NAVAL ACTION GUIDE

by Adoreth

A big thank you to SirSpam28 whose guide helped me and inspired me to make this.
You can find his guide at:
https://www.reddit.com/r/NavalAction/comments/2s68ib/tips_and_tricks_for_doing_well/
 FAQ
- What ship can I sail at my level?
Each ship requires a minimum amount of crew
members in order to be used 100% correctly.
You can sail any ship you want but you won’t be
able to sail or fight, properly or at all, in it without
the number of crew members it is needed.
Lynx - Full crew size of 40 (Battle rating 5)
Cutter - Full crew size of 40 (Battle rating 20)
Privateer - Full crew size of 55 (Battle rating 20)
Pickle - Full crew size of 55 (Battle rating of 20)
Yacht - Full crew size of 40 (Battle rating 30)
Brig - Full crew size of 120 (Battle rating 25)
NavyBrig - Full crew size of 135 (Battle rating 35)
Snow - Full crew size of 130 (Battle rating 35)
Mercury - Full crew size of 135 (Battle rating 60)
Cerberus - Full crew size of 195 (Battle rating 80)
Surprise - Full crew size of 244 (Battle rating 100)
Renommee - Full crew size of 240 (Battle rating 120)
Belle Poule - Full crew size of 280 (Battle rating of 150)
Frigate - Full crew size of 280 (Battle rating 150)
Pirate Frigate - Full crew size of ??? (Battle rating 160)
Trincomalee - Full crew size of 315 (Battle rating 180)
Constitution - Full crew size of 450 (Battle rating 250)
Bellona - Full crew size of 650 (Battle rating 280)
Pavel - Full crew size of 830 (Battle rating 270)
Victory - Full crew size of 850 (Battle rating 300)
Santisima - Full crew size of 1050 (Battle rating 330)

Rank XP (Total) Crew

1 0 40
2 1000 (1000) 60
3 1000 (2000) 120
4 2500 (4500) 150
5 5000 (9500) 200
6 10k (19.5k) 250
7 20k (39.5k) 350
8 50k (89.5k) 650
9 75k (164.5k) 800
10 100k (264.5k) 1100
 - What cannons can I equip?
While in a port

You can see where you have open

slots for cannons in your ship.
Brackets below the open slot, show gun’s class
[Long or Medium cannon Class] / [Carronade cannon Class]
For more in cannons, see further down in this guide.
- How do I take a mission?
When in a port

You can undertake

up to 3 missions in
total and up to 1
mission from each
rank in each port.

- How do I find my mission?

Seek for this symbol on your map (M)

Using your compass head to where that
mark is on your map and seek for it
in open world.
 - How do I join a battle?
One way is by searching for these symbols in open world and joining.
(Notice: Till further notice you can only join these battles
if you are in group with the player inside the battle or
if it has been started by an enemy)

The other way is by joining fixed pvp battles while in a port

- What's the best way to make money?

There is no “best” way. To each his own, the game has given you
a plethora of things to do.

Especially later in the game you can do trading, crafting,

trader hunting or just missions.

It is suggested that early on in the game to start with missions.

You’ll find better or more interesting things to do later on as you progress
 - How do I progress in this game?
In order to progress you need experience (XP)
You gain XP by doing mission and fighting in general.
Do:
Missions
Join PVE battles
(Especially large PVE battles can give you large amounts of XP and gold)
Join PVP battles

- Missions are too hard!

While you’re getting the hang of sailing and especially fighting
you may find yourself in trouble many times while missioning.
You will get the hang of how you can be more successful in
battle in time and while taking tips from guides or youtube videos.
But in the meantime you can always hire NPCs to help you out:
While in port

You can hire up to 5 ships and have active each time up to 2.

Each NPC have a durability of 5.
Meaning they will last up to 5 times being destroyed.
After that, they are lost to Davy Jone’s locker forever!
Be advised though, these suckers
will reduce your total XP
from damaging
an enemy and they will
cost you further
as you will need to maintain
them by repairing them. Cutter - 6 Guns
You can hire NPCs to your fleet Lynx - 4 Guns
up until Rank 3.

