Random NPC Encounters: Please Read (Ideas to bring life to islands)

  • Hello fellow Pirates!

    Let me begin by saying that Sea of Thieves is my absolute favorite game. Like many of you, I see the potential this game has and can only hope that Sea of Thieves will have an active and growing community for years to come.

    Sea of Thieves has an incredible foundation, and it would not take much to bring the game up to an immersive, living and breathing world. The problem is that without our fellow pirates, the world feels very... well... dead and empty.

    I'm sure some of you will feel differently, and i'm also sure there will be some who agree that most of these islands could use a bit of life... here's what I mean:

    Random NPC Encounters.

    Imagine sailing to Crooked Mast for your next gold hoarders voyage. On your way there, you notice a shipwreck near the island. "HELP!" you hear someone yell in the distance. Using your spyglass, you notice three npc castaways waving you down. As you approach, you can initiate dialogue with them. Turns out they've been shipwrecked on the island and need a lift back to a specific outpost. You can accept the quest, or leave them stranded on the island. If you accept, the three will run to/board your ship, and sit on the deck while they wait for you to bring them to their destination. As you return to the appropriate outpost, you are rewarded and they exit your ship and head to the tavern, where they will vanish.

    This is one of many scenarios that could be added throughout the Sea of Thieves gameworld. These random encounters would not require a new faction, though some could be tied to an existing faction.

    Random Encounters could be as followed:

    1. Shipwrecked NPC's - Castaway NPC's looking to hitch a ride for a reward

    2. Traveling Merchants - A random NPC wandering an island collecting items for trade/sales (can buy bananas, cannons, planks, and possible some items found from outpost merchants). This may also be a good opportunity for some unique cosmetics.

    3. Island Thief - A random NPC that can attempt to board and steal an item stored on the players ship. "Incapacitating" them will drop the item

    4. Island Hoppers - Random NPC's camping in the wilderness, sometimes carrying valuables which can be stolen and sold to outpost traders (we're pirates after all, lets do pirate things to non-pirates)

    5. Lost and Found - This one could be done two different ways. One idea is a random npc found at either an outpost or an island, is in search of a lost item, or a lost NPC. They would provide the whereabouts/location, and once the player retrieves the NPC and returns to the appropriate npc, the player is rewarded.

    Essentially, what the idea of Random NPC Encounters does, is support the idea of messages in a bottle and random treasure found throughout the islands. This would be an addition to an existing system.

    I have many more ideas but felt this one was the most important one that I needed to voice, as I personally believe this would add so much to Sea of Thieves. There is an endless feeling of repetition that Sea of Thieves currently has in terms of missions that I hope this idea could solve.

    I've love to hear the community response/feedback to this idea. What are your thoughts?

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  • Good ideas. I'm hoping there are plans to add more NPCs.

    As you said, without players, it can feel dead and empty. Even outposts seem very under-populated and lifeless.

    Having random NPC encounters on islands would help to break up the monotony a lot. At the moment, when you go to any island, you kind of have an idea what you're going to get there, so these kinds of random events really help to break up the rhythm and keep you invested in what you're doing.

  • @realstyli

    Thanks for replying! I agree completely.

  • @skullmanbeard

    I'd love to see some cannibal or tribal enemies with tiki style masks, blow darts and throwing spears. Enemy variation is desperately needed.

    Also, imagine seeing an NPC crew captive by these enemy types. You'd have the ability to rescue them, and return them to an outpost like the castaway crew for a reward.

  • Adding NPc is not the right answer to this problem.

    Once I lost my solo sloop and with salty tears in my eyes i stand near the beach with three chicken and a chest for a while.

    Lucky me, a sloop saw me in the distance and I ask at the pirates if he can bring me to the right outpost to finish my quest and he said yes. I gifted the pirate with the chest and close my merchant voyage selling the three chicken. This is only one of hundred simple stories I can told to you guys. For this pirate I was a side quest. Like when you try to sell some chest and on your way to the outpost a galleon want you to die and stole all your treasures: in this case the galleon is your boss (a videogame boss, of course).

    So, which is a right answer to this? More tools for the players for more emerging gameplay.

  • Sorry for the grammar and everything... english is not my native language, the mobile phone I use don’t help, I can’t correct the text after submitted and btw... I’m a pirate!

  • Yes this world lacks the hustle and bustle of even a small outpost. NPC's are locked in place and never move about the world. Maybe an apprentice or something fetches wood for the blacksmith forge. Something.

    even adding in a little at a time would be good. Maybe neutral villages to create more trade and lore. We don't even have to fight them. We can't attack any of the current NPC's

    I wonder if it's a parental rating thing that we can't attack npc's that look like human (even though we attack and kill players)

    And also I wish there was a bit of blood instead of hit markers. Nothing too gory like decapitations or anything. Just a line of blood from a cutlass strike or a spray from a gunshot wound.

