For those who haven’t read it, yet I wrote a post on my experience finding out about sailing in Second Life and how I’ve been getting into it as of recently. This is a 101 beginners post on how to start and what to do and some places that might help as far as rezzing your boat out on the open water and some sailors lingo. This also works for open sim virtual worlds like Trinity and a few others. As usual, I’m going to add a disclaimer, this post is for beginners or those just starting with sailing some of this is information I’ve learned through other people, blogs, and my own experience. Please leave constructive criticism only if the comments are open if not go ahead and like the post, if this has helped you or you found it to be informative and something you’d get into. With all of that mumble jumbo being said let’s get our sea legs ready and jump right in!
Getting a Boat:
The first thing you’re going to have to do is find a boat to get started. Please don’t make the same mistake I’ve made and just go out all willy nilly and buy yourself a boat. The best Second Life boats for boating if you’re serious about it and the well-made ones are extremely expensive they cost anywhere between 2,500 Lindens onward. Save yourself the money until you know this is something you want to do and something that would be a good investment for you. Sailing is a great way to spice up your virtual world life but only if you’re serious about doing it more than once your entire time online. There are free boats that you can obtain to start with. This gives you a taster as to what sailing is like in Second Life and if you’ll enjoy it sometimes, we just buy on impulse. I know I do. I found a place in Second Life where you can get a free boat to try out sailing you can also rez your boat here so it’s a great place to start if you’re interested.
Blake Sea – Half Hitch Rez Center and Harbor
This is a link to the Blake Sea – Half Hitch Rez center and Harbor where you can Rez you’re ship or acquire a free one to try out sailing. To grab one of the free ships once you land in the area there is a box which will be shown to the right of this post you will click it and it will Rez out for you and you can use it for free. A great option if you’re not sure if you would enjoy boating or not.
Now let’s say you are serious about boating in Second Life and you want to buy yourself a nice boat to use on the waters. These are serious investments in Second Life as they cost a lot of virtual currency. Either you will have to save for it or put real money into the virtual world for that currency. Make sure this is something you want to do. If you do, please continue reading…
I looked around for hours for nicely made boats that will give you a very realistic boating experience in world. I also did some research on other WordPress blogs and talked to some sailors myself to find out what some of the best ship and boat makers are and with that, I’ve compiled a list of creators that you might want to look into for your first one. I specifically wound up getting a motorized sailboat as it fits my style it can be used for both cruisings on the waters with the sails or used with the engine so it’s a hybrid and works out to my advantage. I’ll probably never race my boat but that’s popular to do in Second Life is racing. Mine to give you all an idea is a boat from The Mesh Shop which in my opinion makes some of the best boats that I’ve looked at before buying mine. Also, keep in mind my specific boat was 3,000 Lindens which is about 12-13$ USD so be wary of that.
Keep in mind every boat is different there are different types of boats there are motor yachts, sailing boats, and manuals that you can choose from to use. Some ships run off of the actual wind in Second Life and yes there is wind in Second Life, who would have thought? Some sailboats sail only with the Second Life wind system others you can pick your wind direction and speed. For the most part, when you buy a boat you will often get a manual this will show you how to operate your boat I’d highly suggest doing one out of two things. I’d read the manual and then operate the boat or if your hands-on operate the boat while you read the manual. But I can’t stress this enough if your boat comes with a manual and you’re new to sailing READ THE MANUAL.
Boat Creators to Check-Out:
Bandit (Analyse Dean) Marketplace link: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/120514
BBX Design/ Yachts & Buildings (Aymec Millet) Marketplace link: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/63972
Inworld store: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Sunny%20Bay/162/129/26
Trudeau (Jacqueline Trudeau) Marketplace link: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/1275
Inworld store: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Trudeau%20Classic%20Yachts/194/64/23/
Dogma9 has one ship called the Moon shadow that’s 7,000 Lindens but super nice if you want to check that out Marketplace Link: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/p/Moon-Shadow-White/14405046
The Mesh Shop (Kain Xenobuilder) Marketplace Link: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/94614
Inworld store: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Dutch%20Harbor/142/142/25
This is where I got my ship from mine is called (TMS) Café Del Mar it’s quite the beauty I put a picture to the right for reference it is a sailboat like I’ve described above in obtaining a boat. It’s a great option and more cost-effective than some of the boats you’ll find on Second Life. However, the normal starting point is 3,000 Lindens sometimes there are more that are cheaper, but they won’t be the best quality and what you will need if you’re serious about sailing.
