Naval Action - Magic moments

[Sureshot]

One of my most favorite moments on NA was when me and SeaWolf fought the Spanish 2v8 + AI near Key West in our 2nd rates. They chained our sails so much that we had none left. Now that is a good way to be sure of an escape. 

 

[Éric]

Lots of magicz )

 

• One of the first super fleet large scale battles:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RviTteur-nA&t=3s&index=64&list=PLLMXPAq3a7KCYxD-atAf1nu3KTUiLvqOp

 

• The Cutter tourney (when tracking shot was found to be OP):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjUh1My-kBM&index=54&list=PLLMXPAq3a7KCYxD-atAf1nu3KTUiLvqOp

 

• Sea Trials in a light storm:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuZot1zW2cs&index=6&list=PLLMXPAq3a7KAUseicD-Td288-HOLPSAD1

 

• Pop of the OW, planning the third try to reach Old Providence:

 

• Logbook:

 

• The actual travel - never found Old Providence, but eventually reached La Tortue:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4Q97mRTBHw

 

• Pop of the map, Provindence !

 

• Launch of the EA, the first evening with the Frenchies where we talk food and NA for 5 hours )

 

• After cooking some munitions, we launch a campaign against our cheese neighbours, we take Scarborough with 4 flags. Best war ever !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V78LFZti-9k&list=PLLMXPAq3a7KAUseicD-Td288-HOLPSAD1&index=4

 

• The Danish diplomacy at the Black Friday negociations: "not negociable !"

 

• The Conseil Stratégique:

 

• The end of the Tour de France, forcing a blocus of 30 brits at Jagua Bay with a few screeners and a full yellow T Lynx to place the last flag at 15sec.

 

• The mass brawls in shallow PBs that feel like naval pogos, and at the end 3 sinking ships remain and we ask: "was that magic ?"

[Christendom]

jpjchris getting flipped in his super lynx 

 

and Kravin's fireship in one of our Savannah diversion attacks.

 

[Challenge]

So many....

Edited May 17, 2017 by Challenge

[OneEyedSnake]

Any battle outnumbered and should be dead but rose up to kill the gankers, those moments are the best moments. 

[OneEyedSnake]

1 hour ago, Christendom said:

jpjchris getting flipped in his super lynx 

 

and Kravin's fireship in one of our Savannah diversion attacks.

 

hahaha being able to flip ships was the best. i do miss that :/ 

[Bubba Smith]

4 hours ago, Bart Smith said:

Forgot about PIG CLOUD? i think that was my first sight see of it 

                              II

                              v

I never noticed it. So that is it! 

[Éric]

No flip was funny too:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oV1uCRt8LHQ&list=PLLMXPAq3a7KCYxD-atAf1nu3KTUiLvqOp&index=62

Edited May 17, 2017 by Éric

[Sureshot]

Another great and absolutely hilarious moment of mine was near Key West, one of the best spots to look for PvP! Spanish were always a very entertaining bunch to fight. Always providing me with endless entertainment. 

So this one time I was venturing all by myself in my 3rd rate near Key West after capping it from a player, I had switched from my Trincomalee and I'm not sure why because a very short time later I regretted it. Because within minutes of leaving the battle I spotted a Spanish dread fleet of doom on the horizon, 6 yachts and 7 basic cutters. Of course the logical thing to do is run down wind because yachts and cutters aren't very fast downwind but either is a Live Oak Extra Planking 3rd rate. This battle occurred back when 4 pound cannons could demast a 3rd rate because at the time there was no mast thickness, so any cannon could take a mast down if you threw enough cannonballs at them. And well with 6 yachts and 7 basic cutters it didn't take very long. I used my sail repairs after losing all 3 masts and shortly after I lost all my masts again. Then they stern raked me over and over, all 13 of them violating me and then eventually boarding one after the other until I had no crew left. Sadly I had no marines. 

