Winds Of Trade – Smugglers Guide

A guide to smuggeling i Winds Of Trade + List of variables for each ship type.

Facts

All credit goes to SW!

There are 5 variables that affect the chance of a successful smuggling.
It is in percentages points – and they at not accumulating.

Difficulty / Base Success %

• Easy = +50% 
• Medium = +40% 
• Hard = +30% 
• Impossible = +20% 

Ship Type Modifier

• Schooner = +12% 
• Corvette = +12% 
• Bermuda Sloop = +10% 
• Xebec = +8% 
• Brig = +5% 
• Frigate = +5% 
• Heavy Frigate = 0% 
• Fluyt = -15% 
• Galleon = -20% 
• Indiaman = -30% 

Captian Skill (Smuggler)

Level 1 +5%
Level 2 +10%
Level 3 +15%
Level 4 +20%
Level 5 +30%

Cargo Hold

• 0% legal goods = -25% 
• 1-25% legal goods = -20% 
• 26-50% legal goods = -15% 
• 51-99% legal goods = +15% 

City Size Modifier (Population)

• 0-30.000 = 0% 
• 31.000-? = -5% 

Hidden cargo compartment give +10% to ship type modifier.
Hidden cargo compartment upgrade is not available on all maps.

Increased cargo capacity doesn’t appear to affect ship type modifier, as the upgraded.
Fluyt keeps the “-15%” even though it carries more then the standard Galleon.

Guide

I find that the optimal ( most easy ) way to being a successfully smuggler, is to have smuggler-ships that always has a 100% success rate. Then you never have to worry about losing your cargo when sneaking in and getting a fine. Which is just at pain in the butt.

• On Easy – all ships except the 3 large cargo criers can achieve this. 
• On medium – only the Schooner, the Corvette and the Bermuda Sloop can achieve this.
• On Hard and Impossible – no ships can achieve the ‘always 100% success’.

Ship Type

Indiaman, galleon and fluyt are never advisable, because of the large ‘ship type modifier’ penalty.

Frigate, Heavy Frigate and Corvette, have high upkeep. So they are only advised if you are afraid of pirate attacks, and want to shoot your way out. I usually just try to run.

The Brig is somewhat slow, so I normally don’t use them.

The Xebec is good for caring large amount of illegal goods and it’s the fastest ship out there. Plus it can carry a lot of guns. So i’ts a good choice. I does however have almost twice the upkeep of the Schooner.

I prefer the Schooner, because of its high speed and low upkeep. Usually you don’t need to carry large amounts when smuggling.

The Bermuda Sloop is also good, and carries 20% more than the Schooner. However, the upkeep is also higher than the Schooner and it is slower, so it is harder to escape pirates.

Best to get a level 5 smuggler.
On Easy it is possible to achieve 100% success rate, with a level 4 captain, when using the Bermuda Sloop and the Schooner.

Always buy the Hidden cargo compartment on your smuggling ships, as it gives +10% success rate to the ‘ship type modifier’.

Hidden cargo compartment upgrade is not available on all maps.

On easy it is still possible to achieve 100% success rate with the Schooner and the Bermuda Sloop without the Hidden cargo compartment, if you have a level 5 captain.

Always keep at least 51% legal goods in your smuggling ship, to get the ‘cargo hold’ bonus.
This essentially means that your ships always have half of the normal capacity, when they are used as smuggling ships.

Example:

A Schooner with a hidden cargo compartment and a level 5 smuggler captain – plying on easy difficulty – sailing to a large city – with less than 50% illegal goods on board will give:

• Base Success = 50% 
• Ship type modifier = 22% 
• Captain Skill modifier = 30% 
• Cargo hold modifier = 15% 
• City size modifier = -5% 

Chance of sucess = 112%

Final Success Chance cannot be higher than 100%