There's this mechanic called emmisary that already does that.
Why does everyone want 2nd emmisary?
Bounty Hunter System – A New Challenge for Sea of Thieves
My genuine opinion on this common topic is this,
People should just play the game organically, lol.
So often the suggestions are built around contrived scenarios and that has rarely ever worked.
The entire point of risk/reward in SoT was supposed to be that the skilled and experienced players take on more risk for more challenging scenarios.
Instead the game got flooded with content creation outside of the organic experience and with metas that harm the organic experience.
There are countless ways to take risks in this game and experienced players regularly do the opposite of taking risks, they go out of their way to make sure they take almost no risks at all.
I've never been bored in the game and outside of cheesefest seasons like season 11 I've never had a shortage of challenging pvp, because I do the pve content, take the risks, invest in the servers, and fight the skilled players that are hostile. That's the bounty system that already exists, the organic design of the game.
The reason regs rarely find good pvp is because they hop for quantity rather than play for quality.
Nobody that plays organically in the game and doesn't stack the deck in their favor all the time really struggles to find same challenging play. It's not nonstop action but adventure is never supposed to be all action all the time.
My way of thinking in SoT is play to lose in a fun way rather than get bored with winning all the time. I'll always stand by the view that winning a bunch in adventure is the most substanceless and unrewarding way to approach the game.
@th3-tater said in Bounty Hunter System – A New Challenge for Sea of Thieves:
There's this mechanic called emmisary that already does that.
Why does everyone want 2nd emmisary?
Just because someone raises emissary doesn't mean they're looking for PVP. I raise emissary because it grants the emissary quests. I think the original poster is looking for a mechanic that makes aggression a bit more risky. I support this idea
@wolfmanbush There is a game I once played called Planetside 2 that made use of bounty systems. If a player got a large kill streak, they would become more valuable to other players to kill. The developers also monetized it so people could pay $ to put bounties on other players. I admit I don't know how often people payed for bounties, but I ran across several opponents that had bounties on them.
@gunnner1 said in Bounty Hunter System – A New Challenge for Sea of Thieves:
@wolfmanbush There is a game I once played called Planetside 2 that made use of bounty systems. If a player got a large kill streak, they would become more valuable to other players to kill. The developers also monetized it so people could pay $ to put bounties on other players. I admit I don't know how often people payed for bounties, but I ran across several opponents that had bounties on them.
Pay money to target people? that's wild if that's the case.
Instead of a target system of any kind they should just stop making it so rewarding to play outside of the organic experience.
If the way to progress was through organic play and server investment then it all works out pretty well naturally.
The issue is that so many of the skilled and experienced players let the inexperienced and more passive players take all the heat. The best pvp and risk/reward in in the game is when skilled/experienced players are the ones taking the most risks. SoT largely hasn't had that for years.
and a LOT of the dev's decisions were based around making it easier to gain massive reward outside of organic play through server hopping. Putting the target on those that don't cheese the game. Which leads to constant non-competitive fights between regs and casual players. Regs flex about it but it's all padded, most of those types of fights aren't really fights at all.
Raise reaper then. Be obvious.
I don't want to pvp, and I raise emmisary because I understand the risk.When people ask for a "bounty" system beyond emmisary, they're basically saying "I want to be rewarded for being a bully." Emmisary covers that, and prevents manipulative play. Under OP's suggestion I come harass you so you kill me a few times and BOOM, some newb/unskilled at pvp has a huge bounty to take...
Bullying doesn't need to be explicitly rewarded more than it already is.
@th3-tater said in Bounty Hunter System – A New Challenge for Sea of Thieves:
Raise reaper then. Be obvious.
I don't want to pvp, and I raise emmisary because I understand the risk.When people ask for a "bounty" system beyond emmisary, they're basically saying "I want to be rewarded for being a bully." Emmisary covers that, and prevents manipulative play. Under OP's suggestion I come harass you so you kill me a few times and BOOM, some newb/unskilled at pvp has a huge bounty to take...
Bullying doesn't need to be explicitly rewarded more than it already is.