There is no forced way to play, you play to have fun

and through this to progress economically and XP wise.
Things above and below in this guide are subject to change
as the game progresses and because it is still in early access
 SQUARE RIGGED SHIP FORE & AFT RIGGED SHIP

Downwind: With the wind FRONT

D
IN
W

BOW

PORT STARBOARD

STERN
Upwind: Against the wind
AFT
D

Windward (weather):
IN
W

Towards the origin of the wind

Leeward:
Away from the origin of the wind

Rudder Authority: To be moving so that there is actually

water rushing past your rudder in order for it to do anything.

Best Rudder Authority (best turning) is achieved by having

your speed about somewhere in the middle of your top speed.
Be advised, it varies from ship to ship.
1
 POINTS OF SAIL

IN IRONS: RUNNING:
N N
WIND WIND

W E W E

S S
Straight upwind position Straight downwind position
GOOD SPEED: <none> GOOD SPEED: Square
NO SPEED: <ALL> MEDIOCRE SPEED: Fore & Aft

CLOSE HAULED:
N
WIND

W E
0
-4
O

25
0

O
O
-4
25
O

S
O O
25 - 40 from a straight upwind position
DECENT SPEED: Fore & Aft
LOW SPEED: Square

2
 REACHING:
N N
WIND WIND

W E W E

S S
Close Reach
Moving perpendicular to the wind Beam Reach
Broad Reach

GOOD SPEED: GOOD SPEED:

Close Reach Beam Reach Broad Reach
Fore & Aft Square

MANEUVERING:
TACKING N JIBE N
WIND WIND

W E W E

S S
Turning your ship such that the bow Turning your ship such that the stern
passes directly from the upwind position. passes directly from the upwind position.
Caution: Be aware which side of the ship is
Caution: Speed is needed
leeward and windward. It will affect accuracy
else danger of getting stuck in irons! by lowering or rising the ship from a side.
3
 MANUAL SAILING:
N
Right
WIND
Turn
W E
<

<
S Front mast goes Left
opposite the direction Turn
you wish to turn .
When Upwind
Back mast goes
towards the direction
you wish to turn.

N Right
< Turn
<

W E

WIND
S Front mast goes Left
towards the direction Turn
you wish to turn .
When Downwind Back mast goes
opposite the direction
you wish to turn.
4
 ARMOR: CANNONS:
Taking as granted that the medium
cannons are the default guns

LONG
LESS STRONG + RANGE
+ SHOT VELOCITY
- RELOAD TIME

CARRONADE

BOW + DAMAGE
+ RELOAD TIME
STRONG STRONG - RANGE
PORT STARBOARD
BALL SHOT
Aim at hull
Used for damaging and penetrating
STERN the armor and taking down masts
CHAIN SHOT
Aim at sails, spars and rigging
Used for damaging sails
WEAK
GRAPE SHOT
Aim at deck
Used to kill and injure crew in large numbers
Caution: Due to very little penetration ability,
use only when enemy’s ship is low on armor

COMBAT:
(Tactics)

Target
You

1 HAVING THE WEATHER GAGE

(For small battles or solo)

Using Jibe maneuver and firing

Sailing constantly downwind behind your target. at the target from both sides.

N
WIND

W E . . . . . .

S
 2 LINE OF BATTLE
(For larger battles)

+ Able to offer great amount of damage to target

+ Stern and bow remains protected

- Strong team coordination is needed

- Good leadership is essential

3 RAKING SHOT
A devastating shot when successfully hitting your target’s stern with a broadside

. . .

COMBAT:
(Tips)
HEEL (Tilt):
Dependant on wind direction and ship’s speed
Ship will tilt on a side and thus increasing or decreasing shooting height
Need to adjust accordingly by:
Changing heading towards or away from the wind, depending on the situation
Reducing speed
Manually changing sails’ direction to become more parallel to the wind
N N

W E W E

S S

Tilting right Tilting left

thus making straboard cannons thus making port cannons
loose range due to being closer to water loose range due to being closer to water
 Shots close to waterline have increased possibility of penetration thus causing leak to your target.

