Don't dive into the drink, dive into naval combat in Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced

Today, Ubisoft released a new deep dive into Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced, this time focusing on naval gameplay.

Autopilot and Getting Around the Map

Ubisoft claims that the latest generation of hardware has allowed them to create seamless open worlds with no loading screens, meaning you can go straight from your boat into any major city. There are also two new features to aid in navigation around the Caribbean: the Pathfinder and Follow Sea. The former allows you to pin a destination on the map, which will then highlight your route across the water as you sail towards it. The latter is a fancy term for autopilot; after setting a destination you can let the ship steer herself towards wherever you're going.

Sea Shanties

The high seas can be quiet at times, so you can ask your crew to sing some shanties to pass the time between destinations. All 35 original shanties return here, found through exploration, with 10 brand new songs to discover ties to specific quests and activities.

You can manually choose a shanty now as well, by choosing from a wheel accessed by pressing down on the D-Pad. You can still let your crew choose by pressing right on the D-Pad, or hold it to shut them up.

Forts and new regions

Each region of the map has one fort, of varying difficulties. You can engage in battle with these forts, though it will alert nearby enemy vessels. After dealing enough damage to the fort itself, you'll need to disembark your ship to take out the remaining enemy soldiers on foot, eventually facing off against the fort's commander to claim it as your own. Unlike the original game, the commander will always try to fight back rather than surrendering.

Dynamic Weather

Resynced has a new dynamic weather system provided by the Anvil Engine. The system, called Atmos, brings the sea to life through rogue winds, waves, violent storms, and of course sunny days. Atmos attempts to simulate the water cycle, realistically blow the sail cloth, and even destroy objects in the world. Two new watersoupt types will also pop up, and lightning will more realistically deal damage around wherever they strike the water.

“One of the key pillars we discussed with our Tech and Realization teams was to convey the awe-inspiring power of nature,” says Guilhem. “We really cranked up the gameplay of the elements to convey that, despite all of its firepower and tools, the Jackdaw has to respect the fury of the sea or face oblivion.”

Aquatic Activities

There are many things to do at sea outside of the main quest. You can find and collect loot, such as materials for upgrades to the Jackdaw, by defeating enemy ships, diving for treasure, fishing, taking on forts, finding burned ships, and even simply coming along some as you sail. Boarding vessels will get you more loot as opposed to destroying them, and you can use your Spyglass to see what potential plunder a target has before engaging.

Speaking of at sea activities, you can now dive into the drink wherever you like, even if you don't have the diving bell. This will let players find hidden chests or approach ships and other targets in stealth from beneath the waves. You won't be able to access locations too deep, however, as you'll still need the diving bell for that rarer loot.

You'll need to be wary of creatures that call the sea their home, however. You can fight back or go hunting with harpoons, which involves a small mini game in which you have limited ammo and have to kill your prey or become fish food. The carcass won't go to waste either, as you'll receive high-value resources you can sell at your next port of call.

Kenway and his fleet

As captain of the Jackdaw, Edward Kenway has access to the Captain's Cabin. From here, you can customize your ship's appearance, dress Edward in a variety of finery (all outfits return from the original game), change your ship's pet, and manage your fleet. Be aware, however, that some functions of the Captain's Cabin from the original game have been put in the care of your local Harbourmaster, found in various ports throughout the Caribbean. As such, you'll need to be a little more careful with resources and decision making.

The Kenway's Fleet minigame also returns from the original, letting you assign ships to to missions, generate income, trade goods, and rare activity spawns. You can assign one ship to each mission, and you'd better make sure you have a diverse fleet as slots are limited and certain tasks are better suited to certain types of ships. You don't need a companion app to access this feature either, it's fully integrated into the game now.

Capturing ships to add to your fleet happens naturally as you sail the open seas. After defeating an enemy ship, you can then use it for repairs, lower your wanted level, or add to your fleet in an empty slot. While you're expanding your fleet, be sure to keep each vessel in tip top shape by repairing them when needed.

Combat on the Jackdaw

As a pirate, you'll of course be engaging in combat at sea, both ship-to-ship and man-to-man. The Jackdaw can be equipped with various weapons to aid in naval battles, all of which also have a new secondary firing mode, though you'll need to find those on your adventures first.

