Finally! A response to my email! ... kinda..

I know that this is a topic that has been discussed numerous times by players in the game. But I was wondering if there was any work being done to stop the issue of people boarding other player's ships using the 'Go To' function? What these people do is disrupt the game for others, many times firing at enemy ships with the deliberate purpose of having the ship they've boarded sink. They disrupt crews of friends and guilds and are a general nuisance. And what I notice, is that most of the people who do this sort of thing are free members, which means that they are lessening the quality of the Pirates Online experience for us paying members. This game is about community for many of us, which is why we have guilds, join up together to help others, and form friendships on what otherwise is a terrific game. Two days playing and I became an unlimited member. I understand that this is a new game, and there are still glitches and problems to work out, but I know that I am not the only one who thinks that this issue of 'Stowaways' is one of the biggest problems in the game to date.

Even when I ask these people to leave repeatedly and they refuse, the only way that I can get them off my ship is to port and hope that they some how do not follow again. So they get the experience and they get whatever loot is plundered, and I just get annoyed. And many times, these are not friends of players in the crew or on the ship, but players from other ships that merely click on a player on board and 'Go To'. What I would like to know is that if I repeatedly ask a player to leave and they do not do as I ask, can I report them for rude behavior/harassment? Something has to be done about these people! But I don't want to report them and risk being banned myself because
I've filed a report that is superfluous.

Here are my suggestions for dealing with the "stowaway" issue:
- The ability to grant someone the title of "Stowaway" or "Deckhand" on your ship should be added, as well as a "Walk the Plank" vote to get them off your ship.
- Its very simple...if you are not a member of a crew you should not get a share of the loot. You also should only get XP for the damage you actually do.
- If someone TPs over to your ship or to you, and they are not a member of your crew, you can brand them with the title "stowaway" which they keep for 15 minutes. It is displayed over their head like "looking for crew". You can only tag players that are not part of your crew but are present on your ship as stowaways. When you do this, they do not earn any XP other than the actual damage they do, and they do not get a share of the loot. Since the tag remains over thier head for 15 minutes they will have trouble getting on another ship.
- This will discourage the practice.
- You can also ban someone from using the guns or taking the helm by using the "deckhand" title, or you can boot someone all together from your ship by initiating a "Walk the Plank" vote.

This is how the interface would work.
You click on the person and additional options show up if you own the ship.
Stowaway
Deckhand
Walk the Plank
1) As a Stowaway they get no XP except what damage they do, and get no loot as well as the other effects explained above. This tag persists for 15 minutes, even in port.
This tag cannot be given to anyone that is on your crew, nor can it be given anywhere except when on your ship.
2) As a Deckhand, they cannot mount the guns or the helm for as long as they remain on the ship. They will still get XP and the loot share. This tag is removed when
the player makes port.
3) If you choose Walk the Plank, a vote is started to kick the player off the ship. All crewmembers vote on it. All crew would have to vote yes, and then person would have to "walk the plank" so to speak. When the player is kicked, he goes back to his port of call, and has the jail debuff (but is not in jail of course). The problem with the current system is that you have to invite the player to the crew again to to get the removal prompt. This is too time intensive, especially in a difficult battle.


Keeping with this, one may click on one's cargo to see a list of cargo. one SHOULD also be able to click on 'shipmates' and have a clickable list appear. It'd make it REAL easy to use the above suggested commands. Or to crew WELCOMED new arrivals while mid battle without having to swing the camera around to find them while losing track of the battle. I think the best way to solve this is to have an admit/ban list for your ship. If you make someone crew... they are automatically on your admit list. This should also make it that their friends cannot tp to them while crew on a ship. Im tired of seeing the stowaways running the stairs and doing nothing. Anyone misbehaves... they walk the plank.

Also, there's another problem regarding what I call Rep Stealers. Part of the game involves leveling our characters. And this is fun, but time consuming. There are players in the game who deliberately wait for others to attack an enemy before jumping in the fight. This cuts down on the rep that we earn while this uninvited player reaps the benefits of it. I ask them to leave, to go away, to simply do it on their own, while disrupting my own battle. And most of the time they refuse where it gets to the point where I have to inconvenience myself, change servers, and sail back to that location. While nothing happens to them. If I repeatedly ask another player to leave me alone and to stop harassing me, and they refuse to do so, is this also something that I can report as rude/harassing behavior without risking having myself banned?

I thank you for your time and I hope to hear back from you soon. I appreciate any help that you can give me.

I'm glad to hear that this issue is being dealt with. For, next to the Black Pearl Boss not being fixed, this seems to be the main complaint amongst us unlimited members. When can I expect the patch? April or more closer to the big summer update?

Also, while this matter is being worked on, what actions can I take against these people? Am I within my rights to report these players who disrupt my gaming experience? Can I report a person who boards my ship and refuses to leave? Also, can I report a player who will not stop following me, or harassing me by stealing my kills while trying to level?

Again, anxiously looking forward to your response! Thanks for getting back to me so promptly.