Pirate Rankings and Bonuses

[Haron]

Do not see traders as the only ones who wish to engage in port control and national politics. I do not want to reserve that pay of the game for traders. It should be possible to do that as a pirate as well, and that will not be the case of pirate perks are tied to the black flag, while other nations only get trader perks.

[Most Lee Harmless]

It is no doubt a great perk to remove the turns requirements for skirmishes. It would help pirates a lot, and make skirmish tech a valuable technology.

However, they would still be governed by the number of skirmish points. And the most lucrative element of the game, trading, require no turns at all, which is the reason traders can do so much trading, and why it's so much more lucrative than piracy, which is limited by turns (and skirmish points).

You are missing the limiter : turns limits how much you can do : that applies to all of us : now, you could play in such a way as to reduce the number of turns you need spend daily : you could buy your ships at market instead of build them : not use trade voodoo : not treasure hunt : not speed-up builds or research : not farm NPC's : not attack other players : not do nation missions : then you would have 144 turns a day to use on something else : maybe skirmishes : the point is, we all have to make choices as to how we use the turns we can get : the merchant has to decide : build more ships ? Or cast beneficial voodoo? Build trade ships? Or build escorts? The pirate gets to choose too : Cast voodoo? Or hit whats already lit? Or skirmish? Or speed-up a tech? Or develop the marina? Everyone has limited turns, everyone needs more, everyone must choose : that's part of the game, pirates included.

If the pirate does nothing else : they acquire 144 turns a day to use : that's 36 attacks : max skirmish tech gives 23 points per day : so, the pirate can use those 23 skirmishes and still have 52 turns left over for another 13 attacks : if the pirate chooses to invest some credits, acquired from the exchange using their plunder to pay for them : they can get another 144 turns per day : thats another 36 attacks : or 196 turns left after maxing out all possible skirmish hits : now, tell me what the pirate can do with those turns, never mind another 92 turns gained from having free skirmishes?

[Vane]

Everyone wants more action, but no one wants to risk their holdings to get it. Pirates drive action and aren't afraid to take risks, yet no one wants pirates around.

I wonder how fun and enjoyable the game becomes without pirates? What happens when they all quit and start trading? Why have any offensive or defensive voodoo then? Why have the ability to add cannons or build warships? I've heard the words "Traders Glory" so many times in my years playing this game and never once felt them more fitting than I do today seeing the direction so many wish to take the game. Quite disappointing really.

[Most Lee Harmless]

I dont wish to take it in that direction : I also dont wish to see the game turn into a free-for-all for pirates with excessive benefits just for flying a certain flag : I reckon pirates can do very well already, if they apply themselves fully to the task of being a pirate : that does take work, thought and patience : it means working out what you could do and tailoring that to the tools at hand, be that ships, turns, cards or on-line time. It means being creative, sneaky, patient, aggressive, sharp and having the ability to throw it all in the air when sudden opportunity arises and quickly adapt what assets you have at that precise moment to take advantage. But it dont mean any god-given right to be able to attack whenever you feel like it, to the extent you feel like without the limitations that bind the rest of us.
I'm of the mind that skirmishing has actually reduced piratical leanings : Its a safety valve for aggression for many : no work required really, just instant hits and instant thrills. No need to gather voodoo, ore recce targets, or plan raids to maximise return... just click, smack, click, smack... hand me a tissue, mother...

[Vane]

The reason for that is all the moaning over ship stealing and how hard it is to keep ships. Skirmishing, turn restriction and all those other features limiting piracy have come about due to traders complaining about raids. Now it is simple to just sit there and watch your fleets move hour by hour and port to port earning gc.... you don't even have to click..... Raids will always need to be planned to maximize return, but to actually earn a profit when the day is over is far more difficult. Skirmishing has allowed a somewhat decent pay scale to be able to afford the voodoo required to complete these raids that hardly pay for themselves in most cases, (They used to, but now back to the limiting factors making it harder and more costly to raid nowadays).. Piracy tech and skirmish tech are wonderful, but no new player / pirate will ever be able to afford them with the current model.