I disagree with the ideology. Any way you look at PvP, everyone who does it is harassing someone. Nobody likes dying and losing all their stuff to taunting knuckleheads; especially if they are young children with mouths worse than sailors. The game has strict Terms of Service guidelines that are supposed to prevent bullying, but they don't. The other day a friend of mine had his sexuality attacked with a slew of homophobic remarks simply because he defended himself and killed the guys who were stalking him for the 8 hours he was playing. Every time they got sunk, they managed to return to the server and find him. That is the definition of harassment.
What the game needs is moderation. That could be in the form of a bounty system that makes bad pvp'rs accountable for their actions. Perhaps publicly outting them every time a bounty is made through a global message to all players on the server. I mean if you're going to have a PvP system on any game there should be leaderboards that show who has the most kills and offers some incentive. This would require tagging those who kill for sport and separating them from those who kill for retribution. A system like this would make PvP a game within a game and a challenge; everyone aiming for the top spot.
My own theory is, SOT teamed up with Disney, hence the Jack Sparrow references. Their terms of service explicitly frowns on bullying, harassment, and stalking behavior. The point is that I wouldn't be surprised if in the next few years they don't make PvP optional. Disney caters to the underdog. SOT will have to follow suit to keep in their good graces; the squeaky wheel gets the oil... yes, it's a cliche but in the gaming industry if enough people complain through online posts, things tend to change for those who may be disadvantaged. This is a game but its also a business and if they get enough dings to their pocketbook, SOT will turn into Candyland.
I wouldn't be surprised if in the next few years they don't make PvP optional. Disney caters to the underdog. SOT will have to follow suit to keep in their good graces…
Rare are not owned by Disney and are under no obligation to make their game in any other way than how they see fit. Disney couldn’t give a hoot what Rare do and if you believe that Rare are tied to them morally then you understand very little about this game, never mind the industry as a whole.
I appreciate all the feedback on this idea! To refine it and make it fair for all types of players, here’s a more balanced version of the Bounty Hunter System:
How It Works:
1. Dynamic Bounty Scaling – Bounties don’t apply to every PvP encounter. Instead, they increase when a crew repeatedly sinks weaker ships (like non-Reapers or solo sloops) or steals large amounts of treasure. Fighting other high-bounty players or defending yourself won’t unfairly raise your bounty. 2. Bounty Tracking Through Rumors – Instead of instantly marking high-bounty players on the map, NPCs in taverns, barrels, and outposts will give hints about their last known location. This makes tracking more strategic instead of just handing out easy targets. 3. Navy Pursuit Mechanic – If a crew reaches a high enough bounty, the Royal Navy will be dispatched to hunt them down. These AI-controlled naval ships will chase and attack, forcing notorious pirates to outmaneuver, fight back, or escape. This adds a PvE challenge and makes the system more immersive. 4. Risk-Reward System for Both Sides • Bounty Hunters earn gold for taking down high-bounty players. • High-bounty pirates get bonus gold for surviving bounty chases or defeating bounty hunters. This ensures both playstyles (PvP and PvE) are rewarded. 5. Bounties Expire Over Time – To prevent griefing, bounties decay if the crew avoids PvP for a set time, allowing players to reset instead of being targeted endlessly.This system keeps the thrill of risk-versus-reward, encourages more player interaction, and makes PvP more meaningful rather than just chaos. What do you think of these changes?
@tesiccl You are correct, Rare isn't OWNED by Disney. HOWEVER in the United States, in order to use a COPYRIGHT like Jack Sparrow which IS OWNED by DISNEY... then YES they need to partner with Disney in order to use that name in some way. Whether its contractual and they paid for the right to use Jack Sparrow or whether it's an actual partnership where Disney can now call some shots in the game. If you don't know anything about copyright laws in the United States then you probably should school yourself or stop replying because it is not a good look on a public forum.
@gamerglyph I understand how copyright law works thanks. Rare would have been granted license by Disney to use the PoTC likeness in agreed elements without being sued by the company. This doesn’t mean Rare are now obliged to do whatever Disney wants to keep in their “good graces”, as you say.
or stop replying because it is not a good look on a public forum.
Open forum so I will reply freely until the mods lock it.
