This game needs: AI merchant ships.

  • TympanicPurse48

    ~ ~ You don't have to read my gigantic first post to reply here ~ ~
    What do you think about AI ships in the waters?
    Do you think aggressive, anti-pirate crews would convert to the black? (I am/would)

    Heed my call, Ye of little faith, ye pyrates of the realm! Let there be gold on the horizon; For 'tis the sea which is my home, and not the land!

    ABSTRACT: It would be great if Rare could implement some form of AI merchant vessel roaming the game world. Part of being a pirate, after all, is capturing peaceful vessels and taking their gold. Perhaps even take their ship as a prize (doesn't have to be a new ship type).

    Ж There could be, lets say, 2 to 3 merchant vessels roaming the game world (separately).

    Ж Each vessel has crew, but to make the programming easier, it is not necessary to have them operate the sails and other equipment correctly. There is a "sailor" at the helm (the steering wheel), but really the ship is its own AI, which controls both sail parameters and rudder (essentially the ship AI is steering the driver).

    Ж To make things even simpler, the vessel can follow preset "trade routes" at medium speed. Once they notice a player in pursuit, they can divert (flee), and raise the speed (It should be moderately difficult to catch them). The skeleton AI on islands already have a mechanic where they run away so this shouldn't be impossible to implement.

    Ж The ship AI ceases control of the ship, and the "sailors" on the ship become individually acting AI (They act like skeletons but look like sailors), when one of several conditions are met:

    1. Their "captain" (at the helm) is killed.
    2. Their hull integrity at 50%
    3. A player manages to get aboard their ship.

    Ж At this point the merchant vessel will drift, and anchor must be dropped by either an AI sailor or a live player.

    Ж Obviously, the Merchant vessel will contain Chests of gold, various expensive trinkets (that you can sell), and most importantly, Cages with chickens and pigs, which you can sell to the Merchant Alliance so that you don't have to do those dreadfully boring chicken missions.

    Ж Contents and value can vary with difficulty.

    Ж = I’m serious.
    Ψ = I’m spitballin’
    *AI = Not controlled by another player. Much like the skeletons on the islands.

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  • TympanicPurse48

    AI ships are definitely possible. Take ye a gander at AC: Black Flag from 2013:
    alt text

    alt text

    In addition, I have some ideas for future developments:

    Ψ Merchant vessels, although the same ship types as we already have, could have special paint jobs and ornaments, not otherwise attainable (or just expensive ones). This would serve as an extra incentive not to sink the vessel initially.

    Ψ It would be possible to make voyages specifically aimed at capturing vessels.

    Ψ Voyage idea: A “Necromancer”, or “dark priest of death” is travelling west-wards through the realm. Capture the vessel (without sinking it) (Dark Priest is now spawned in the brig), then sail the ship to any outpost and hand over the prisoner to Order of Souls. Rewards: massive exp. with Order of Souls, Access to hidden voyage (with actual money rewards).
    (This is just an example of how to implement the merchant ship system in voyages).

    Ψ Voyage idea: A Baron, or wealthy trading magnate etc., has a wife who has ran away. We track down hidden letters between her and her lover, to discover her travel route (lets say from east to west through the game world). During this time we discover that both the Baron and the mysterious Lover are admirable people, and that the Wife actually plans on double-crossing the both of them, turning them against each-other so she can reap the benefits of her husband’s fortune once he dies.
    Players now track down the ship. When the ship is considered "captured", the female character (The Wife) is spawned in the Brig. Players now vote on whether to give her to the Lover, or the Baron. Each with different rewards and story outcomes (Can still be text based).
    (This is just an example of how to implement the merchant ship system in voyages).

    Ψ Idea for weekly event: A gold encrusted Spanish treasure-galleon, low in the water from the shear mass of her bounty, is sailing westward through the realm. She is guarded by two aggressive escort galleons which have men at all canons and a reinforced hull (Rare: are you adding man-o-wars by the way?). The Escorts must be sunk before the treasure galleon makes it to the other end of the map. It may prove so difficult, that several pirate crews must work together to accomplish this.

