Benweth is the worst pirate like ever

[FlintlockJazz]

Worst as in just really really bad at being a pirate. This is something that has been gnawing at me since the game came out and I need to get it out.

 

Being feared as a pirate was an important part of being a pirate, but that was to make things easier. Pirates traditionally would give their prey a chance to surrender, if they did then they would take all their stuff but leave them alive. If they didn't they gave no quarter and butchered every single person. This was simple logic: if people knew that resistance would get them killed but rolling over let them keep their lives then they would roll over, the pirates were not after bloodshed but profit and having to fight even when they knew they had the overwhelming advantage still carried risk they would rather avoid. It was so that they could be lazy and not have to chase down their prey or fight to board them. They would raise a flag demanding surrender, if the prey tried to flee or fight then they would switch to no quarter.

 

Fear of the consequences and knowledge that they would be spared caused many crews whose captain tried to order them to fight back to mutiny and hand the ship and captain over to the pirates, and many sailors often defected to the pirate crew when boarded, giving them more manpower. By making your foe know that if they surrender they will still be raped and murdered then you gave them no reason to surrender and all the reason to fight to the bitter end, and to make sure you paid as much as they could while deprieving you of the loot just to spite you.

 

You want fear, but also a 'way out' for your foes to take that make things easier for you. Benweth does none of this: "Leave none alive lads!" not only sounds like a twatty teen trying to be dark but is just stupid. Benweth, you are a crap pirate, I kill you horribly every time. His men would have turned on him a long time ago regardless of how well he treats them simply because he put their lives at risk with his crap pirating.

 

TL;DR: Benweth is a ****ing idiot, ****, and crap pirate. 

Edited December 7, 2018 by FlintlockJazz

[Karanith]

I guess they call him "Brutal Ben" for a reason.

[Boeroer]

I guess the whole point is that Benweth is supposed to annoy you and make you want to choke him to death while Xoti sings "All my little Ducklings" for him.

 

Being a realistically good pirate doesn't seem to have been the no. 1 priority on the list.  

[guildwriter]

Content wise he's one of the places where Obsidian really succeeded.  The entire Fort Deadlight quest area is probably my favorite one in the entire game.  I can say I get no small amount of pleasure when it comes time to make him into a buffet for seagulls.

[InsaneCommander]

You want fear, but also a 'way out' for your foes to take that make things easier for you.

 

You mean the Bleak Walker way?

[topologista]

he's really good at playing the harpsichord though

[msyoung]

Even the other pirate leaders don't like, that is why Furrante gives you the quest to take him out. Aleys (spelling) doesn't miss him after he is gone either.

[FlintlockJazz]

I just wish you could point that out to him at some point or it gets raised that his 'pirating' is actually rubbish and moronic. And yeah, and now InsaneCommander mentions it, Bleak Walkers actually follow pirate logic! That makes them cool...

[quaggan]

 Now I imagine a Bleak Walker Watcher taking Benweth under her wing, teaching him the ropes, enjoying harpsichord arrangements of shanties... that sounds like a beginning of a beautiful friendship.

[rheingold]

Well, not an expert on pirates, but human nature tends to make me think that maybe there were some rather unpleasant pirates around, who maybe didn’t really care about efficiency but kinda enjoyed the more violent aspect of it...

Regardless, Brutal Bens final encore is one of the funniest scenes I’ve seen in gaming, so there’s that.

Edited December 10, 2018 by rheingold

[InsaneCommander]

Even the other pirate leaders don't like, that is why Furrante gives you the quest to take him out. Aleys (spelling) doesn't miss him after he is gone either.

 

Aelys seemed happy with his replacement (my Watcher). But she almost lost my loyalty because she waited too long to offer me a seat in the council.

[XEternalXDreamsX]

Who actually spares Ben?

[Verde]

My biggest qualm with that questline is...why do anything else but blow up the piano? It's hilarious and clever but it's soooo easy compared to all the other options. I mean I guess you could spare him but that makes you look like a royal wimp.

Edited December 11, 2018 by Verde

[Frak]

Who actually spares Ben?

 

I've done it a few times because I somehow got the impression it was the powergaming way to go. Also, I tried to RP a haughty diplomatic kinda guy. Next time I'm gonna blow him up, so he can use a harp in hell.

[InsaneCommander]

Who actually spares Ben?

 

As Frak said above, diplomatic characters. It depends on who you are roleplaying.

[bugarup]

 

Who actually spares Ben?

 

diplomatic characters. 

 

 

Not necessarily. I spared him in a pretty brutal manner -- slapped him around a bit and then basically went "Now I own you, b†tch." And so when I threw in with Furrante I did not have to go and get Aeldys myself, because Benny backstabbed her for me. 

[Verde]

I usually play diplomatic / clever chars and I always take him out via the piano. It just seems so wrong to let him live.

[Frak]

If it pleases the court, a defense for Benweths first encounter with the Defiant can be made.

 

You see, Brutal Ben is a Deadfire pirate. And in the Deadfire the pirates are feared. They are no mere slavers, but masters of the sea. Neketaka needs the Valera to keep the pirates in check. It is no job for ordinary seamen. The Principi already have a rep.

 

So Brutal Ben pretty much owns the sea with his brotherhood of pirates. And a single sloop, with no affiliation, should be easily dispatched. Why bother with sparing them when killing is funnier? 

 

In short, the only mistake Benweth makes is not knowing he is facing the Watcher of Caed Nua, Mr Sexypants, Loather of all things vailian, Superfan of shanties, Abolisher of the Adra Dragon, Bestiefriend of Berath et cetera.

[brasilgringo]

it's not about his skill, it's about how many other pirates he's "benweth" 

[quaggan]

 That makes a surprising amount of sense. He and Aeldys are a thing, and he plays the harpsichord nicely so there's extra entertainment for the days when she's not in the mood...