The Sovereigns are a group that, In theory, work very well. A posh, exclusive group with unknown motives showing up Out of nowhere and setting up camp on every outpost, only dealing with captains? Offering their services, seemingly for free? Possible connection to the GMU? Fascinating, truly fascinating.
In practice, they are a good addition to the game- But, I think, a few little tweaks could be made to really bump them up to the level they were intended to be on.
Level Requirement: To give off a little extra air of exclusivity, I feel like being captain isn't quite enough. The ships are all pretty cheap- any decent player could find themselves as captain within a few days, if they were going from a fresh start. So, how about this; In order to interact with the soverigns, players must be at minimum Level 25 in three factions. It keeps the trading companies themselves relevant to new players, increases the feeling of intrigue/exclusivity around the group as a whole, and acts as a sort of halfway point to being a Pirate Legend. This would give players a sort of impression that these Soverigns really won't do business with just any old long john silver- And, I imagine it'd make newer players feel a bit like their actions have really been noticed in the world; like they truly are gaining a reputation. Speaking of reputation...
No faction rep for selling to Sovereigns:
At the end of the day, if someone else turns in your loot, they get the reward, not you. The Soverigns are giving you back the gold, but I think you shouldn't get any reputation from them. Gameplay wise, it balances the convenience of turning everything in at one spot, and keeps the other trading companies relevant- You still need to go to them for the full reward. Lore wise, it could be seen as them trying to build a reputation for themselves- Gaining the trust of the other factions.
Soverigns should sell the Captain's voyages:
Having the shipwrights do this feels a bit odd to me; I sort of get having it be right by the ship, I suppose, but why would one of the merchants have all these voyages for the trading companies? In my opinion, I think it'd make a bit more sense if the Soverigns sold them; They take all loot, it would track that they'd give all voyages as well-Though, not the LOTV. That one should be pirate lord exclusive.
Overall, I think these three easy changes would go a long way towards making a good execution of the idea into a great one.
