I said I’d write a personal review of PotBS when I reached level 30 but I’m going to jump the gun and give a “status update” type post right now.
So far I’ve hit level 18 and joined a Society ( that’s PotBS lingo for a guild ) and have taken my baby steps into the economy part of the game ( PotBS lingo for crafting / gathering ). I have yet to PvP though.
One thing that has really caught my attention so far in PotBS is that learning to size up your opponent is a skill that is well worth developing because the death penalty in this game can be quite harsh. If you engage in a battle with a stronger opponent and fail to escape, you get sunk and lose your ship, permanently if you did not invest in durability upgrades. You don’t lose XP, you don’t get a temporary debuff or have to do a corpse run, you just lose your precious boat that you worked so hard to upgrade as well as most of the loot it was carrying. Ouch!
So carelessly rushing into fights hoping that you didn’t start something you can’t finish in this game is not a very good way to go about things, contrary to many other MMOs where I feel the death penalty is much softer. Being stubborn by nature, it took me dying 3 plus times per session before getting this concept but now I am enlightened, and no longer chronically broke! It got so bad that for a time I didn’t bother naming my ship since I expected to lose it within an hour of leaving port ( just like some ancient cultures held off naming a child until it had passed some critical age mark where it’s eventual survival became more likely ).
This harsh death penalty also has an effect on powerleveling, which can be a risky proposition since you may lose everything you gained if things go wrong. I learned this two nights ago while doing level 26 missions with members of my society : after making good gains for most of the evening I got careless and cocky and wound up being blown out of the water, thereby pretty much cancelling all the gains I had made ( and yes I did fail to store my won loot at a port warehouse at regular intervals, so I deserved everything I got ! ).
After initially being a bit irritated by this, I now enjoy the added tension that comes with ship battles and the importance of gaging your chances of success. This makes fights a bit more meaningful and gives PotBS a certain flavor that other games lack.
PotBS and dying
April 11, 2008
I said I’d write a personal review of PotBS when I reached level 30 but I’m going to jump the gun and give a “status update” type post right now.
So far I’ve hit level 18 and joined a Society ( that’s PotBS lingo for a guild ) and have taken my baby steps into the economy part of the game ( PotBS lingo for crafting / gathering ). I have yet to PvP though.
One thing that has really caught my attention so far in PotBS is that learning to size up your opponent is a skill that is well worth developing because the death penalty in this game can be quite harsh. If you engage in a battle with a stronger opponent and fail to escape, you get sunk and lose your ship, permanently if you did not invest in durability upgrades. You don’t lose XP, you don’t get a temporary debuff or have to do a corpse run, you just lose your precious boat that you worked so hard to upgrade as well as most of the loot it was carrying. Ouch!
So carelessly rushing into fights hoping that you didn’t start something you can’t finish in this game is not a very good way to go about things, contrary to many other MMOs where I feel the death penalty is much softer. Being stubborn by nature, it took me dying 3 plus times per session before getting this concept but now I am enlightened, and no longer chronically broke! It got so bad that for a time I didn’t bother naming my ship since I expected to lose it within an hour of leaving port ( just like some ancient cultures held off naming a child until it had passed some critical age mark where it’s eventual survival became more likely ).
This harsh death penalty also has an effect on powerleveling, which can be a risky proposition since you may lose everything you gained if things go wrong. I learned this two nights ago while doing level 26 missions with members of my society : after making good gains for most of the evening I got careless and cocky and wound up being blown out of the water, thereby pretty much cancelling all the gains I had made ( and yes I did fail to store my won loot at a port warehouse at regular intervals, so I deserved everything I got ! ).
After initially being a bit irritated by this, I now enjoy the added tension that comes with ship battles and the importance of gaging your chances of success. This makes fights a bit more meaningful and gives PotBS a certain flavor that other games lack.
So there maties!
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