What is your Sailing Build?

[another pirate]

I am curious what kinds of different builds there are out there for sailing? I am working on figuring out my own build and thought it would be nice if there was a place for people to see what works for others.

I am pretty sure you get 26 points on this skill because you start with 1 point on left broadside and 1 point on right broadside at lvl 1. Then you get 1 more point per level to lvl 25 for an additional 24 points.

Here is a template you can use. Use 0/5 if you did not take the skill at all.

Left Broadside (1/5)
Right Broadside (1/5)
Full Sail (*/5)
Come About (*/5)
Open Fire (*/5)
Ramming Speed (*/5)
Take Cover (*/5)

Windcatcher (*/5)
Tacking (*/5)
Treasure Sense (*/5)
Taskmaster: (*/5)

Total (*/26)

Notes:

Here is my planned build:

Left Broadside (5/5)
Right Broadside (3/5)
Full Sail (1/5)
Come About (1/5)
Open Fire (0/5)
Ramming Speed (1/5)
Take Cover (0/5)

Windcatcher (5/5)
Tacking (5/5)
Treasure Sense (0/5)
Taskmaster: (5/5)

Total (26/26)

Notes: I put 1 in full sail and ramming speed simply for a short burst of speed. Nothing more. Not sure how usefull come about is but it looked worth 1 point. With a gold cap of only 60K, not sure how useful treasure sense will be so I skipped it. All 3 other passives seemed critical to max. The remaining points went on broadside damage. Rather than go 4 left and 4 right, I decided I would try and use left more and maxed it.

That is mine. What works for you?

[Chris]

dont forget the new skill just added and i would but maxed on both broads max on treasure and i like to unlock every skill

[another pirate]

The new Leadership skill was added but I do not show an unlock level so I am not sure it is really added yet. It gives a quick boost to all your skill and might have some advantages but until they actually unlock it, I am not sure I want to add it.

Maxing both broads and unlocking all skills mean that I would need to take 5 points away from something since I would need that many to fill those slots. Unlocking a skill uses a point. Maxing treasure too means I would need to take away 9 points. I just do not see how to do it. I would have to take from the passives and the 3 I have maxed look like they are important.

[League]

Yeah, I have to learn more with my Test Pirate (which I made with good results looking back) before I dedicate any more points to any of my sailing builds. Depends on how useful I find Leadership to be. Regardless, I'll be a slaved crewman. In all likelihood it was going to be something of this like:
Left Broadside (5/5)
Right Broadside (5/5)
Full Sail (1/5)
Come About (1/5)
Open Fire (1/5)
Ramming Speed (1/5)
Take Cover (1/5)

Windcatcher (5/5)
Tacking (0/5)
Treasure Sense (0/5)
Taskmaster: (5/5)
Total: 25/26
The one leftover may be a shoe-in for Leadership. I'm not knowledgeable about the benefits of tacking. If Leadership is good enough, I may put less points in Wind Catcher and swap them for Full Sail.

[another pirate]

Looks like a nice build League. Thanks for the input.

I thought about sacrificing windcatcher and beefing up full sail, but I didn't like the cooldown on full sail and windcatcher was on all the time.

If anyone that has maxed tacking can clarify if it is worth 5 points or not, that would be great!

[Ortega]

Originally Posted by another pirate

I am curious what kinds of different builds there are out there for sailing? I am working on figuring out my own build and thought it would be nice if there was a place for people to see what works for others.

I am pretty sure you get 26 points on this skill because you start with 1 point on left broadside and 1 point on right broadside at lvl 1. Then you get 1 more point per level to lvl 25 for an additional 24 points.

Here is a template you can use. Use 0/5 if you did not take the skill at all.

