NPCs: Every ship has a purpose

[Fuzzyhead12]

Every ship has a Purpose

 

NPCs are currently a punchingbag for everone, their only purpose is being an EXP pinjata they dont have any task no real value in the game.

That should change.

 

For my suggestion ill  refer to the X-series, a very advantage space simulater game that was about, trade, build,think and fight, that game was made for single player and has simileries to current navel action, gameplaywise since naval action is also a trade build think and fight title.

 

How does that have anything todo with NPCs?

 

Well in the X series, atleast since X3 every ship in the universe had a purpose, a cargohold and value of its own. the NPCs were tracked through the whole X universe they were trading and fighting through the universe and the results , then affected player and factions alike, especialy the Trading was always affect by all the NPC traders, they tried to buy at best price and sell at best price to the certain station that needed that resource to produce a certain weapon or byproduct, after they sold their cargohold they searched for a new opertunity. And if they got shot into debris then they fell out of the roaster and that cargohold changed the owner or got lost.

 

However there was a problem in that systeme for the PC of the player, there was no hardcap for the amount of ships, means the factions were still dishing out ship after ship, that then again got tracked, ending in extreme framedrops at longer playtimes. 

 

the starting amount of ships was about 10k NPC ships, while after severel weeks you might ended up with 40k ships.

 

 

it would be nice if the Devs would be able to add a certain mechanic for NA but first some things might change.

-Nation hubs can substain themself, this must go, the systeme would have no place if you can buy and sell on the same island

-a change of how NPCs will be generate is required, to not end into an otherwhelming number of ships, give it a sever wide hardcap, let NPC ships being produced by Regional and National capitals

-Change on how ships get rendered in OW is required, atm i have the feeling that Ships randomly get "spawned" around the player then sail to a certain port and then disapear again

-Compensation for lower playerbased Nations is required, i think give these nations more NPC ships then the others should be a good solution of corse not a perfect one.

-refilling ships after certain time, since i aim for a hardcap there must be a mechanic that refills the shiplist if it gets depleated due raiding

-player owned trading fleets, these fleets should have a seperated Crewpool that can be only hired via port, maybe add a perk that traders can create a certain amount of tradefleets these can be equipped like normal fleets with a crewcap equal to the playersrank. Something along 1 le gross ventre + 2 ceberus as escort

-player generated missions, Escort/patrol Trading route, Intercept/sabotage these route, Buy and Sell orders

-OW AI behavior need a change, ships might need to try to escape or evade attacking ships.While Task forces might be aggresive towards players and other Taskforces

 

How does that change the gameplay?

 

changes like these would give the idea of national Conquest a higher value, it courage PVE and PVP at the same level, to hurt the oposing faction via intercepting Traderoutes, or Protect these routes.

It also forces players out of their nation hubs into bit more dangerous waters, i see alot of people just missionfarming around their nationhub, with that time they could actually do something meaningful, adding their time to the war effort.

It also changes the importance of the popolation of the Reginal playerbase since a weak Faction gets buffed with aditional NPC ships. 

It also simply add more life and imersion to the game itself.

 

Additonel:

We could add treasure fleets that brining money from one town to the other to reduce or ad to the money inflation of a town 

 

 

i hope i got all my ideas covered. Keep you manners and discuss like Gents with monocles and tophat

Edited September 5, 2016 by Fuzzyhead12

[Fuzzyhead12]

added a poll to see what other people think about it

[PL_Harpoon]

TBH, currently there is no AI on the open world. It's just simple pathfinding

 

I think that even the simplest AI would greatly enhance the liveliness of the game's world.

And by simplest AI I mean behaviour like running away from enemy ships if they have superior force or actually attacking other ships/fleets (bots or players).

 

Then later this can even be applied to missions where instead of sailing toward sword symbols you'd be tasked to hunt down an AI ship that, for example is itself hunting for AI traders in a certain area or to protect an AI convoy from beign attacked by AI pirates etc.

[Sea Archer]

I like the idea. In Side Meyers Pirates it is similar. Sink the troop transports and the garrison of the receiving town will decrease, escorts the Gouverneur and the town will prosper( increase production), escorts immigrants and the port will grow (increase production and demand), and so on...

That's how it should work.

[Fuzzyhead12]

iam suprised that there is no additional finetuning from players in this discussion, were are the nay and yay sayer?

[Lurken]

TBH, currently there is no AI on the open world. It's just simple pathfinding

 

I think that even the simplest AI would greatly enhance the liveliness of the game's world.

And by simplest AI I mean behaviour like running away from enemy ships if they have superior force or actually attacking other ships/fleets (bots or players).

 

Then later this can even be applied to missions where instead of sailing toward sword symbols you'd be tasked to hunt down an AI ship that, for example is itself hunting for AI traders in a certain area or to protect an AI convoy from beign attacked by AI pirates etc.

what? like its not painful enough to get to the crossed swords, now the damn mission will run away from you?

