JakeM

Press 8 on the numpad and make sure toggle follow character is on. You'll see a little target marker light up under the scroll bar on the right hand side of that map if its on

You're on a freeport. The decay rate is higher on freeports to stop players from sitting there

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You can't anchor at a freeport. There are increased decay rates on freeports that keep players from doing exactly what you're doing. Go to another server and build a base, you'll notice a difference immediately.

You should be able to add the rest of the levels once you get off the freeport. Just pass over the border to another zone and it'll allow you to use those points!

As far as Ive seen, the only thing that is blocked in PvE is the fact that you cant kill each other. Everything else is fair game. Territory can be stolen, ships can be stolen. All of it except players killing players.

For the higher quality items, it seems you need multiple types of the resource. So, for instance, journeyman hide shirt requires 3x13 fibers. Using 13 hemp, bamboo and cotton turns fiber from red to green.

The point of the game is to control islands. Lots of jerks out there making it rough, but you can always try and take their walls down

Freeports have increased decay rates so people don't log off on them in hopes of deterring other people from stealing their ship. You'll need to make a base or something on another server.

Were you logged out in a freeport? If so, it seems the freeports have increased decay rates to deter people from anchoring there so they can't be stolen or something. If not, it might have been stolen. This is a pirate game after all

Haven't tried anything with the hammer but I've heard from friends of mine that that's happening, but the raft thing is intentional from what I've seen. There is a weight and a crew limit to boats. The raft, being a small boat, has a very small crew limit and if you go over it the boat will start to sink. The limits should show when you look at the boat itself, take a look the next time you're on. Might help

Boats have weight, but they also have a crew count. If you go over that count, your ship starts to sink. So its not necessarily a weight issue, but a "Lets screw with these people by over-crewing their ship like jerks" thing. Griefing sucks, but I guess there isn't much that can be done about that D=

Place a claim flag on it! You can steal boats from other companies, or in your case, from your own company that you left.

Hey, I noticed that you can place claim flags on ships to claim them. Maybe try that out? I know this is probably a little late, but it might help for future!