Each month we take a moment to talk with you about the development process and progress from the past month, while also highlighting contributions from the Ahoy community.
This month, we’re taking a look at the latest addition to the Ahoy fleet – Bumblebee.
We showed off Bumblebee and her mercantile sisters in a previous Dev Journal, however after a lot of positive feedback and interest in the smallest ships in Ahoy’s line-up, we’ve decided to revisit them in order to prepare them for playability. Bumblebee (previously “Coaster”) represents the smallest ship in the fleet.
Bumblebee is one of a few of Ahoy’s digital reconstructions which are based primarily on the work of Fredrik Henrik af Chapman. Chapman was a Swedish shipbuilder, scientist and officer in the Swedish navy during the time of Ahoy. He is perhaps best known for his work “Architectura Navalis Mercatoria“, which was first published in 1768.
As explained during the initial showcase of these merchant ships, they were initially created with the intention of simply providing additional NPC ship variety within and around ports. However, as time has progressed, we’ve felt it would be a good idea to ensure that all future ships created for Ahoy follow the same standards of completion.
This means that all of the smaller ships will receive a similar treatment. Primarily this means that the interiors will be fully realised, as we’ve come to expect from the larger ships in Ahoy’s fleet. As part of this work, much of the original ship required modification to ensure that the interior space could correctly be represented.
Chapman’s work represents this ship as an English Smack for Flattfish, which Bumblebee faithfully recreates. While Bumblebee doesn’t depict a specific or notable historical vessel, we feel that these smaller ships are so important to the busy, sometimes cluttered, port and harbour environments.
With a lack of historically notable examples, we’ve opted to work from Chapman’s contemporary work to ensure the depiction still remains accurate, even if we cannot be 100% sure how ships of this size may have been decorated internally.
Although Chapman described her specifically as a fishing vessel, Bumblebee will operate as a mixed-use ship for starting players. Whether operating as a small cargo vessel between nearby ports, or ferrying messages and other packets, Bumblebee will be the workhorse of many ports around the Caribbean.
We’re looking forward to exploring the interiors of the other smaller merchant ships in the coming months. Of the two already shared previously, work has started on one of their interiors already. However, there are a number of smaller ships we’ve yet to announce at all, which we’re sure will become favourites!
As has become tradition now, we’re answering a few more of your questions submitted since the last Journal. You can ask us questions about anything project related here.
On the in-game economy:
– Respondent, Journal Questionnaire.
- What are your plans for the in-game economy and what will the crafting system look like?
The in-game economy of Ahoy will be largely player-driven, where the trade of goods, management of supply chains, and involvement in (or defence from) smuggling and privateering will be central to the gameplay experience. Prices of goods will fluctuate based on regional availability, demand, and scarcity, creating an evolving marketplace that responds to player actions and the conditions set out in the world.
While we aren't ready to reveal all the details regarding Ahoy's crafting system, we can confirm that players will be able to gather resources in the persistent world and commission the crafting or construction of a wide variety of products. These crafted goods will integrate with the broader economy, allowing players to specialize in niche products or dominate markets in regions that are underserved.
Crafting will involve strategic planning and resource management, with rare materials only available in certain parts of the world, providing the opportunity of crafting higher-quality or specialized equipment. These crafted items could offer advantages in longevity or performance quality, making them valuable within the player-driven economy. We have some exciting concepts around resource gathering and larger-scale industry that we hope to delve into further into the development of the Persistent World.
On the Ahoy fleet:
– Respondent, Journal Questionnaire.
- Do you plan on adding Navy Vessels of the 5 nations. If so, will you add some of the more famous ships, i.e. USS Constitution and or HMS Victory. There are others that would work, but those are two that are still around today.
Yes, we do plan to add naval vessels from the major historical nations featured in Ahoy (British, French, Dutch, Spanish and American). When it comes to the more famous ships (USS Constitution, HMS Victory, Santísima Trinidad, etc.) we have no current plans to include these ships, as they fall outside of our current ship creation focus. You can find out more about that here.
Beyond these, we aim to introduce other historically notable ships that played key roles during this period, giving players a variety of options depending on their chosen nation. In particular, we are trying to choose ships which have not previously been digitally reconstructed. This allows us to introduce you to ships that otherwise haven't been seen in 3D before, or even at all, since the real ship last sailed. However, I'm sure as the limitations on ship size and complexity are relaxed, we will be looking to explore the more popular or well-known options as well.
On character account limits:
– Respondent, Journal Questionnaire.
- Will we be able to have multiple character accounts? So one character can be a pirate, another a merchant and the other a navy sailor?
