War Sails Q&A #2

Thank you all for your understanding and support following last week’s announcement about the delay of War Sails. Today, we want to answer some of the questions you had since our last Q&A with many more details to come in the following weeks.

Got something else you’re curious about? Drop your questions below —we’ll be picking some for the next Q&A![hr]

General

Will there be swimming and drowning?

• Yes. Characters can swim, dive, climb back on board, and they’ll drown under certain conditions.

Will we be able to put horses on ships (keep them in inventory while sailing the world map)?

• Yes, you will be able to keep mounts in inventory on ships, but unlike on land, they will take up ship inventory space instead of providing it. They also won’t provide a speed bonus.

Will you be able to travel through river systems?

• Yes, you will be able to sail on rivers in War Sails, allowing you to reach certain towns and strategic points. Combat on rivers will also be supported, with scenes designed to reflect the narrow, terrain-restricted nature of river warfare.

Will you be able to run Merchant vessels like caravans?

• Yes! You’ll be able to buy trade convoys from coastal town merchants. You will also have the option of going for the standard or armed convoys, with the latter having more troops to protect against pirates. These convoys will travel from one coastal town to another, trading goods and generating profit, but they will be vulnerable to various threats along the way, so protection matters.

Will there be a new Nord voice for character creation to go with the new hairstyles and tattoos?

• Characters from the new Nord faction will have distinct Scandinavian-inspired accents in campaign conversations (similar to the current unique voice-over content per culture). New voice presets will also be added to character creation, and they will be available to all cultures.

With Nords being added, will Sturgian troops be modified further to be closer to Vaegirs, avoiding overlap in style?

• We’re making some visual and characteristic tweaks to Sturgia so that they will stand apart from the Nords, but we don’t want to make the changes so drastic that they feel alien to players who’ve gotten used to their current design. For example, one of the Sturgian cultural bonuses, as well as some Nordic-inspired Sturgian banner icons will be changed. Likewise, various Nordic items previously used by Sturgian troops and nobles (shields, weapons, armor, and helmets…) will be redistributed, and new shields will be added.

Is there going to be a new attribute and 3 new skills, and can we know the names of the attribute/skills?

• We’re not introducing a new attribute, but War Sails will add three new naval-oriented skills, each bound to already existing attributes. Please bear in mind that some of these details may still change:

  • “Mariner” - Enhances your personal combat prowess during naval engagements and bolsters your effectiveness in leading troops and employing tactics in sea battles - bound to Vigor and Endurance.

  • “Boatswain” - Governs the well-being and discipline of your ship's crew, as well as the vessel's overall combat readiness, including rigging and supplies - bound to Social and Intelligence.

  • “Shipmaster” - Improves your navigational abilities, the effectiveness of naval siege engines under your command, and the speed and quality of ship repairs and upgrades - bound to Control and Cunning.

Will inland water bodies get covered with ice during winter so that they can be crossed?

• No. There