Hey all, fairly new to Sea of Thieves, only just started playing regularly and am a PC player. I've enjoyed my time and have had a mix of super friendly people and toxic trolls, which is to be expected with any PVP oriented game, no big. But I've had some...unique interactions, and I'm trying to figure out if it's some sort of etiquette or social thing for the game that I'm just not privy to.
Anyway, I've been sailing up to ships and asking if they want to join an alliance. Lights on, alliance flag out, slow sailing so they have time to see me coming and leave if they like. But when I arrive and ask, people have been bringing all of their loot over to my ship, and then scuttling their own or blowing up their own ship with a gunpowder barrel. This has happened three or four times now. I literally watched a guy hunt for a chest on an island for 10 minutes, only to bring it over to my ship and then log out after I tried to ask him. I've been solo each time and so far everyone I've approached has always been solo (including a solo Galleon that had some sapphires that he gave to me), so is there something I'm doing wrong? I'm not trying to steal from them but it feels like I'm accidentally performing the world's politest piracy.
So what gives? Is this some sort of social thing or is something being lost in translation?