Left Broadside (1/5)
Right Broadside (1/5)
Full Sail (*/5)
Come About (*/5)
Open Fire (*/5)
Ramming Speed (*/5)
Take Cover (*/5)

Windcatcher (*/5)
Tacking (*/5)
Treasure Sense (*/5)
Taskmaster: (*/5)

Total (*/26)

Notes:

Here is my planned build:

Left Broadside (5/5)
Right Broadside (3/5)
Full Sail (1/5)
Come About (1/5)
Open Fire (0/5)
Ramming Speed (1/5)
Take Cover (0/5)

Windcatcher (5/5)
Tacking (5/5)
Treasure Sense (0/5)
Taskmaster: (5/5)

Total (26/26)

Notes: I put 1 in full sail and ramming speed simply for a short burst of speed. Nothing more. Not sure how usefull come about is but it looked worth 1 point. With a gold cap of only 60K, not sure how useful treasure sense will be so I skipped it. All 3 other passives seemed critical to max. The remaining points went on broadside damage. Rather than go 4 left and 4 right, I decided I would try and use left more and maxed it.

That is mine. What works for you?

Full Sail is awesome, for one, it lets you catch up to ships(especially useful for getting to flag ships, before someone gets it first), and it can get you out of trouble.

As usefull as Full Sail is, that goes tripple for Come About. That one skill can allow you to finnish the enemy off, even if you're outmatched(I don't know if there are more levels to that skill, but unless it lowers the wait time alot, lv 1 is pleanty) , and just like Full Sail, it can allow you to dodge trouble.

Note: use those together, and nothing will beable to catch you.

[Angel]

Here's how I rank mine:

Left Broadside (5/5)
Right Broadside (5/5)
Full Sail (1/5)
Come About (1/5)
Open Fire (0/5)
Ramming Speed (1/5)
Take Cover (1/5) (Have it on Angel and like it)

Windcatcher (4/5)
Tacking (0/5)
Treasure Sense (5/5) Very helpful, cap may be 65K but it helps get u there with all the stuff to buy.
Taskmaster: (3/5)
Total: 26/26

This is my plan for Hunter, learning from Angels buildup.

[mongo]

And here is where I am

Left Broadside (5/5)
Right Broadside (4/5)
Full Sail (3/5)
Come About (1/5)
Open Fire (1/5) (But I want this one back since I haven't seen where it is useful- maybe if I sailed with more crews but I still have my doubts)
Ramming Speed (1/5)
Take Cover (0/5) (Unlocks next level)
Recharge (0/5) (Unlocked but not taken)

Windcatcher (2/5)
Tacking (2/5)
Treasure Sense (1/5)
Taskmaster: (0/5) (Unlocked but not taken yet. I will take it I was just beefing up the Broadsides first)

So I have a few more points coming to me before I master sailing. My plan is:
20 Take Cover
21 Task Master
22 Treasure Sense (2nd Point)
23 Recharge

and then 2 more points for 24 and 25. I'm not sure where I want to put them. Or if I should just save them in case they add any more new skills.

I don't use come about very much since I usually try to line things up in the approach so the sudden turns aren't as needed (but the smaller turning radius with Tacking is very useful).

Full sail and Ramming speed are useful for getting out of sticky spots (like sailing solo out of Padres and it's a near wall of ogres, reapers and men of war or down to really low hull and need to get to an island before losing the cargo).

This combo is working very well in my War Sloop and I expect it would work nicely in a War Frigate too. The only one that might give me some regrets (other than that point in "Open Fire") is the War Galleon but I might have enough in the Passive Skills to still make the girl a little lighter on the waves than you might think.

[Bilgepump]

I just hit 15 in Sailing. Here's where I stand right now:

Left Broadside (5/5)
Right Broadside (5/5)
Full Sail (1/5)
Come About (0/5)
Open Fire (0/5)
Ramming Speed (1/5)
Take Cover (0/5)

Windcatcher (0/5)
Tacking (0/5)
Treasure Sense (0/5)
Taskmaster: (0/5)

Plus 4 unused.

Maxing the broadsides seemed like the obvious thing to do. When trying to get my sailing up, I use a sloop for maneuverability, come up behind a fat juicy target, and let fly. I usually sink them in 4 or 5 blasts.

