Mini Map

[Samuel Adams]

I think as a option if you can't see the ship it should not be on your mini map.I think it would be a cool option.Any thoughts

[Johny Reb]

Its a realistic idea. You shouldn't know where ships are over the horizon.

[Thomas Blackwell]

I like the idea, though how will it work for reefs, shoals, and shallows in general? Will you be able to see them on your mini map by default?

[Samuel Adams]

I think if you can see it then it should see it.

[BungeeLemming]

I like how its done right now.

I dont feel the need of a mini map at this exact stage of NA.

Maybe that changes with HUGE fleet actions. 10v10 and more..

[Ned Loe]

In the future we will need it. We will have huge world and will need to have a large interactive world map and a mini map. It is a very important tool in all mmos.

[Johny Reb]

I like how its done right now.

I dont feel the need of a mini map at this exact stage of NA.

Maybe that changes with HUGE fleet actions. 10v10 and more..

I'm with you. I could go with or without it atm for small actions. It makes you really pay attention to what else is going on around you which is more immersive IMO. Large fleet actions may be much harder to keep situational awareness without some form of a map but that remains to be seen.

[Thomas Blackwell]

We could always have a Civilization V style world map, that only shows what we have explored, while the minimap shows only that which we can see.

[Ink]

I'll be ok with ~150m range mini map with own fleet ships only

[PIerrick de Badas]

I would love to get a mini map with 500m range and all the ships around. It's just replacing the eyes i would have if i would be on the deck. As i can't turn the head everywhere and heard the sound where they come from, i need a minimap to locate what i hear  and what my character would see.

As I'm not totaly blind, i would love to get 500m range around me. Ofc not if ennemy is hiding behind a rock or an another ship but 150m is too short, you never got ship on 150 exept in brawl.

[Samuel Adams]

On this topic I want the mini map to be line of sight even in the fog. So if you can't see the ship you can't see it on the mini map. This also plays a lot with the weather and I wanted to bring this up to who ever wants to share there thoughts on it. For me I would love it. It would keep the realistic side for a mini map.

[Samuel Adams]

Also from what I seen on youtube there needs to be a mini map b/c you can't see where you are going in cannon mode.

[Månis]

I agree that there need to be some kind of minimap. But as some already said, it should only display what you can see. And if someone says that there wasnt that kind of things back in the 1700s. Well. Think of it more like crew observations instead of a radar map.

[Samuel Adams]

I mean when you are firing your cannons and you go to gun deck mode you need it to see your ship and not ram into everyone.

[TallblokeUK]

Minimap...should be limited to what you can see.

 

So, based n the height of your lookout range can increase

If you are in a small Brig horizon would be about 7 miles something with higher masts you would see further.

As for shoals and other hazards, they should appear when it would be realistic to see them with the naked eye.

[Thomas Blackwell]

Minimap...should be limited to what you can see.

 

So, based n the height of your lookout range can increase

If you are in a small Brig horizon would be about 7 miles something with higher masts you would see further.

As for shoals and other hazards, they should appear when it would be realistic to see them with the naked eye.

I like the idea of a map that increases with the hight of your lookout, the weather, and perhaps the skill of the lookout?

[maturin]

And the height of the masts you're looking at, of course. A rowboat and a ship of the line theoretically can see each other simultaneously.

[Samuel Adams]

I like the idea of a map that increases with the hight of your lookout, the weather, and perhaps the skill of the lookout?

Yes I think it would be a great idea.A little change. And the closer you get the more you can see and ID the ship. What do you think of that?

[Johny Reb]

Yes I think it would be a great idea.A little change. And the closer you get the more you can see and ID the ship. What do you think of that?

I agree as well. Talking about the open world minimap, then line of sight only which should adjust according to mast heights of the ships and the skill of the lookout. How much you see of the ship on the horizon should also be dependent on these things as well.

[Brigand]

I agree as well. Talking about the open world minimap, then line of sight only which should adjust according to mast heights of the ships and the skill of the lookout. How much you see of the ship on the horizon should also be dependent on these things as well.

 

If the game would choose to go this way, it should also take into account if sails are set. At the horizon, seeing a bare pole is a lot harder than spotting a sail. Some privateers used to cruise on their courses so that they would be able to spot other vessels, before those vessels spotted them.

 

~Brigand

[Samuel Adams]

I would like to see them take into account the nation flag at so many yards and sails to ID the ships.

[Thomas Blackwell]

If the game would choose to go this way, it should also take into account if sails are set. At the horizon, seeing a bare pole is a lot harder than spotting a sail. Some privateers used to cruise on their courses so that they would be able to spot other vessels, before those vessels spotted them.

~Brigand

I like this idea. Without the cool downs and passive skills that POTBS has, it is important for Naval Action to employ more realistic ways to achieve the same sorts of effects. Stealth at sea could come from how you set your sails, rather than a passive skill or a mod for your ship.

[Marion van Ghent]

I would like to see them take into account the nation flag at so many yards and sails to ID the ships.

 

Historically flags would not have been a reliable indicator of a ship's affiliation, as -- unless ships were sailing in convoy or a squadron -- they often would either not have national ensigns flying or fly that of another nation to confuse potentially hostile ships.

 

Skilled or experienced seamen would be able to identify the make and type of a ship at a fair distance (a few nautical miles) based on hull design/shape, mast and spar proportions, and decorative features. But these factors don't necessarily identify who is sailing the vessel or to what purpose. Some ships were harder to ID than others of course; in particular, large East Indiamen were known to masquerade as 4th-rate SoLs (sometimes by virtue of painting false gunports on their sides) to make themselves seem like even more formidable prey than they were.

 

To an extent, even the handling of a ship could give clues as to a ship's actual purpose. E.g. an Indiaman would be more successful at her masquerade were she handled by a sharp crew able to perform manoeuvres smartly, but one under- or poorly-manned might give away the ruse by sailing poorly. Conversely small SoLs could deliberately appear less than seamanlike to lure an enemy into thinking they were Indiamen.

 

Admittedly the above has more to do with fog of war (FOW) than direct sighting on a mini-map or open sea view, but the two are to an extent related.

 

I'm not entirely sure how this could be used in-game, though. E.g. if one sees miniaturised ship models on the open sea in the manner of PotBS, it would be hard to achieve such ruses de guerre. But if all one gets is a map and a "spyglass view" it might be easier to implement, e.g. by using a crew skill that limits your ship's speed and manoeuverability on the open sea and "fogs up" other ships' spyglass image to an extent, making you harder to ID from a distance.

[Samuel Adams]

Well the longer you are in the game the more exp. you are at telling what flags.

[Johny Reb]

Well I think it wasn't entirely uncommon to raise the flag when in sight of another ship to identify yourself. Yes, there could be a ruse by one of the ships but they had the cannon signals to verify.

 

I wonder if the open world can be designed with a realistic curvature of the earth. Then all the ideas of FOW, how much of another ship can be seen and so forth, will be in game in a realistic way.