Only really have one issue with Season 17, other than that, it's great!

  • My only gripe with the new season really is that the Smuggler's League don't have fully fledged trading company mechanics with a rep system. It feels like a real missed opportunity to add something a little different to the seas in terms of risk versus reward.

    Given that the Smuggler's League are flying below the radar, an emissary flag system doesn't really make sense in worldbuilding terms, but it'd be super interesting if there was the full 500 levels of rep with associated rewards, and a way to bonus your loot drop offs to gain extra gold and reputation.

    For instance, the game has a day/night cycle that isn't really used beyond timing for Merchant Alliance drop offs and super pretty, cinematic sunrises and sunsets - it'd be interesting and a lot more challenging if you had to pick your illict cargo up at night, and then wait for nightfall and time it right to deliver and receive a full Emissary Grade V style loot multipler on it.

    Dropping off the loot as fast as possible during the day would still get you the flat value, but if you waited "until the tide was right" at night, between certain in game hours, you'd get a bonus for dropping it off discreetly under the cover of darkness. Given that the day/night cycle in game last twenty-four minutes, you could be given specific instructions to drop it off on a particular date in a few days time, just to add to the risk of having such volatile cargo on board.

    Anything just to make it a little more fleshed out and fun, really, with the added challenge of having to keep your Smuggler's League loot on your ship and undamaged (or in some cases unexploded x_X) until the next nightfall, while you're noodling around doing other things, or getting yourself into trouble.

    Not sure if anyone reads these much, but yeah... my own two penneth. Other than wanting a little more from the Smuggler's League, great season so far :3

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  • My only gripe with the new season really is that the Smuggler's League don't have fully fledged trading company mechanics with a rep system

    I believe that is on purpose.
    We have 6 factions with rep system and flags. That is fairly a lot already and players struggle with just the original 3, adding HC and giving them a flag along with own voyages, we all seen the feedback.

    Along with that, sovereign. Able to sell Smuggled goods? Yeah no.

    Story wise? Lore? Not having a system to level up make sense. It more free gold, better almost and a straight path to 6 locations to deliver stolen “smuggled” goodies.

    I hope to see non faction like players of npc who offer services with no grade, flags, or Rep

  • Along with that, sovereign. Able to sell Smuggled goods? Yeah no.

    Oh, I'm not at all advocating for the ability to sell smuggled loot through the Sovereigns.

    As I said in my original post, the only issue I have is with the lack of rewards in terms of levelling and rep.

    I love the fact that the selling mechanic more closely resembles that of the Reapers. It makes total sense given the theme of the faction.

  • I'm glad they don't have a faction and separate reputation. That seems like a lazy way to introduce more treadmills to goad players into playing unhealthy amounts rather than implementing fun mechanics that you want to do because they are fun. I also preferred when the caps only increased because there was new content for those companies and hate the distinction system.

    I don't think the Smuggler's implementation is quite where it needs to be but hopefully they don't abandon it and move onto something else like they tend to do. It needs a bunch of fixes to the current content and has potential for expanding to more routes or other types of voyages.

  • Tbh, I'm okay with them not having levels to grind and and emissary. They are supposed to be a stealthy "faction", so an emissary doesn't make sense on them. Their hideouts are fantastic, also I love the dialogues and the lore. The voyages are too basic, tho. Doesn't really feel you are smuggling. Also, the marked on the map route doesn't aboslutely make sense. Ok, you need to spice things up for pvp, but that can be done organically since there are only 6 selling points. With season 18 I hope they get expanded and modified since they are an interesting "faction". It would also be cool to implement the Dark Brethren as a playable faction without levels like them and maybe have some sort of business between them. I already think Lottie's secret customer could be them or Demarco.

  • I like that the commendations are not too grindy and the smuggler caves/ NPCs are a nice foundation to build on and perhaps get more voyages added (search for a CoF please).
    Plunder Valley really needs an NPC on the beach.
    The voyage is not too much of a time/effort commitment to feel aggrieved if the drop off IS contested and it means I am more likely to replay after the commendations are completed.
    Loot from skelly ships and shipwrecks is excessive but I guess it is just the season launch splurge and will get balanced down.

    Keg Rowie is a nice addition to the sandbox. Devastating for a dock and detonate tuck play.
    Will probably be nerfed - a galley sunk in seconds. I don't think any other kegs were involved.

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