This is just one of the hilarious but epic fights I've had on NA. When the player base goes up again I'm sure many more of these epic battles await. 

Edited May 17, 2017 by Sureshot

[derekticus]

I remember sailing into George Town (Caymans) for the first time:  it is a BEAUTIFUL atoll!!!

And, re-writing my first piece, after playing "Naval Action" for the first time:

"2, January, 1786

 

Naval Gazette:  A Commission!

 

“Port Royal?”  I stammered, stumbling out of The Admiralty’s home office, “Where in the devil is that?!?”

 

I, Sir F Drake, had just been handed my first Admiralty Orders!  As a Midshipman I was to command the mighty, “HMS Wroughtenboughtham,” of His Majesty’s Royal Navy, and was to proceed, “with all due haste,” to some, “Port Royal.”  My head was swimming with delight and I tore off towards what I thought was my appointed post.  But, as luck would have it, Port Royal is NOT the royal docks near Buckingham Palace, as some rather derisive gate-keepers let me know with more than an adequate level of humiliating back-chat; but rather a rather remote Outpost across the Atlantic Ocean in the bloody Caribbean!  And, before I could say, “Bob is your uncle,” I was hastily whisked away on the first available tide in a Royal Navy packet bound for the island of Jamaica…

 

(Narrator:  The author has just purchased the game, “Naval Action,” on Steam and is just beginning to explore its workings.  Firstly, a player chooses a name for their character, then they choose which nationality they will be affiliated with:  Great Britain, France, Spain, Denmark, Sweden, Holland, the USA, the Pirates or to play as a “Neutral.”  Any Player who signs up as a British Captain is given an Outpost with a Warehouse in Kingston/Port Royal, limited storage space within said Warehouse, a dock space for up to six Ships, and a “Basic Cutter” as their only Ship.  This Ship is an 8^th Rate with fore-and-aft rigging which also comes equipped with 10^th Rated Four Pounder Cannons; which are the weakest Cannons in the game.)

 

My name is, Sir F Drake.  Upon hearing my name many assume that I am no other than, Sir FRANCIS Drake, the rather infamous Captain and Privateer in His Majesty’s Royal Navy.  This error on their parts has served me quite well in life so far, and may well have been the key factor in my landing this sweet commission.  However, in actuality I am merely, Sir FREDERICK Drake, a MUCH, MUCH younger brother of the legendary “Francis;” with the “Frederick” shrunk down to an unassuming “F” for the sake of allowing an element of confusion to slip in…

 

Upon my arrival in Port Royal, Jamaica (known as, “Kingston,” by the locals) I inquired as to where I would find the HMS Wroughtenboughtham.  With a few odd smirks and smiles on the side, I was directed to the docks and shown my first command:  A “Basic Cutter”…  The wind came right out of my sails, and the term, “major disappointment,” was not strong enough to truly describe my initial emotions towards her; for my glorious command was an aging, and very heavily weathered, 8^th Rate of a Ship!!

 

Being flat broke, I was advised that the best path forward was to go into the local Office of The Admiralty and request a Mission; so as to both gain experience, Rank and get some lucrative government pay-outs.  When I did so, the Official handed me some orders to:  “Sail ‘round Jamaica to a Port called Saint Ann, and rid the seas there of a troublesome pirate!”

 

(Narrator:  In the game, “Naval Action,” there are MANY, MANY Ports scattered all around the greater Caribbean area; which, for the purposes of this game, extends from southern Carolina, clear down to the northern part of South America, being bordered to the west by Mexico and extending eastward enough to include Bermuda, as well as the Lesser and Greater Antillies.  All of these Ports are in play, though only the owning Nation’s Ships may enter them, save the Free Towns, which are available for all to utilize.  Initially, all seven of the Ports in Jamaica were under British control, so sailing around to Saint Ann was a low-risk undertaking.  The game starts each player in their Nation’s home Port where they can access many different parts of the game: 

·         One may press “M” to view the map, and the map can be zoomed way in or way out depending on one’s specific needs at the time. 

