WilyJaymes
Honorable Pirate
For a while now, skull & bones has suffered from being the "little brother" of the reinforced upgrade path.
What I propose is a very small buff to hopefully bring it up to being a viable option without overtuning.
1: Raise the armor for rank VI from 165% to 170% (130% for rank IV, and 150% for rank V, respectively)
For a ship with no advantages in the areas of speed and cargo, its armor is just a hair lower than what
it needs to be. Especially given the large gap in damage output compared to the copperhead.
2: Raise the fury chance from 50% to 60% (20% for rank IV, and 40% for rank V, respectively)
At first glance, you may think this is taking it too far. But you have to understand, even with this buff, it pales in comparison to the damage output of a copperhead of the same ship class. Despite having a haunted ram (and landing crits), just 2-3 explosives from a copperhead still does noticeably more.
Yes, overall the skull and bones upgrade is cheaper, and easier to acquire. That is the only reason I could somewhat concur with someone who thinks it doesn't need a buff -- the fact that it's relatively cheap. And that is precisely why the buff I have proposed is very small. Just like before, choosing skull and bones over copperhead is a sacrifice in raw power for extra utility, except the gap will no longer be so large that it's almost unanimously regarded as inferior.
What I propose is a very small buff to hopefully bring it up to being a viable option without overtuning.
1: Raise the armor for rank VI from 165% to 170% (130% for rank IV, and 150% for rank V, respectively)
For a ship with no advantages in the areas of speed and cargo, its armor is just a hair lower than what
it needs to be. Especially given the large gap in damage output compared to the copperhead.
2: Raise the fury chance from 50% to 60% (20% for rank IV, and 40% for rank V, respectively)
At first glance, you may think this is taking it too far. But you have to understand, even with this buff, it pales in comparison to the damage output of a copperhead of the same ship class. Despite having a haunted ram (and landing crits), just 2-3 explosives from a copperhead still does noticeably more.
Yes, overall the skull and bones upgrade is cheaper, and easier to acquire. That is the only reason I could somewhat concur with someone who thinks it doesn't need a buff -- the fact that it's relatively cheap. And that is precisely why the buff I have proposed is very small. Just like before, choosing skull and bones over copperhead is a sacrifice in raw power for extra utility, except the gap will no longer be so large that it's almost unanimously regarded as inferior.
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