The next stage of Campaign Mode is now taking shape.
The goal is simple:
To turn the campaign into one continuous, real-time world.
The strategic map will still remain an important part of the game. It allows you to oversee a vast area stretching from the North Sea to the Caribbean, manage multiple fleets, ports, production, officers, and operations, and accelerate time when necessary.
But the fleets you see on that strategic map will no longer exist only as abstract icons.
They will exist in the world.
Zoom in, and you will be able to see those fleets sailing across the sea in real time.
A fleet leaving Portsmouth will actually leave Portsmouth.
A squadron ordered to patrol a sea lane will physically patrol that area.
A merchant convoy will travel across the ocean.
An enemy fleet must actually sail to its destination.
And if two forces meet, there will be no need to load a separate, unrelated battlefield.
The place where they meet becomes the battlefield.
Hunt, Pursue, Protect, and Destroy
This changes the meaning of naval operations throughout the campaign.
You will be able to search for enemy fleets, track them across the sea, pursue them, avoid them, intercept them, or destroy them.
Enemy ships may first appear only as distant masts on the horizon.
A faster frigate may discover an enemy force and report its position.
A stronger fleet may attempt to cut off its retreat.
An enemy may disappear beyond the horizon and force you to search for it again.
Reconnaissance and pursuit will become part of the campaign itself rather than something that happens only inside a battle scenario.
Commerce and Convoys
Merchant shipping will also exist within this real-time world.
You may intercept and capture enemy merchant vessels, attack trade routes, escort friendly convoys, or protect shipping from privateers and pirates.
A trade route will no longer be only a number on a strategic interface.
Ships will actually travel along it.
That means protecting commerce, raiding commerce, and hunting raiders can all happen naturally within the same world.
Blockades
Ports and trade routes can also be blockaded directly.
A blockade fleet must physically maintain its presence near the enemy coast or important sea lanes.
Enemy ships may attempt to break through.
Friendly forces may try to relieve the blockade.
Merchant vessels may be intercepted before reaching port.
Blockade operations therefore become a continuous naval mission rather than a simple strategic modifier.
Port Battles
The same principle applies to attacks on ports.
Approaching an enemy harbor, engaging defending ships, attacking coastal defenses, landing troops, or attempting to break a blockade will all take place within the same continuous world.
There is no separate “campaign world” and “battle world.”
They are gradually becoming the same world.
Navigation — If You Want It
Traditional navigation is also being developed as an optional part of this system.
Players who want to can observe celestial bodies, use the Sun or Polaris, consult navigation information, use a chronometer, and attempt to determine their position using traditional navigation techniques.
You could even attempt to cross the Atlantic without relying on the strategic chart.
But this is entirely optional.
Normal movement will remain as simple as selecting a destination and right-clicking.
The goal is not to force every player to become an 18th-century navigator.
It is simply another layer of the world for players who want to experience it.
One World, Running in Real Time
The most important principle behind this renewal is that everything should remain connected.
Fleets sailing.
Merchants trading.
Pirates hunting.
Convoys being escorted.
Enemy squadrons searching for targets.
Blockades being maintained.
Ports being attacked.
Battles beginning wherever opposing forces actually meet.
All of it takes place in the same real-time world.
Strategic Mode will allow the player to manage this enormous space at high time acceleration, while the open world allows you to enter the action directly whenever you choose.
You will not need to personally control every fleet.
Delegated fleets, autonomous captains, and officers will continue carrying out their assigned missions while you command operations elsewhere.
This is still a large work in progress, and many systems will continue to change as the campaign develops.
But the direction is becoming much clearer:
Ship of the Line is moving toward a campaign where the sea itself is the battlefield.
Thank you, as always, for your feedback and support.
May the winds be with you.
— Developer of Ship of the Line