The Revamp

Ships
"There's very likely going to be new ships along with the revamped ships. As you know, basically everything is being remade from the ground up."

-RawEggTheGreatIX (Reed)

Acquiring ships
"Ships will be primarily be through Ship Plans. These will unlock "Ship Parts" which can be made from wood. You can the wood from numerous ways, but the intended ways are through buying, or by chopping trees. As for getting ship plans, the majority of the time, they will be found in campaigns."

-RawEggTheGreatIX (Reed)

Number of ships
"I plan to add 1-3 new ships along with the existing ones. All the ships are being remodelled."

Combat "Basically, the new combat will not rely on ship damage being holes/leaks. More damage types such as, but not limited to: Fire, dynamically damageable hull, snapping ropes, destructible deck items, and mast breakage. Essentially, leaks/holes will be side damage. Another thing is that ships will have a more realistic amount of cannons, rather than 1-3 cannons per side, it will be more."

-RawEggTheGreatIX (Reed)

Maneuverability
"Ships will have rudders, and tillers. Tillers will act as a way to turn the ship if the helm is broken, or inoperable. As of speed, each ship will actually have its own unique speed. Sails will actually contribute to ship speed, so if one is ripped off (from rope(s) snapping), the ship will loose the speed that sail gave. As for helms, they will determine how fast the rudder turns, not the ship turnspeed. There are plans to make helms support more than one helmer. If added, a second helmer would only speed up turning by 10% if there is nothing resisting ship turns (clear weather), and increase turning speed by 80% if there is something resisting."

-RawEggTheGreatIX (Reed)

NPCs
"just a note NPC ≠ AI

AI is the intelligence of an NPC, NPC is a character that is not controlled by a player"

Purpose/functionality of NPC Crewmembers
"Since ships are big, and have a ton of equipment. There is no way a player by themselves can operate it alone, which is why NPC crewmen will be added. For an example, when on the helm, Holding W/S will have NPC crewmen raise/lower sails for you, along with the anchor. For cannons, if an NPC crewmen is on one, you will get  crosshair to click to fire cannons. All cannons with a NPC crewmen will have the ability to fire/reload."

-RawEggTheGreatIX (Reed)

NPC Ships
NPC ships will be Ships fully operated by NPCs. Their main purpose is to guarantee an enemy for Navies and pirates, Aswell as not guaranteeing safety to Merchants. They will be encouraged more than player targets, as they will have garenteed cargo, and likely contain items you the player might need.

Teams & play styles
There will be three teams to play on, Pirates, Neutral, and Central Trading Company. There will be 2 sub-teams for Neurral. "Neutral-Hostile" and "Neutral-Passive. Team changing will very likely be a thing that you can do at medium-large sized ports.

Neutral Team
This team is what you're automatically on when you join in the main menu.

Neutral-Passive
In this team, you cannot attack, or be attacked. You also cannot sell, carry, or interact with cargo. If you had cargo on your ship, your merchant task for it would be dropped, and the cargo would be removed (Note barrels ≠ Cargo). This team is primarily meant for new players, and people who want to explore and/or fill in their maps.

Neutral-Hostile
This team is meant for people who want to PVP eachother. This team is meant for high level merchants and navy who want to pirate without damaging their CTC rank. being on Neutral-Hostile as a pirate won't give any pirate benefits.

Central Trading Company
This is the team that will have Merchants, Fishermen, and Navy. The Central Trading Company is a company that profits from the manufacture and transportation of goods. They have their own naval militia. Stuff like getting task missions  to transport cargo, signing up to the navy, and more are available in this team.

Pirates
The pirate team is a team that is for Pirates. Pirates plunder ships for money, and do as they wish. More detail will be on pirates in the "Pirate Path" Pirates are the enemy of the CTC team

Gameplay Paths / "Careers"
So, you can enroll in four different paths: Pirates, Merchant, Navy, and Fishermen. You can theoretically play the game fully without being any, (so basically being on neutral team) But it's heavily encouraged to enroll in one, since it will be the main form of gaining money, aswell as offering a unique experience. You get a rank in each Gameplay path, and when you rank up you get better stats, and unlock new features. You can only be in 1 gameplay path at once.

Pirates
Pirates are pirates, you gain money from stolen cargo and sinking merchants. The higher your rank in pirates is, the more bounty you will have, and the more piratey things you'll be able to do. Being a Pirate Requires you to be on the Pirate Team.

(starter pirate) At low ranks: You'll have the ability to steal cargo. You can be a part of a higher NPC Pirate's ship in order to have the ability to start off pirating. Or, if you're brave, you can start pirating from your own ship and crew.

(Established Captain) At mid ranks: You'll have a bigger bounty, the people who you sell stolen cargo to will have more respect for you, so stolen cargo priced will increase. You'll get exclusive pirate gear, and have the ability to literally steal NPC ships, making them your own. You can use stolen ships to scrap as a source of wood, or keep them as your own. (can only steal ships that you have unlocked)

(Legendary Feared Pirate) At High ranks: You're a respected and feared pirate. Your bounty is so high, and you gain more money from stolen cargo and sinks. You'll get access to more exclusive pirate gear, and have NPCs more willing to join your crew for free

Merchant
As a merchant, you get tasked with transporting cargo. Note that Cargo is a new item, and not barrels. Merchants progressively gain trust from the Central Trading Company to transport more finer/rarer goods.

(Novice Merchant) At low levels: You'll get access to tasks, and missions by the CTC. Most of the missions will be Cargo missions. Most of the cargo will be common, cheap cargo. You must be in the CTC team to be a Merchant

(Trusted Merchant) At mid levels: Now, as you gain ranks in the company, the CTC trusts you, and you gain access to more rarer, expensive cargos that sell for more money. Items from CTC stores will also have a discount, in reward for your loyalty.

(Loyal Merchant) At high levels: As you become trusted by the company, you can transport the rarest of goods. The Company rewards you with free luxurious furniture, cosmetics, and items. You're now rich, but are likely a target by pirates. You also get to request naval escorts by the CTC's Navy.

Navy
The Central Trading Company Navy is a branch of the Central Trading Company dedicated to protecting its merchants, and hunting down pirates. As part of the navy, you will be fighting pirates, and escorting merchants. All for pay, of course.

(Naval Cadet) At low ranks: You get to be a crewmember of a NPC (or player) warship. You can also use your own ship. You get rewarded for killing pirates, and returning stolen cargo. You can also imprison pirates, turning them in.

(Midshipman) As you go up the ranks, you get access to the navy's exclusive weapons, like mortars, better muskets (muskets will be a thing, this is just a special musket with better stats), and better swords. You also get increased reward for killing pirates, returning stolen cargo, etc.

(Admiral) At high ranks: You're the highest rank in the Navy. You are supplied with ammunition, supplies, and naval cadets (NPCs, and/or players). You also get higher pay for returning stolen cargo, killing and imprisoning pirates. You also have the ability to command NPC ships in naval missions.