Collection of suggested mechanic fixes - POLL

[Sir Texas Sir]

3 hours ago, Mormegil said:

First of all, thanks for the good thread @Liq!

Things i would like to see ingame (in order of personal imporatance for me):

1.) Caft XP for crafting cannons, upgrades, books, etc. so that not only ship-crafters can level their craft level. Only giving craft XP for ships always felt like it was an oversight during game-development that was never corrected later.

2.) General game balance: The game has so many really nice ships, however current balance basically requires you to sail 3rd rate and above. The Redoutable DLC made this ship the no-risk ship, as it is really powerful for being free (ingame). It would be really nice to have a balance were 4th and also 5th rates are useful and have advantages (especially speed and maneuverability) that cannot be matched by a higher rate ship. I mean the Redoutable is a great ship but if it makes nearly 15 knots, what's the point of a hunting Trinco or Enymion? Not to speak about Pirate Frigate or even smaller ships.crafts and simply not added later. (FYI: I play since beta, i just dont post much on the forums.)

3.)There should be the ability to buy more slots: Docking, Building, Warehouse. They dont have to be free, but available ingame without the need to buy a DLC. I get that the DLC is a nice way to gain revenue but builing slots and especially docking slots feel really limited even with the DLC. I dont mind a cost (real, maybe some dubs) for the later slots (since the 5 initial building slots are free), as it gives newer players something to strive for. But it should be possible for the solo player to at least have most of the buildings needed to be self sufficient. Not builing the academy still takes 3 slots for production builidngs (ships, cannons, upgrades). Leaving only 7 slots for resources (assuming the DLC is bought) which means you can only get the basic resources (Fir, Oak, Hemp, Stone, Iron, Coal and Lignum).
No chance at getting a sugar plantation for Rum, no specialized woods, nothing. Without the DLC you are toast anyway, which should not be the case immediately after buying the game...
Of course, cooperation should be encouraged, but not cooperating in a clan should not be such a severe restriction. As a possible solution: Introduce a new building "Trading Post" which produces all the 7 basic resources in one building, but at a much worse goods/real and goods/labor rating. It would make sense, as you have to pay a premium at a trading post when buying there and you get lower quantities compared to buying at a specialized production plant.

4.)If there shall be more Outpost slots i like the idea of @Sir Texas Sir above. Capital and 10th slot on max rank. However the capital might make a problem when switching nations as you need to close all national outposts if I remember right...

5.) More in-nation administration tools would also be nice. E.g. the ability to transfer clans in-nation mentioned above. Or a diplomacy system (I know, the vote-based diplomacy did not really work in beta). I know there might be problems to avoid abuse by using alt-accounts etc... But maybe there are ideas that could be implemented.

 

EDIT: It would also be nice to gain ship xp for sailing in the open world. At least for traders, as they are not made for combat and combat being the only option to level them is kind of a bad design. Tie sailing xp to actual distance travelled and you also avoid exploits from idling in the middle of nowhere for hours.

1) Yes it's annoying that we have to set up level 1 ship yards to grind out xp to level up and get more labor hours.  Just make them give very little xp for crafting.  I get that the repairs was boosting folks up to fast, so make it you get 1xp every 100 repair you craft or something like that.  Same goes for cannons and other things, just give little xp so that it takes longer, but your still earning something, which is better than nothing.

2)  This could be done with BR's and rate caps for certain ports and maybe having ports with rate caps.  Can only keep SOL's in capital ports, can't store them in none capital ports or free towns.  Things like that would make it where you have to use smaller ships in certain areas or face a long sail.  

3) I always felt that anything DLC should be offer in game for a price.  Though to balance it just make it so that if you have it bought in game you can't get the DLC to get more slots, but it will fill out your slots to what ever the max is one can have.

4)  Didn't think of forge papers, but any half decent coder can have it check that you cleaned every thing out of that port.  Than again instead of capital than give every one Shroud Cay as one port every one has from the start.   That would prob the easiest way to do it.

