Why did the colonists use guerrilla warfare tactics during the Revolutionary War?

American Revolution

American RevolutionGuerrilla tactics were first used in the US at the Battles of Lexington and Concord by the Patriots at April 19, 1775. ... The Forage War raised morale for the Patriots as their guerrilla operations against the British were very effective.

the enslaved people onboard suffered from illness with some frequency

the intolerable acts were punitive laws passed by the british parliament in 1774 after the boston tea party. in great britain, these laws were referred to as the coercive acts.