Bregir

Perhaps precedence suggests that if a faction has less than three warships of class 3 or higher, the home country can shore up the forces? Another option is simply to sell the small captures as prizes or in the open market to gain access to a free 5HA, but that would weed out a lot of small vessels, which I think would be a shame. On the other hand, my suggestion would just lead to 3A's and 4A's being weeded out, so some provision against this could be made. (Eg. no replacement for class 3 and 4A's sold as prizes?)

How are the internal policies of Oleon anyone but the oleanders business? By god, we do have a lot of snooping around in each others business. :P As long as the proper fee are paid out of the faction, however the faction employs its funds are really no business of ours. Go snoop around all you want. I just don't see why. And Maxim, I think you are making your index too complex trying to get into a lot details on companies that are not made public, etc. :) It's more work for you, so your decision...

Really? Are we comparing "sizes" now? One wonders what Freud would have said... Why don't you two just go and buy a red sports car or a motorcycle? :P

Acutally this seems like a really good basis for a build-off - OL: Prove that they are Namerians, NA: Prove that they were not. This is part of why I suggested elsewhere that the factions themselves should decide which cases to press...

Perfetto!

@Kai: Doesn't it require that the nation in question files a complaint, or is it just automaticly turned into a court case? What if we for instance don't want to risk a diplomatic incidence with mardier and therefore do not wish to take it to court? And where should such a protest be filed? General BoBS thread, I suppose?

Well well, purchasing the Bellson (Formerly Heart of Eslandia) seems to be paying off, and the Sphinx is continuing its almost unbroken career of golden voyages! Almost taking on mythical nature - one wonders what Captain al'Sayeed has offered up to the Sphinx in return for such profits! (His Middle Western origins might suggest some heathen religion...) I am rather sad for the loss of the Sphinx, though, and will consider having a sistership constructed at some point.... In any case, a very active month, and a very interesting read! Great work, Ska (and Scarst?) I think there is a scorechart up, and I suggest you adopt some way of accounting for your income and expenses. In other news, I expect to put out a new accounting sheet for public use at some point this month or the next. Agreed - very exciting read, and definitely worth the wait! As to your questions: I believe the factions will have to raise any issues they have with the (npc) factions in question officially. I'd suggest a public letter in the general BoBs thread, outlining the case and the claims(based on the events outlined here in the KPA, of course). Otherwise, I believe trade ships captured by non-faction privateers will be offered for auction, so be ready to bid. No clue... Perhaps they are exchanged as prisoners and ready in a month or two? Perhaps you should make a bid, and see if anyone bites? Well, for both your points, I am not sure the KPA is always too thorough in checking its sources... How about the rumour of ESL bribing privateers not to attack them?...

Oh, Montoya sticks to the Natural Philosophy - I would probably worry more about Cooke, who has been known to ponder on the nature of the "Ideal Society"... Of course, he will resent being called vile words like "Democrat" or "Republican", but he does feel strongly about fairness and justice... Fontonajo? I shall be looking forward to reading any treatise he might write... And yes, chocolate does do much to soothe a troubled mind! Long live Cocovia and Corrington!

Nice little residence with a very classic feel. I would suggest adding a street out front, and perhaps a small garden on the side, to give it a bit more details. In any case, the Governor is very glad to have the first representative of a trading company settled in King's Harbour. Welcome!

Prospectinghas been started in King's Harbour. And Brickwolf, good to have you and the Seawolf Shipping Company - I will update the first post.

As a new settlement, King's Harbour is in need of almost everything. Naturally, prospecting for minerals was one of the earliest endavours undertaken on Cocovia. The sample will be tested for its composition, before a mine can be set up. Nothing much - just a little prospecting build for King's Harbour.

Man, that King's Port Advertiser must be one of the most eagerly anticipated journals of all time! They will certainly not suffer from dwindling subscriptions!

Great looking founding scene, Ayrlego. I really like the orderly formation of the marines as opposed to the more free movement of islanders and sailors. The vegetation is great too, and I love the way you integrate the story with your former builds and current events. Montoya and Cooke both wishes to congratulate Major Allcock on his newly attained promotion. @BDGR Well, obviously they welcomed it - who wouldn't want to be part of such a fair, enlightened and scientific empire?

Great interior, Kai - I particularly like the bookshelf with the different sizes of books. All you need now is to vary the thickness of the books.

I am liking these different takes on prospecting builds, and sort of hope they strike gold - I would very much like to see the whole setup of a gold mine washing gold from the stream!

Nice looking shipside and great FP, Garm. Another nice part of the story, to which I have a suspicion of something more to come!

