General design discussion

[Captain Jack]

Forthcoming Updates

First, we got the announced ones: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1841
Secondly, we are currently implementing approved user suggestions.

Guilds must be improved

We want more features for guilds. Guilds are easily the core element of socialism in this game and we want to see their role upgraded in order to improve this aspect of the game. Though remember, if you end up to marry anyone you meet here, you will need to keep playing

Suggestions that improve guilds are welcomed. An idea we had (not sure if I posted it anywhere) was guild-owned structures that bestow special traits to all its members. These structures will be 1)Expensive 2)Built through collaborative effort 3)Indestructible and 4)Limited in categories (ie defensive, offensive, trading, political etc) and each guild will pick up to 2 categories (specialization in short)

Free Trade

More free trade options are needed. We want to see more player to player trade. Perhaps we will need to add more things to trade perhaps.

Mining

We need to expand resources production till all resources are produced from players. We have food from fishing. We have gold bars from Goldsmiths. Next in turn can be Iron from Mining.

Mining should have a completely different model than anything we have in the game. Mining could be possible in the following ways:
1)You could mine with turns (similar to porter - low turnout instant delivery)
2)You could mine by hiring workers (low turnout again - gold for iron in real time production which means slow production over time). Workers could be upgradable npcs with their own personality and attributes. They could be sold and bought from other players, similarly as players in team sports (ie football).
3)You could mine by setting up construction companies. These companies could be either player owned, or guild owned or nation owned (too early to decide). No matter ownership, they could be like public companies - they could have stocks and a "CEO" to manage them (upgrades, workforce,etc).

Especially if we got for #2 and #3 options, then we can incorporate the same model for the rest of resources. This way the stock market and transfer market will be big enough to be interesting. This will create many unique and new professions (for example, someone might want to train and sell top workers).

To blend it well with the current game, we can put extra plunder earnings whenever you plunder a ship; if the owner of a ship has stocks, then you can plunder some stocks of him. If he has workers, you might plunder a worker (random, rare chance). In this way, a strictly trading feature will also have great interest for pirates.

Community development

Our community is getting more busy than ever. We want to build on this. The better our community, the stronger the game will be. Any suggestions to improve socialization within the game, even romance (btw, even npc romance needs improvement) are welcomed. Communication tools suggestions are welcomed too.

[Admiral Nelson]

For community discussion, maybe a better chat box system?

In a game I use to play (discontinued ) there was a Group Chat, Sector chat and guild chat.

Guild chat, Group Chat could apply here, but the sector chat would be for everybody to communicate

[Stan Rogers]

I have been crying for months/years for the ability of a guild to have a treasury perhaps financed through a percentage of plunder earnings (chosen, variable). Encouraging new members through financial assistance is one of the best ways to promote guild teamwork and loyalty not to say how it would improve the mortality rate of new players who's meager income when first starting is a bit of a downer.

[DezNutz]

You could turn Guilds into pseudo-corporations.

[Haron]

First a small, yet funny typo: "Guilds are easily the core element of socialism in this game...". I assume you mean socialization

OK, now on to the other topics.

GUILDS: First, I'd like to say that I really enjoy the guilds. I think guilds provide lots of value, if not through game mechanics. In fact, I don't think game mechanics are needed to appreciate the value of guilds.

That said, what about a "guild treasury"? Honestly, I don't really see the big point, since we can transfer money through banks. Also, it would be another place to hide gold. IF, however, such things are implemented, I hope they will come with limitations. Like not be accessible when under Blackmail. Preferrably, I think it should somehow be linked to a bank, like a "corporate account" or something.

Other things I personally would like in a guild, was for senior members (over a certain power threshold) to be able to see the fleets and voodoo chests of other guild members - like free access to spies and crystal balls used on guild members. Also, an option to give voodoo cards to guild members (with a 24H delay), would be a very powerful option. Then, appropriate voodoo cards could be distributed before major attacks. Mind you, this could become quite powerful.

