Avian Gamers Network

Q: How long will it take a player to get the Biggest ship with the most cannons and rule the seas? Will the players who play 24/7 make the game unenjoyable for casual players?

A: First, we don't know. If we make it reasonable for a casual player then the uber-fast-hardcore folks will get it very quickly.

BUT, there is no uber ship.

Here is my rough approximation. More of a metaphor than an approximation, or maybe it is like a simile. Anyway ... if you went into a WOW Battleground, or a DAOC PVP keep (I forget what those were called), you had people who were grouped by level. In WOW, with the same gear and skills, a level 39 will whup a level 30. But it isn't a one-shot thing. And several 30s can gang up on a 39. That's more like what we want for the ENTIRE GAME. So, there won't be the kind of disparity you see in fantasy MMORPGs where an infinite number of level 1 noobs could attack a level 50 and the level 50 could be AFK and survive forever.

Plus, the biggest ship is kind of like, say, the top-level tank or melee class. They can take on other ships toe-to-toe and often win. But for a given mission, or even a given part of PVP, you may be better off in the top scout ship. Or a fast hunter ship. And if you're fighting near shallows or in light wind, a huge ship of the line might find itself grounded and pounded. It doesn't take a long grounding for raking fire, even from a smaller ship. to decimate your crew.

Will we go to great lenghts to balance a scout ship vs. a battle ship in a 1-on-1 open seas PVP? Probably not as much. But that's a dumb fight to have for the scout. A scout should not plan to fight a battleship unless you get caught with your back to a lee shore and have to wiggle free like Cochrane and the HMS Speedy. (for the record, twice Cochrane went up against 3 battleships in a smaller ship, and once he got away. The other time, he got pwnd, despite trying to get away. Even skill only gets you so far against bad odds)

And, you won't be resitricted to just one ship. So even if you have a complex about 1-on-1 PVP, you don't need to sail a battleship in every fight. Just earn one and keep it for sinking that loudmouth , or better yet for fighting in that role when your nation needs you.

Forget the uberness of other games at the high levels. Playtime in POTBS gets you better stuff and more skills, but not an "I WIN N00B" button. You'll still need to fight skillfully, and a skillful casual player will have a real impact in PVP.

As to the 24-7 folks ruining it for the casual folks, I'm more worried about that for the future features like political power. One reason we're introducing stuff over time is to make sure we have something that rewards play, while not locking out casual players entirely. For the basic gameplay I am not worried.

We also have a ton of PVE mission content, for those who worry about my emphasis on PVP. I tried to stay on the OP's question, which was what happens after you're 'done.' I should in fairness point out that being done may never for occur for most folks, as we plan to continue to introduce content. But every game says that, right? So I don't like to rest on that argument alone. Even if you somehow manage to do very mission and max your skills, we want the game to be fun.

Work out what it is to have the Weather Gage. If you have that, you've got a good start.

A Freetrader wants a ship that can carry lots of goods.

The largest merchant ship has 48 guns and can carry 2300 tons.

The 104 can only carry 1240 tons.

The 104 is quite expensive for the small amount of cargo it can carry. You could probably buy two of the largest merchant ships for the price of the one 104.

A privateer will probably have skills that are for the most part incompatible with sailing a lumbering beheamoth. Their skills I expect will work best in the fast and maneuverable ships.

Each profession gets access to ships that best utilize their skills. A Freetrader sailing around in a 104 is mediocre when compared to a Freetrader making cargo runs in his La Couronne. A privateer isn't much of a privateer when he can't catch other ships.

Playtime in POTBS gets you better stuff and more skills, but not an "I WIN N00B" button.

Holy crap! Sid Meier's Pirates is still $39.99!!!! I played that game back when I was in high school! I figured I'd be able to pick it up for $10 or less...wow. I guess it's good to be $id Meier.