Full Sail and Ramming Speed let me get out of trouble faster than I got into it.

I don't get the attraction of treasure sense at all. Yeah, it makes you money faster, but once you hit the cap, then what? You've wasted 5 precious, never-to-be-regained skill points. Better to take a little longer, but have the points in something more useful.

I may put a point in Come About. I'm still thinking about it. I'm in no hurry to spend them.

[another pirate]

Great! A few more builds.

So far it looks like tacking is skipped by most.

Angels build is pretty close to mine except I took Tacking instead of Treasure Sense. I agree with Bilgepump on the usefullness of Treasure Sense.

I think that I might drop some from Tacking and bump my right broadsides and unlock take cover. Might give me an edge if I find myself under heavy fire all of a sudden. Has happened before. My build would look like this.

Left Broadside (5/5)
Right Broadside (4/5)
Full Sail (1/5)
Come About (1/5)
Open Fire (0/5)
Ramming Speed (1/5)
Take Cover (1/5)

Windcatcher (5/5)
Tacking (3/5)
Treasure Sense (0/5)
Taskmaster: (5/5)

Total (26/26)

Still debating. I need some feedback on how well tacking works when maxed. If it make a war frigate turn as good or better than a sloop, would be worth 5 dots. If it hardly makes a difference at all, then I would drop it for full broadsides and save the last 2 points for maybe leadership.

[David]

why not just max out a 5/5 for treasure sense? once sailing is mastered wont it just be a skills to get fast cash?

i think in the end, once you have mastered the skill...you have at least maxed left broadside, right broadside, and treasure sense

[Dr. Zeppers]

Originally Posted by David

why not just max out a 5/5 for treasure sense? once sailing is mastered wont it just be a skills to get fast cash?

i think in the end, once you have mastered the skill...you have at least maxed left broadside, right broadside, and treasure sense

With the two pirates that i have advanced a bit, I found that treasure sense although it seemed very cool/helpful with my first pirate, i didnt bother with my second. As a pirate advances to higher levels, gets higher level weapons, etc, obtaining gold was never a problem for me.

I put 5 skill points on treasure sense with my first pirate, and it helped me get gold quick, it also made me popular, everyone wanted on my ship. But on my second pirate, I have only 1 skill point on it, and with 2 war galleons, a war frigate, all the advanced weapons, etc, I still have 60k+ banked.

Take cover has worked wonderfully for me for both of my pirates (1 had 1 skillpoint, the other had 2), although ive made some observations.
1. It does not give you 100% protection (i think this is what most expect).
2. If you anticipate incoming fire, and hit Take Cover, it will be most effective. If you wait until incoming fire is on its way, it will be far less effective. It can also be helpful in the boss battle.

Im curious to know how much effect windcatcher, tacking, and tackmaster have on things if they are maxed.

How to use all the skill points has always been an enigma to me, I actually now use them only as I wish. I have unused skill points on nearly everything, I found it helped with REP values in many cases.

Zeppers Lvl39
http://pirates.teamofx.us

[Maximvs]

My current Configuration (and mistakes )

Left Broadside (3/5)
Right Broadside (3/5)
Full Sail (1/5)
Come About (1/5) - mistake
Open Fire (0/5)
Ramming Speed (1/5)
Take Cover (0/5)

Windcatcher (3/5)
Tacking (2/5)
Treasure Sense (4/5)
Taskmaster: (3/5)

Total (21/26)

(I think - I'll double check next time I'm on....EDIT: Confirmed and updated)

On Pirate #1 - Take Cover was a waste. It just doesnt last long enough (and once you have lighting and the 'fish tail' manuver down pact - theres no need for it). He has lots of other errors also (one less on Tackling and only one on Full Sail, and a few more on Taskmaster and Treasure Sense and get Ramming Speed would of made more sense I think).

