William the Drake

Privateers and privateering should be more than just a career choice, and Naval Action offers up a perfect opportunity to flesh out what has otherwise been a rather simple mechanic in other games (PotBS) Privateer ventures were more than just going out and hunting anything around you, there were rules and regulations, and if you broke these rules, you were deemed a pirate (whether it was your fault or not, a la William Kidd) Privateers were also major investments, often times being funded by members of the monarchy or powerful magistrates. In short they were major gambles: Anyone who sponsored a Privateer expedition would receive a cut of the spoils. If the privateer was unsuccessful, then the investors lost money. So I suggest that a Letter of Marque System be implemented, allowing any independently operating captain (basically anyone not serving in a Navy) to become a privateer. Here, I will be describing the two methods of being considered for privateering, as well as the process of getting an LoM Privateer: Individual vs. Expedition First you have to decide if you will pour your own resources (and gold) into becoming a privateer, or will you seek out sponsors for an expedition? Individual LoMs are easier to come by, are somewhat expensive, and are the most risky concerning the player: the player provides their own ship, crew, and repairs, but all commissions are split between only the Crown and himself at the end of the contract. Expeditions are a bit loftier: the player is provided a ship and crew for the duration of the contract, but they will split all earnings between themselves, the crown AND all investors at the conclusion of the contract. These contracts are usually longer, and the ship tends to be larger than a normal, individual privateer, and an expedition will have a larger operating area. Lastly, any investors can either be default NPC investors (available 24/7) or players looking to invest in expeditions, ideally at a lower commission price than the NPCs (and you thought speculating on markets was nerve-racking) Obtaining a Letter of Marque Getting one's hands on a Letter of Marque should be a rather simple endeavor; a player will simply need to speak with a local magistrate about a LoM, and will recieve one if available: Availability of LoMs will be based on Quota for overall active LoMs in a Nation Status of war Individual player's level/rank/notoriety Enemy activity in area where LoM is being issued Now, LoMs are not free; an initial buy-in will be required first, and then you will only receive a percentage of pay from your spoils. (individual LoMs are cheaper than Expeditions, and expeditions rely on sponsors to purchase) EDIT: Free LoMs may be offered by belligerent Governments immediately following an outbreak of war. these will be limited however, and it will be first-come-first-serve. Once you get an LoM, you are ready to sail and make your [legitimate] fortune... But there's some limitations: "There are a few provisos, a couple of quid pro quos" -Genie Regulations of an LoM Each LoM is somewhat unique as to what it does and does not allow: Historically, an LoM was valid only for attacking explicitly stated Factions. For example, if England was at war with both France and Spain, but a LoM only stated the attacking of French ships, then attacking a Spanish ship would be considered out of the bindings of the LoM (and could even be construed as Piracy). So LoMs will only allow the attacking of specific factions, and there are limitations on who can be included on an LoM: A nation must be at war with the host nation to be eligible as a target. if peace is declared between the two nations on the LoM, the LoM is declared null and void. Multiple nations can be listed on an LoM The more possible target nations are listed on the LoM, the more expensive it become (so a LoM listing only french targets is cheaper than an LoM listing both French and Pirate targets) Yes, pirates must be listed on an LoM if they are to be legitimately targeted and counted for commissions. If you attack a pirate without listing them on the LoM, you will not be penalized, but you will not receive a commission for defeating them. In the event that war is declared, a new LoM or updated LoM is needed Example:English LoM lists French targets. Spain now at war with England. Player must add Spanish targets to LoM, otherwise they will be penalized for attacking Spanish targets. Privateering Time to go out and seize prizes. As a Privateer, you want the cargo and ships of the enemy. Sinking ships will get you a fraction of the commission, while capturing a ship will give you the full commission + commission of any cargo seized. All prizes and cargo will be sent to the Prize court where, upon completion of a contract, the court will divvy up the spoils based on the LoM and Sponsors. The more plunder, the more the privateer (and everyone else) gets at the end.

