Why can't I change skill assignment?

[witty]

I currently have wind rider "assigned" but I also have evasive maneuver unlocked but it won't let me assign it instead of wind rider....is this a bug?

[clegane]

You can only change skill assignments at level-up, I believe.

[HoJu Eructus]

I think you should be able to reassign skills with more freedom. Some of the skills are very situational and being stuck with them for an undetermined period of time until you level up again defeats their point. For example, I'd like to have the skll for store discounts when I go to port, but if I unlock and assign it, I'm stuck with it until I level up again, and the skill is useless during navigation and combat, which are thew things I spend more time doing.

[FroBodine]

This is a very good suggestion, HoJu.

[clegane]

I prefer it the way that it is. It rewards planning and flexibility. If you could just switch them all out willy-nilly all the time, they'd need to be significantly nerfed to re-balance things. Some skills are so powerful as to completely triviliaze many encounters or situations. Having them 'on tap' whenever you want would be silly.

If you could switch the port discount on at will, as you mentioned, then it would essentially be an 'auto include' skill. Pay one skill pint one time and save 10% off of everything everywhere you go? It's a no-brainer! But make you plan in advance to put it on right before, for example, a long whaling season with little travel time in between (such as the Blue Whale mating ground and Honolulu) and all of a sudden there's some strategic planning involved.

Nah, I think they're just fine as they are.

[HoJu Eructus]

Originally posted by clegane:

But make you plan in advance to put it on right before, for example, a long whaling season with little travel time in between (such as the Blue Whale mating ground and Honolulu) and all of a sudden there's some strategic planning involved.

And what if you don't happen to get a level-up right before that whaling season? Maybe give us a chance to reassign skills every 30 days or so, so you can't switch them constantly, or make all non-dice related skills into passive bonuses, regardless of assignment, nerfing them if needed.

[devxx]

this is what the dev said two days ago:

"Yes, it was put this way to avoid the "skills spam" (changing skill according to the situation). I believe it gives your skill choice more importance"

[Mantomex]

Yeah, we didn't want exactly what you mentioned (changing skill just before entering an harbor). It is not fun to do (it gets boring to do it every time) and it makes skills decision less important. I've written in another topic that we could add "passive skills", so skills that are active even if not assigned (like the ones related to upgrades) and leave the skills choice just on level up. I'll keep listening to your feedback thinking about the right solution.

[devxx]

well, i'm in agreement with you and clegane.

[sandmanjw]

I think it is kind of crazy to have skills that you use that lock you into a certain build for such long periods of time. And then you change and it is like you never spent the time and effort to buy them.

Should not need "to change skills" they should be passive skill's.

The market skill maybe needs to be a 2 pointer or whatever...but if you decide to get that or the ones to allow the upgrades of ships, they should all be passive skills you either have or do not.

[Abel]

Mantomex, I understand your reasons. But since you can't reassign your skills, at some point it becomes pointless to get additional ones because you can't use them. When I finished the game, I had three skill slots and six skills. That makes three unusable ones. I specialized my captain in hunting sea creatures. So once I got the three offensive skills of that branch the other skills didn't matter. So my suggestion would be to either remove them, add more slots (for two specializations maybe) or allow more frequent reassignment.

[Dirteedeeds]

Originally posted by Mantomex:

Yeah, we didn't want exactly what you mentioned (changing skill just before entering an harbor). It is not fun to do (it gets boring to do it every time) and it makes skills decision less important. I've written in another topic that we could add "passive skills", so skills that are active even if not assigned (like the ones related to upgrades) and leave the skills choice just on level up. I'll keep listening to your feedback thinking about the right solution.

There should be passive skills....I find this annoying having a high level captain but i have to have skills set to it to get the benefit of it. Makes no sense. Especially when you get blackmarket and to have that applied all the time would be kind counter productive when you need some of the high abilities. Some of these skills we buy should be passive....

[HoJu Eructus]

Originally posted by Mantomex:

Yeah, we didn't want exactly what you mentioned (changing skill just before entering an harbor). It is not fun to do (it gets boring to do it every time) and it makes skills decision less important. I've written in another topic that we could add "passive skills", so skills that are active even if not assigned (like the ones related to upgrades) and leave the skills choice just on level up. I'll keep listening to your feedback thinking about the right solution.

I understando you don't want player to be changing skills constantly according to the situation but the problem there is that some skills are highly situational ie. useful only in a very specific situation and useless the rest of the time, like the black market skill for store dsicounts. Making them passive (and nerfing them if needed to comepnsate for the fact that they're always active) would be the better option, yes.

[Hesh Ballantine]

Suggestion: Let players change skill assignments when anchored at safe harbors, and only when they have crew that also let them gather food and water in safe harbors. This way it's still relatively restrictive, and also more of a mid-game unlock, which is when you first start to feel the need to swap skills out between levels.

[SoM]

Originally posted by Mantomex:

Yeah, we didn't want exactly what you mentioned (changing skill just before entering an harbor). It is not fun to do (it gets boring to do it every time) and it makes skills decision less important. I've written in another topic that we could add "passive skills", so skills that are active even if not assigned (like the ones related to upgrades) and leave the skills choice just on level up. I'll keep listening to your feedback thinking about the right solution.

I honestly haven't seen people advocating for the way it is implemented now. Is there some way for you guys to hold a strawpoll or something and check people's response to that?

And even though "it gets boring to do it every time", I'm sure many people would still prefer it to "not being able to do it until next level up".