·         There is a Shop in every Port for buying and selling of Materials, Upgrades, Cannons, Consumables and Resources.

·         One may Craft Resources into Materials, Upgrades and/or Ships.

·         There is a Missions tab for selecting various types of missions.

·         Or, one may click on the “Sail” icon and proceed out of Port and into the “Open World:”  a beautifully rendered three-dimensional world consisting of mountains, trees, shores, towns, docks, rocks, water, waves, clouds, stars, sun, and, of course, one’s fantastically modelled Ship. 

 

Currently, movement in the Open World is both simplified and accelerated, such that less time is required to merely sail between Ports.  “Missions,” which YouTubers recommend as the best way for beginners to earn money and advance in experience and Rank, are easy to undertake:   Creating a Mission means choosing a difficulty level, accepting it, and then, using the Map to locate it.  Then, one must sail out into the Open World and find the mission icon, and click on “Enter” to begin the mission.  Entering a Mission places one’s Ship within the “Combat Module,” wherein a pirate or pirates are to be engaged.  This “Combat Module” features much more detailed and robust graphics, and herein the options are to sink the enemy, be sunk by the enemy, or, disengage if one both needs to AND is able to do so.)

 

Sailing from Port Royal to Saint Ann was a straight forward affair, and once there locating the pirate was rather easy, as she had become VERY bold and made no attempt to run from us.  But upon engaging her, our troubles began in earnest…  The weather turned ugly in a hurry, as it is prone to do in this region, and our battle commenced with wind and wave seemingly joining in league with the bloody pirate!  My first action was to gain the weather-gauge, and then I commenced firing, catching her smartly on her hull with our initial broadside!!  Huzzah!!! 

But, from there on out, the encounter turned against us:  Numerous times my gun crews were both unresponsive to commands to “fire,” and my “able” rated sailors proved themselves to be quite otherwise; being rather “unable” to get us out of Irons, what with the horrendous wind and waves.  In addition, this pirate was no Ensign, and knew his way around a quarterdeck.

At the end of the encounter, it was the pirate holding the weather-gauge, switching tacks expertly, and raking us repeatedly with both of her broadsides; one after the other.  The HMS Wroughtenboughtham was sunk, both literally and figuratively.  It was both horrific and embarrassing, I thoroughly expect to be “flogged around the fleet” for this wretched performance!

 

(Narrator:  The game, “Naval Action,” initially would not function on the author’s PC; this due to the weak specifications of the computer’s factory-installed graphics card - read:  no graphic card present!  So, a new graphics card was quickly ordered, and the author borrowed his son's PC in order to give the game a try.  Firstly, the game’s graphics are AMAZING, from the Ship models, the blues of the water, to the beaches, the sand and rocks in the shallows - at times you can even see belts of sea-weed and kelp!  Unfortunately, the borrowed PC is only attached to the inter-web via a less-than-stellar wifi connection, and the game demands much more for anywhere near optimal performance; or at least there lies a convenient excuse for the author’s sub-par initial foray into the game’s “Combat Module.”  It turns out the game ain’t as easy as all the YouTubers make it out to be!)

 

The Admiralty had ordered me to sail around Jamaica in my 8th Rate, HMS Wroughtenboughtham w/ 10th Rate Cannons to deal w/ an experienced pirate, promising 5,000 “coin of the realm” if I successfully dealt with her.  My failure to sink the pirate negated the promised pay-out, though I did receive a minor compensation in both coin of the realm and experience for putting a few holes in her hull.  Unfortunately, I now found myself without a Ship and shamefully re-assigned to the back-water Port of Saint Ann's ...

Sign Me:  Embarrassed and Ashamed, But Still Commissioned As Of Now, Midshipman; Sir F Drake."