The Ram Dash - This turns the bow of The Jackdaw into a brutal weapon as it surges forward to deal devastating collision damage. In the original game, this move was unlocked after defeating all four Legendary Ships. While a noteworthy reward for such an achievement, it happened too late in the game to be much use during the story. This ability can now be unlocked through the Padre (more on him later) even earlier in the game, and we’ve improved it with increased damage and a dedicated camera.
Deadman's Cohort – The regular mortar will be upgraded with the Deadman’s Cohort during your playthrough thanks to the new officer Deadman Smith. This new mortar keeps the original firing mode, but also gains a secondary firing option that saturates an area with a huge number of Carcass bombs. While each individual bomb does little damage on its own, you can manually control where each projectile will land as it fires, devastating an area with sheer volume.
Bow Chaser Cannons – In addition to the original chain shots, we are now adding a double shot as a secondary firing mode, dealing a powerful volley of cannonballs from the front of your ship and dealing heavy damage while chasing prey.
Broadside Cannons – On top of flexible round shot and the short range heavy shot, we are adding heated shots to the Jackdaw’s arsenal. Heated shot ammunition fires multiple volleys of fiery projectiles in quick succession, dealing high damage to a target should you manage to land them all.
Shrapnel Barrels – The new firing mode launches shrapnel barrels from the stern of the ship. As the name implies, they propel shrapnel upwards to shred enemy sails on explosion, providing a viable tool to escape when being chased. Also, all barrels now have increased area of effect to make them easier to use.

Attacking ships at random will, of course, increase your Wanted Level. Become too notorious of a scoundrel, and Pirate Hunters will begin to come after you, increasing in power as your level continues to rise. You may be able to avoid them, but it's best to not have them after you at all, and you can lower your notoriety by taking out enemy or merchant ships, and using them for that purpose. Or you can just pay off an officer at a port, whatever floats your boat.

There are a few other things you can do after boarding a ship, not just lowering noteriety. You can also repair the Jackdaw, take it for your fleet as mentioned previously, or grab the Captain's Lockbox for yourself to get straight at the cash. The lockbox will only be available on larger classes of ships, such as frigates and Man O' Wars, but there's still plenty of loot to find at sea.

There will be casualties at sea, it's inevitable in a pirate's life, and you'll need more bodies to replace the ones you lose in battle. You can find new crew members at taverns, being held hostage on islands, or adrift in the ocean. There are also officers you can recruit and assign to the Jackdaw, with their perks permanently unlocking once recruited. You'll have to find these individuals out in the world and complete their quest before they join.

Lucy Baldwin: A Shipwright of legendary status, she unlocks Perfect Brace – a mechanic to enhance your Brace and almost completely nullify incoming damage – if you time the Brace correctly.
The Padre: A Master-at-Arms turned priest returning to his roots, the Padre will join your boarding parties when capturing or looting disabled ships. He’s a tough fighter, and definitely someone you want on your side in a fight. He also unlocks the Ram Dash ability, allowing you to ram ships at even higher speed.
Tobias “Deadman” Smith: A Master Gunner, Deadman grants you the ability to fire an additional volley from your broadsides with minimal cooldown between salvos. Available in aimed mode, it adds an extra edge and increases your overall damage over time.

Naval factions and legendary ships

Just like the captain, every faction has allies and enemies. You'll encounter ships locked in battle, such as the British or Spanish, and your relationships with these factions will determine how they react to you at sea. You might simply pass by like ships in the night (or day), or you can aid them in combat. Pirates don't always play nice though, so it may be worth your while to wait just out of range for the smoke to clear, then take the surviving party by surprise for some easy loot.

Legendary ships return as high-difficulty, endgame encounters designed to test your upgrades and skill. Each legendary ship will reward you with unique cosmetic skins for your own ship, such as figureheads, hulls, wheels, and sails. Here are some of the four legendary ships you may encounter on your adventures:

El Impoluto
HMS Fearless & Royal Sovereign (The Twins)
La Dama Negra
HMS Prince

“Legendary ships are the ultimate challenge one may experience in Naval combat,” says Guilhem. “Do not face them unprepared, for they require complete mastery of all the Jackdaw’s tools. Even if you defeated them in the original, do not underestimate them, for we rebuilt them to be stronger, tougher, and meaner. If you survive, you’ll get cosmetic skins for the Jackdaw to brag about your skill. Oh, and by the way, they respawn after a while.”