5) Clans need more way to deal with alt and dead clans for sure.  As for nation alliances I"m all for the coalition thing that @admin posted last year.   Let the devs do force Allainces to balance the game.   That way they can have the strongest nations never in an alliance, but allow weaker ones to work with each other.  Than if things change you switch up the alliances.

YES SHIP SAILING SHOULD GO TOWARDS SHIPS.   It's annoying trying to grind out slots on Trade ships when all you do is make trade runs and not fight with them.  I hardly ever get hit in my trade ships cause I do it smartly so I'm not even getting xp from those fights.   

[John Cavanaugh]

3 hours ago, Sir Texas Sir said:

YES SHIP SAILING SHOULD GO TOWARDS SHIPS.   It's annoying trying to grind out slots on Trade ships when all you do is make trade runs and not fight with them.  I hardly ever get hit in my trade ships cause I do it smartly so I'm not even getting xp from those fights.   

Speak for yourself man I’ve got 3 slots open on the trader lynx. Toss some guns on there before you undock, most idiots and trader alts are just fruit on the vine, waiting to be picked

[GrubbyZebra]

46 minutes ago, John Cavanaugh said:

Speak for yourself man I’ve got 3 slots open on the trader lynx. Toss some guns on there before you undock, most idiots and trader alts are just fruit on the vine, waiting to be picked

Knowledge should be applied to all ships of a type. Brig/Trader Brig/Navy Brig/Rookie Brig/Mortar Brig, Snow/Rookie Snow/Trader Snow, LGV/LGVR, Lynx/TLynx, Cutter/TCutter/Basic Cutter, Frigate/PFrigate, etc should all be able to share knowledge without having to rank each ship.

[John Cavanaugh]

1 hour ago, GrubbyZebra said:

Knowledge should be applied to all ships of a type. Brig/Trader Brig/Navy Brig/Rookie Brig/Mortar Brig, Snow/Rookie Snow/Trader Snow, LGV/LGVR, Lynx/TLynx, Cutter/TCutter/Basic Cutter, Frigate/PFrigate, etc should all be able to share knowledge without having to rank each ship.

I disagree. 

[GrubbyZebra]

57 minutes ago, John Cavanaugh said:

I disagree. 

why? What is so different that a captain learn to sail 1 would not be able to direct apply that knowledge to the other? 

[Sir Texas Sir]

7 hours ago, John Cavanaugh said:

Speak for yourself man I’ve got 3 slots open on the trader lynx. Toss some guns on there before you undock, most idiots and trader alts are just fruit on the vine, waiting to be picked

Trader Lynx takes only 750 xp to max all slots.  Now try that with an Indiaman which takes 10241 or an LGV which takes 8051.    I actually have slots open on my trader Lynx but I did it by killing small AI around the capital.  Other wise I'm not running around killing new players like some.   

Again show me your maxed out Indiaman?   

Though for bonus of the Indiaman it actually has the most HP's out of all the 5th rates except the Trincomalee.   With it's crew you can actually just use it to board other 5th rates.  The problem comes is that it's such a tub, turns like crap and moves very slow and is very easy pickings for groups of 5th rates to out DPS it so it's hard to grind out any slots on it or just gets flat out boring.

Now if you can actually get your hands on an LGV refit it's fun to hunt traders in cause you can pop in port (the enemy's) and repair up and than just go back to hunting and got enough hull space to take some of the cargo and sale it off.   I actually use to do this with the normal LGV back when we had gold marines and all that, but now a days it wouldn't work so well with the normal LGV cause of lack of chasers to keep some one tagged in .

The real issue is that once your spotted, any war ship will run you down and kill you with ease.

Edited March 12, 2020 by Sir Texas Sir

[Barents]

1) I would like a system where you need to craft something and move it to the frontline in order to pull a hosti mission. Nothing too complicated. Just something you have to care about when operating far from your homewaters.

[Montagnes]

The mechanic of having to grind to open the knowledge slots in every-single-ship-of-the-game is tiresome and it must go away.

