Crafting suggestion, less RNG, more diversity

[Fargo]

While on another stiffness streak again (7 ships until now...), i thought about improving the current system with as little effort as possible. 

Its just sad to see all the stiffness rotting in the shops sometimes at prices, not even covering the notes. Ill keep it as short as possible:

 

 

Current situation

• speed and stiffness imbalanced (essential trim vs situational trim)
• no disadvantage for speed in terms of stats
• useless wood/trim combinations like teak/stiffness (liveoak/speed faster and stronger)
• rigging quality useless (leightweight ropes and blocks does the same)
• build strenght/planking used for every combat ship
• one optimal, RNG based build for every ship (no diversity, no decisionmaking)
• non optimal build = rotting
• liveoak not balanced (value of stats too high)

 

Possible solution

• changing rigging quality with speed -> speed as a main trim
• adjusting liveoak to -5% speed

 

Results

• RNG between yard turn speed and lesser heel (seems balanced)
• same principle for the main trim as for fir, liveoak, extra planking and speedtrim: ​​either slow and tanky, or fast and weak 
• players have to decide between survivability and speed for combat ships
• players have to decide between crewspace and speed for boarding ships
• lesser useless wood/trim combinations. For example liveoak/speed would provide +3cm armour, teak/strenght +1.4% speed instead (liveoak balanced)
• no useless trims anymore
• difference between same ships trimmed for different purposes and playstyles becomes much clearer
• no speed on tanky PB ships anymore 
• greater variety of ship builds
• different demand for different trims
• less frustrated crafters

 

 

Of course as an alternative you could just exchange stiffness with something better like reload time, or manouverability, but this wont result in more decisions to make. Fir without speed would always be bad. As long as such important boni are based on RNG, there will always be ships you have to throw away.

 

Thanks for reading!

 

[jw62]

Stiff boat is a fast boat. Might be a heaving boat too but you get used to it (or maybe you do die). But since it's digital, and all our crew are long-pigtailed rovers, the Stiff build should be a faster hull, should be speed.