I believe adding more to the Open Ocean apart from something combat oriented or too simple like fishing would be highly beneficial to the game's health and longevity. We need more middle ground type stuff rather than beginner or endgame. But I will start with the "Endgame" type stuff first. It is mostly focused on Megalodon mechanics, interaction, and variation.
New Megalodon Types
Tiger Megalodon
Encounter: Found in the same manner as a normal Megalodon.
Appearance: Similar to a standard Megalodon but with tiger-like stripes.
Behavior: Neutral unless attacked. It will boldly swim near players, occasionally nudging ships without causing damage.
Subtypes:
Jade Tiger – "The Gleaming Jademaw"
Dark-light green with gold stripes.
Gemstone-like eyes.
The only aggressive Tiger variant.
Scales and eyes are valuable and can be sold for more gold.
Thulako Tiger – "The Rathe Marauder"
Brown-orange with black stripes and yellow eyes.
Drops parts from other Megalodon types.
More likely to appear if the player has a large amount of Megalodon meat onboard.
Reef Tiger – "The Carnivorous Atoll"
Pink-orange with black-and-white stripes and blue eyes.
Drops numerous gems.
Attracts nearby sharks and trophy fish.
Will not attack or nudge the ship if anchored or stationary.
White Tiger – "The Ivory Rambler"
White with black stripes and red eyes.
Rare.
More frequently bumps the ship.
Stalker Megalodon
Encounter: Appears in either dead-calm seas or extreme storms.
Appearance: A mix between a goblin shark and a hammerhead, with an elongated snout.
Behavior:
Its presence can be predicted by an eerie calm in the water.
Initially attacks by launching itself from below the ship or onto scripted skeleton ships.
New Attack – "Gnawing"
The Stalker bites into the ship from beneath, latching on with its longer, sharper teeth.
Players can dislodge it by:
A: Firing cannons at its protruding snout.
B: Shooting the teeth stuck in the hull.
Option A removes it quickly for ship repairs.
Option B leaves teeth embedded like spears, which can be removed and sold.
If enough teeth are broken, it will switch to traditional Megalodon charge attacks.
Subtypes:
Draconic Stalker – "The Draconic Leviathan"
Bronze and copper rust-green scales resembling a dragon or serpent.
Shadow Stalker – "The Shadowcreep"
Black with a purple, shadowy aura.
Turns the water pitch black.
Slight purple glow gives away its presence.
Phantasmal Stalker – "The Arisen One"
Blue-green with a ghostly, phantom-like aura.
Sometimes teleports from a circling pattern directly into a Gnawing attack.
New Ancient Megalodon – "The Ancient Abyssal Banshee"
Appearance:
Sleek black body with streaks of blue, white, and green bioluminescent lures.
Has a secondary set of extendable jaws lined with hypnotic, swirling bioluminescence in pink, blue, green, and yellow.
Abilities:
Gnawing Attack: Inherits the Gnawing ability from Stalker Megalodons.
New Attack – "Wail of the Deep"
Begins like a charge attack but stops short, releasing a sonic blast instead.
Effects:
Knocks players overboard.
Deflects cannonballs.
Expands existing hull breaches.
Summons Ocean Crawlers and Sirens to aid the beast.
Loot: The membrane from its inner "speaker jaw" can be collected and sold.
New Open-Ocean Mechanics
New Baits – "Chummy Bait"
A new method of bait creation allows players to grind raw fish into three tiers of Chummy Bait at a Seapost:
Simple Chum
More likely from small and Common fish
Prime Chum
More likely from Common Trophy and Rare fish
Supreme Chum
Possible from Uncommon Trophy, Rare, and Treasured fish
Effects:
Prime and Supreme Chum function as all three worm baits.
Increase chances of catching trophy fish and larger sea creatures.
Chummy Bait can be thrown into the water, creating a floating pool of fish parts.
Can attract larger creatures, and occasionally Megalodons.
Harpoon Gun Hunting
New Mechanic: The equippable harpoon gun now has swappable tips, found near the ammo box on your ship.
New Tip – "Many-Barbed Hook"
Increased attachment strength – Megalodons can drag ships further before disengaging.
Enables harpoon-based fishing, similar to traditional rod fishing.
New Possible Open-Ocean Encounters:
Eels
Turtles
Small Sharks
Jellyfish
Rays
Squid
Octopi
I like the idea of having turtles or dolphins leading you to sunken treasure or being able to be "ridden" for a short time
Larger caught fish would be carried like treasured fish or chests.
I will leave it to the developers for the specifics that will fit with the lore they want.
Expanding the variety of ocean life and the ways you interact with it would enhance immersion and gameplay.
