Ghost Ships & Legend of the Sea of Thieves Commendation

@dekeita I never said easy. Not once. I said reasonable. I and many other players think it's not currently reasonable. You say it is. I proposed a potential solution that doesn't even involve changing the number. You haven't proposed any sort of compromise to meet me halfway. Seems like I'm not the one unwilling to compromise. You can still have massive grinds for titles and achievements that will show your dedication to the game. Isn't that what you want?

Also yes, I don't think any artist for this game should be spending time making cosmetics that only .001% of the community will ever see, let alone be able to enjoy in game. Sounds like a waste of resources to me.

@thund3rstruck57 why shouldn't there also be cosmetics attached to long grinds? Also pirate legend is no longer a sign that they have played alot. Its absurdly easy to get nowadays. Commendations in this game weren't designed to be completed right away. This game was designed to have a 5 year plus life. it would have been awesome if every grade 5 commendation had a unique cosmetic as well as title. I mean how many people have completed 50 fruit(banana) crates on time? what if it gave you a really neat hat?

500 skelly ships is pretty easy to do, all it requires is some time. Emissaries have only made it easier, not only does sinking a ship give good emissary rank, they also drop way more loot then they used to.

@captain-coel Because new content with new challenges keeps things fresh. Long grinds make things tedious for a lot of people. A simple solution is make long grinds easier to push through as more time passes (like the journey to pirate legend as you said) by applying the new content to them. Cosmetics are the main progression and shouldn't be borderline unobtainable for a majority of the playerbase.

@dekeita You make a fair point. One prestigious category does seem a bit limiting. If they were to add more non-cosmetic categories to grind for, would that seem like a fair compromise? Badges, banners, etc?

@dekeita Special emotes?

@thund3rstruck57 They are not unobtainable, this game is designed to be played for years. What if there were cosmetics for killing 1 million skeletons, would that hurt the game? And you advocate for just titles for the long commendations, how do you even pick a title these days? I have 248 titles. I can change it daily for just over 8 months and not repeat.

What if we used the less used cosmetic options for long grind. Scars and Curses, there are only 3 of each.

@captain-coel Eh scars and curses are still cosmetic. I think players should be able to make their pirate and ship look how they want without year long grinds. That way they can actually enjoy playing the game with said cosmetics, adding more visual diversity to the game. If they spend years doing a tedious task, they'll just get frustrated and lose interest and leave the game to play something else. We're all here because we love SoT. None of us want to see players leave because of monotony. Make the main progression reasonable and keep mixing it up so players can keep chasing the newest stuff. That is how you keep the game fresh and the playerbase thriving.

Stuff like titles, badges, banners, special emotes, special dialogue wheel options, etc. could be utilized to show prestige.

@dekeita Oof well I guess you're done in this conversation then if nothing I can say will change your already closed mind. Such a shame coming from a fellow year 1 PL. For a while there I was impressed by your debate skills, although you kind of admitted at the end there that precedent is on my side in this argument. Oh well. See you on the seas if you stick around!

No need to combine them or lessen the task it takes to obtain that commendation.

Add new cosmetics at lower tiers, but don't take away the long distance ones.

You, personally, may not prefer it that way - but there are plenty of other cosmetics to be had. This game is about serving many, many different types of players with differing interests, motivations, and preferences. Some things that exist within this game will appeal to some players, and that will be at the expense of other players. And the reverse is true as well.
The developers have done a good job of keeping the balance more in favour of the quicker rewards, while having a few tasks/rewards that cater to the opposite side of the spectrum. And you're suggesting to change one of those few longterm rewards into a quicker reward.

Just as many of us have done, play the game and let those longterm achievements come as they may.

You're only focusing on one aspect - that YOU WANT those cannons. And you don't want it to take as much effort (and time) as it currently does.
And maybe the balance isn't right for YOU, but it IS right for some.
Some who want those cannons, as well, WILL enjoy taking that time and effort to obtain the rewards - and this will give them some focus, reason to keep playing, and continue their fun in the game.

The game isn't just made for me, you, or that guy sitting over there reading this right now. It's made for a whole crazy assortment of us. And not everything is about you or I.

Also, I'd hope there are new commendations specific to the Ghost Ships. And I'd love to see a longterm one for them. And maybe a commendation and reward for doing BOTH. That'd be cool, in my opinion.

Plus, I'd hope to see some easier rewards involved with them as well.

Cosmetics are the most desired rewards, and sometimes it is wise for the devs to use those to entice people to keep plugging away at some things.

It's also great to have rare cosmetics in the game that acknowledge the story behind that player having them. One look at certain ship cosmetics and I know that the player who equipped those things was on these seas during a particular event. Or I know they achieved a long-earned reward. This gives meaning and context to cosmetics that really makes this game feel like a living world.