Yes, Ahoy will allow players to have multiple characters per account, giving you the flexibility to explore different playstyles. This means you can create separate characters to experience life as a pirate, a merchant, or a navy sailor, each with its own progression. This system allows players to switch between roles and storylines without being tied to a single career path, letting you fully immerse yourself in the diverse and dynamic world of Ahoy.
One key point, however, is that accounts are nation-locked. Once you join a nation, all characters on your account must be part of that nation unless you take the significant decision to swap nations when the opportunity presents itself.
Swapping your nation affiliation is an infrequent opportunity. Everyone would get the opportunity to switch factions over the course of approximately a week after a major conflict, where no organised warfare is allowed during that switching time. After that week everything goes back to normal and the new populations are balanced.
The time you'd be 'stuck' in the nation you choose would be long enough to remove the ability to really benefit your original nation long-term (spying or spoiling a particular battle for example), but not too long that it feels like a permanent change. Each nation will offer you some kind of benefit for choosing them, and the winning nation of the war offers you the worst benefits to disincentivise you picking it after the war was won. In that way, we can attempt to ensure some level of balance in terms of nation populations. These balancing methods are still highly theoretical, and we'll review our approach to them over time to ensure we're building a fair and fun experience.
On server structure:
– Respondent, Journal Questionnaire.
- How will servers work? Will it be like sea of thieves where the lobby is locked at quantity of player ships (you could do this per region) or how will it work?
For the Arena release, servers will be hosted by ourselves or by the community and provide smaller, contained battles without any persistence between matches or servers.
For the Persistent World, however, the server structure will differ from games like Sea of Thieves. Instead of a limited number of ships per lobby, Ahoy will feature a larger, persistent world where multiple players can interact within a single region. This means the game will feel more like an open world, where players can encounter each other organically without the constraints of a locked player count per instance.
Each region of the map will be hosted on its own server, and players will seamlessly transition between regions as they sail across the world. This setup allows for a higher number of player interactions, more dynamic trade routes, and naval encounters. Additionally, the game will balance the population density by dynamically allocating resources, events, and AI activity in regions based on player presence, ensuring the world feels alive and engaging even in less populated areas.
The remaining challenge will be how to handle the borders between these separate regions, however we believe methods to make this more seamless will be available.
On player storage and banking:
– Respondent, Journal Questionnaire.
- How will banks be work? Specifically for me and my pirate friends, will we be able to sell our cargo we found and put our doubloons in a shared bank account?
Yes, Ahoy will feature a banking system designed to cater to both law-abiding citizens and players who engage in piracy, but with very different mechanics.
For the majority of players adhering to the law, banks will offer a secure way to store currency across any port for an indefinite period. Money deposited in a bank can be accessed or spent remotely, so you won’t have to carry large sums with you at all times. However, if you make purchases without having sufficient immediate funds, you’ll essentially be taking out a fixed-term loan with the merchant. You’ll need to return with the agreed amount (plus interest) within a set time. Failing to repay this loan could result in merchants using bounty or debt recovery systems to track you down and collect their dues.
For those embracing the pirate lifestyle, the system works quite differently. Banks won't offer much security for players marked as criminals. In fact, any funds or assets you have within the jurisdiction of a nation you've wronged could be frozen or confiscated. Pirates won’t have the luxury of traditional banking or long-term financial safety. However, there will be some free-ports that tolerate piracy and smuggling, where you can store your ill-gotten gains—but at a steep cost. Banking and insurance for pirates will come from other players, allowing for the creation of player-run systems that cater to the needs of their criminal networks.
Additionally, pirates and lawful players alike can store currency and goods in warehouses at ports. However, unlike banks, these don’t provide the same level of protection. If a port storing your resources is captured, only a bank guarantees the safety of your funds, whereas goods stored in warehouses are more vulnerable.
On wildlife:
– Respondent, Journal Questionnaire.
- Do you have any plans to implement animals in the world as a whole? If so will there be any hunting/trading to be available in the world, how would it be implemented?
Yes, we do plan to include a variety of fauna in Ahoy's world. Wildlife will populate various regions, both on land and at sea, contributing to the environment's authenticity.
We currently have no plans to create a complex hunting system. It might be something we look into for the future. Fishing will be a function of crew activity to replenish food stocks on longer voyages.
Please do keep sending in your questions about Ahoy. If you have more questions for the team and would like them answers next month, please submit your questions below.
Submit your questions:
https://forms.gle/1w9MRgU3qrvTNkqn7
Until next time, good day!
Sincerely your most humble servant,
Tyler – Project Lead
Our Journal updates are often discussed at length in the official Ahoy Discord server. Whether you have questions about the topics covered in this update, or you would like to leave your own feedback or suggestions, please join our Discord server to discuss!
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