As it stands, earning is nearly impossible for new players wanting to be pirates, I also think this has an affect on player retention. Most people find a game with "Pirate" in the name because they are searching for such a game to entertain themselves with that genre. They happen across one such as this, give it a go and are pushed to be merchants because its easier and more profitable. Now their early stages are spent waiting on turns building ships, getting into debt and losing interest as their original plan has gone 180. If there were perks to being a pirate, (hardly see these bonuses as creating a free for all??), more would take that path to start. More would experience what originally drove them to the game "Pirates".

[DezNutz]

Everyone wants more action, but no one wants to risk their holdings to get it. Pirates drive action and aren't afraid to take risks, yet no one wants pirates around.

I wonder how fun and enjoyable the game becomes without pirates? What happens when they all quit and start trading? Why have any offensive or defensive voodoo then? Why have the ability to add cannons or build warships? I've heard the words "Traders Glory" so many times in my years playing this game and never once felt them more fitting than I do today seeing the direction so many wish to take the game. Quite disappointing really.

I'm quite tired of hearing "Traders/Merchants Glory". Its called Pirates Glory for a reason. The word glory in its use here means "high renown or honor won by notable achievements." Contrary to what society thinks, you don't earn praise and glory for doing something easy. You earn it by accomplishing the difficult. Edison, Einstein, Tesla, etc. earned their "glory", not by taking the easy route, but by pushing the boundaries of their fields and accomplishing the difficult. Pirates are same. Being a pirate is supposed to be difficult, and I find it quite disappointing that players fail to see that succeeding as a pirate in a game where piracy is extremely difficult is the true honor. Thus why it is called Pirates Glory.

That being said, I have no qualms with providing some perks to pirates; however, those perks should not so to speak "level the playing field". If piracy becomes too easy, there will be no glory in it.

[Vane]

Never once did I say level the field. I completely agree it should be difficult and when restrictions were placed on many things I didn't have anything bad to say and I adapted.

My issue comes when simple minor solutions that benefit pirates in the slightest catch so much flack because they do not help the other side.

[DezNutz]

Never once did I say level the field. I completely agree it should be difficult and when restrictions were placed on many things I didn't have anything bad to say and I adapted.

My issue comes when simple minor solutions that benefit pirates in the slightest catch so much flack because they do not help the other side.

My last statement was in general and was not directly toward you. I do understand the frustration, though.

[Most Lee Harmless]

I dont see turn-free skirmishes as being a 'minor' thing : I dont see increasing the number of skirmishes allowed against a single player as being minor either. Skirmishing I find annoying : I objected to it, it got implemented : I nearly quit the game over it because it devalues both attacker and attacked : No skill is required to attack : no defence is allowed to the attacked save to re-inforce their fleets with war-ships and lose cargo capacity and income, as well as gain expense.
I never had an issue with being attacked : if my fleets were lit, thats my fault/problem : if an attacker got past, over, under or thru my defences, fair go to them. Again, inadequate defences were my fault/problem. If I ran high-value fleets on show day after day, with inadequate protection such that another fancied their chances at stealing them, fair go again. My fault/problem.
But how do I stop some-one looking at the gossip page and clicking on a link? I cant : so I must protect all in case of such a random attack : and as the wise old soldier said 'He who defends all, defends nothing'. What skill, or art, or knowledge, or experience is required to open a page and click on a link? None. Any idiot can and does do it.
So, both sides are devalued by skirmishing : the skirmisher needs no skill to attack, the skirmished cannot use any skill to defend.
But, its here and we must live with it or leave. I dont want to see skirmish extended in any way, made any easier or any more profitable : otherwise, we need to start calling the game Idiots Glory.

[Vane]

No simpler than putting 5 trade ships in a fleet and clicking set up trade route, oh wait.. skirmishing needs to be done daily and to hunt bars takes quite a bit of strategy and stalking, I suppose there still is a larger effort put in than watching those fleets move port to port..

If any idiot can skirmish, I suppose anything with a pulse or worse off can trade...


Leave it to Danik to call the entire player base idiots...