The entire game have to relax the overall grindfest that is right now.

Grind for slots, grind for reals to buy the expensive upgrades, grind for doubloons for crafting the ships, grind for CM  for buying permits, grind missions for chests with the rare permits, grind privateer fleets for seasoned woods.

Stop this nonsensical grind, the game must be fun.

 

[Guest]

50 minutes ago, Montagnes said:

The mechanic of having to grind to open the knowledge slots in every-single-ship-of-the-game is tiresome and it must go away.

The entire game have to relax the overall grindfest that is right now.

Grind for slots, grind for reals to buy the expensive upgrades, grind for doubloons for crafting the ships, grind for CM  for buying permits, grind missions for chests with the rare permits, grind privateer fleets for seasoned woods.

Stop this nonsensical grind, the game must be fun.

 

Experience slots on ships actually make me wanna try different ships so I get the reward of opening slots. Otherwise there would be no reason for me to use certain ships at all.

[John Cavanaugh]

3 hours ago, Sir Texas Sir said:

Trader Lynx takes only 750 xp to max all slots.  Now try that with an Indiaman which takes 10241 or an LGV which takes 8051.    I actually have slots open on my trader Lynx but I did it by killing small AI around the capital.  Other wise I'm not running around killing new players like some.   

Again show me your maxed out Indiaman?   

Though for bonus of the Indiaman it actually has the most HP's out of all the 5th rates except the Trincomalee.   With it's crew you can actually just use it to board other 5th rates.  The problem comes is that it's such a tub, turns like crap and moves very slow and is very easy pickings for groups of 5th rates to out DPS it so it's hard to grind out any slots on it or just gets flat out boring.

Now if you can actually get your hands on an LGV refit it's fun to hunt traders in cause you can pop in port (the enemy's) and repair up and than just go back to hunting and got enough hull space to take some of the cargo and sale it off.   I actually use to do this with the normal LGV back when we had gold marines and all that, but now a days it wouldn't work so well with the normal LGV cause of lack of chasers to keep some one tagged in .

The real issue is that once your spotted, any war ship will run you down and kill you with ease.

are you lecturing me on the wide applications of the indiaman? i feel like you're lecturing me.
Ok you carebearing dutch 

let me tell you about ships and cannons. if you stopped building your ships fir/fir and trying to rageboard rather than learn to fight, you might discover that most "war ships" are just fancy painted indiamen with a slightly better weather deck and vastly inferior stern chasers. and most of them are piloted by people like you.

The virtues of the illustrious Indiaman are vast and shall be enumerated forthwith.
Firstly, she is posessed of a battery of 18lb long guns. Much maligned by the feebleminded, these cannons are, with the judicious application of double or charge shot, more than sufficient to deal with any fifth rated or lower vessel.

Secondly, her sailing profile lends itself well to spanish and elite spanish rig. No upwind ship this, but with decent mods she turns admirably and can kite many a warship downwind

Third, her 68lb stern guns are like unto the German guns at Anzio, and any ill prepared mast which stands against them will be smashed to flinders.

Note that i did not say shit about her crew numbers. Rageboarding is an excellent tactic against new players, and the dutch, but against any competent player you will almost certainly find them disengaging. Unless you have a dramatic advantage or are at risk of losing the fight, rageboarding will more often than not give your adversary time to repair and may well cost you the battle. exibit C - Indiaman vs @rediii's Endy, battle lost because of a poorly concieved rageboard after his foremast was cut, when the advantage should have been pressed with gunnery.

Now you were saying?

 

 

Edited March 12, 2020 by John Cavanaugh

[Sea Archer]

I voted for the defending clan choosing the fleet mix in PB.

It as a "yes" for me as long as there is no water depth and ships draft. As soon as both is added (if ever), it is a "no" from me. Then we will see much mirr diversity in battle. 

@Liq can you add water depth and ships draft to the poll?

[Anne Wildcat]

I don’t do RVR so ignore me.  But

Should Combat News drop a message as soon as a hostility mission started, instead of the current "... has reached 25%"?

