In Short;
- Progress in a new faction dealing with letters and intel
- Deliver and Recover shipments and letter from around SoT
- Learn of rumors and secrets to exploit and blackmail the traders of the outposts and seaposts.
"I can 'earsh em all dayun night, sscrunching, shcribblin and shhtamping their papers. If they addunt paid so much coin for the space above, I'd 'ave thrown em out by now."
-Teri
Barmaid of the 'Snake Pit'.
The Rotten Mail (TRM)
Establishing their new organisation in the Sea of Thieves, these black market postmen can provide a pretty penny for a pirate seeking a profitable profession. Assembled from unlicensed notaries, bookies and fraudsters, this credible company of convicted criminals was created in order to distribute letters and information between the outposts and to forge documents and signatures.
The townsfolk use TRM for personal letters to their friends and love ones across the Sea of Thieves, it would be foolish to trust these pirate postmen however as they swiftly read your letter the second your backs are turned.
Above each tavern you will find an office, sat at the chair is a 'Post Master'. Depending on the time of day, the Post Master will either be so busy that we won't have realised you've entered the room or will have fallen asleep at his deck, when spoken to, he quickly sits up and almost falls backwards in his chair. These Post Masters will give you Delivery and Recovery Missions, complete these and be rewarded with gold and reputation in the new faction.
Introducing new Items;
'Letters'
Unique papers made by the NPCs of SoT, each containing clues, puzzles, jokes and even voyages when opened. by the player
'Mail Box'
A small locked box used for carrying and delivering contracted letters.
Damages:
The box protects the letters against the elements like water and the exploding volcanoes but can only withstand so much.
-Letters can become soaked by waters and charred by volcanoes
-If the box becomes warped from the sea or rain, the letters are more likely to soak.
-If the box is hit with 2 or 3 cannonballs or volcano rocks, the lock on the box will break causing it to swing open and expose the letters.
Voyage One: Delivery
"Take these letters over to 'The Charred Parrot' and hand them to 'Post Master P***y.' Those papers wont last long against a volcano so be quick about it too! Don't you try snooping through 'em either, we can tell you know...."
Each time you start a delivery run you are given a 'Mail Box' and a contract to deliver 8 to 16 letters, speak to a 'Post Master' and receive the box. much like the merchant alliance's cargo, the player can run multiple at a time and can read the delivery note on top to learn its destination. Should the lock on the Box break, exposing the letters during the delivery, a reduction will be taken from the reward much the same as if the letters are damaged.
Voyage Two: RECOVERY
"I was supposed to receive a shipment of mail about 2 days ago now. Take this ships trading route and see if you can find them between here and the Port of origin."
You receive vague details of a ship carrying cargo that has possibly sunk heading from one outpost to another. Follow the trading route and search for shipwrecks.
The ship will have either have beached at an island or be in open waters.
Beached
You arrive find the ship almost sideways on land, the crew are long gong, as is the cargo. Search the island till you find a skeleton crew with the coloured bandanas. During the fight, a skeleton holding the 'Mail Box' shall emerge from the ground and start to run away. Take his crewmates out and chase him down to recover the shipment.
Open Waters
You spot the ship set adrift with broken sails and half sunk, the crew met a cruel fate at the hands of a skeleton ship. Once aboard the sinking ship it slowly starts to submerge underwater and as it does, the skeleton ship that claimed the original crew re-emerges from the waters looking to take your ship next.
Once you have the Mail Box you can return to the 'Post Master' and exchange it for Gold and Rep or choose to open the box to read the letters.
READING/FINDING A LETTER
Once doing so, the player can still deliver the letter but for a mere 50 gold and almost no reputation however, players may also happen to find letter randomly strewn about SoT inside caves and treasure room. Reading the letter will give the player a random picture, side quest, story, joke etc;
Love Letters-
Sent between certain characters around Outposts, the player can exploit the lovebirds for money to keep you from spreading the truth.
Creating more depth for the otherwise frozen NPCs on the seas
Jokes and Drawings-
Funny sailing jokes and drawings made by the community and approved by Rare.
It'd be so funny to find a picture that you drew of your crew fishing drunk or fighting skeles in the game
Fabled Legends and Stories-
Stories of legendary crews, their heroic victories and comedic downfalls. Collect pages atogether for TRM to create
Seemingly Pointless Ramblings
Nonsensical notes which sometimes give teasers for upcoming updates
"I feel that cold coming from the north again, theres not enough jackets in the world to keep me from shivering" - example of a teaser for a frozen north area.
Company Benefits
A players reputation in The Rotten Mail will increase with each letter delivered, much like the other companies, higher reputation will reward you with different cosmetics and titles, examples;
Titles and accommodations
-Deliver 500 letters
-Recover 250 Mail boxes from a skeleton carrying one
-Blackmail 250 lovebirds
-Collect 50 different jokes/ sketches
-Find all Volumes of so and so book.
Clothing
Think admiral meets bilge rat.
-A bandana with patchwork repairs
-Stained dark yellow jacket with a ripped tail
-Scruffy untucked shirt with missing buttons
-Fingerless gloves made of rough leather
-Torn and dusty trousers
-Dirty dress shoes decorated with a barnacle.
Ship Cosmetics
-Mouldy hull
-Splintered and snapped helm and capstan
-Rusting cannons
-Dark yellow sails with more stiches than a baseball.
