SUGGESTION: Reaper Points and Bounties

  • GoldheartTTV
    Rogue

    I have a suggestion for a mechanic or two that would make the PVP aspect of the game more exciting, while giving an opportunity for other players to cash in on the high level of skill that comes with the playstyle. This mechanic would increase the risk and reward for crews that accept the challenge.

    Part 1: Reaper Points
    For this to work, the game keeps track of how many player sinks/kills a crew gets with a point system. For this example, let's say that you need 100 Reaper Points. Any new ship that gets sunk will award 10 Reaper Points, sinking previously-sunk crews award 5 points, and player kills are worth five points each. If the crew manages to kill the same player again, they will receive one less point than before, down to a minimum of a single point. Scuttling/Sinking that crew's ship resets only the kill penalty. When a crew fully disconnects, all points and sink/kill histories are reset.

    Part 2: Glorious Bounties
    At 100 Reaper Points, wanted posters would appear by the docks to alert other players that a major threat is on the seas. At the same time, a well-sought-after "Glorious Bounty" chest will appear next to the mission table on the ship. The chest will be marked on the map with a timer for all to see. This chest can be sold by any player except for the crew that received the chest to any company for a relatively high quantity of gold (i.e. Captain's Chest levels or higher) and some reputation for that company, as a thank you for protecting their emissaries.

    Part 3: When the timer runs out...
    If the Bounty Ship manages to keep the chest from being stolen and the timer runs out, the Glorious Bounty becomes a "Reaper's Bounty", the Bounty Crew can now sell it at the Reaper's Hideout only. The crew who sells this chest gets double the gold and bonus reputation. When the chest is sold, the Reaper Points for that crew reset.

    Part 4: Putting it in practice
    Let's say that a crew is focus-firing on a single crew. They reach 100 Bounty Points (albeit slower than looking for another crew) and a Glorious Bounty appears in the ship. At this point, there are two options: Either keep and protect the chest from other players until the timer runs out, or throw the chest overboard and allow the chest to be a contest point for players to fight over.

    The crew keeps the chest which is marked on the map for all to see. Wanted posters for the bounty with instructions on how to turn it in appear on the docks. New players avoid the mark on the map while experienced crews (and those who have nothing to lose) track down the chest.

    Let's say that the timer runs out and the chest upgrades. The crew loses no time in navigating to and reaching the Reaper's Hideout (since selling the chest to any other company/turning themselves in is not possible). However, a blockade of reaper crews who are interested in the larger bonus are waiting for them. The final phase of the bounty begins, where the crew with the best skill walks away with the small fortune, and more respect from the Reaper's Bones.

    Part 5: Other scenarios
    There are a lot of opportunities for the tide to change, and where player choices affect the dynamic. For example, a Reaper Crew that pursues this point-based chest may want to start an Alliance with other Reapers, only for them to stab them in the back at the last second and take the entire reward for themselves.

    You could have a crew that is disinterested in the bounty and the risk that throws the chest overboard, which turns that point on the map into a naval battlefield. The same could happen if the ship is sunk by a Kraken or something else.

    In conclusion, this system allows for great risk and reward, and gives the best PK crews an opportunity to prove themselves on the high seas.

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  • WolfManbush
    Lord

    personal kills have no place in adventure. spawn killing should be allowed but not encouraged, there should be no incentives for it in the form of stats or rewards

    the servers are nowhere near active enough for this to blossom into anything

    reapers is a high risk/ high reward faction in a pve/pvp scenario not a pvp faction, your suggestion leans too far into pvp

  • Gunner Rat
    Seafarer
    Insider

    @mageofheart5367

    Hi,

    Firstly, fair play for hanging around and reading the replies and for bouncing back here with enthusiasm and a renewed outlook. Most who post PvP critical stuff tend to dissipate after a few posts that challenge them, so your demeanour is quite refreshing in that regard. I respect that you have an open mind and will listen to counter points and have demonstrated here with this new post that this is the case. I didn't get the chance to respond on the other thread as they dropped the anchor on it- so here is what I was going to say about your bounty chest idea:

    I am intrigued...but how would one get given this bounty chest? Or are you saying that it is an item that can be stolen and that the crew who take it realise this will put them on the map? This is a bit like having an emissary flag then?

    I know this has been stated, but there isn't anything that means spawn camping is bad. I mean, it's not that great when it happens (in my case maybe once) but scuttling the ship gives you a chance to avoid this.

    I would actually like to see a player organised Navy. But not to make people who don't like PvP feel better about playing, but because it gives a more realistic edge to the game and means MORE PvP. I think I would enjoy going after them! Anyway, the problem is that the servers aren't really able to facilitate large fleets and may struggle to handle a GTA Bounty style system. You could actually already organise a player led Navy force if you wanted like in No Mans Sky where they have a player led star ship corp who defend the galactic centre from player pirates, but overall, while I appreciate your idea and the time you have taken to come back and present it after synthesising, I think the server limitations will impact reliability and the overall idea from ever happening.

    Cheers

  • GoldheartTTV
    Rogue

    @gunner-rat

    I was salty the other day. I do have an open mind and when other people weighed in on potential exploits, my game design brain went into overdrive to make the system fair with incentives that doesn't necessarily force a crew to stop their playstyle, but essentially disrupts them for a short period of time by turning the tables on how they conduct themselves.

    "How would one be given the bounty chest?"
    It could be a special voyage only taken at the Hideout, or it just spawns in... Some mechanic creates the chest essentially after hitting those point totals.

