to compensate people who organize and run in-game events, but we've found that players generally just use it to quickly gift doubloons to their hearties. Who are we to argue with generosity?

Does Grey Havens buy back doubloons?

No. Notwithstanding instances of fraud, doubloons are a non-refundable purchase and Grey Havens will not repurchase them.

Can I sell doubloons on eBay or another third party website?

No. Doubloons are solely intended to be used as an in-game credit for purchasing goods and enabling aspects of gameplay. They are not to be resold as a source of revenue. Grey Havens will enforce the Terms of Service in this respect, which could result in your account being banned if it is found to be involved with these sorts of trades.

I'm ready! Where can I buy doubloons?

Great! The process is simple and secure, it can be done by clicking on the 'Get doubloons!' button to the right of the game client or directly from our official website.

The billing system is telling me that I can't buy any more doubloons! What do I do?

Alas, due to issues with fraud and credit card abuse, we have a limit imposed on the total amount a player can spend without giving authorization to Grey Havens. To extend your purchasing limit further, you will need to make an official request to support_billing@puzzlepirates.com. Approval of any increase is based on a review of your account history and previous spending, and is made at the discretion of the Ocean Masters. Further increases will not be considered until at least one month has passed.

If you are wishing to increase your limit over $800, you will be requested to send us a signed authorization form acknowledging that you are responsible for these transactions, as well as a photocopy of your ID such as driver's license or passport.

If you have any future questions, please contact us at support_billing@puzzlepirates.com. Thank you and sorry for the inconvenience.

I have other purchasing questions that you didn't cover here.

Try reading the general Payments FAQ, and if you don't find your answer there, please drop us a line at Puzzle Pirates support. We'd be happy to help!