Hello,
This thread is about what I find odd and out of place in that game : piracy. Was it really a thing in that part of Europe at that time? In the secondary education in my country (Belgium), we don't get courses about piracy in our history classes, so, me finding it odd may simply be the result of lack of knowledge on that matter.
What are your thought and knowledge on the piracy of that time and place? Is the portrayal of it in the game historically accurate?

I own Patrician III and Port Royale I, and feel like Port Royale and its piracy makes more sense than it makes in Patrician. But maybe it's because movies, games, series and books like Treasure Island, Black Sails, AC IV Black Flag, (Sid Meier's) Pirates, Pirates of the Carribbeans etc... have only focused on Americas' Atlantic Ocean piracy, thus sending European piracy in the shadows?

I know I'm late but I just stumbled over this and it's something historical, soooo...

The piracy issue in the "New World" probably is more present in various media cause, well, it's America! (USA, yeah!)
Plus, it's connected to several topics like:
- new world, new life
- unrestricted freedom
- massive riches (from this "new world") in the form of e.g. the famous Spanish gold ships

There has been piracy in the North Sea and the Baltic (in the 14th century), though, yeah.
Obviously not involving ships filled with gold.

Very famous e.g. were the Victual Brothers/Likedeelers involving Klaus Störtebeker. They were active for quite some time and (at least in Germany) quite (in)famous to this day.
They were originally hired by Sweden, if I remember correctly, in a war against Denmark. When it ended, they basically just started doing their own thing.

Considering hiring mercenaries (to land and sea) was a pretty common thing during that time, I guess a lot more of them went the same road and caused quite some issues to the Hanseatic League back then.