 

[Rychu Karas]

For me the most exciting moment into the game is a spotting enemy ship at OS, it instantly breaks boring when i roam or lurk enemy waters. The very initial moment is the most important, the boost of adrenaline for best use of the chance. Yes, it's the best part of the game. Catch and fight itself is very nice too, but the very beginning of the prospect catch is the most exciting for me. 

[The Spud]

These massive PB attack fleets in the early days, when we sailed out and all you could see were friendly sails. Intercepting other massive screening fleets. Those were the 1000+ player server days. I miss that.

The battles you fight outnumbered and outgunned, but you manage to pull a win anyway. Doing that perfect stern rake where you watch the crewkill's go up realy fast, I love that.

The many KPR Party's, the small battles, ...

So many Magic Moments!

[Duncan McFail]

My most memorable moment has got to be our 1st time taking Somerset. No cool screenies or videos unfortunately. This was sometime in May or June 2016 I believe. It was a bit before they patched it so you could enter a port battle after your 30 second timer instead of 2 minutes. We had a group of around 10 ships plus myself. I was buying the flag and taking it over in a speed rigged rattlesnake. Even left the cannons out for a bit extra speed. My clanmates left Kidd's about 30 minutes before me. I buy flag and head out. About 15 minutes off arriving and my clanmates have 1 enemy in a Niagara named Jagd Seelen trying to head out and tag me. They keep him locked up in battle about 4 times over. I plant flag on southside of Somerset and my clanmates get into pb. My job is pretty much done. Seelen comes out of battle screen and rushes over to tag me. I run away a bit since I have no cannons, but was thinking I have nothing else to do anyways. We start rather close to each other. When battle starts I build up a little speed heading away from him so I can cross the wind. He turned toward me to give chase. I crossed the wind to head at him. He see's that and goes to cross wind too. His whistle signalling cannons have loaded blows so he stops going through the wind to line up a shot. He gets stuck in irons and is trying to maneuver out of it away from me. I pull around his far side and push him back into the wind. I board having full board setup. Capped his Niagara, sent my rattle back to port, and was able to enter the port battle since Niagara could get into deep water port battles. That day was full of win =).

So many other moments that made the game great. Like making the fastest first rate in the game. Capped 2 Santi's, a Vic, 2 Bellona's, 6 Constitutions, and a Trinc(running down a Trinc in a Santi is priceless) before losing her to Adama and Seelen up in Bermuda on the 4th of July 2016. RIP =(

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/451867334605176867/E461F41558561E95BBBF282076B0D471E6002BD8/

One porting the Brits over drama with an agreement. All we wanted was an apology. Priceless.

Probably the most fun was rolling around with the best group of guys. BLACK became the melting pot of all different nationalities that swapped over for many different reasons. We have members that have came from all of the other nations. I mean all of them. Too many battles/port battles with guys that could win against all odds. Thanks to Koltes for the website and the awesome scrapbook of the biggest bad@sses in NA. I would love to see any other clan match the victories you see in here.

http://na-black.enjin.com/gallery/m/40809368/album/281622

[Atreides]

Right before Steam,  I took a journey.  No coordinates, didn't know about burningsails map site.  Took a sheet of trace paper, protractor, ruler and pencil.   Laid the paper on my laptop screen amd brought up map, charted a course by degree from Bermuda to any port,  found one that was an even point on the compass.  Sat at the doorstop of that port, set my course and took off.  Wasn't sure how long it would take so 1 1/2 hours later scanned horizon every few minutes.  Sailed through a long storm and almost 3 hours after setting out was getting frustrated.  As the sun set it was finally clear weather and I scanned the horizon again, at daybreak saw an island off the larbord bow, adjusted course a bit and 15 minutes later made landfall on Bermuda. Over 3 1/2 hours sailing.  I actually cheered which woke my wife up.

 

TL DR : Found Bermuda using only compass, map and crude charting tools.

