I chose Andrew, a young Portuguese pilot who starts his journey in Lisbon, who has a high leadership stat and more easily gains favor with ports. There are multiple characters to choose from, each providing a separate starting point in the world and a unique skillset dedicated to a specific type of gameplay. Virtually all of these activities will grant your fleet experience, which you can then invest in your characters as you see fit, tailoring their skills to the various roles in your fleet. Increasing reputation at a port offers new bonuses and automatic traversal between destinations. You can even upgrade ports with contribution points as you increase your influence. In port, you can upgrade or purchase ships, hire sailors, and resupply for the next voyage.

Quests range from delivering goods, discovering landmarks, establishing trade routes, or hunting down pirate bounties. When you’re not sailing, you are typically at a port where you can purchase goods to trade across the world, take on quests from local governance or trade guild, or head to the local tavern to schmooze the barmaid into giving you rumors and information.

In that case, the basic mechanics are as follows: gameplay consisting of sailing from port to port with a real-time, day-night cycle and travel limited by supplies and the money on hand to pay the crew. Suppose you haven’t played a sailing RPG before. Offering a slew of mechanical improvements while missing some of the charm and personality of the games that inspired it, Sailing Era presents a worthwhile foray into the age of discovery. Have you grown tired of the fantasy and science fiction-influenced worlds of your typical RPG? Do you crave a setting with the same potential for adventure, conflict, and discovery as a fantastical world but grounded in real-world history? Sailing Era seeks to scratch that itch by offering players the chance to set sail during the 17th century as captain of their own fleet.

Download the new for ios Sailing Era