Sunless Sea: Daring The Dark

Sunless Sea:

Sunless Sea: Daring The Dark

Sunless Sea: The Dearth of Echos is the Greatest Mystery

Time Played: 13.5 Hours

I picked up Sunless Sea as part of the October 2020 Humble Bundle. It is based in the same realm as the free to play browser game, Fallen London, and is followed by Sunless Skies.

In the world of Sunless Sea, London was dragged underground and placed at the edge of a massive sea. As a zee captain, the player sails across the Unterzee, exploring and returning to the former capital of the British Empire.

London is situated in the middle of the western edge of the sea. The player starts with a blank map, as black as the sky above. No, that isn't totally truthful. Zailors sometimes spy false stars, light shining through holes in the cavernous roof far above. Some daring souls even dare to venture out into the sunlight, seeking knowledge of the forgotten world.

As the player explores they fill in the contours of islands, the names of distant lands, and the location of foreign ports. Since Sunless Sea is a roguelike, the distribution of the islands is random, except for London and some of the nearby shoreline. Upon death, the islands of the zee rearrange themselves into a new pattern. The first few hours of the game sees the player carving up the black, carrying a faint light into the darkness. The music reflects an oppressive atmosphere, with localized cues to characterize each port. A log book, pocketed in the bottom left corner, adds fantastic flavor about the observations and musing of the crew. Unfortunately this record is marred by the zee-bat. The zee-bat is a useful tool for exploring the zee. Clicking Z sends it out, like Noah's dove, to find a port. There is no penalty or cost to sending it, except that the zee-bat defiles the journal with the comment, “There are no islands within the zee-bat's range,” overwriting the otherwise praiseworthy prose.

The captain starts with almost nothing, a cheap but seaworthy ship his greatest possession. He pockets only a small amount of echos (cash) to his name, along with an insufficient amount of fuel and supplies. His other consolations are a full crew, an officer, and an apartment in the Fallen City. The critical resources of Sunless Sea are supplies and fuel. Running out of fuel on the underground seas leads to disaster as my first captain discovered. John had rebuffed the offers of the Blind Bruiser, a shady character, serving a mysterious master. He wouldn't accept questionable jobs or free fuel. He wouldn't be in debt to the under-underworld. But after a trip or two his boat lay floundering in sight of London, the engines cool and idle. A wealthier captain offered to rescue him for the price of his ship, sparing a tiny dinghy. On the next trip this diminutive ship was overturned by an Auroral Megalops. All hands were lost. This captain only lasted about an hour of real life time.

When a captain dies the player chooses to pass on one aspect of their adventure to their next. John mailed his map to an acquaintance who took up the quest. Clive learned the most critical skill; knowing how far his ship could travel on a barrel of fuel. He understood supplies maintained crew morale. The crew consume supplies at half the rate of fuel. The number of crew members may effect the rate of depletion. Keeping a full contingent of crew is preferable for the solvent. A ship needs at least fifty percent plus one to maintain its full speed. Zailors also function as a form of hit points. Lose all of them and the captain sinks as well. Running out of supplies isn't immediately as disastrous as emptying the last barrel of fuel. At first the crew grumble. Then they ask permission to eat each other. Eventually they engage in cannibalism without the captain's permission, but any sane captain never lets it get that far, or he asks for first bite.

Both supplies and fuel are available for purchase in London, and while they can be found in other ports, they cost more.

Another critical resource is sanity, or as Sunless Sea calls it, Terror. The captain begins with zero Terror, and a potential of one hundred. Terror increases while sailing the zee and in many events at ports. The Terror meter shows the captain how it is changing. It's either, green and decreasing slowly, orange and increasingly slowly, or red and growing swiftly. There are many methods to reduce Terror. The ship has a light. Turn it on. It provides better vision and reduces Terror. Unfortunately, it also attracts the attention of zee monsters and, some Redditors say, consumes fuel. Sailing next to a buoy or any coast automatically resets the Terror meter to green. Returning to London drops the Terror to fifty, and some events in the city, like visiting your child (if you have one), reduces Terror even further. To avoid being overcome by Terror chart a course in advance that takes full advantage of buoys, friendly ports, and coast lines. At all costs, avoid snow, sand, and rain storms, which increase the Terror to red. Those captains who recklessly brave the dark will find themselves beset by nightmares, and descend into madness. One hundred Terror is death!

Light offers safety, but it also attracts foul creatures of the zee. In the first ship, with the first weapon, wise captains will avoid combat. Repairs are expensive, and can't be afforded. To flee, turn off the ship's light and try to put an island between the ship and its pursuer. My second captain only fought the easiest foes, and found it an unnecessary risk.

Part II to follow next week.

Recent:

Dragged Into The Deep: Part I

Relevant:

Into The Breach: Can't Catch Light(ning) in A Bottle Twice

Kentucky Route Zero: The End of A Seven Year Journey Approaches

Pillars of Eternity: Characters, Companions, and Combat