I have been slacking off over this last week and not posting a daily note. I could claim it was work, but in reality it is distractions caused by video games. In this case, the new pre-release game Atlas (aka, Ark: Survival 2). An ocean-based game of pirates and adventure on the high-seas, I have been very pleasantly surprised by the detail involved with sailing. It is far less point and click, but much more of a coordinated effort with several players in the crew. Fortunately, between the wife and kids, we have an ample supply of sailors.
However, it is a bit of a grind to construct anything of significance, so our large schooner, Hedwig’s Revenge, occupied several days of chopping wood, gathering fiber, mining metal and other gather actions. This, while fighting off crocodiles and snakes that were in abundance due to game balance bugs. After much effort, we finally managed to launch the ship, and successfully leave port, and actually explore several new islands. Everything was great for the first day – we had a mobile base, we had security, and we had what we needed.
Then the weather turned bad, and we opted to explore to parts unknown. And that is where the tide turned, as we managed to get caught between several Ships of the Damned (the game’s NPC pirates). Opting to run, we turned and tried to catch the wind, but the ship was simply too slow compared to the pirates. Worse, they had cannons and we did not. Although we almost made the zone border and escaped, in the end, Hedwig’s Revenge sank to the depths below.
The story didn’t end all bad though. In an attempt to distract the pirates, the first mate had released the dinghy as a decoy (it didnt work), and it was now bobbing in the water. What was left of the crew (Sailor Ben had drowned sleeping in the lower deck) swam for the live raft. Unfortunately, jelly fish and sharks swarmed the survivors, and in the end only the captain managed to stay alive on the small rowboat.
Rowing as strength permitted, but renewed by the supplies he had rescued from the corpses of his crew, the Captain slowly moved west, towards hopes of land. After what seemed an eternity however, he saw a sail on the horizon, as his crew (respawned as they were) came to his rescue. Fortunately, we as a group had opted to reserve and hang onto our original ship, the sloop referred to only as Sloopy.