Great looking tudor house, Garmadon - the roof is nice too, as is the ground floor. I like the look of the adventurer, and that suspicious Oleander priest... Nothing good can come of this! I am not too sure which background I like the most, but the blue brickbuilt one seems to resonate with my purist tendencies. On the other hand, the grassy one works reasonably well, and the clean ones are good too. Hmm Nice kick-off to the story.

As others have said, the scale and attention to detail here is great. I like the rooms within the building, and how you have included all those different parts of the process. Both inside and out is looking great, and I like how it has that early industrial feel, not too simple, and not too ornamental either. However, one understands if these kinds of factories lead to some discontent amongst the working classes. Will BoBS have a Marx, one wonders... Or a Robespierre?

Nice looking tavern, Kai, and great way to further both storylines. As others have said, those details on the walls and the use of those arches work really well.

Those windows work surprisingly well, and I love all the interior details you have included. Good addition to the storyline!

Nice conclusion to the story, Garmadon! It has been interesting to follow - and now I feel like I smell a challenge coming up... Great looking floor, walls, and printing press, and I also like the printjobs hanging out to dry. I agree the balcony looks a bit strange, and the absence of windows and the ruff walls sort of suggests they are working in a pit somewhere outside! Brick on!

It has been really interesting to follow the development of this fine vessel, and I am very happy my comments on her type were helpful. She turned out great, and the colourscheme is very striking and seems to fall in great with the other MAESTRO vessels. Let me give you a few comments: Rigging: Generally, she is ship-rigged, with three square-rigged masts. The only thing I can see missing is the spankersail on the mizzen mast. The mizzen spanker is an important sail, as it aids in steering and balancing the vessel, (Since squaresails have limited capabilities in this regard.) plus helps her when going closer to the wind. Perhaps a spritsail would help make the bowsprit less bare too. If you really wanted increased realism, I would suggest dividing the masts in three parts: Lower masts, topmasts and topgallant masts - so basically, your masts should be divided once more at the platforms (tops) just above the lowest yard arms.(Basicly like your bowsprit) Of course, I would also suggest adding sails, and I will still maintain that even paper sails can add a lot. Alternatively, furled up sails would work well too, and should reasonably easy to implement. My main concern with your rigging is the lack of tautness of the standing rigging. I think that working on getting tauter rigging would move you alot forward, as it gives you a better understanding of how the rigging actually works, looks better, and makes the whole thing more sturdy. You would need something to hold down the bowsprit (look up dolphin striker on wikipedia, for instance), to counteract the tension of the forestay. Generally, building up the tension mast by mast and spar by spar can be complex, but I find it strangely satisfying when it all stands taut and stable! Hull: Her overall hull shape is looking good, especially the lower deck. It seems like this could carried over to the top deck a bit better, as it seems flat in comparison. Typically, the curvature would increase as you go higher up the vessel. The tumblehome is very well-executed too. I am also thinking it would be more accurate if the guns were placed on the upmost closed deck, rather than on the lower deck as now. It does upset the balance of the vessel abit, but also gives her longer range and easier handling of the guns, while putting the heavy cargo lower and better protected in the vessel. The cabin is very nice, and I like the protruding windows at the end of the row of guns. The backwards sloping stern is great too, and I like the ornamental details you have included. And I like how it overhangs the rudder. Rating: As to her rating, I would rate this a WR, as she is a sort of compromise. She has a lot of guns for a tradeship - and with many guns comes compromises as a tradeship. First of all, they take up space and weight that must be deducted from the cargo capacity. Secondly, it takes a large crew to operate all these guns, which again takes up more space and provisions, and makes it a more expensive vessel to operate. So, given her size, she has a sizeable complement of guns, and thus crew, and must compromise on cargo. This of course all depends on the look of the new classes, but this is a multipurpose vessel to me. I think that was all I wanted to say for now. Very nice indiaman, and well done overall - looking forward to more from you.

Nice depiction of a dreaded tactic in the age of sail. Perhaps you could have added something indicating how it would steer after the crew abondons her? As far as I remember, the Spaniards used fireships in an attack on Gibraltar during the Napoleonic Era, in a rather large attack.

Beautiful caravel, Captain - I am really liking your creations, and this one has some absolutely fantastic lines. The rigging is very accurate, and very detailed, but as we have seen that from you before, I am more surprised about the lines and tumblehome of the hull. Perhaps she is actually more of a fluyt than a caravel? The furled up sails are looking great, as are your tops, and as always, I love your raked masts. Well done! My only suggestion is to change her rating - I think she could easily be a class 4, considering her size.

Do I hear the distant MRCA drums beating? ;)