Maritime Guide

BlackOceanMercs gathered knowledge of Maritime Tactics, Skills, Tips and Tricks of the Oceans. 

-Maneuvering

       Maneuvering is the all important tactic in any pvp/npc battle on the seas. One wrong turn could mean a critical shot that can sink you instantly, so knowing where and when to turn is extremely valuable.

Below I'll explain a small tactic to keep in mind when facing a player opponent.

In Figure 1 I've drawn a common situation encountered in PVP.

In the picture, on the left is your Current situation, and on the right is the Goal you wish to have, so you have more space to maneuver and defend yourself from enemy shots.

In Figure 2 I've drawn the right and wrong way of turning your ship to avoid enemy fire.

Now, when you're faced with the choice of which direction to turn to reach your goal, you want to minimize the potential for damage dealt to you.

In the figure above, marked in GREEN is the approximate ranges of each of the enemy's cannons. His Port and Starboard sides, and his Bow and Stern. As the two ships pass by one another, you need to turn around to face the other direction, however turning the wrong way will expose your vital spots for a longer period of time to the enemy's broadside cannons.

If you turn TOWARDS your enemy, your Bow (nose) stays in the enemy's broadside range for a long time, thus giving him the chance to nail you on the nose with a full crit as you're trying to straighten out, and he has the option to turn and keep your nose in his range of fire.

However, turning AWAY from your enemy to swing around is the better option. Your Stern (tail) is exposed only briefly in line to his broadsides and as he continues to sail, his broadsides will only have YOUR broadsides as a target, instead of your nose are you vainly try to straighten out.