SWELLS:
Waves can and will affect combat performance:
Either by moving your ship higher or lower thus forcing for accuracy adjustments.
Or by blocking the way between your cannons and your target.
You need to time your shots for a successful hit.

CONVERGENCE:
While in firing mode cannons will try and converge as closer as possible to where you are aiming
but will require some time so it’s best to wait a bit before firing for best accuracy.

RANGING SHOTS:
While in firing mode:
Fire a single shot first (spacebar) and adjust aim accordingly and when ready fire a
broadside for best results.

CANNON FIRE PRIORITY:

According to situation use either front or stern cannon to fire first.
Examples last

.. .
first

. ..
. .
x2 .
.
first
last

CREW:

SAILING: + Speed
+ Maneuverability

GUNNERY: + Less reload time

+ Better cannons convergence speed
+ Better cannons convergence degree

SURVIVAL: + Repaid speed

+ Better speed on pumping out water and plug leaks
- Gunnery performance
- Sailing performance
REPAIR:
4 bars show your ship’s armor.
If you look carefully you will see that they are surrounded
by an outline of a ship, facing right.
As you can see, my ship has badly damaged stern
(a bar disappeared there) and took some other damage.
Numbers indicate how many leaks I have above and below
the waterline on each side.
Red 1 below the line means one leak under the waterline.
Also my pump is somewhat damaged (it is yellow.
Red means "broken").

That means I'd better use repair (first you need to buy them at the town).
Press 5 and select which part needs to be repaired.
Also you can switch to Survival mode (8) to pump out water from
ship's hull (see your low-left corner), repair leaks and extinguish fire.
Source:
http://forum.game-labs.net/index.php?/topic/2533-a-short-guide-for-novices/

BOARDING:
You and target need to be going below 3.5 kn in order
for the Grab/Board (G) option to appear

Then a mini game starts. Basically a rock, paper scissor game.

 Crew & Marines:
The total amount of men that are participating in the boarding.
Numbers get reduced according to inflicted damage per round.
If all your crew dies, then your ship is captured by the opponent.

Morale:
The starting morale depends on the losses you
have during naval combat.
If during boarding the morale becomes zero, then the ship will
withdraw or surrender, depending on the situation.
Preparation:
The battle starts with the amount of preparation you have built up.
During boarding, preparation is slowly increased per round
and is vital for using the boarding commands.
Every command needs a specific amount of preparation.
If you do not have enough preparation for a command,
it will be unavailable for the round.
Additionally, each time you switch to a new command,
a small amount of preparation is spent which gets
increased a lot at the end of the round.
Hence, you need to wisely use commands in order to keep preparation
high enough to counter the commands of your opponent.

Muskets/Cannons/Melee:
The amount of kills expected for next round categorized according
to the commands selected by you and your opponent.
For example, if you choose command “Musket Volley”
then “Muskets” will have an expected damage calculation,
while “Cannons” and “Melee” will be zero.
These indications help to understand the power of
the commands before they are enabled in the next round.

Battle timer:
Each boarding round has a duration of 15 seconds.
During this phase you can choose the command
to use versus your opponent for the next round.
 To be continued...
SCROLL FURTHER FOR CRAFTING GUIDE
 CRAFTING
- By HERRICK
You can start crafting as soon as you start the game.
However, to craft anything, you need resources,
and to get resources, you need money. So complete some missions,
build up some experience and gain some gold and then think again about crafting.
It can be daunting, at first glance, so rather than just pick something to
craft at random, think about tackling the building of a ship.
You start at level 0 in Crafting and everybody has access to
two BluePrints (a Lynx and a Trading Lynx) and I shall use the approach
to building a Lynx in what follows. Most of what you see on the screenshots is relevant to level 0,
although, as I am at level 4 as I write this,
I have two more BluePrints available to me in the ‘Crafting -> Ship Building’ screen.
From the Home screen in Port, choose ‘Craft’

And then, choose ‘Ship Building’