[Jim Bligh]

[Bubba Smith]

Fire! Another good shot in battle. 

[Sinu]

here a old Scene

 

 

[NavalActionPlayer]

7 hours ago, Ehutchin78 said:

Wow. What a great topic. I completely agree that the compass really needs to go. It certainly added to the adventure and exploration. The game was great and I spent sometime on the test bed server. I think if they implement most of what is on the test bed the game will likely die. It's literally no longer "fun". It's become an impossible grind. And this is coming from someone who LOVES RPG's and grinding. Trade is also dead....traders aren't even worth capturing. 

Id say if things stay this way I'll hope for just a PVE standalone game and they can close the servers. There is literally no way to advance in the game. You can't make money so you can't trade. You can't purchase factories because your broke. So no ships for you. That means no pve OR pvp. Your literally "stuck". Everyone on the testbed server thinks this I'm pretty sure. 

600+ hours here... playing something else but will monitor for another week or so. 

HUTCH78

British 

Just to go off topic for a moment.

It's not true to say you cant make money trading on the testbed nor that capturing traders is not worthwhile. You can trade and make money (not as much or as fast as on Live but you can make profits). You can capture traders and get their cargoes (you cant keep the trader afterwards you have to sink it but you do get gold and xp for sinking it and you do get the cargo to sell or trade or use). It IS possible to progress but it IS more difficult - as Jeheil says, it is a new game.

How do I know all this - when I went on the testbed I deliberately didn't take any redeemables in order to test how it played as a new player. I have yet to build my first ship but at least I am progressing as a captain, have gold in the bank, outposts and production buildings going.

The new game is going to be a LOT harder for a solo player but not totally impossible. Personally I think the balance needs adjusting towards the solo player somewhat and hope the Devs will see that as well during the next phase of testing and deployment.

Edited May 17, 2017 by NavalActionPlayer

[Christoph]

[Tyrdael]

I do not have screens of that, but my first magic moment was the first storm in OW way back (no coords, no grid), i got completely lost in my Cutter, and after about 2.5 hours of sailing finally: "land ho!". 

That was how I envisioned it to be.

[Enrique el Navegante]

One of the best momento ever was sailing from Habana to Caño macareo with a mate in two Trincs. 4 hours of pleasure. I remember too once in a privateer looking for some merchants in Bahamas for an hour an ..... nothing.

[Enrique el Navegante]

I loved when there were no cordinates in the map. was pure adventure

[Suppenkelle]

Magic moments I had and still enjoy:

- Sailing around OW before EA almost always alone. Such vast amount of water...

- Navigating without GPS, actually logging courses and times to estimate you landfall.

- landfall in stormy weather, even in home waters

- twilight over the islands,

- finding the borders of the map and sailing beyond

- Sweden in a shitload of basic cutters after being reduced to one port. Like a swarm of hornets capturing Danish frigates. They were SO annoyed.

- Screening for the Danes before we were allies and jumping in battle on their side. Never thought I would ever sail under the Danebrog. But I did and it felt good.

- Escaping three consecutive OW attacks in my trader's cutter by invoking a tacking duel.

- Guided tours into enemy waters with the newbies of our clan. Felt like a safari with arragend killings.

 

[_Alucard_]

5 hours ago, Sureshot said:

Another great and absolutely hilarious moment of mine was near Key West, one of the best spots to look for PvP! Spanish were always a very entertaining bunch to fight. Always providing me with endless entertainment. 

So this one time I was venturing all by myself in my 3rd rate near Key West after capping it from a player, I had switched from my Trincomalee and I'm not sure why because a very short time later I regretted it. Because within minutes of leaving the battle I spotted a Spanish dread fleet of doom on the horizon, 6 yachts and 7 basic cutters. Of course the logical thing to do is run down wind because yachts and cutters aren't very fast downwind but either is a Live Oak Extra Planking 3rd rate. This battle occurred back when 4 pound cannons could demast a 3rd rate because at the time there was no mast thickness, so any cannon could take a mast down if you threw enough cannonballs at them. And well with 6 yachts and 7 basic cutters it didn't take very long. I used my sail repairs after losing all 3 masts and shortly after I lost all my masts again. Then they stern raked me over and over, all 13 of them violating me and then eventually boarding one after the other until I had no crew left. Sadly I had no marines. 