  • @kunda said in Random NPC Encounters: Please Read (Ideas to bring life to islands):

    Adding NPc is not the right answer to this problem.

    Once I lost my solo sloop and with salty tears in my eyes i stand near the beach with three chicken and a chest for a while.

    Lucky me, a sloop saw me in the distance and I ask at the pirates if he can bring me to the right outpost to finish my quest and he said yes. I gifted the pirate with the chest and close my merchant voyage selling the three chicken. This is only one of hundred simple stories I can told to you guys. For this pirate I was a side quest. Like when you try to sell some chest and on your way to the outpost a galleon want you to die and stole all your treasures: in this case the galleon is your boss (a videogame boss, of course).

    So, which is a right answer to this? More tools for the players for more emerging gameplay.

    Hey thanks for voicing your opinion! I understanding your reasoning, although I don't agree :)

  • @m1sterpunch said in Random NPC Encounters: Please Read (Ideas to bring life to islands):

    I wonder if it's a parental rating thing that we can't attack npc's that look like human (even though we attack and kill players)

    I thought about this as well, which is why I mentioned incapacitation for the thief lol. You made a great point about other players though! Although there should be a distinction between npc death and player death as to not confuse the two.

  • Hey its alwa- NEW AND INTERESTING WAYS!

  • Cant say anything bad about this so must be a good idea

  • @thestjestery ha detto in Random NPC Encounters: Please Read (Ideas to bring life to islands):

    @skullmanbeard

    I'd love to see some cannibal or tribal enemies with tiki style masks, blow darts and throwing spears. Enemy variation is desperately needed.

    Also, imagine seeing an NPC crew captive by these enemy types. You'd have the ability to rescue them, and return them to an outpost like the castaway crew for a reward.

    I agree with you!

  • Something else I thought of that could make the factions have more of a presence in the world which relates to the idea of Random NPC Encounters.

    Merchant Alliance - Essentially a large trading company with a presence in the open world, outside of just outposts. Now that there are NPC skeleton crews coming into SoT, why not extend this to NPC Merchants. The ships could have unique designs and different style/color lanterns to signify belonging to NPCs and not players from a distance. NPC Merchants could have valuable treasure, easy pickings for raiding and making the player actually feel like a pirate (Theres nothing less pirate than pirates raiding... other pirates. Whatever happened to boarding a ship and holding a crew hostage? This rarely ever happens in PVP, I believe PVE would address this)

    Gold Hoarders - It would be neat seeing NPC Gold Hoarders having camp sites appear randomly on islands with a few Gold Hoarder NPC's. It would also be pretty interesting to raid them on land and sell what they were going to sell anyway, to the same Gold Hoarder tents at outposts.

    The Brig - Possibly one of the most useless features in the game (Brigging a crewmate is ridiculous, the player should just be allowed to vote kick a crew member acting up).

    It would be interesting to capture/hold hostage NPC's from one of the two factions mentioned above by placing them in the brig. Successfully sailing to an outpost with the NPC's unharmed would allow the player to sell the NPC's back to the appropriate faction.

    These ideas are based off of the perception that the main point of the player experience is to find treasure and ultimately make gold. These ideas are meant to support/enhance the experience specifically by making the world feel more alive than it currently does.

    Thoughts?

    (P.S. I don't have any specific ideas on what more could be done with the Order of Souls faction outside of just their presence at an outpost, but it would be neat finding a tent belonging to them out in the wild. Perhaps this is where the player can purchase potions when added? or maybe collecting and selling herbs/plants found in the wilderness of the islands)

  • I love this idea! Adding random NPC events on islands would definitely breathe more life into Sea of Thieves. This, as well as more npc citizens in outposts, would help out a lot.

  • at the outposts you can make a shipyard where the shipbuilder will offer tasks for the delivery of the sail, different quality of wood, nails or even guns for the transport of which two people will be required

  • @thestjestery the order could have a rare encounter where a npc wants to complete a summoning ritual on your ship and while he does that you get attacked by either the kraken, Megalodon or the upcoming ghostship. The quest would be complete if you either survive for a certain amount of time or defeat the boss. After it you'd get some kind of special reward. Btw I totally agree that the world feels kinda stale at the moment and more non linear gameplay would be awesome. I love the npc idea but I think more environmental hazards like the storms would help a great deal too...

  • @griffinsariador @KORSAIR178

    awesome ideas!

    and ohhhhhhhh storms. I'd love to see some tidal waves or even a whirlpool.

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