AngryPanCake

If players can attack players in the PvE zone, then it defeats the purpose of making it a PvE or safe zone, with or without the smuggler flag. That's the problem! So in your opinion we should just do away with that group. I am trying to to bring the 2 groups together by trying to make it appealing to all, but it clearly seems like unless the hunt season is open without restriction and everyone is fair game it is not going to work. Again, would it take so much away if you can't go after a small number of players (that were not there in the first place)? I say, keep the PvE zone PvP free (I don't mean keep out the PvP players, just no PvP combat), with or without the smuggler flag. Of that small number of players that elect to start in that zone and do most of their sailing there, a portion of them will certainly sail out of that zone and will add some easy preys to whoever is on the lookout.

I see, then my next question is: what's the purpose of having a PvE zone or "safe" zone for PvE if anyone can attack you? I understand the PvE community is small and according to hardcore PvP players, it shouldn't even exist, it's a money sink and should not make demand or make decisions for the rest of the gaming community, the PvE server was not supposed to exist until the final release. But it did exist, it did attract a certain type of player and it will continue to attract players, though not in similar numbers compared to the PvP community. That is still 18% of the gaming community (37 out of a total of 201 players). Would it be too much asking to keep those safe zones, actually safe? would the PvP community lose so much in not having the ability to attack PvE players in those safe zones? Many PvE'ers were upset because the GoM is "empty" (I haven't been here long enough to know what it means), isn't it enough to relegate the 37 players to that empty space and on top of that make them easy preys? In my previous post, I was looking at the bright side of the servers merger. Such as the interconnected trade. The interaction with more players. The ability for new players to start in an area where they can learn and grow before they venture into the more competitive rest of the OW (despite the limitation of only 3 nations). The ability for the 18% to play a more casual and less competitive style. So, let us keep the PvE zone a true PvE one and if any PvE'er ventures out of it, then he/she is fair game. I mean seriously, let's not make it a battle of will, or why this group is demanding what. Can't we share a server and be able to play the way we want? A newbie's 2 cents, APC.

I was wondering what would be the benefit of implementing the Smuggler Flag in the PvE zone within the PvP server?

Hello everyone, Being new to the game, I have never experienced a wipe before. I was hoping for some guidance as to what needs to be done in order to possibly retain what can be preserved. I admit I have not read every post in this thread after reading all of them in the PvE/PvP merger thread. So if you could provide some tips that can be then compounded in a separate post for easy access so people can refer to. The above statements seem to be clear enough, but still some questions arise: 1- Will we keep non crafted/non captured ships, I mean purchased ships that are not player built? 2- Will we keep XP (and thus rank) and Gold? 3- Since servers are being merged as well, will we keep our character? 4- It sounds very unlikely that we will also keep our outposts due to #3, is that correct? 5- Should we break up all our ships for materials and would these materials be transferred to the merged server along with any goods in warehouses? Or is it a complete wipe and there is really no point in debating/worrying about anything, it's just gonna be a fresh start for everyone? Thanks for any advice, APC.

Hello everyone, At first glance, I am quite disappointed with the idea of removing the PvE server, especially since I purchased this game for its separate PvE mode. I am still hoping it will be re-introduced once the final testing of the economy, battle mechanics, ship models...etc is satisfactory. I'm keeping my hopes high because of this: Reading through this topic, it appears there are mainly 3 major groups of players: PvP'ers, PvE'ers and "hybrids", who play both modes. It is clear to me that the PvP group is larger than the rest, though still small compared to other MMO's (for reasons I have touched upon in previous posts). It also appears that no matter what the PvE group says, the decision was made and is quite final, especially if it is related to cost-effectiveness. However, I would hope that the developers of this amazing game will keep us, PvE'ers, in mind and give us something to keep us from feeling like "unwanted children" (even though the majority of the players are over 40, according to a recent interview with a French speaking online resource). I will not go into diatribes about telling developers and/or admins that they are making a mistake or they don't know what they are doing and so forth. We bought this game knowing it was not the final product at quite a steep price (in my opinion). We did so because we all have something in common: a particular interest in the age of sail. In my 3-4 weeks of playing it (PvE only), I grew even more fond of it. The graphics are amazing, the battle mechanics are quite balanced (I have no complaints whatsoever, this is maybe due to not knowing how they were prior to the most recent version of the game). The AI is not as dumb as in other stand alone/single player games. It's definitely not a push over. The open world is breathtaking, even if some crossings may take over an hour. I started in the rookie area and barely just scratched the surface. According to the above quote, this sounds like a symbiotic relationship. The challenge is to design it to make it so. It will all depend on how the separation between PvP and PvE is set. I do not mind staying in a "protected" area, focusing on building wealth and crafting skills and provide the "backbone of the economy". I am hoping I will not miss much if I elect to remain a PvE only player in a shared OW. However, limiting the PvE area to only 3 nations is, how to put it...quite "limiting". I understand there will still be AI traders/warships for PvE'ers to attack, unlike what is stated above (please correct me if I'm wrong). FFA, not sure what that is. However, having the ability to attack PvE players just because they are smugglers within the PvE zone, defeats the purpose of having a "protected" PvE zone. Not having this option will in no way take anything away from the hardcore PvP'ers who will continue to prey on the transiting traders bringing the goods from the PvE to the PvP zones. In my opinion, if the relationship is truly symbiotic, PvP players will need that transit of goods/crafted ships from the Economy based PvE area to the battle zone to have an edge over their opponents, which in turn gives them an incentive to go hunting at the margins. For the hybrid players, this will satisfy their thirst for PvP action by moving goods/ships themselves. I also understand the concerns of many players that feel there is room for "abuse", but the best way to keep that out of the game is by thinking of different possibilities and come up with the right balance. And this was my final word and sorry for the wall of text. APC,

