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[Neonivek]

When I first launched the game I had a quartermaster + captain and 1000 gold.  Now whenever I make a new character I only start with captain + 600 gold.  What determines this?  I tried to roll for the rich trait but that doesn't seem to do anything.  Finding it really hard to get off the ground in this game, hiring guys is super expensive and attacking random boats doesn't make much money, especially when during boarding my guys can get knocked into the water and die.

That start only happens a few times... and then it never happens again.

Shame because I actually liked that start too as it gives you a bit more options from the getgo... rather than the 600 gold start of "Lets raid the islands and hope we can win!" or "Lets hope that rank 1 ship has only two people" or "Lets hope that fighter actually comes with a decent weapon"

[alexpoysky]

We are currently taking people's opinions on our learning curve easer in. The easier start only happens gradually 5 times, then stops at 600 gold. It's meant as a way to ease a new player into the hardcore madness that is PP. If it's hated we can keep the quartermaster and gold in permanently but we don't want the game to be TOO easy now do we!

[Tnx]

Thing is when people are first starting out, they usually mess up that advantage due to bugs or inexperience.  My second run my whole crew was on an enemy ship and I used the command "pillage/scuttle".  It blew up that ship and my whole crew drowned.

[ahappydude]

Tnx i tjhink one of the devs wrote that you needed to be carefull and back on your ship

[alexpoysky]

The game WILL try to kill you, it's the dwarven way.....

[hemmingjay]

Great job on the publicity Alex! The game is getting the attention it deserves now.

[Neonivek]

If it's hated we can keep the quartermaster and gold in permanently but we don't want the game to be TOO easy now do we!

Well currently the early game is as easy as trying to water ski with poisonous snakes attached to your feet and all the water replaced by boiling acid.

I actually find the immediate start of the game to be just about the toughest part of the entire game. Since whether you live or die is entirely based on what you can immediately buy on that first island. The difficulty curve is a parabola with a vertical asymptote at 0.

Actually a lot of things seem to just be the luck of a dice.

Mind you, I am pretty sure it is because the game isn't done yet.

[Tnx]

Yeah, at this point I've been rerolling till I have 800 gold and start off with a cutlass.  Then I see if that I can hire about 3 guys with that money,  and make sure they started with good weapons.  After that, I sail around and hope for a random encounter with 2-3 guys.  So far I've not gotten past this point.

Alot of people seem to be using save games from a guy who edited his file to have a bunch of food/blocks/money at the ready.  It's lame that that's the solution just to experience more of the game.

[Cthulufaic]

HNNNNNNNNNNG.  Just saw this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cA0uaUKqlVs

I forsee great amounts of publicity in your future.

[Neonivek]

Alot of people seem to be using save games from a guy who edited his file to have a bunch of food/blocks/money at the ready.  It's lame that that's the solution just to experience more of the game

I might be interested in that... I am kind of tired of losing because there are only level 2 pirates around... or because there is no food shop...

Or because I slid off the boat, or because enemies teleported onto my ship and held it in limbo, or because I took over a ship and forgot to disassemble my old one, or because the chest I needed for supplies had nothing useful in it, or because I bumped into a pirate who wasn't a level 1, or because I took a single loss (which in the early game... pretty much means you restart).

---

The odd thing is the way the start is set up it seems quite clear that is it one of those "learning the ropes" sort of parts of the game. Since a lot of the features are either missing or VERY undesirable. You will not have a full compliment of crew for a very long time and so it is about using each individual member to their fullest. Heck many ship features won't even appear in the early game.

Yet the way the difficulty curve is, it is like it never actually intends you to get past the start. The only way to advance through the game at the start is to hire VERY specific crewmen and make sure to give them weapons (since knives suck in the early game). Then you only can fight level 1 pirates which don't always appear or appear in large quantities and then fight on islands of which you don't know what is there, or how strong it is, until you get there. Meaning that the only way to know you can survive an encounter is to attempt it (And you absolutely MUST get a few islands under your belt immediately or else you starve to death). You MUST keep every crewman you can, since losing one can lose you the game this early.

Then you need to go back and buy food because that runs out fairly quickly. The money you get might afford you one or MAYBE two crewmen... but you still won't be able to take on level 2 ships... and they will be a lot more numerous then the level 1s at this point. Ohh and you better make sure you got enough for morale.

And even with all that you can easily die to just terrible stat combinations, enemies who are stronger than they appear, or just being dunked in water while boarding the enemy ship.

Meaning getting past the early game feels like I am trying to accomplish perfect runs while blindfolded.

---

Also do fishermen do anything?

[ahappydude]

Sounds like a lame savegame hack, enjoy the game instead...
Haha well fisherman, maybe, i suppose, fish? You have to buy a fishing rod, and after that you never need to buy food

[Neonivek]

Sounds like a lame savegame hack, enjoy the game instead...
Haha well fisherman, maybe, i suppose, fish? You have to buy a fishing rod, and after that you never need to buy food

Fishermen are stupid

And by that I mean, they clearly lack mental ability.

[Tnx]

Here's link to post: http://www.piracysim.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=56

Direct link to the saves: http://www.piracysim.com/forum/attachment.php?aid=5

[ahappydude]

Keep that savefile for yourself man ..
That first link tough, is a nice guide for those new to the game =)

Well i wouldnt say that, maybe you have built your ship and placed your fishingrod wrong then they get stuck sometimes. Other then thats its really nice to save trups buying food.(y)

[Neonivek]

No I mean it is dumb that the Fishermen actually need you to do their own job. I can see why they were wasting their lives at the bar.

From a game balance view it makes sense since a fisherman at the start would eliminate a Huge chunk of the starting difficulty in that you can have no food at the start.