Build 26365315

Seaborne Playtest v0.2.28.2

Changes to the playtest

The playtest is now open Friday to Sunday, Pacific time. On closed days the title screen shows a notice, and anyone at sea gets warnings at 30, 10 and 1 minutes, then an autosave and a return to the title.
The Four Horsemen, Ichabod Crane and the pumpkin helmsman have left for good, along with the chance to earn their titles. Anyone who earned a title keeps it, and an unpaid purse can still be collected in Cascais.

New

The Lost Squadron: a fleet questline sailed with your division. It starts when you make port with two or more consorts. Errands earn keepsakes that strengthen the Flag Division.
Ship’s Log: the journal is now a leather-bound book with an index and tabbed chapters, including Titles and Officers. Treasures and wrecks are recorded in it and can be set as jobs.
Captain’s Chronicle: a new skills screen with a Reset Skills option, free the first time and 1,000,000 gold after.
Globe view: press G on the chart to see the world as a sphere, with a true shortest distance and bearing.
New titles: Collector of Strange Curios and Master and Commander.
New keepsakes: two keepsakes protect you from storm damage while St Elmo’s fire burns.
Sea and town events: runaway wives can be tracked down through taproom talk, and plague ships turn up off your towns.
Navigation: with a wind book, navigators lay the fastest course by the wind. A master lookout with a Telescope reads the range to a ship.
Fleet:
A new blockade patrol order and a Division status page.
Fleet cards show each ship’s cargo and destination.
The market can trade across the whole Flag Division’s holds.
A “Crew your ships” button on the waterfront.
You can rename your flagship.
Factions: founded and won towns pay monthly dues, and the Treasury and town pages are now drawn as pictures. There is also a new Faction’s Seat page, and every coin in or out is recorded.
Stores and crew: grog is sold as a cheaper, weaker store. Divers can be signed on for 10 to 60 days.
Interface: key rings and action prompts along the foot of the screen replace the old bracketed text, each with its own switch. There is also a “Mute all music” switch, and a Particulars line on ship’s papers.
Towns: landmarks as they stood in 1510 have been added in several towns.

Improved

Sinking: ships now take 30 to 80 seconds to go down, listing as they fill, with masts snapping.
Boarding: your crew fight boardings themselves, with thrown hooks, a party over the rail and pistols holding yours.
Explosions and damage: magazine explosions are rebuilt, and hull hits throw jagged timber.
Rough seas: storms are more common and last longer. Rogue waves are far bigger, with an earlier warning, and broaching is harder to start.
Patrols and blockades: patrols sail aggressive and hunt pirates out of your sight. Crown patrols attack pirates at any odds, and blockades are settled by numbers.
Distress flare: friendly and allied ships within 12 km answer and fight alongside you.
Performance: ships and coastlines load with far less stutter, and NPC ships fade in and out instead of popping.
Chart mouse: left adds a nav point, right raises the glass, middle strikes the last point.
Fleet handling: a second order cancels the first, and your flagship can trim to 5% canvas so consorts can catch up.
Controllers: prompts use the right button names for DualShock, DualSense, Switch Pro and Steam Deck.
Repairs and prizes: repair kits mend over 30 seconds with a 15 second rest. Privateer prizes now state their type and rough value.
Crew: hands for hire follow a town’s size, and oar crews are sized to the ship.
Factions: leaving a faction blocks rejoining it for 24 hours.

Fixed

Pausing alone now stops the whole world, including days, wages and stores.
26 skills and perks that did nothing now work.
Ships of the same flag no longer fight each other, and friendly ships no longer turn on you over a stray ball.
No more piracy charges for hitting a ship already sinking or one that struck mid-volley.
Sieges no longer count enemy hulls that never appear on the water.
Consorts no longer stall on a rejoin, jump onto station or stack on one spot. Divisions no longer take places in your line.
Close up, open out and stance work on the fleet wheel again.
A ship on her beam ends now rights herself instead of tearing off across the sea.
Ships no longer run ashore at Tarifa or get stranded up the Tagus leaving Lisbon.
A fleet ship could get stuck rebuilding herself in harbour, dropping the game to a crawl.
A sighting arriving with the spyglass up no longer locks your controls.
The sun is no longer sliced flat as the camera rises, and sun rays no longer hang in front of land.
Chart names are readable at night.
Castle-deck guns now have ports and lids.
The stray “rope” into the sky at Corfu is gone.