This sounds like a lazy mans way. Patrol your waters. If you don’t have enough people to patrol, maybe you own too many ports. 

[Angus MacDuff]

12 minutes ago, Anne Wildcat said:

Patrol your waters. If you don’t have enough people to patrol, maybe you own too many ports.

The problem is, who do you get to do this?  There is no profit or fun in carrying out patrols that net no gain.  This is a real life solution that does not fit well into a game environment. The Clerk is the simulation of a standing patrol and therefor should report immediately when hostility begins.

Edited March 12, 2020 by Angus MacDuff

[Montagnes]

1 hour ago, Je maintiendrai said:

Experience slots on ships actually make me wanna try different ships so I get the reward of opening slots. Otherwise there would be no reason for me to use certain ships at all.

For others it is the opposite. Opening slot can discourage trying other ships than the "meta" ones.

And some books are just too important for pvp fights to sail out without them. I'm refering to non-dlc ships ofc, ships that takes time to build.

Edited March 12, 2020 by Montagnes

[Liq]

4 hours ago, Sea Archer said:

I voted for the defending clan choosing the fleet mix in PB.

It as a "yes" for me as long as there is no water depth and ships draft. As soon as both is added (if ever), it is a "no" from me. Then we will see much mirr diversity in battle. 

@Liq can you add water depth and ships draft to the poll?

Max questions a poll can have is 10

But feel free to make more threads with polls, maybe each one on a specific topic..?

[Cathal Brugha]

How about getting rid of seasoned wood and shed being locked behind lots of permits and extreme cost to craft, so that solo/small groups can use seasoned wood. It is not some really special secret formula, it was the standard. There actually should be standard, and green wood built ships. If you build a ship with green wood the cost in reals and labor hours should be less, at the detriment of strength and weight of the ship, to represent the cheap hasty builds.

[Liq]

4 hours ago, Anne Wildcat said:

I don’t do RVR so ignore me.  But

Should Combat News drop a message as soon as a hostility mission started, instead of the current "... has reached 25%"?

This sounds like a lazy mans way. Patrol your waters. If you don’t have enough people to patrol, maybe you own too many ports. 

Pretty sure the vast majority of the insta-flip hostility missions have not been scouted in OW. Fort Baai (right next to the Swedish capital) got flipped without anyone even spotting the hostility mission.

Combat news already drops messages as to where pvp is happening. Migjt be a good addition to get Hostility more importance while possibly creating more PvP

[Cathal Brugha]

On 3/12/2020 at 5:23 AM, Montagnes said:

The mechanic of having to grind to open the knowledge slots in every-single-ship-of-the-game is tiresome and it must go away.

The entire game have to relax the overall grindfest that is right now.

Grind for slots, grind for reals to buy the expensive upgrades, grind for doubloons for crafting the ships, grind for CM  for buying permits, grind missions for chests with the rare permits, grind privateer fleets for seasoned woods.

Stop this nonsensical grind, the game must be fun.

 

Defiantly this. Why does @admin feel the game must be a big grind, with most things, events included, as high rank OP end game material.

Edited March 14, 2020 by Cathal Brugha

[Licinio Chiavari]

8 hours ago, Sir Texas Sir said:

Trader Lynx takes only 750 xp to max all slots.  Now try that with an Indiaman which takes 10241 or an LGV which takes 8051.    I actually have slots open on my trader Lynx but I did it by killing small AI around the capital.  Other wise I'm not running around killing new players like some.   

Again show me your maxed out Indiaman?   

Though for bonus of the Indiaman it actually has the most HP's out of all the 5th rates except the Trincomalee.   With it's crew you can actually just use it to board other 5th rates.  The problem comes is that it's such a tub, turns like crap and moves very slow and is very easy pickings for groups of 5th rates to out DPS it so it's hard to grind out any slots on it or just gets flat out boring.