On Pirate #2 - Come About was a waste. My thought was that my War Figate would need it for better 'fish tailing' (this is when you tag a ship - then while it chases you you swing the rear of the ship back and forth while pulling ahead just a bit each time). As it turns out - Tackling would of been the better place for that point (as I never use Come About and better Tackling allows me to turn the ship fast enough - I was looking for a replacement for my less on Tackling... bah - live and learn)

Besides Broadsides, Full Sail and Ramming Speed - all the points I find work best on the 'Passive' Skills' (my crews usually have strong enough Canon, have their Cannon upgraded to fire fast enough, and I never get tagged from long distance shooting and 'fish tailing' and - so Open Fire, Come About and Take Cover just don't last long enough to have them with a point)

Windcatcher. Tacking, Treasure Sense. and Taskmaster all all GREAT passive skills which do much better jobs at protecting the ship, the crew and my overall sailing / recharging of the ship (and get me the Gold!)

My last points will go to one Broadside each, Tackling, Taskmaster and if I get one more I'll go Windcatcher (am I out of points yet??? LOL)

The problem I find with Take Cover, Open Fire and Come About is the duration... WAY too short to be any use.

So you get 5 seconds on Take cover for one point... This will only protect the crew / ship for one round with an enemy vessel - if you don't sink it quick then it gets the next blast in anyway and I find it never worked! The ship was still taking damage even with it 'engaged'... maybe if they gave you 15 seconds to start and 5 second intervals it maybe worth a look - but I wouldn't waste any points on this for a skill I don't think even works.

Open Fire is the same problem. too short! You'd need to spend all kinds of points on this skill so your crew could quickly get -one- enemy ship... placing them points on Taskmaster alone is a better investment becuse its always recharging the Broadsides faster. Most crews are upgraded on cannons for better ammos and cannon skills so this is a wasterd area.

Come About was a dud. Sure it works, but again duration is the issue - and Tackling is always a skill learned forever where you have to wait for this to recharge. I go after a Hi Level ship, thinking I can back-door it... but it doesnt last long enough!

I do think though that it is the way I sail that makes these choices my non-favorites. If you sail with a weak crew often / need to get close to big ships often then these skills may be right for you (so take the advice with a grain of salt I guess )

As for Treasure Sense... at one time - too many points here would be a waste. The 65k limit on gold did make putting TOO many points on this not worth it simply because there was nothing to buy after weapons and ships... now though - with the new clothes and items out, the new quests coming out (first weapons then the rumored 'summer' update) -and- in the future the ability to build a custom ship??? (in the Frequent Asked / Answers area) I'd want to be sure I can afford it all

Thats my two dabloons worth

[nat sharkskull]

Notoriety 25

This is my configuration right now. I may give broadsides one more dot each. I will use my crew cannons skills to sink the enemy ships. I will put most in the passive skills when they open up for me. I like Full Sail but not going to put any more there. Take cover what I read so far seems not to work for most people. I will have to think about that skill with a bottle of rum. lol

Left Broadside (3/5)
Right Broadside (3/5)
Full Sail (3/5)
Come About (1/5)
Open Fire (1/5)
Ramming Speed (1/5)
Take Cover (1/5)

Windcatcher (2/5)
Tacking (1/5)
Treasure Sense (4/5)
Taskmaster: (2/5)

[Maximvs]

Im curious to know how much effect windcatcher, tacking, and tackmaster have on things if they are maxed.

On my first pirate - both Windcatcher and Tacking are 4/4 Points and his War Firgate 'turns on a dime' and 'flys like the winds' LOL I can easily do the 'Cuba Run' in minutes and weaving around groups of enemy ships is a breese...

It was so wierd - because on my second pirate now I had been 'hording' Points on sailing (actually - I've been hording them on everything ) - scared to spend any for fear that something new came out and I needed the points! But - when I bought his first War Frigate... w-o-a-h... it's SO SLOW... and I need 1/2 an ocean to turn it! I had to throw some points back on Tacking and Windcatcher just to feel 'normal' again