Winds of Plunder is a Euro-style board game set at the close of the Golden Age of Piracy. In this game, pirates have naught to fear but each other as they plunder the Caribbean. But peace has broken out in Europe, and the clock is now ticking on the days of easy piracy.

As the name implies, there are two central elements to each turn of the game: manipulating the Winds, then gathering as much Plunder for your ship as possible. Plunder translates into Victory Points, and the player with the most Victory Points after nine (9) game rounds is the winner.

Wind direction and turn order are both re-established each turn by voting with a renewable but limited supply of Wind cubes. Players must decide whether to seize control of the winds directly, cooperate with others, or position themselves while plundering to take advantage of their opponents' placement. But while voting for wind direction can be cooperative, the same Wind cubes voted also apply to control of turn order for plundering -- and there, it's every pirate for himself!

After establishing the wind direction, players spend actions and sail in order to gain plunder. The route to victory becomes easier for the players who amass the most Weapons, Crew, and/or Provisions aboard their ships as they sail. Each of these shipboard items confer special advantages; Weapons are always useful, and the player with the most of each shipboard item also obtains an Advantage Marker with a special bonus.

Plunder takes many forms: directly with Victory Points gained from ports, each other, and from establishing reputations in the various map areas; indirectly at the game's end with Weapons, Crew, Provisions, and unused Wind cubes.