A pirate lives on skill, guile and fortune's fair eye, dreading the day his luck finally runs dry.
 Before ye lies a sack of sixty golden doubloons – a king's ransom and a good day's haul. Each of the crew is entitled to a share equal to his rank and station aboard, and as a crew of thieving pirates, each has his own unique talent for prying coins out of the hands of his shipmates. Take all ye deserve – but no more than prudence allows for the treasure be cursed!

 Within the sack are coins bearing the Black Spot. To hold such a coin is to feel the icy hand of death upon ye – but to not be able to rid oneself of its curse is death itself. Best find someone else's pocket to line it with, lest ye find yer pirating days at an end. Dread Curse is a push-your-luck game of cunning thievery and ample turns of fortune.
 Play revolves around drawing loot from a cloth bag and stealing from the other pirates in order to gain the most valuable stash of treasure. Each turn, players reveal coins from their hidden cache to win the captaincy or one of the other seven crew assignments, each of whom are able to draw from the bag in a unique way or use a special "cheat" ability available only to that pirate. Stay in as long as you dare to grab more gold, but beware the Black Spot for if you end the game with it in your stash, you automatically lose.