However, it is important that guilds do not become so close and get so many options that being in a guild with many players from every time zone makes you virtually impossible to hit, because there is always someone there to protect you. Generosity, and the ability to see active voodoo and guild battles, already goes a long way (too long, perhaps) in achieving this.

FREE TRADE: Really, voodoo cards should be sold on a "stock market", where you put a certain amount for sale at a certain price. Or you put a buy order for a certain amount at a certain price. Also, "credit cents" are needed to put more correct prices on cards - and to allow for the "system" to tax trade. I still think a 24H delivery time should be in place, to avoid instant access to voodoo cards from the market.

Another "free trade" option that would be nice, is the ability to sell goods from one player's warehouse to another players warehouse. Say I need to build ships, and don't want to waste time trading goods to and fro, I could instead buy the goods I needed from another player at that port. For his asking price. This would be even more useful if goods were used for more things than today - like maybe a toolmaker to make tools from wood and iron, for instance.

MINING: Now, this sounds fun. And there are so many possible ways to do this. I would like the mining to be constructed so that one has to make tradeoffs between trading and mining. Like, say, captains are somehow used for mining (overseers?). That way, you have to decide where your captains are best spent: Trading or mining.

For example: You need to build mines. Mines are manned by crew, and one captain is needed for each mine (much like a ship). These mines generate a certain amount of iron pr. hour (much like fishing). This is a very simple suggestion, and perhaps not different enough from fishing (since you asked for a completely different model from anyhting else in the game); but it's a way of forcing players to do a tradeoff between trading and mining/fishing.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: As part of the community, I'll do my best do be a better me. No promises, though - and I'll probably still be a "Forum Rambler". Sorry about that.

[Meliva]

For example: You need to build mines. Mines are manned by crew, and one captain is needed for each mine (much like a ship). These mines generate a certain amount of iron pr. hour (much like fishing). This is a very simple suggestion, and perhaps not different enough from fishing (since you asked for a completely different model from anyhting else in the game); but it's a way of forcing players to do a tradeoff between trading and mining/fishing.

if we do need an overseer for a Mine it should be a new type of officer. Captains are already rather expensive, maybe a new officer called Overseer. and this officer could be used in mines and other future resource producers.

[Haron]

Yes, the POINT of my suggestion is that captains are expensive: You can't afford enough captains to do BOTH a lot of mining AND a lot of trading; you'll have to choose. I think that is much better than being able to do everything - good trade off situations make good games, in my opinion.

[John jacob astor]

3)You could mine by setting up construction companies. These companies could be either player owned, or guild owned or nation owned (too early to decide). No matter ownership, they could be like public companies - they could have stocks and a "CEO" to manage them (upgrades, workforce,etc)

I am strongly in favor of the companies being guild owned

[Sebena]

Yes, the POINT of my suggestion is that captains are expensive: You can't afford enough captains to do BOTH a lot of mining AND a lot of trading; you'll have to choose. I think that is much better than being able to do everything - good trade off situations make good games, in my opinion.

I disagree with this because what captains do in mines nothing unles we get new ship called mine. Captains in history never did anything else then being captain when they didn't work they would be with families or in tavern drinking rum and having fun with "friends of the night"

[Haron]

Sure. And voodoo happened regularly to everyone. I'm aiming for a certain game mechanic here - the tradeoff. If you like, see it like this:

Captains are hired from a certain layer of the population. Not the nobility, but competent, trustworthy, men, who can handle responsibility. There are limits to how many such people there ARE in the population. Thus, every time you hire a captain, hiring the next captain becomes more difficult, and thus more expensive. Overseers needs to be hired from this same layer of the population. This means that for every captain you have hired, hiring an overseer becomes more expensive, too.

It is possible to divide them of course. You have a certain amount of captians, and a certain number of overseers. Then the captains will never be working in the mines. However, if so, I suggest the PRICE for overseers and captains are linked. Meaning that the price for your next captain/overseer is based on the total number of captains plus overseer you already own. This would maintain the tradeoff I seek.