Hello everyone,First of all, I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank all of the players who have continued to share their ideas, suggestions, and feedback with me.The concepts currently being discussed — naval signal systems, limited visibility, messenger boats, delayed information, draft and shallow-water restrictions, and much larger fleet battles — all came from conversations with the community.At first, many of these ideas appeared to be separate suggestions. But as I reviewed them one by one and considered how they could actually work inside the game, I realized that they could all connect into a much larger system.As a result, Ship of the Line is now preparing for its second major leap forward.At the center of this next stage is a new Realistic Battle Mode.
The system currently being actively developed and tested is the Naval Flag Signal System.Please note: the flag signal system is currently being tested in the actual game environment and is not yet a final specification.In the Age of Sail, fleets could not communicate like units in a modern strategy game, where every order is transmitted instantly.The flagship had to hoist signals on its masts, and the other ships had to observe, identify, interpret, and then execute those orders.The current test system uses several types of visual signals:Square Signal Flags / Long Pennants / Swallow-tailed SignalsThese signals can be combined to represent fleet commands such as maneuvering, forming the line of battle, rallying, pursuing, engaging, and other tactical actions.The goal is for signals to be physically hoisted on the flagship during battle, with nearby ships detecting and responding to them.Orders will no longer simply execute instantly.The intended process is closer to:Order Issued → Signal Prepared → Signal Hoisted → Signal Observed → Order Acknowledged → Order ExecutedDistance, cannon smoke, fog, weather, darkness, and even mast damage may eventually affect how quickly and reliably those signals are received.
As I reviewed suggestions from the community, it became clear that the signaling system could go far beyond flags alone.During daylight, communication may also make use of:Cannon-shot signals, musket-shot signals, ship bells, and drums.At night, when flags are difficult or impossible to identify, different methods may be required:Lanterns, torches, signal rockets, and fireworks.Each method can have different limitations in terms of range, visibility, reliability, and how much information it can actually communicate.
One of the most important things I realized through discussions with players is that I had overlooked a critical aspect of realism:the uncertainty of information.In most strategy games, the player can see almost everything happening on the battlefield in real time.But an admiral in the Age of Sail did not have that luxury.In Realistic Mode, the player's view will be focused primarily around the flagship and its immediate surroundings.A distant squadron may disappear beyond the horizon.Another division may be hidden by smoke, weather, terrain, or simply distance.The admiral may not immediately know whether that force is still following orders, has engaged the enemy, has suffered damage, or has been forced to withdraw.This is where another excellent community suggestion may become extremely important:Messenger Boats.Simple orders may be transmitted quickly using flags, guns, or other signals.But more detailed and precise instructions could be carried physically by small boats moving between ships.The same system could also work in reverse.A distant squadron could send a messenger boat back to the flagship carrying battle reports, damage reports, enemy movements, or requests for support.By the time that message arrives, however, the situation may already have changed.A messenger may be delayed, intercepted, damaged, or even sunk before reaching the flagship.This means the player would no longer command with perfect information.Instead, the player would have to make decisions using delayed, incomplete, and sometimes uncertain reports, much like an actual admiral of the period.
Another important player suggestion was to make water depth and ship draft more meaningful in naval combat.I completely agree with this idea.Large ships of the line, with their deeper drafts, should face greater restrictions in shallow coastal waters and should be at greater risk of grounding.Smaller vessels with shallower drafts, on the other hand, may be able to use coastal routes and shallow-water areas that larger ships cannot safely enter.This could give light vessels a much more important tactical role in certain scenarios.Water depth may also affect anchoring conditions, adding another layer to navigation and tactical positioning.
The community has also suggested dramatically increasing the scale of naval battles.Could a single battlefield eventually contain 300 ships, or even more?With the traditional all-seeing camera system, this could become extremely demanding.But Realistic Mode changes that equation.The player will no longer need to see every ship on the battlefield at the same time.The camera will remain focused around the flagship and the nearby formation, while ships outside visual range can continue to operate through simulation.This means that hundreds of ships could potentially exist within the same battle without every vessel needing to be fully rendered and visually processed at all times.Because of this approach, fleet battles involving hundreds of ships may become a realistic long-term possibility.However, even before reaching that scale, a historically sized engagement involving around 40 to 50 warships should already be an overwhelming experience when viewed from within the formation.Imagine standing near the flagship and seeing:Masts and sails stretching toward the horizon.Signal flags rising above the fleet.Cannon smoke slowly obscuring the battle line.Distant gunfire echoing from parts of the battlefield you cannot clearly see.And somewhere beyond that smoke and horizon, a division of your fleet may be fighting a battle you know almost nothing about yet.That is the kind of large-scale battlefield we are now beginning to imagine.
I want to emphasize this once again:These ideas did not come from me alone.They came from the players.Each suggestion, each discussion, and each piece of feedback has contributed to a new direction for Ship of the Line.The system currently in active testing is the Naval Flag Signal System.Messenger boats, delayed information, night signaling, expanded draft and depth mechanics, and much larger fleet battles are all concepts currently being considered as part of the broader design of Realistic Battle Mode.Ship of the Line already has the battlefield.Now, rather than simply adding more ships to it, we are beginning to change what it actually means to command that battlefield.Limited visibility.Delayed orders.Imperfect communication.Independent captains.Uncertain intelligence.And the difficulty of controlling a massive fleet once the battle has begun.Once again, thank you to everyone who continues to share ideas and feedback.Ship of the Line is preparing for its second major leap forward.