It’s been over two years since new personal weapons were added to the game, and many would agree that the weapons update added a lot of depth and freshness to the game and caused a resurgence of players. I believe it’s due time to reconsider more weapon variety.I have some suggestions in hopes they will be considered.
Firstly, I want to address the state of weapons in the game as it stands. The block mechanic on the sword has become somewhat redundant, especially since the last weapon update which added more ranged weapons. This is meant to be a pirate game after all, and there is a thrilling charm to having a naval hand to hand duel. My following suggestions will be melee weapon ideas that all have blocking mechanics that I believe will help improve the overall health of the combat system despite the balancing challenges. Balance is important, but Rare needs to continue to take the risks they are taking in the upcoming seasons to continue to improve the foundation of the game. After all, with time, the developers will know what is needed to balance the weapons.
The Boarding Axe:
We need to have another look at the boarding axe. It has models in the game and it’s been suggested since launch, and constantly shot down. It’s time Rare has another look at it. The ability to pry boards off of a ship hull would be fun and helpful for solo players who don’t have a crew that can continuously pump holes. The time it takes to pry a board off can be tweaked and balanced of course. The axe should also be able to chop the destructible ship parts (mast, helm, and capstan). The amount of chops/time required can also be tweaked. The axe would swing a two hit combo, and have slightly less range than a cutlass but more damage and a wider arc. It would also be capable of a charged overhead cleave by holding the primary attack input, similar to the cutlass lunge or the throwing knife heavy attack. This heavy attack would break the enemies guard, again similar to the cutlass lunge. The axe would not be able to hop like the cutlass when blocking. Finally, as a suggestion which may or may not have any relevance, it might be interesting if the axe pulled enemies closer after they block a full combo, rather than knocking booth players back as the cutlass does. This would be unique and might spice up melee combat.
I understand many players feel that prying boards with the boarding axe would create a toxic boarding meta, but the time required to pry boards can be easily adjusted for balance, and it gives solo players a real chance to have some more boarding fun. This is a silly pirate game, we want to fight on ships, not spend half our time on a loading screen waiting for a mermaid to take us back to our sloop after jumping off the ship we boarded so we can shoot more cannons.
The Boarding Pike:
A more accurate name for this would be the anti-boarding pike (explanation below). Again, this has been suggested before but it is another weapon that could help bring unexpected and exiting combat sequences to the game. The pike would stab with a single long range attack (possibly long enough to hit a player on the bottom of a galleon ladder)(no combo), and have a secondary heavy lunge like the sword, the difference being that the pike is unable to perform a leap by blocking before lunging. By holding block on the pike, the player will drive the but down into the ground and either slow or disable their movement (depending on balancing). While in this guard, they can block attacks (the animation would show the spear redirecting the attack similar to an epee fencer rather than holding it to the side as to prevent unnatural animations). Also while in this guard, any enemies that walk into the pike will take damage, and take increased damage if they are sprinting when they hit it. Depending on the capability of the code, it would be interesting to add a momentum based damage system for this ability similar to the way fall damage works. Finally, the pike would deal increased damage to players while they are on a ladder or walking on a harpoon line. This will help the pike find its place as a ship defense weapon, adding more flavor to the game, as currently the blunderbuss is by far the best ladder guarding tool, and has been throughout the game’s history.
The Naval Dirk and Buckler:
This is a suggestion I haven’t seen anywhere before, but I’m sure someone has thought of something similar. The naval Dirk would be held in an ice pick grip behind a buckler shield in the same hand, similar to the style that a Scottish highland soldier would have held their highland Dirk and targe. The Dirk would deal less damage than a cutlass and have less range but have a higher attack speed and a 4 hit combo. The heavy attack would differ from the others in that rather than a single attack being thrown after the charge time, the Dirk’s grip will be flipped (like the throwing knife animation) and swung wildly for about 6 fast stabs/swings before the cooldown (or maybe the heavy attack would be the same as the throwing knife. I’ll explain below). When blocking with the Dirk and buckler, the buckler will block bullets that hit a certain zone in front of the player, similar to a keg being held. Just like a keg, players could shoot the buckler which blocks the shot, or shoot the feet or back to bypass the buckler and hit the player hit box instead. This blocking ability would give this weapon a unique niche in buying time. Whether waiting for a friend to come back from the dead, stalling a board, or waiting for a keg to pop, the Dirk and Buckler would be ideal. The Dirk would also be able to hop like the cutlass. Players could finally call themselves swashbucklers.
Finally, the Naval Dirk and Buckler may also deal more damage to players who are interacting with objects such as the wheel, raising/lowing/angling sails, using a harpoon or cannon, or inside or a barrel inventory. This would allow players to pull of assassinations on unsuspecting enemies, although, this mechanic might be more fitting for the throwing knife, which leads me onto my next point…
The Throwing Knife rework:
Many would agree the throwing knife has become somewhat of a gimmick in the meta after its exiting introduction. The throwing knife should donate its heavy attack to the Naval Dirk and Buckler, and instead of aiming its throw using the block button, the throwing knife holds up a block like all of the other weapons, and yes, knives should be able to block. Parrying daggers are evidence of this, and it’s a game anyway. The throwing knife can be thrown by holding the attack button and releasing the button like a trident of dark tides or ashen winds skull. And again, the knife might also inherit the mechanic allowing it to deal extra damage to enemies that are interacting with objects.
These changes are intended to enhance the melee meta, but also to transition the throwing knife from a ranged weapon with melee capabilities, to a melee weapon with ranged capabilities. Right now the knife feels like a sluggish gun with the ability to poke. We want the throwing knife to feel like an assassin’s comprehensive melee weapon that can be thrown in a pinch.
Blocking Rework:
If anyone has played games like Chivalry, Mordhau, God of War etc… they know how timed parrying works. I’m not sure if the sea of thieves servers are fast enough to support a timed parrying melee mechanic, but it is something I figured would be interesting to consider.
A timed parry would add depth to melee combat. I’m not suggesting we remove hold to block entirely, rather if a player times a parry precisely, they could receive a small advantage. Maybe the advantage depends on the weapon. Maybe the Boarding Axe pulls opponents in closer on a parry or breaks their leg (similar to fall damage), maybe the Boarding Pike throws the enemy off balance for a moment (like being drunk), maybe the throwing knife or Dirk and Buckler locks up the opponent’s weapon and they can’t attack for a split second, maybe the sword gets an immediate repost attack. Perhaps the timing windows for each weapon’s parry could be different. I would love to hear other people’s suggestions for how this mechanic could work or interact with different weapons.
How the Weapons fit in the Meta:
The cutlass will retain its movement superiority and crowd control (able to lunge jump and block hop), the boarding axe will provide utility in boarding ships, the boarding pike will be utilized primarily in ship defense, the naval dirk and targe will be useful for personal defense and buying time, and the throwing knife will become more useful for stealthy tucks (something rare wants to address soon) and assassinations.
As I said before, I have intentionally given all of the melee weapons the ability to block attacks. A big part of the pirate fantasy that many players desire is a hand to hand duel on a ship. Sea of thieves lacks the clashing of melee weapons and overly represents guns. Melee weapon variety is something I and many players have waited for since the game’s release, and we hope it gets reconsidered despite the prior objections to it.
If anyone has any feedback (even negative or constructive feedback) I encourage you to reply. If anyone has any other melee weapon suggestions I would love to hear about them. Even if the developers have no interest in incorporating any of these ideas, I’m interested in hearing what the community thinks, and if anyone has any cool weapon concepts.