@tesiccl You didn't read my post very well... so let me break down the part you are referring to:
"My own theory is, SOT teamed up with Disney, hence the Jack Sparrow references. Their terms of service explicitly frowns on bullying, harassment, and stalking behavior. The point is that I wouldn't be surprised if in the next few years they don't make PvP optional. Disney caters to the underdog. SOT will have to follow suit to keep in their good graces; the squeaky wheel gets the oil... yes, it's a cliche but in the gaming industry if enough people complain through online posts, things tend to change for those who may be disadvantaged. This is a game but its also a business and if they get enough dings to their pocketbook, SOT will turn into Candyland."
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"My own theory is, SOT teamed up with Disney, hence the Jack Sparrow references." True - they had to get a license to use the name from somewhere
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"Their terms of service explicitly frowns on bullying, harassment, and stalking behavior." True - its written on the website here
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"The point is that I wouldn't be surprised if in the next few years they don't make PvP optional. Disney caters to the underdog." Opinion - based of a very well defined history which is researchable online
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"SOT will have to follow suit to keep in their good graces; the squeaky wheel gets the oil... yes, it's a cliche but in the gaming industry if enough people complain through online posts, things tend to change for those who may be disadvantaged. This is a game but its also a business and if they get enough dings to their pocketbook, SOT will turn into Candyland." Opinion - based on the first sentence above: "My own theory is...".
Sorry, but you seem very literal in your thought process. If that is the case and you don't understand what a theory is, then perhaps you should follow the advice I gave above and try not to get all uptight in a forum. You can reply as much as you like, but this is my last response. Your thought process is interesting, just not to me. Have a great day :)
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Sea of Thieves, when will we see a bounty hunter system to make the game more challenging and fun?
Never, because a bounty system players can't opt-out of is bad.
A system where players who steal, sink ships, and kill other pirates gradually increase their bounty, making them more valuable targets.
Why? Those are all parts of the game.
What if someone does not want to be a bounty? Just don't PvP?
What if they are attacked, but win? They now have a bounty.What if servers merge? Does the Bounty go with?
What if someone logs out?
If the Bounty goes away: It'd be an easy way to avoid a Bounty.
If it stays through sessions: It's annoying because they can't remove it.This system would add new layers of strategy
Not really. It's an Emissary system people can't avoid.
High-bounty pirates could be marked on the map or tracked through rumors encouraging bounty hunters to seek them out for a reward.
You mean like...Reaper Emissaries?
encourage more player interaction
Actually, it would encourage less interaction; if someone does not want a bounty, they now have to run from every fight. Because, if they lose; They sink. If they win; They get a bounty.
and make the world of Sea of Thieves feel even more alive
Not really. It's an unwilling, unavoidable system that already exists without the flaws. It's called 'Emissary'.
In no way does nit make the world 'more alive'. Just 'more annoying'.
Why should people essentially be punished for playing SoT?
Why should they have a bounty forced on them?
Why do people forget that Emissary is literally an opt-in bounty system in order to foist a worse version of it on the game?An unwilling, unavoidable bounty system is a bad idea.
@hiradc said in Bounty Hunter System – A New Challenge for Sea of Thieves:
Because that would punish a perfectly valid playstyle, there's an underlying bias here that people who pvp should have a harder time playing the game.
It would honestly be more realistic to life. Criminals run afoul of society because they commit crimes. I'm sure pirates back in the day were hunted by entire navy's. I see this as a community building mechanic were victims of an aggressive crew (which has sunk multiple boats on the server) can band together to offer the aggressive crew a more challenging fight.
It would honestly be more realistic to life.
Nothing about the game is realistic.
Criminals run afoul of society because they commit crimes. I'm sure pirates back in the day were hunted by entire navy's.
Except there are no crimes in the Sea of Thieves. We're ALL criminals. You know; Pirates?
I see this as a community building mechanic were victims of an aggressive crew (which has sunk multiple boats on the server) can band together to offer the aggressive crew a more challenging fight.
I see it as punishing people for playing aggressively, or being attacked & winning repeatedly.
@guildar9194 said in Bounty Hunter System – A New Challenge for Sea of Thieves:
It would honestly be more realistic to life.
Nothing about the game is realistic.
Actually... (and I am not criticizing the comment)
I used to be a PADI scuba instructor and, after playing this game, I really think the wave and boat physics are on point as far as realism go. If this game were VR, most of you would get seasick.
I'm just throwing this out there because this is what is keeping me playing (as simple as it is, what can I say?! I am easily entertained).
5 out of 21
