New Player Retention

[Captain Lust]

New players could start on their own tiny map ( like rookie zone ) where everything is dirt cheap. They can leave to the main PvP map whenever they want and there should be a big button with warning indicating this. They are kicked from the zone once they reach rank 5 however ( could be earlier but this would decrease pop in the zone ). Once they leave to the main map they get a few redeemable ships ( TBrig, Privateer / Snow and Surprise? )and a very limited amount of starter gold maybe. Make it so you can only start at the zone once per account. Give every nation 1 rookie capital 2 ports for production ( that can't be captured ) and a free town in the middle ( also like rookie zone used to be ). Veterans could be granted access to the region for educational purposes but only in gunboat. As region you could use US West coast ( suggested before i think ) or one of the great american lakes.

[Daguse]

Use the Pacific, already on the map and isolated. However I believe I read somewhere that they can't. Maybe with unity 5.

That being said I'm all for a isolated noob zone, add in a tutorial and I'm sure we'll see an increase in players. Hell the tutorial does have to be anything more then a few videos (look at the LiF mmo one), I know @Jeheil has some good ones.

Teach the noobs how to sail, how to shoot, how to manage crew, get them a trade ship (boarding tutorial anyone?), Allow them to talk to the community and find a clan, profit!

Edited August 5, 2017 by Daguse

[Farrago]

I always thought a rookie zone was the right idea, it just wasn't enforced in an effective way.

It should be a naval academy concept. A new player has to start there and has to advance to a certain rank before leaving. Once obtaining that rank, a player can not return there or to its waters. While there, he can PVP, trade, do missions, and gets experience with sailing through 6th rates. Upon graduation he can join the navy of any country and starts in the nation's capital with the 6th rate or smaller ship of his choice.

[VirtuallyIdiotic]

2 hours ago, Farrago said:

I always thought a rookie zone was the right idea, it just wasn't enforced in an effective way.

It should be a naval academy concept. A new player has to start there and has to advance to a certain rank before leaving. Once obtaining that rank, a player can not return there or to its waters. While there, he can PVP, trade, do missions, and gets experience with sailing through 6th rates. Upon graduation he can join the navy of any country and starts in the nation's capital with the 6th rate or smaller ship of his choice.

Issue with the rookie zones was they were to a point excluded from their nations main population, especially if they were brand new to the game with little to know previous contact of current player base. 

Felt that the focus on 5th rates being the basis of the open world pvp worked well for the game early on in the wipe before the devs pampered to the older base of the game who were frustrated in losing their large ships and the easy access they had to them prior to the wipe. During that period where 5th rates were the backbone rookie players were able to interact with the veterans quickly rather than dealing with the isolation they dealt with before. 

[Captain Lust]

16 hours ago, Davos Seasworth said:

Issue with the rookie zones was they were to a point excluded from their nations main population, especially if they were brand new to the game with little to know previous contact of current player base. 

It's either that or new players getting ganked to shit... the only alternative is making new player impossible to attack or huge greenzones around the capitals but this influences everyone not only new players... isolating the new players from the rest is much better imo, so they have a chance to fight other new players instead of getting trashed and also this rookie zone should be somewhat like a tutorial...

18 hours ago, Farrago said:

I always thought a rookie zone was the right idea, it just wasn't enforced in an effective way.

It should be a naval academy concept. A new player has to start there and has to advance to a certain rank before leaving. Once obtaining that rank, a player can not return there or to its waters. While there, he can PVP, trade, do missions, and gets experience with sailing through 6th rates. Upon graduation he can join the navy of any country and starts in the nation's capital with the 6th rate or smaller ship of his choice.

I agree.

[Anne Wildcat]

To help reduce ganking of new players, why not add no combat marks, gold, or xp if attacking a player more than 2 levels below you.

[Jester Jake Jackson]

7 hours ago, Anne Wildcat said:

To help reduce ganking of new players, why not add no combat marks, gold, or xp if attacking a player more than 2 levels below you.

Some fight for fun, some fight for marks,

Some fight for fame, some fight for the story,

But if one only fights against newbies in barques,

They should not make the lists or have glory.

[jacob van heemskerk]

7 hours ago, Anne Wildcat said:

To help reduce ganking of new players, why not add no combat marks, gold, or xp if attacking a player more than 2 levels below you.

i support this, might be a lot easier then rookie zones, but 2 levels below you is not enough make new players nation free whit a small intro  in how to sail there ship, after they complete there tutorial, they will get a number of missions given by the admiralty whit small rewards that include hull repairs rig repairs and rum, give new players a mark above there heads that says ROOKIE when they are sailing, don't let them in any form of pvp do not let them challenge other players, and the other way around, let them explore al little bit, and when they reach a higher rank they can join a nation and pvp 

do let them join global chat, en help, and be a lot more strict when it comes to inactivity, 10 min or so to prevent the miss use of rookie privileges

Edited August 7, 2017 by jacob van heemskerk

[Jacob van Heemskerck]

First things firts, the person above me is a imposter ^  

Just join PvE server a whole server dedicated for this, once you get the game mechanics you can join the PvP.

And  still rookie or no rookie once you join PvP ganking is always present, unless the ROE sytem is overhauled. 

If you do join the PvP server rules are very clear to succeed;

•join a Clan 

•only sail with a bunch of people 

•stay active by playing NA a lot 

 

[jacob van heemskerk]

8 hours ago, Jacob van Heemskerck said:

First things firts, the person above me is a imposter ^  

LOL i did not know there was some one whit the same name !