Can't believe I missed this topic, better late than never I guess. Anywho, to start I will argue that the Naval Officer get a bit more freedom than admin has suggested Does not pick ships - ships are assigned by the Admiralty randomly according to rank and achievements. -> NOs can purchase their own ships, but also have access to stronger Naval Variants/refits (i.e. Navy Brig) Does not hire crew - crews are supplied by the Admiralty with ships ​-> Can hire custom crew for a higher price, otherwise Admiralty will provide a low-skilled press-gang crew at no charge Repairs are provided by Admiralty -> (Are we talking about kits or in-port repairs? In-port repairs yes, a certain # of kits can be bought at a Naval discount) Has to fulfill duties - must fight, must accept battles ​-> Missions will be given. Some can be ignored, others cannot. Top rated ships are assigned based on leaderboards - Rates are assigned on activity and Mission Completion/success. Basically the most active and willing to accept mission from the Admiralty. I suggested my own system for classes and skills a while back. I think the more specialization we can offer, the more dynamic the game can be. : Skills, Specialization, and How the Player Plays. As far as the Privateer/Pirate role, I think Privateering should be a more unique and fleshed out system than the one it was in PotBS. Concerning what is presented here,: Works for himself buying a patent. -> Only Priv must buy his patent Patent costs money per month -> Priv only Can capture ships for himself -> Pirate Only. Privs must list their captures in a prize court and will get a % commission from it, along with all cargo captured. I think a unique Letter of Marque system could do a lot better than a simple Privateer class in this case. It could provide a clearer role for Privateers.

The middle is clearest. Although, would switching "in" with "as" help any? "0/5 ships sunk [sailing] as Lynx" Similarly, a "list" syetem Ships sunk/to sink while commanding/sailing [ship name] 0/5 Lynx 2/5 Cutter 1/2 Brig Or Ships sunk/to sink while commanding/sailing [ship name] 2/10 Ships

While we are on the subject, what exactly are the warning points and what do they do? Just a bit curious.

Today in 1797, the USS Constitution launched!

Privateers, privateering, and Letters of Marque (LoMs especially) need to be an integral and unique part of the game, NA has the capability to make this mechanic far more dynamic that PotBS, and I hope they do. I like the idea of giving out LoMs (and possibly pardons) for the sake of PBs, but why not outside that. In fact, Pardons and LoMs should be available all the time, but become easier to acquire preceding a PB. Aye, this be true, but pirates also don't much like the idea o' facin' a fleet of lineships in our wee little sloops and snows. I suggest ye take a gander at me posts regardin' this issue, and how Pirates should be the most unique faction in the game: An Approach to Piracy The Case Against a Pirate "Nation" Pirate Havens, Port Security, and Trade Regulations

Arr! The more Pirate guilds/clans the better! Fair winds and following seas to ye lot!

Welcome aboard matey! Hope ye can start working on your sea legs real soon! Also, perhaps more appropriate for the tavern?

Perhaps a compromise: a "sticky keys" situation, where if you exceed ringing the bell in a short amount of time (such as smashing the H button), then it will shut off for a bit. Otherwise, just a few hurried clicks will not trip this system. Just a thought.

I've gone and modified a few details that have changed due to recent patches, mainly the replacement of the Lynx w/ the yacht and the ownership of the port of Pasaje

Neutral: Easy/moderate Nationals: medium Pirate: hARRRRd Also, take the time to check out some of the player guides; there's one for the English and Pirate, as well as general tutorial guides.

Someone mentioned L'Hermione a little while ago. I was lucky enough to tour her replica and I must say bring me that ship! Plans and a bit of history of the construction of the replica:

The style of sloops build out of Bermuda: Or the similar Jamaica style sloops.

The question of pirates and large ships has been asked and argued many a time, with the general consensus being that pirates should probably not have the same access to SoLs as Nationals (I have advocated that pirates should be allowed to pilot SoLs, but under such restraints that it only becomes a trophy ship) I suggest looking into some of the older pirate discussions to find some other arguments as well as similar ones presented here: Pirate Tactical Discussion and Pirates... So far my favorite is the idea that SoLs will eventually become unsustainable and neglected under the care of pirates, who would simply not have the resources (or money) to keep them up. Keep them in dock and take them out only for special occasions/bragging purposes: i.e. a trophy ship. Please expound upon this as you are referencing a pirate I have not heard of. Name? Time period? Location? Details man, don't leave us hanging! On this, I must adamantly disagree, at least from a pirate (on PotBS) standpoint, and here is why: The Case Against the Pirate "Nation"