@thund3rstruck57

The game already has been nerfed enough hope the ghost ships have their own commendations and don't count for the legendary cannons

@electricknights I appreciate your passion for the game but an overwhelming majority of players I've spoken to in game agree that some cosmetic challenges, like the 500 skelly ships and 240 arena wins, are way too grindy. I just hope the devs understand that the very small percentage of people that want grinds to be as long and tedious as possible are the ones on the forums, not the core playerbase. No single cosmetic should take 100 hours to unlock.

@electricknights Also, it's not just that I want the cannons and other cosmetics locked behind ridiculous grinds. I want the community at large to be able to enjoy them more.

@captainstab1n Well that's precedent for making long grinds easier the longer they are in the game so that more players may get to enjoy the cosmetics (just later than the people who grinded them early). I just hope the devs continue that precedent.

@thund3rstruck57 said in Ghost Ships & Legend of the Sea of Thieves Commendation:

@electricknights Also, it's not just that I want the cannons and other cosmetics locked behind ridiculous grinds. I want the community at large to be able to enjoy them more.

The point I am stating is that not every reward is for the majority of players. There are very few that aren't, but those few have not been added in accidentally. And it's not necessarily a mistake to have a few such rewards.

@electricknights I highly doubt a majority of the playerbase would unlock the cannons even if ghost ships kills were part of the count. Casual players sure wouldn't and there's a lot of them. It would just make it more attainable for people who play the game regularly.

@electricknights "There are very few that aren't, but those few have not been added in accidentally."

The devs seemed to think 240 arena wins was an accident and were going to change it to 100 wins until people viciously attacked them on the forums. It's a shame that they caved since it negatively impacted arena. More people would definitely be playing it today if the win goal was reasonably obtainable. People look at 240 wins now and say "why bother" so they don't even try. That makes me very sad since arena can be very fun. And all that because people demanded a more tedious grind, which is beyond my understanding.

@thund3rstruck57 said in Ghost Ships & Legend of the Sea of Thieves Commendation:

@electricknights "There are very few that aren't, but those few have not been added in accidentally."

The devs seemed to think 240 arena wins was an accident and were going to change it to 100 wins until people viciously attacked them on the forums. It's a shame that they caved since it negatively impacted arena. More people would definitely be playing it today if the win goal was reasonably obtainable. People look at 240 wins now and say "why bother" so they don't even try. That makes me very sad since arena can be very fun. And all that because people demanded a more tedious grind, which is beyond my understanding.

That's because you define it as tedious. Others do not.
For the record, the 240 wins is one I also find to be tedious. So, I don't work on it. I get my wins when I feel like it. And, maybe, some day I might unlock that. That said, I am fine with it existing as it is. I didn't object when they said they were going to lower it, but I also didn't object when they left it as is.

The 500 skeleton ships is far easier than the 240 Arena wins. And does not feel tedious to me. It was just a longterm goal. Eventually, I found my numbers were approaching it, and I focused on it from time to time, when I felt like it. Others went after it right away until they got it. Others are still slowly getting closer. All different types. Playing the same game. No one is right or wrong.

Anyway, the Ghost Ships should play out very different than the Skeleton Ships. And they shouldn't be combined. Separate commendations, and rewards, would be more befitting.

Regardless, best of luck! :)

@electricknights You as well. See you on the seas!

@thund3rstruck57
It's already easy enough some of us had to do 50 plus skele ships before this commendation was even added when you had to sail to each corner of the map and hope the event didn't despawn.... plus there was no sloop skele ships back then or skele ships just sailing around by themselves it's been nerfed enough just play the game and the cosmetics will come in time stop begging for it to made easier...

@captainstab1n Ya I remember those days. I've got the green check mark next to cursed sails and everything. And I'm not begging. Merely trying to suggest something to the devs.

@thund3rstruck57 looks like rare wants ghost ships to be special. New Xbox Achievement "Scourge of the Damned" is for killing 500 ghost ships.

@thund3rstruck57 I agree with you here honestly. The balance with PL cosmetics is kind of absurd. Free PL outfit but the matching ship and weapons take ages?

But if thats being changed titles should be prestigious 100%. With no ranking system at all I want something to show off. Heck I don't even want the cannons. "Legend of the Sea of Thieves" has to be the most bada** title in the game and I want to show that off.

@thund3rstruck57 I want to agree with you but I can now say after doing just 5 new ghost fleet voyages me and a friend sunk 98 ships. Also we didn't go for all just the essential. Adding them on for the commendation would honestly make hunter of the dawn caller more unique.

@captain-coel If ghost ships are so much easier to kill why is the number the same? Doesn't sound that special to me.

@easyguy Damn well if that's the case and Rare wants 500 ghost ship kills it definitely seems like 500 skelly ships is way too much of a grind.

@captain-coel Oof, I just checked it out. The only cosmetics are tied to defeating the burning blade and selling ghost captain skulls, which seem like reasonable numbers for cosmetics. The 500 ghost ship sinks is just for a title. Looks to me like Rare doesn't want to make the same mistake they made with the skelly ship grind.