And then choose ‘Lynx’. Note that the only difference between the Lynx and the Trading Lynx
is the requirement to build Gun Carriages.
If you hover your mouse over the Lynx BP, you will see the following:

By following through with the building of the ship, you will gain considerable experience
towards raising your crafting level.
Clicking on the Lynx gives you a list of requirements that you have to fulfill
before you can actually craft the ship

In the right hand pane, you will see a list of items that are needed.
You can choose the wood used to build the ship.
( There is a discussion about what benefits the different types of wood offer here:

http://forum.game-labs.net/index.php?/topic/7029-ships-inherent-characteristics/

but please note that the different types of wood only refer to the
production of the Frame Parts. You still need Oak for the planking and other things.)
Preceding each item are two numbers. In some cases, the first number is in red, so, for instance,
I can see that at the moment I have 0 Small Carriages (hence the red 0) and I need a total of 6.
Further down the list, you can see that I have 1 oak plank in hand but I need 64 in total.
I have more than enough Rigging Parts and Blocks already.
Let’s take a closer look at Small Carriages. If you click on that, you will see the following:

Oak Logs is a Resource, so if I did not have enough, I would have to buy the required amount
from the Shop (look in Shop > Resources.). As you can see, I have more than enough in hand.
Iron Fittings are not a resource. You might be able to buy these from the Shop, in Materials.
However, there are two drawbacks to this approach;
the first being that there might not be enough and the second, that they will be relatively
expensive. If I did not have enough Iron Fittings, I would click on the term ‘Iron Fittings’,
which would take me to the following:
 in the previous screenshot, you can see that I have 1 iron ingot, but I need 6.
Again, Iron Ingots are not a resource,
so I can choose to buy from the shop, or make them myself.
As I am trying to raise my crafting XP, I am going to make them myself.
Click on ‘Iron Ingots’ and you will see the following:

At last I have reached the point where I see resources in the pane, so I can buy these (although
I do not need to) and start crafting. Once you have the resources you need, simply click ‘Craft’.
You will see that your experience increases while your ‘Labor Hours’ decreases.
In order to build a Lynx from scratch, you will need the resources seen in the table:
Lynx Fir / Oak / Teak / Live Oak

GENERAL
8 small carriages 2 Oak Log

6 iron fittings 12 iron ingots 12 iron ore

12 coal
4 Cables & Howsers 3 Hemp
1 iron ingot 2 iron ore

2 coal

HULL
6 Rudder Parts 2 oak logs
2 iron ingots 2 iron ore
2 coal

64 Planks 13 oak logs

2 Tar 2 fir log
40 Frame Parts ( Fir/Oak/Teak/Live Oak) 24 logs
RIGS
3 Rigging Parts 2 pine logs

3 Canvas Rolls 3 hemp

13 Blocks 1 lignum vitae log
5 Cordage and Oakum 6 hemp

2 tar 2 fir log

FITTINGS
8 Cables and Howsers 6 hemp
2 iron ingots 2 iron ore
2 coal
9 Iron Fittings 18 iron ingots 18 iron ore

18 coal

20 Wooden Fittings 12 fir logs

7 Ballast 12 stone block
 The above gives the following shopping list:

No Item Est.
Req’d Cost
51 Oak log 90
36 Iron ore 113
36 Coal 30
18 Hemp 117
16 Fir log 80
24 Teak log 51
2 Pine log 28
1 Lignum vitae 150
12 Stone block 15

The costs are estimates, as it depends on where you do your shopping and how rare those items
are at that port. The total estimated cost for building a Lynx from the BluePrints is therefore
roughly 15000 gold.
Once made, you can sell it or use it.
When the ship is built, it will be allocated a quality at random.
At some point, as your XP increases, you find BluePrints for other ships
that you can then start building.
Don’t just build a single Lynx; the game doesn’t work like that.
As you keep building, your workers get better and the quality improves.

For more reading see Tommy Shelby’s Crafting Recipes:

http://forum.game-labs.net/index.php?/topic/7013-crafting-recipes-excl-ships-modules-recipes-stats/

and http://www.navalactioncraft.com where there is a whole website devoted to the subject!

I hope this helped.