Pirates ( Faction ) The Pirates were one of the first two factions of the " Pirates " theme . They were the only faction not to change over time , but they expanded with more and more sets added with each change of the good faction . Their symbol was the Jolly Roger , a black flag with a skull and crossbones . The Pirates boasted four of the largest ship sets , Black Seas Barracuda , Red Beard ' s Runner , Skull ' s Eye Schooner and Brickbeard ' s Bounty . They operated out of the Forbidden Island , Rock Island Refuge , Skull Island , Pirates Perilous Pitfall and Shipwreck Hideout sets . History . The intial release of the Pirates was hugely popular . The sets released in this era were some of the largest in the theme , including 6285 Black Seas Barracuda , 6270 Forbidden Island , and 6273 Rock Island Refuge . The Pirates were initially pitted against the Imperial Soldiers . In 1992 the blue Imperial Soldiers were phased out and the Pirates ' main adversaries were now the red Imperial Guards who resembled Redcoats of the British Army of the colonial era . The Black Seas Barracuda was replaced by the Skull ' s Eye Schooner , and the Rock Island Refuge was replaced by the Skull Island . Around late 1993 to early 1994 , there was a minor split in the Pirate faction . Another captain emerged as the leader of the new Renegade Pirates faction . The two sides were not enemies , nor were they friends . 1996 brought a radical change to Hispanic themed Pirates , and much of the Pirate sets were redone to match the new Imperial Armada . The theme only ran for 1 year before it was ended . 2009 . After more than ten years without any new Pirates releases , the theme was relaunched with visually upgraded minifigs . This time the pirates were pitted against a faction that resembled the Imperial Guards from 1992 . The pirates were given a new ship , " Brickbeard ' s Bounty " , as well as a new hideout . Their only other seagoing vessel is a raft . 2015 . 6 years later pirates has returned with new sets and Captain Redbeard with refreshed look . They were pitted against a faction that resembled the Imperial Soldiers from 1989 . Ships and buildings . In total , the pirates had six ships that made use of the new large boat pieces . the first one was 6285 Black Seas Barracuda , which is still one of the most popular LEGO sets ever . It was replaced in 1993 by the 6286 Skull ' s Eye Schooner , which was , until January 2010 , the only ship of the " Pirates " theme that had three masts and was also the biggest to that date . 1993 also brought a smaller one - masted ship , 6268 Renegade Runner . In 1996 the second two - masted ship was released , the 6289 Red Beard Runner , followed by another small one - masted ship in 1997 , 6250 Cross Bone Clipper , which was the smallest of the six bigger ships and would also be the last ship for the next years . The newest ship is 6243 Brickbeard ' s Bounty from 2009 . The first pirate base was 6270 Forbidden Island , a simple outpost on a flat baseplate . It was replaced in 1991 by 6273 Rock Island Refuge which was considerably bigger and constructed on a raised baseplate . The next one was 6279 Skull Island , released in 1995 . Smaller installations include 6296 Shipwreck Island from 1996 and 6249 Pirates Ambush from 1997 . The biggest fortification of the pirates , considering the number of pieces , was 6281 Pirates Perilous Pitfall from 1997 . The latest pirate base is 6253 Shipwreck Hideout from 2009 . There were also numerous smaller islands , boats or rafts .