 

haha nah im just kiddin, i like the idea, then we whould be forced to use different ships for different missions. now its just a "go with whatever has the most guns" means you go in your santissima vs class 7 ships simply cuz its faster that way, when you can take out 3 ships with 1 broadside ;-)

 

having some running AI making the NPC flee within the battle aswell forcing you to use a frigate or something to be able to catch up, it could be a good privateering mission.

[Angus McGregor]

I like the general direction this suggestion is going.

 

Especially NPC OW AI. It's just wrong that you are in NO danger from the NPC warships of the nations you are currently at war with and their traders have absolutely no fear of you.

 

The whole question of the purpose of NPC traders seems to on point too. I've been told in another thread that they are just eye candy and don't really do anything. Seems pinata is a good description of them.

 

I've already made my thoughts known on port economies, yes - development within, deliveries to a port should expand its market activity.

[Sea Archer]

The idea would bring economic warfare in the game, much more than chasing players with nice prizes.

 

If you had to protect AI traders to improve the economy of your homeport, the game would get a totally different dynamic.

 

I hope the devs will implement it.

[DeRuyter]

TBH, currently there is no AI on the open world. It's just simple pathfinding

 

I think that even the simplest AI would greatly enhance the liveliness of the game's world.

And by simplest AI I mean behaviour like running away from enemy ships if they have superior force or actually attacking other ships/fleets (bots or players).

 

Then later this can even be applied to missions where instead of sailing toward sword symbols you'd be tasked to hunt down an AI ship that, for example is itself hunting for AI traders in a certain area or to protect an AI convoy from beign attacked by AI pirates etc.

 

Once upon a time a few patches ago the AI warships were aggressive and did attack players on the OW. It interfered with port battles too much and AI attacks were removed.  AI traders used to have one behavior - just sail mindlessly along. Now they will at least attempt to run at their best point of sail.

 

I would like to think that the AI/NPC traders had an effect on port resources and that the trader holds had goods in relation to what ports produce along their trade route. Not sure if this is in game now but it should be.

[Fuzzyhead12]

Once upon a time a few patches ago the AI warships were aggressive and did attack players on the OW. It interfered with port battles too much and AI attacks were removed.  AI traders used to have one behavior - just sail mindlessly along. Now they will at least attempt to run at their best point of sail.

 

I would like to think that the AI/NPC traders had an effect on port resources and that the trader holds had goods in relation to what ports produce along their trade route. Not sure if this is in game now but it should be.

at that time oyu got swarms of enemy ships around your habours, but in the moment ships spawn from your nation or friendly nation around your port.

To the trader, they have an inpact on the market, but a negative one, they always hold goods in their belle, mostimes primary resources, so every nation can just hunt traders down and have endlessly resources.

 

A more dynamic economy and a way to have your resources been bought and sold by AI traders was in my mind, so then tradehubs like the KPR triangle will eventually bleedout on resources, since the ai would buy them at best price and bring them to another friendly port, it gives also nation and non nation players morce chances to hurt an oposing faction, and would result in players to defend known traderoutes to or from the hub, resulting in more PVP.

It also results in a higher moneysink, Economical warfare is one of the oldest strategie, destroy their wheat and your enemy will strave to death.

And it would give the game a way to surive with its low playerbase, maybe even encourage PVE players to get to PVP severs, or invites new players.

 

and in the end you only have a certain amount of tradeships, means if they are gone you might end up that your ports are running dry on certain resources, of corse that limit of traders would need to be adjusted, and replentished at some point, but thats why we are in a alpha, i suggest 500 traders of diffrent size from the tradersbrigg to the indiaman per nation and per week for the current popolation. and something around 150 warships of diffrent size for privateerring in enemy waters.

 

Content is not only about new shiney ships Devs, while i dont mind them

Stop the powercreep, start working on more Flavor for the game, National reputation systeme would be also a nice addition and would work perfectly hand in hand with my idea, reward a player and punish another for being to lazy to protect the traderoutes, or trade by themself. Of corse balancing must be done ingame.

[HardyKnox]

iam suprised that there is no additional finetuning from players in this discussion, were are the nay and yay sayer?

 

Fuzzy, the Devs have been working for months on the changes in many things that will be implemented sometime in the next couple weeks.  Those include changes that would or could change the premise of your post.  

 

A lot of Players are concentrating now less on tossing in or voting on "New Ideas" until they see the effects of the soon-to-be-released Patch.  That Patch is based on ideas proposed months ago which the Devs weighed, tested and are now about to release.  They are unlikely to focus on New Ideas just as they are about to implement the prior New Ideas.

 

Also, after months of reading these forums, I've learned that only a minority of players seem to attend to posts other than those from the Devs and threads they have already clicked to "follow".  They are busy either playing this fascinating and immersive game or doing something else until the Patch is released in the next couple weeks.  So, don't be disheartened.

 

Just my opinion.

 

~ HK ~

Yankee Trader

PvP One EU