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Sailing: My Two GPs

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Cleon III
Apr Member 2023

Cleon III

Posts: 7 Bronze Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
Watching the recent Sailing Navigation livestream had me think about what I'd personally like to see as a sailing skill, if I was helping design something like that, interesting gameplay loops, replayability, multiplayer interactivity, etc. - So taking that into consideration, here's my outline of what I'd love to see in a sailing skill in OSRS.

Ship Customization Options

With so many resources available to us, it'd be a waste not to utilize these to create some interesting and unique ships for players. Designs could impact ship speed, durability, cargo capacity (as mentioned as a potential mechanic in the stream), and effectiveness in combat.

From nails, to wood, glass, ore, leather, gems, animal hide, monster drops such as Boss Heads, bones, etc. we have so many options on hand to be used.

Treasure Hunts

It's tough to create a sailing skill and to not include something to do with treasure huntin, from integration with clue scrolls (or a new unique variant of them for sailing), to hauling things out of the sea, this is something I think would be crucial for making the skill feel true to the idea of sailing and piracy.

Crew Management

Crew management is already something we see in many MMOs and RPGs, FTL, Sea of Thieves, RimWorld, and it's a fun way to continue utilizing npcs from the world in other ways, players would do contracts and favours for certain NPCs to obtain their labour on their ships. I especially love the idea of contracts (which I give credit to ScreteMonge , as that's where I first saw its usage mentioned with the sailing skill.)

I think another would be to allow using clan members and friends list members as options. This would make the skill feel more alive, and it would be fun to sail out with your friends. I also think this is a more conservative way to make it feel more social.

16-May-2023 12:24:00 - Last edited on 16-May-2023 12:26:21 by Cleon III

Cleon III
Apr Member 2023

Cleon III

Posts: 7 Bronze Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
Combat
With combat, I think it's tricky to appease everyone. Many people will likely want a non-combat oriented skill, and many will want the opposite. But I think as long as you can train the skill, and it's fun to do so without combat, both sides could be happy. Cannons are an obvious choice, but also instance-based ship raids (I'm thinking Puzzle Pirates-esque or so). Where depending on how you did on the waters (Cannon hits, good maneuvering, etc), would impact the enemy's combat readiness. Maybe morale is low after their ship was hit too many times, or they are tired after chasing you for so long.

From small-scale encounters like that to larger scale raid-like sytems, or boss fight (we've already got Kraken, Hydra, so maybe... Scylla? Sirens? Calypso? We've got Karamthulhu so who knows >.> )

Mechanics such as ship health, repair, positioning, boarding, environmental hazards, would all be interesting options to include. Enemy variety based on location, and crew management coming into play would also be something I wish would be included.


Trading and Chartering

Ports mean charters, and charters mean trading! While there are also a bunch of ways this could be handled, I think keeping it simple would be great. For me personally, it's unlikely sailing from place to place would be an exciting, fun or good way to "make money" in an MMO, ultimately to me it would feel too repetitive and a bit tedious, which is why I think this could be a great 'idle' aspect of the skill. Use your crew to send them out to different ports with various goods (that would sell for different amounts to different ports, supply and demand), check back in after x hours to haul your rewards. This also means that specific crew member won't be able to help out during your battles on the sea, but what it does mean is the ability to have crew members who could specialize in trading instead of combat.

16-May-2023 12:24:13 - Last edited on 16-May-2023 12:41:42 by Cleon III

Cleon III
Apr Member 2023

Cleon III

Posts: 7 Bronze Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
... creating this as an 'idle' mechanic could post threats such ass
- Players feeling they have to do 'chores' every day to keep up
- Perhaps doesn't feel like 'core' runescape

But it's a tried and true system in my eyes, and while that doesn't always mean it's good, I think it's a nice way and small dopamine boost every now and then. It means players will have to be clever about their crew management, maybe sending a combat-focused person to trade yields less rewards, or maybe that NPC doesn't specialize in silk trading? It's in general a great way to add a nice small replayability feature for the skill that isn't too demanding.

Expeditions

Navigating to new players, new islands, dungeons or maybe secret locations is a great way to have the player learn about the world, and also to expand the world if that's something that might be needed. While maybe we don't need a whole new panda race no one knew about until now, it could still allow players to interact with the world in a new way. With some locations being locked behind higher sailing levels due to rough waters, or deadly NPC encounters. This I think could play really well into future content releases, a new island with new agility courses? New fish for cooking? New bosses, quests.

-------------------------------------

Replayability Can it be continually done over x hours without feeling monotonous?
Interactivity Does it have a good balance of active interactions, 'afk' when needed, and interesting UI / player engagement?
Discovery Does it feel exciting? Am I being rewarded for my time?

I think these are the core tenets of a 'sailing' skill, as I view it in my head, and it's what I think would make/break the skill.

16-May-2023 12:24:19 - Last edited on 16-May-2023 20:01:15 by Cleon III

Cleon III
Apr Member 2023

Cleon III

Posts: 7 Bronze Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
Level 1: Construct basic dinghy (1 crew)
Level 5: Navigate calm waters / Learn to fish at sea
Level 10: Construct a sloop (2 crew, small size)
Level 13: Basic ship repair
Level 15: Unlock ship contracts
Level 15: Recruit basic crew
Level 18: Ability to engage with small sea creatures in combat
Level 20: Construct a dhow (2 crew, small size, small cargo)
Level 30: Intermediate fishing techniques
Level 31: Ability to spot caves
Level 40: Construct a Schooner (3 crew, medium size, small cargo)
Level 40: Intermediate ship repair
Level 42: Intermediate ship contracts
Level 45: Navigate rough waters
Level 50: Ability to engage with medium sea creatures in combat
Level 50: Unlock treasure hunting
Level 53: Extra cargo capacity
Level 55: Discover hidden dungeons
Level 50: Construct a Brigantine (long-distance trade, 5 crew, large, large cargo)
Level 50: Construct a Caravel (exploration, 5 crew, large, small cargo)
Level 55: Discover sunken treasure
Level 50: Recruit medium crew
Level 58: Advanced fishing techniques
Level 60: Construct a Galleon (combat, 5 crew, large, medium cargo)
Level 65: Advanced ship contracts
Level 65: Recruit rare crew
Level 70: Construct a Longship (combat, 7 crew, large, no cargo)
Level 70: Traverse dangerous waters
Level 75: Ability to engage with large sea creatures in combat
Level 80: Advanced ship repair
Level 80: Ability to smuggle treasure/cargo (thieving requirement)
Level 85: Construct a Merchant Brigantine (trade 7 crew, large, large cargo)
Level 85: TBC

16-May-2023 12:24:25 - Last edited on 16-May-2023 13:20:18 by Cleon III

Cleon III
Apr Member 2023

Cleon III

Posts: 7 Bronze Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
Level 85: Elite fishing techniques
Level 85: Construct a Xebec (Trade and Exploration, 7 crew, large, huge cargo)
Level 87: Discover ancient ruins
Level 90: Elite ship contracts
Level 90: Construct Man-of-War (Combat and Exploration, 7 crew, large, large cargo)
Level 90: Elite ship repair
Level 92: Recruit elite crew
Level 92: Ability to engage with legendary sea creatures in combat
Level 95: Navigate deadly waters
Level 95: Legendary treasure hunting expeditions
Level 95: Construct a Frigate (War frigate and Grand Frigate, 8 crew, large, large cargo, combat and trade)

16-May-2023 12:24:34 - Last edited on 16-May-2023 13:29:06 by Cleon III

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