thanks mate.

I was sailing in the OW in PvE recently and saw a Mission/Battle sign (the crossing swords) when I got close enough and clicked on it, it offered me to join a battle between a Pirate and a British ship. There were 2 circles and asked me to get in one of them. I assumed it was a battle between a player and an AI ship. I also understand players can not attack other players. I don't think it clearly indicated who was fighting who as far as who was the player and who was the AI. So my question is, let's say the Pirate was the AI, would have I been able to join that Pirate against the player? My second question is, as far as etiquette in PvE is concerned, is it frowned upon to join such battles? I actually decided to play PvE because I thought other players would not interfere with one's battle if uninvited. Thank you, APC

that was pretty good! anyway, I like the idea too, and if the ship is intercepted while you were eating ice cream in the shower, then it's a risk to take. Jokes aside, I think it would be a good addition to PvE and again, this should be used at your own risk. As I understand, AI will be attacking players in the future. So if you're not there to keep watch while you are sailing your ship in this sailing game, then you lose your pants!

Or shipwrecks... I used to play Port Royal games before MMO's was all the rage. They had some good content to keep you curious and busy. You would meet with shady characters in ports, for a sum of money you'd buy pieces of a treasure map, info about AI convoy location (Spanish treasure fleet)...ect. The info was not pinpoint, but indicates a general area so you sail and look around. The OW is so amazing (to me, graphics, wind, weather...), but the crossings can be somewhat long and at times tedious. For now and since I'm new (2 weeks playing), the whole whole experience of just sailing around the islands (my starting port is Turtle Cay) has been very enjoyable, the islands, beaches, seeing other sails in the horizon and so forth. But finding stuff along the way would encourage players to sail farther. If you have info that something interesting can be found near some area you have never visited before because of the hour or hour and a half in real life time it takes to go there, then may be I would sail all the way there. Great suggestions Strake.

So, is the issue fighting other players that bring in squadrons of their own, fighting AI squadrons or both? So far in PvE, I've been attacking lone traders with my initial basic Cutter and now with a recently purchased Privateer. I believe I'm a Junior Lieutenant right now and did not notice any change in enemy AI traders according to my increasing experience. I mean the lonely traders I'm attacking are not getting any smarter/more powerful than the first ones I came across early in my game career. Obviously once I get bored with one on one battles, I will start looking for something more challenging and go after small squadrons at first, then bigger ones according to my improving fighting skills and probably bring a squadron myself and have multi-ship battles and form lines of battle just like in Nelson's age. One thing I understand is that convoys are limited in trade goods, only one ship carries the good, the rest is escort. It may be fun at first attacking such convoys, but then if the reward in loot is not any better than attacking single traders, then the incentive (beside the challenge itself) is quite limited! Was there talk about expanding goods transportation to all the ships in the convoy? That may be a good incentive to go after them. If I understand you Snoopy, there is a lack of ship to ship duels in PvP. I guess for the people who purchased this game and are naval history enthusiasts that's a serious let down, since the majority of fighting at that age was single ship action. I see... Was there a poll that asked players in this forum if they preferred fleet or only single actions? I thought someone mentioned a lobby system to allow people to go into battle one on one or even 2 vs 2 as an add on to the open world. Those interested in that type of gameplay can go to the lobby and see who's there and join at their leisure. But if the majority of the people just despise the player's AI fleets, then it is only common sense to get rid of this system.

Sorry for the double post, but I wanted to ask a separate question. It feels like this is a hot topic and people seem to be passionate about it and since my experience is limited in time (1-2 weeks playing) and in scope (only playing PvE), I was wondering what the problem was with "AI Fleets"? If you guys could also define what an AI fleet is, that would be great too. Thank you, APC

I guess you are right, 1-2000 people sailing around the OW would make it quite busy. I'm just hoping there will be more content to keep the current players interested and attract many more once the finished product is on the market. Happy sailing to everyone. APC

Exactly!