This is just one of the hilarious but epic fights I've had on NA. When the player base goes up again I'm sure many more of these epic battles await. 

LOL, I remember this. It was a looooot of fun. I'm glad you had fun too.

[Hethwill]

I do not keep that many magic moments from ST, majority are from OW and most of them aren't even battle instances.

OW due to the nature of the infinite diversity of encounters promotes so many stunning moments. It is by far my favourite game mode.

One of the fond memories I have is post EA wipe going on the circumnavigation ( was tired of the tug of war with the french ) and having the DAS TS as sort of a radio hearing what was going on around Pampatar "the Eternal city" went all the way around and eventually arrived at Key West.

In the old terrain modeling the port building sat atop the rock, like a fantasy setting castle nested upon a crag. The was fog and sun was rising, I was approaching from the WSW and suddenly out of the mist, brightened from the low rising sun, that "city" floating in the fog in the distance was such an amazing moment. 

On top of that the American Navy captains that were in the area did receive their dutch ally in truest role play form. That was the cherry on top of the cake. Can't remember the name of the captains but they were appropriate and not just some gamer handles.
On the same voyage running the gauntlet to La Tortue in my trusty Navy Brig being chased by pirate Trincs later in the same voyage was also a good thrill. The push back and forth in the Bahamas and the eternal combat in the lagoon between brits and pirates. This was the time of the the Pirate Kings. Way before the "american civil war" and all the *censored* that came afterwards.

In the very first instance of Open World. Navigating by a real map pinned on my wall. The satisfaction it was circumventing Jamaica for the first time. Reaching the south and western cays after days at sea.

Combat situations are too many and too far wide apart to even point one or two "magical" moments. Taking risks make all of them worthwhile. Some spectacular attacks and prizing merchants inside enemy ports or even prizing them while being escorted and running away with the prized ships. Too many hours learning from way better sea rovers out there and trying to emulate their deeds.

Commanding a fleet versus the swedish in front of Coquibacoa with half the fleet having no TS and as such we were using TS and second in command typing the orders for the non TS folk - it brought everyone in the nation to play together, it was not limited to a clan, was everyone. Was exactly what a multiplayer combat game should be. No exclusion. Find ways to overcome limitation.

Being a OW encounter, some 18v15 os so, there were ships ranging from Constitutions down to Brigs. The Essex was a novelty. One of the Swedish captains ( not sure if TrackTerror ) been terrorizing the good dutch folk with it. In the end the battle was not as decisive but was absolutely stunning and fun for both sides and received praise in the Swedish-Dutch war thread.

Returning to Sea Trials the best was indeed prizing the enemy top ship - I was top in a Brig against a top in a Snow - and given the chances I decided to go pluck the crow as fast as possible. Next thing you notice is the enemy team at a loss wondering what happened to their snow and asking how we got a snow.

But nothing, absolutely nothing beats when the Land Ahoy! upgrade hit. For me it was the decisive moment in NA. Everything changed. Everything made sense linking the where I am to where I am going to do battle.

Last but not the least the first wreck I sailed to. Was deep in the fog with the setting sun. Having that ghostly figure materialize was a really precious moment.

All in all games are only a platform for imagination to paint the most magical moments. No imagination, not half the fun.

Really helps that I grew up around all types of games since childhood, tabletop, pen and paper, and even die cut wargames made by our club during high school, all require imagination Naval Action is no different and is amongst the best platforms, due to the historical setting, epic size, infinite encounter chances, community.