game play-specifically frigate after tutorial

[gogopher]

so i bought a 5th rate right after tutorial...it was tough but i was able to scrap together enough to get one and outfit it (mostly no upgrades but full crew, officers, and cannon)

the very first mission i go into the spanish now have 2 5th rates vs my 1...if i dont buy the frigate they have two brigs vs my brig and sloop...is this intended and if so why?...i mean whats the point of even allowing us to run a frigate at start if u are going to crazy stack the room....

second mission: this time i held off on frigate till after the first mission (admirals dinner) and bought one after advance...now i had 1 5th rate and brig and sloop (both starting ships)...im supposed to escort a merch ship off edge of map...spanish show up with 3 fully loaded 5th rates...i win the scen, capture a 5th rate via boarding and dont lose any ships...but is this going to continue...is the ai missions going to keep crazy stacking against me just because i own 1 5th rate...if so again i ask what is the purpose?...if the ai gets more ships depending on what we have that sorta-kinda removes any incentive to get creative...i mean going from 2 sloops of war with a total crew of 220 vs my 2 small ships and a similiar crew size to 560 vs 200  (their two 5ths vs my 1) seems disproportionately unbalanced to say the least

[WilliamTheIII]

Unlike in UGCW, this game is a lot more heavily scripted meaning that most missions have a certain amount of ship, etc. However, scaling exists so that the player doesn't receive an overwhelming advantage against the ai quite quickly as the difference between a 5th and a sloop is quite dramatic. For priority, you are supposed to be heavily outnumbered as you were intercepted by a large enemy fleet while escorting the walpole out. So because you brought a 5th, the enemy was receiving all 5th's to keep the presence that you are outmatched (it's still very winnable). Later in the campaign, the ai will start to get better ships regardless of what you bring because of the scripting meaning that not having any large ships (unless your fire ship spamming) can become quite detrimental to your campaign. Also, its not supposed to be a necessarily fair match as the purpose is to provide a challenge to the player and stop them from just waltzing on through the entire game. Finally, I don't think crew is the best comparison when saying things become unbalanced as the functionality of the ship is more important that the actual size of the crew ignoring not enough crew and just pure boarding meta.

Btw, I would not recommend buying ships as its a massive waste of money imo. Capturing them and turning them against your foes is devastatingly effective tactic.

[gogopher]

yeah i did that my first play thru...was trying something diff this time..and yeah i won it just was a shock too see them

[pandakraut]

I still think that they should just remove the 5th rate from spawning in the shop in the first stage. Plenty of time to get to those later.

It's probably possible to buy the 5th rate and  then capture another one in the next battle. Even if you take a lot of damage once you have two 5ths you'll probably be set for a while.

Edited February 28, 2020 by pandakraut

[Sturm561]

gogopher, I see what you mean, however WilliamThelll said it best...do you want historical accuracy or not?  I don't know if you play UGCW but I liken it to being the Union at Fredricksburg in that game...it's historically accurate to be up against very unfavorable odds.

 

[pandakraut]

Historically accurate is kind of the opposite of the scaling argument. Scaling is designed to keep game play feeling relevant. Otherwise once the player gets far enough ahead then the game becomes boring since there is no challenge. Scaling only tends to slow this snowball down a bit though in most cases. 

The early missions where you are only fielding one or two ships the scaling treats especially harshly since there is only a single ship to compare against and the AI has to be able to deal with that. Hence 5th rates = facing 5th rates. This varies by difficulty of course. For example, on easy you would not be facing 5th rates when bringing your own.