  • spiky26x
    Founder

    Perfect. I think the same ;)

  • HorizonLegendo
    Ship Mate

    Agreed! Give us more to do!

  • Shovel Guy 556

    This is actually a really good idea. Cant believe it isnt a part of the game already.

  • Sweltering Nick
    Castaway

    @tympanicpurse48 said in This game needs: AI merchant ships.:

    ~ ~ You don't have to read my gigantic first post to reply here ~ ~
    What do you think about AI ships in the waters?
    Do you think aggressive, anti-pirate crews would convert to the black? (I am/would)

    I personally don't mind AI ships, more supplies and more loot and more challenge on the seas... But Rare has said that they want players to rely on the fact that when they see a ship on the horizon, it's a crew of players, in order for people to be prepared for the worst.

    Because if we add AI ships, players will get confused about whether or not the ship is AI or other players... And wrongly assuming it's an AI could mean your crew doesn't properly prepare for a fight against a player crew... Rare doesn't want players to make that mistake, rare doesn't want players to get frustrated over something they can't properly predict.

    So since Rare are the only ones who know what the future of this game will look like and what kind of dynamic they have in mind between the players who play this game... I'm gonna have to support Rare's decision on this and decline the idea of AI ships.

  • Cpt Custurd
    Marauder
    Insider

    i agree with this highly, take a look at my post in the thread i have some other ideas as well but this is one of them.

  • Shovel Guy 556

    @sweltering-nick What if they change the flags on the pirate ships to black?

  • Sweltering Nick
    Castaway

    @shovel-guy-556 said in This game needs: AI merchant ships.:

    @sweltering-nick What if they change the flags on the pirate ships to black?

    Given the draw distance... that wont help, at all. :P

  • Wodyo

    I seem to recall one (or more) of the developers saying they were against this sort of idea? I could have misunderstood, or I may be twisting the context in my thoughts... but I think they were wanting to have all vessels controlled by players.

    Even still, I like the idea of NPC ships. It could add more variety to the Pirate Legend grind, and serve as a [sort of] training/practice mechanism for combat on the open sea.

  • Veroku Chan
    Master
    Insider

    I like the idea of some sort of AI ships, merchant, pirate, skeleton, etc. I do however think they would need a very different ship model. One that could be just as easily identified by it's silhouette as a sloop or galleon can be.

    So when you spot one of these ships, no matter the distance. An experience player will easily be able to identify it and act accordingly.

    Another thing I've wanted to see was some sort of treasure that spawns inside storms. Give players a reason aside from using a storm as cover to enter it. Higher risk/reward to go into a storm for some hard to obtain treasure, with the additional risk of running right into another player with the same idea. Ship to ship combat in a storm can be quite interesting.

  • Shovel Guy 556

    @sweltering-nick said in This game needs: AI merchant ships.:

    @shovel-guy-556 said in This game needs: AI merchant ships.:

    @sweltering-nick What if they change the flags on the pirate ships to black?

    Given the draw distance... that wont help, at all. :P

    Honestly I think the draw distance is amazing. But I used to play GTA 3 so...

    But anyways, I feel like you can see a flag before you enter effective range.

  • KattTruewalker
    Vanguard
    Insider
    Founder
    Deckhand

    @shovel-guy-556

    It's not part of the game although it's an idea which has had huge support on the forums at certain times, i'm not sure if there are posts you can find using search to see and even a straw poll at one time.

    There was a post by Mike which basically outlined the reasoning behind this -

    https://www.seaofthieves.com/forum/topic/7714/the-world-of-sea-of-thieves-and-an-npc-s-place-in-it

  • Shovel Guy 556

    @KattTruewalker
    The poll is in the most popular section.
    If you mean that Mikes post reasoned against AI ships, can you please point out where he did that? Seems to me its the other way around.

  • stayooriginal
    Marauder
    Insider

    Not sure if it was said or not but..I think in addition to this there should also be merchant ships you run into that cannot be harmed but instead used to turn in your treasure, instead of riding all the way to an outpost. Maybe certain flags to distinguish between the ones you can attack and the ones you can't.

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