In today’s making-of featurette, ACIV: Black Flag Producer Martin Schelling and Lead Designer Jean-Sebastien Decant talk us through the Crew System that maintains the Jackdaw in sea battles.
Martin Schelling: “The boarding system is part of the naval loop, and you need to have a crew in order to board enemy ships. You can recruit people on the ground, or save shipwrecked sailors lost at sea from their rafts, and add them to your crew. One of the great things about the ship is that it opens up many ‘RPG’ possibilities. For example you can add bigger living quarters for your crew.”
Jean-Sebastien: “Yes, as many as 60 guys. And it’s needed because when you eventually face a Man-O-War there are lots of guards on those ships. You have to pay close attention to how many crew members you have on-board or you will lose the boarding attempt.”
Martin Schelling: “It is like a timer. When you fight the smaller ships they only have maybe five guys to take down. Later on, with the bigger ships, you need to raise the flag, destroy their explosives, and eliminate some of the remaining soldiers. This can take up to five minutes. So, if you don’t have enough crew to cover you during that time, you are in trouble…”