Thank you for your responses, I did not think about the weird/offensive names players would come up with. If this is the main issue, then being able to name ships without the names appearing in OW or during battles, then make them only appear in the port UI especially under the Home tab, where all the ships are listed. Like I mentioned above, instead of having to hover/click on every ship to find the one we are looking for the names will help us sort them out fairly efficiently. Anyway, I guess this is a trifle compared to working on more content and fixing whatever other players have been reporting and testing over the past several months. APC

New to the game and new to the boards...just wanted a clarification: when you say "noob" do you mean people like me that are new to the game and don't know much about it like "newb", or do you use "noob" as a derogatory name to call everyone else that does not play to your liking? If it's the latter, then that's probably the reason people are not interested in the PvP! Anyway, I can not speak for the PvP as I have just started playing this game and I have only been on PvE. I also don't have any knowledge of how the game was 3,6 or 12 months ago prior to the most recent patch I'm currently playing. As far as I am concerned, I am enjoying the PvE a great deal. Graphics are amazing. Ship models are beautiful. Enemy AI is not a push over. I am looking forward to earning more gold and gaining more XP in order to purchase and try new ships. My first post on this forum was to ask about the PvE, whether it was worth spending $40 on an MMO with optional PvE. Many responded and encouraged me to play. I thank them very much, they were right, this game is great! I was not interested in PvP from the get go, so I may not be very helpful in participating in this discussion since I do not count as a PvP player that gave up the game. There are many reasons I was not interested in PvP. The main one was that I do not care for player to player drama that's common in all MMO's. However, I have to say that the people that I have come across online so far (in PvE) have been extremely helpful and kind. The other reason is, though this is described as an MMO I felt it was more like an MO game, without the Massive in it. I had read that the online population was low and compared to some other MMO's I've played, the PvP count is puny! I'm still playing War Thunder off/on and it averages 27K-30K players online. When I was playing World of Tanks, it was 60-100K online. That's MMO. This game is a great "historical" game, based on a romantic age of sail era. It is not an arcade-like game such as WoT, it is not fast paced with instant gratification. Granted the open world needs more content, otherwise you would sail for hours without seeing a sail in the horizon. Which was pretty accurate at that historical age, but would make the game too boring. A balance needs to be struck, so this does not turn into an arcade shoot'em up game, while keeping players willing to sail across the open water for 15-20 min without seeing anything, but then be rewarded with something worthy of their patience. I do not want to sound negative, but I personally do not believe this game is going to be an MMO. It's too much of a niche game that attracts a certain type of players (history buffs, certain hobbyists, age of sail enthusiasts, sailboat owners...etc), this is not for the player who is looking for the intense fast paced shooter. But, if I'm wrong, then this is going to be a fantastic MMO game. My two cents. APC

Hello everyone, I'm relatively new to the game and not sure it this has already been suggested/discussed. I was wondering if anyone has ever suggested to get the ability to name one's own ships. In the Home tab it shows the ships you have where you are and the others at your outposts (greyed out): Traders Snow-Traders Snow-Basic cutter-Basic cutter-Traders Cutter-Traders cutter...etc. The hovering tools will provide info about each ship, but I believe it would be more efficient to either rename or just add a name to your ships. It could be Basic Cutter in large print just like it is now with a personalized name right under it or the name of your choice in big font and the type of ship under it or whichever is easier to code. So when you are in port, looking at your ships it's easier to sort out and choose which one you want to sail. Thank you for allowing us to provide suggestions. APC.

Hello foremasts hands, I read in one of the threads that people interested in trade should hire AI cutters, possibly to lure away attackers from the trading ship in order to run away. 1- How do you hire them cutters and how do you create a convoy? 2- Can you create trading convoys with more than just one trading ship? Thank you and show a leg, look alive... Edit: By the way, is the only way to trade using trade ships or can one start with the cutter?

I was wondering what the purpose was of hiring an officer? Do you need one at the beginning, in your cutter? Thanks.

looks like a legitimate question I had myself...so bump.

Thank you guys for the explanations. Another question: I was looking at youtube tutorials, in particular the one from Jaheil about basic gunnery. However, I still did not understand the role of the little red horizontal bar (crosshair?). Does it only affect gun elevation? Do the balls go wherever the white demarcating area is, regardless of the crosshair position or does it actually work like an actual crosshair? Edit: One more thing, as far as the English language is concerned, on land a canon is called canon. The same canon mounted on a ship is called a gun...Just me being OCD!

Hello salty dogs, I just got into my first battle against an AI opponent, we both sailed cutters. At the end of the fight, I ended up with a bunch of questions in my head: 1- How much damage to the sails before we see a significant decrease in speed/maneuverability? I reduced the opponent's sails to 51% and he was still neck and neck with me as far as speed and was still turning on a dime! 2- The health bars (port and starboard, bow and stern), when the side one was depleted I started having a leak. Do the bow/stern ones also give you a leak if depleted? 3- AI accuracy is quite...hmmm...accurate! does it get more accurate the higher up we go? 4- As far as ammo is concerned, do you guys usually switch back and forth between chain and round shot? or do you just stick to round shots until you are ready to board and then use grape/canister?