An intro to Ship Customization

Ahoy there me hearties!

I have been on test solid since the ship customization hit. Here is my basic guide as to what live will have real soon. First the basics:

Ship materials are obtained from ships sunk at sea. Any Warship can drop a materials chest. Bounty-hunters drop a regular materials chest, and Warships drop Rare materials chests. One chest dropped per ship sunk.

Ye will have to collect these to upgrade ye ship. Regular chests contain pine, canvas, and iron. Rare chests contain oak silk and steel. No idea about grog yet for sure, but me thinks a rare chest.

Ye can customize ye sail colors and add emblems if ye wish. These both cost only gold and the prices vary. Ye can change emblems and sail colors as often as ye have the gold to do so. The emblems come in either black or white. Two have no options, the black widow and skeleton snake.

Ye can also upgrade ye rigging. Rigging upgrades are applied to ye sail skills when ye are on the helm of the ship with the upgrade. Ye can only get a maximum of a +2 skill boost from rigging. Each upgrade path changes the color and texture of the sails. There are three options in rigging upgrades they are:
1. Take Cover
2. Full Sail
3. Open fire

Open fire and take cover require iron, canvas and gold at rank 1. Full sail requires canvas and gold. Rank 2 open fire, and take cover require silk and steel, and gold. Rank 2 Full sail require silk and canvas.

There are three upgrade paths for ship hulls they are:
1. Reinforced (Armor)
2. Cargo
3. Streamline

These upgrades each bestow three levels of benefits.
They are denoted by Roman Numerals. I, II, III

Each upgrade path requires gold and ship materials. The armor path requires a lot of iron at first, then steel. The cargo, and streamline paths require a lot of pine, and then oak. the amount of gold and materials required varies depending on ship type and ship class. For example it costs the least in gold and materials to upgrade a Sloop, and it costs the most to upgrade a War Brig.

You can only take one upgrade path for ye ship, but ye can change paths if ye chose(more on that later). As ye upgrade the stats of ye ship increase and decrease in certain categories. The categories are:

1. Armor
2. Speed
3. Turning
4. Cargo

As upgrades are applied the percentages change on the above categories. A basic hull ship start at 100% in each category. So here is how the stats change for each upgrade:

Reinforced Path:
1. Armor: I = 118% II= 136% III= 154%
2. Speed: I = 95% II= 95% III= 90%
3. Turning: I, II, III =100%
4. Cargo: I, II, III =100%

Cargo Path:
1. Armor: I= 110% II= 114% III= 120%
2. Speed: I, II, III =100%
3. Turning: I, II, III =100%
4. Cargo: I= 125% II= 140% III= 160%

Streamline Path:
1. Armor: I, II, III =100%
2. Speed: I= 110% II= 120% III= 120%
3. Turning: I= 90% II= 100% III= 110%
4. Cargo: I= 85% II= 85% III= 100%

The level IV hulls each have a unique name, and allow ye to fire a percentage of a special broadside. Two level IV hull options are offered at the end of each upgrade path. The are:

1. Armor: Skull and Cross Bones(fury), Copperhead(explosives).
2. Cargo: Treasure Hunter(firebrand), Skull and Cross Bones(fury).
3. Streamline: Stormchaser(thunder), Firestorm(firebrand).

Here are the stats:
Copperhead:
1. Armor 150%
2. Speed 90%
3. Turning 100%
4. Cargo 100%
5. (atm) 5% explosive broadside chance

Skull and Cross Bones:
1. Armor 125%
2. Speed 110%
3. Turning 100%
4. Cargo 100%
5. 15% Fury broadside chance

Fortune Hunter:
1. Armor 120%
2. Speed 110%
3. Turning 110%
4. Cargo 150%
5. 10% Firebrand broadside chance

Firestorm:
1. Armor 100%
2. Speed 114%
3. Turning 120%
4. Cargo 100%
5. 20% Firebrand broadside chance

Stormchaser:
1. Armor 100%
2. Speed 120%
3. Turning 110%
4. Cargo 100%
5. 15% Thunder broadside chance

Once ye have a level IV hull ye can either go back to the level III or go up or down in the level IV choices. the order is:
1. Copperhead
2. Skull and Cross Bones
3. Treasure Hunter
4. Firestorm
5. Stormchaser

So for example if ye have a Fortune Hunter hull and wish to change it ye can chose either Skull and Cross Bones or Firestorm.

Here is what ye can not do:
Ye can not pick what ever color ye want for ye hull. The color scheme is tied to what hull type it is. This is set in stone.

*note*
This will be a living and breathing article. It will be changed as the kinks keep getting worked out till release. Also pics will be added too.

Piet.... my goodness... TY!!!

A guide from the supreme captain himself!! Again, tyvm! Look forward to sailing with you when it hits live!

Hi Piet!!!!

Thank you soooooo much for posting this info about the upcoming ship customization. I was really getting confused and having trouble piecing together all the things I have been hearing about it. So glad you are in there keeping it straight for us all "out here".

Hugs,
Sunny

Holy Cow,

I just wanted a big ship that was tricked out. Didn't know it was going to require college level algebra to calibrate speed and velocity minus mass times pie

No wonder there is so many bugs in test, sounds like the upgrades confused Disney too.

Thanks for the heads up mate. Will start brushing up on me trig and calculus for dummies.

Bubba wrote:Holy Cow,

I just wanted a big ship that was tricked out. Didn't know it was going to require college level algebra to calibrate speed and velocity minus mass times pie

No wonder there is so many bugs in test, sounds like the upgrades confused Disney too.

Thanks for the heads up mate. Will start brushing up on me trig and calculus for dummies.

No math involved my friend on ye part. The math is done for ye!

In simple terms each upgrade adds or subtracts from the ships performance category. A ship as sailed on live right now is 100% in all categories. Now contrast this with my current favorite on my War Brig:
Copperhead:
1. Armor 150%
2. Speed 90%
3. Turning 100%
4. Cargo 100%
5. (atm) 5% explosive broadside chance

So the Copperhead has 50% greater hull armor. Its 10% slower, and the rest is the same. There is a 5% chance that an explosive is fired over the standard round shot. I have landed as many as 4 explosive rounds on a broadside salvo. This epic salvo was fired at a Dreadnought with open fire skill activated. Lets just say it just sunk in a shower of flames! I have also fire broadside salvos that no explosives were fired.

As to the speed reduction I have rank 5 windcatcher in my sail skills. An unmodified Brig has a sail cruising speed of 12 kts. My Copperhead War Brig has a cruising speed of 11 kts.

I have a Streamline III War Sloop. Her cruising speed is 14 kts. That is an 120% for speed.

These new broadsides will do damage consistent with that when ye fire them on a deck cannon. So if ye have max explosives in cannon that is the base damage for ye explosive broadsides. Cannon rams can boost this too. Like the bronze, iron and steel rams do on live right now for broadsides.

I can not wait to customize my ships on live. But if ye sail with me, be prepared to be at sea a long time fighting hunters and warships! Ye been warned!

I already know that when sailing with you the need to pack a lunch and extra rum is always present. Can't wait, we shall be at sea soon I hope.

I am well versed in the long time at sea with Piet, have done several voyages with him on test! Its pure poetry in motion! There is none better I have sailed with! Time flies when your having fun and it is FUN!!!!! Not to mention very very very profitable!!!!