Now if you can actually get your hands on an LGV refit it's fun to hunt traders in cause you can pop in port (the enemy's) and repair up and than just go back to hunting and got enough hull space to take some of the cargo and sale it off.   I actually use to do this with the normal LGV back when we had gold marines and all that, but now a days it wouldn't work so well with the normal LGV cause of lack of chasers to keep some one tagged in .

The real issue is that once your spotted, any war ship will run you down and kill you with ease.

please note that both @huliotkdand me used Indiaman as raiding ships. With a good rate of success.

Even versus 2nd/3rd rates.

PS: @John Cavanaughis right. I have to add that main strenght of Indiaman is being underesimated.

Edited March 12, 2020 by Licinio Chiavari

[Montagnes]

2 hours ago, Liq said:

Pretty sure the vast majority of the insta-flip hostility missions have not been scouted in OW. Fort Baai (right next to the Swedish capital) got flipped without anyone even spotting the hostility mission.

Combat news already drops messages as to where pvp is happening. Migjt be a good addition to get Hostility more importance while possibly creating more PvP

It removes one of the purposes of hostility missions (the chance of defenders to show up) the fact that it can go from 0% to 100% inmediately. 

[Sir Texas Sir]

4 hours ago, Licinio Chiavari said:

please note that both @huliotkdand me used Indiaman as raiding ships. With a good rate of success.

Even versus 2nd/3rd rates.

PS: @John Cavanaughis right. I have to add that main strenght of Indiaman is being underesimated.

And ya'll are hard core PvPErs not your average casual players too.  So trying to say it can be done by any one isn't exactly true.  Not to mention LAMA aren't exactly the best players in the game.  Even a same build Trinc vs a Indiaman has better turn rate, broad side, and over a knt speed.  So they where prob Carro builds that had to get close and played it stupid.  The first time I see you use 68's I would of pulled back to over 250m and they would be useless while my longs up front woulld be destroying your stern and cannons.

I'm sure we all can agree the guys that normally hunt traders aren't the best players and most of them aren't top PvPers either.  Hell I demasted a Herc with a Trader Brig cause the guy had no clue what he was doing.  The only reason I didn't fight him and just escaped was the crew difference.  Though Unlike @John Cavanaugh who liked to use names calling not having ever fought me I actually have played both sides of the game as a hard core pvper and a casual player.   Oh and it was nice of him to list his in game names, hard to tell who is who when folks don't use there in game names on the furoms....lol  He's some one that is seen in combat news a lot and is a hunter and PvPer.

PS:  I don't run Fir/FIr Indiaman's and if he had some reading skills he would of saw the part where I said I hardly ever get jumped cause I'm not an idiot while doing trade runs.  IE my ships have guns, and I don't AFK sail.  First thing I ask when some one gets tagged in National is, "Do you have cannons." If they don't than I let them know they are prob screw but we will try to catch them on the out side of the battle so hold them off as long as we can so we can get there.  9 times out of 10 they don't have cannons and they where prob AFK sailing so by time they noticed the battle the ship was all ready boarding them or got them half sunk.

[Sir Texas Sir]

2 hours ago, Montagnes said:

It removes one of the purposes of hostility missions (the chance of defenders to show up) the fact that it can go from 0% to 100% inmediately. 

I actually kinda liked how POTBS did it with the goods after a port was flipped that added things for either side.  Though we could do something liek HOstility mission can only give a port 50%, but good scan be stacked over the day until window opens to put it at 50% first.  This way you know your going to get raided at a port when the window opens.  Good can even be brought in over the whole day as long as they are in before maintance down time than the port is flipped and a battle is the next day.   The way to limit it so some one doesn't drop and go instant 100% is your limited to how much goods can be dropped per hour and they must be dropped with a trade ship.  Maybe make it take several triips in a trade ship to get so much %.   Kinda like the war goods we had but better worked out system that isn't just an instant drop.

[John Cavanaugh]

42 minutes ago, Sir Texas Sir said:

Oh and it was nice of him to list his in game names

No account exists by either of those names.