Avast Pete! Ye scurvy dog! I must says that ye be far too humble of yer own work in yer account of the action we found ourselves in! Surely ye must 'ave left out the details so that future prey might mistake ye fer an easy target! It be true, says I! The pirate captain Pagan Pete be the devil himself, the way he went after them to hapless Lynx! T'was only beginin' to lay into the hull o' the first one when Pete here charges in an' takes a Lynx by storm. By thunder, t'was the fastest matter of boardin' I ever saw! An' no sooner did he cut down the crew o' the first Lynx does he set his sights on the next, with the same intentions in mind. An' o' course Pete leaves out the most fantastic part o' this exchange; "sandwiched" says he!? Nay, the sight t'was more like this: Thar I was, desperately attemptin' to grapple the brig, so as to keep 'er from escapin'. She was a fine distance away, so me crew had to keep on grapplin' her. Then I sees a sight I'll not soon forget: here comes the Bruja (That be "Witch" fer all ye lubbers that 'ave not made port in a Spanish city) nearly flyin' across the water! She smashes into the opposite side o' the brig, pushin' her right into the teeth o' me crew! Aye, mark me words, if'n ye see the flag o' Mad Pagan Pete on the horizon, set yer course in the other direction, lest ye be acquainted with Davy Jones in the most spectacular o' manners! -"One-eyed" William Drummond, the Drake

I think there needs to be more than just "rank" for players, especially pirates. There does need to be some sore of system that tracks A: experience and B: Renown. However, the idea of "Fame" (not XP) I think needs to be a separate area. I can rise up in rank by just harassing trade brigs all day (which I did), not exactly the fame inducing line charges of Trafalgar or the heroism of Decatur. I suggested forms of Notoriety, Infamy, and "Heat" a while back that goes along similar lines.

Because the king's pardon offered to the Pirates of Nassau, the Pirates of Madagascar, etc. were all works of Hollywood propagandaAmnesty shouldn't be a timed thing, but be available to local magistrates, and are not available for a long time after used

As I understand it, a small boat (or set of boats) used for any various assortment of reasons. Including but not limited to: Pulling/towing a ship that needs to travel upstream/be docked/travel against the wind/etc. (I believe this is what maturin is referring to) Used as ferries for captains or pretty much anyone to travel between ships (This happened often for any means of official, in-person communication between captains/officers) Lifeboat/dinghy Exploration/landing parties (amphibious operations maturin is referring to)

Why not an Uber-Trafalgar/Battle-Royale? I figure we can just make new characters of pre-determined Nations (France and England? U.S. and Holland?) use the redeemable and fill each other with holes until our merry hearts' content.

From the USS Constitution Facebook page: August 19th "HUZZAH! The 203rd anniversary of USS Constitution's legendary battle and victory against Great Britain's Royal Navy frigate HMS Guerriere in the War of 1812!"

I sail around Vieques every now-and-then. Give a shout for Drummond if you're in the area Koala

I believe being able to return from piracy will be a long term goal as far as development goals: it needs to be made to where it cannot be gamed or abused (continuously switching back and forth) But I do not think that the devs intend for going pirate to be a point of no return. It is only this way at the moment for testing purposes.

From the British Tars Facebook page

Uhm, I'm actually advocating against removing pirates... I play pirate.In fact I have outlined in a number of posts why pirates need to be unique: http://forum.game-labs.net/index.php?/topic/5768-an-approach-to-piracy/ http://forum.game-labs.net/index.php?/topic/5767-the-case-against-a-pirate-nation/ I would like to see myself as one of the bigger pirate advocates, but that's just me. At what point do I say we should remove pirates?

I have an early topic about "heat" and notoriety, this definitely should factor into the ability to sneak into a port. I will add this to the OP and add a link when I get to a computer. Here is the Topic: Notoriety, Infamy, and "Heat" It depends on the player, not the ship, if Raatha is a famous Naval captain he will not be able to enter, regardless of ship. The idea is that Naval Captains and members of a trading company (NOT independent traders) will be explicitly aligned with a faction.