    While I agree that spawn camping should be addressed, this system would essentially ensure that even grinding other players on their ship will not avoid the consequence of receiving the Glorious Bounty.

  • Gunner Rat
    Seafarer
    Insider

    @mageofheart5367 said in SUGGESTION: Reaper Points and Bounties:

    @gunner-rat

    I was salty the other day. I do have an open mind and when other people weighed in on potential exploits, my game design brain went into overdrive to make the system fair with incentives that doesn't necessarily force a crew to stop their playstyle, but essentially disrupts them for a short period of time by turning the tables on how they conduct themselves.

    Hello,

    That is pragmatic that you can admit that. Fair play. But I have been thinking and I'm not so sure that it is ultimately needed mind. The Sea of Thieves has a funny way of getting it's own back...there is always a bigger and more nastier pirate out there. You can be pretty sure that the crews who go out there to spawn kill will get the same done to them by a better crew and that they will use this experience as a learning exercise to get even better. I've even managed to sink a 3 person galleon on my own with a bit of luck. They originally chased me for a long time after sinking me once. Was a good session.

    While I agree that spawn camping should be addressed, this system would essentially ensure that even grinding other players on their ship will not avoid the consequence of receiving the Glorious Bounty.

    I don't think it needs addressing mate. But I do kind of like the idea that you could get a commendation for being notoriously horrible haha...but the thing is - the idea will only encourage more of what people call "toxic" (aka "pirate") behaviour and the forums will have even more "I hate PvP" threads because of it.

    If I were the type that went around sinking new players, I think I would love nothing more than to succeed as many times in your trial, which essentially gives them more of a reason to be more PvP focussed and while I embrace PvP- it will only tip the scales more out of favour for those who hate the balance we already have.

    Cheers

  • Galactic Geek
    Seafarer
    Founder

    What I don't like about the idea is that the Reaper crew with the chest will, in many cases, be avoided entirely - either out of fear, or being too busy getting their own thing done (or perhaps even both). This means that once the timer runs out, it's essentially free loot for them. I just don't like the idea of what will essentially, in most cases, be a free reward.

  • Xultanis Dragon
    Sailor

    @mageofheart5367

    Respect that you are able to calm down after the salt. It happens to the best of us. We were all new once and we all had to deal with having to learn from being sunk.

    Best advice I can give you is learn how to land your cannon shots farther and farther away with consistently and learn how to handle that wheel properly.

    You might think the wheel is easy but it really isn't. Theres a lot of depth to handling the wheel as a crew and as solo. Best way I can suggest learning is go into Arena with a friend and just stay on wheel the whole time, you'll notice A LOT of things while playing.

    Next is about your idea.

    Good angle but ultimately its a bad one. Like others have said it promotes spawn camping and among other things.

    I'm all for PvP. I lean more towards the PvP aspect of this game but that chest will have an adverse effect, the same as the reapers does currently.

    There are 2 types of players. Players that see reapers and hunt it, which honestly speaking from experience is NOT the norm, and the players that see reapers and hop to another server. The ladder is the norm by a huge margin.

    What you need is something that spawns on its own that everyone can decide to fight over like the old day forts when they were on a 3/4 hour timer with loot that is worth getting.

    Maybe a chest worth 500k to whoever can get it and turn it in, however the chest will constantly spawn skelly skips periodically at the island its at and against whoever is carrying it. The amount of loot makes it worth fighting over, no one is really "loosing" anything which is a good way to get PvE players enticed to try their luck and the skelly ships constantly spawning around the chest will just add some annoying PvE into the mix.

    Chest could spawn at the top of the Sea dogs tavern every 3 to 4 hours followed with some kind of cloud or some kind of fort who knows.

    You want to make the loot worth turning in and worth fighting over for all players not just the PvP ones. If you focus too much on PvP then PvE players will pay the price.

    Happy balance.

    But good try, if you got any more ideas keep them coming.

  • Nabberwar
    Lord
    Insider

    I like bounties personally, but its very tricky to implement that idea into this game. For many, having the system decide who gets a bounty seems rather exploitable. Many in the past have suggested merely getting attacked as the deciding factor for getting a bounty. Those who suggest that tend to truly dislike PvP. It also sets forth the notion that playing in a normal capacity is supposed to be punishable. The other form is player issued ones. I am more in favor of those, but will get into that later.

    What you suggest falls under what was previously discussed is scale. You talk about a blockade of Reaper's, but servers are lucky to get even two on a server. Currently, what you describe just sounds like the Emissary Flag. It is an item that progressively grows as the ship gains grades. Reapers already target each other, its kind of there thing. More motivation in that department really isn't needed, most Reapers just want a fight, gold is just a side effect.

    Your best bet of getting a bounty system implemented, is allow players to issue them. I would consider it the most fair way to go about it. Does it still include problems? Certainly, but the benefits are the better trade-off. It leaves player choice being the ultimate decider, while not created a system to exploit. Any Rare implemented system will have ways to exploit it. Now with player issued ones comes the problems. Rich players targeting new/inexperienced crews. Making players front the bill, just makes things more personal while keeping players in charge of their own justice. Something this game likes doing.

    Side note, if player created bounties become a thing, let players place bounties on themselves. It just sounds fun, and creates a system to encourage players to fight us.

  • GoldheartTTV
    Rogue

    @xultanis-dragon I did. It addresses spawn-camping.

    @nabberwar You're right. I learned a ton about emissary flags that I didn't know about previously. Also the only way I could see self-set bounties being a thing is if the player crews-

    I'll make a new thread about it.

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