Berdav (Anu Daviau) Marketplace Link: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/32972
They don’t sell boats anymore, but they have little paddle boats that you can buy you can search the creator they might have more elsewhere but with the research, I couldn’t find her store anymore. She made some nice motorized yachts at the time though they were smaller but worth every penny.
Ocean Industries (Markus Hirszberg) Marketplace link: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/89115
A small assortment of motorized boats there is a luxury edition of the skyline which looks like it could be a suitable product for boating. After doing some research on it if you’re interested. It’s a low end priced boat costing 2,990 Lindens I’ll go ahead and post the link here if you want to take a look at it. https://marketplace.secondlife.com/p/Skyline-Luxury-Edition/6730452
E- Tech (Envy Melody) Marketplace Link: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/35536
Not the best boats but they’re a little more affordable and somewhat nice for the price you pay well to start with to see if it’s something you’re going to keep up with. Boats are anywhere from 599 Lindens to 2,800 Lindens on the Second Life marketplace.
There are more creators than this, but this is just to get you started on you’re boating search for what you may want as well as different price ranges. I tried to get places that were all different prices so you could see what you would get in each price range and what is obtainable.
Where to Rez your boats:
When it comes to rezzing your boats there are places where you can and it is doable. Normally you can Rez them in specific corners of the Blake Sea sims that are meshed together or you can do it at a harbor, marina, or Rez area that you find along your travels. An example would be the link I posted above for the Half Hitch Rez center which I’ll also post the link here for you guys as well. It’s a very small spot where you can Rez your ship but you can Rez it and be on your way. Plus to be fair it’s a non-populated area so, for the most part, you will be alone and not have to deal with someone else trying to Rez their ships as well.
Blake Sea – Half Hitch Rez Center and Harbor
Another place that I could suggest which I found from a WordPress blog called Sailing in Second Life which if you’re interested in more about sailing and learning how to live life on the sea you should check it out. The writer stated that a good area for him to Rez their vessel is in the Starboards Yacht Club in Hollywood.
Starboards Yacht Club in Hollywood
I haven’t checked out this area yet but “Sailing in Second Life” is not the only blog that had mentioned it when it came to finding where to Rez your boat to sail. On my journey, I’ve come across a few places to Rez ships which I will go ahead and list below I tried to limit it down to my top 10 places where it’s been not to laggy and easy experience.
Places to Rez Your Boats and Vessels:
New Port Yacht Club (Bay City):
http://slurl.com/secondlife/New%20Port/20/100/24/
Oyster Bay (you can Rez boats and can sail out to sea. You. Can also go down the Linden River from here and enter other sea’s as well from this Rez point.):
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Oyster/95/175/85/
Bering (Rez area):
https://secondlife.com/destination/bering
This is a perfect place it is a safe Rez spot where you can test out your new boat, it’s quiet with very little people and an awesome place to get started. Highly recommend.
Blake Sea – Spyglass:
https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Blake%20Sea%20-%20Spyglass/144/199/22
DP Public Dock:
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Trelliana/60/133/28
Mermaid Inn at Pier side Yacht Club:
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Salliohsis/53/193/22
This is an area that I have visited recently after the suggestion on a WordPress blog I saw that talked about where you could Rez to sail and this came up. It’s both a Yacht club with spaces to rent a hotel to rent out rooms as well as a public rez zone for those who just need to get their ships up and going. I’d suggest this option mainly because you will meet a lot of people there who have experience with sailing in Second Life who can give you tips and pointers and help you on your journey if you need. A lot of the people I’ve personally met here are very nice, drama free, and are willing to help if you’re confused with something about your ship such as wind direction, etc.
Tuliptree (rez zone):
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Tuliptree/184/204/21
Barnbarossa Ferry terminal (Linden Labs Infohub) here you can even grab a free boat that you can Rez out if your short on cash to buy one. This is a great place to get started and a nice Rez zone sometimes it can get busy though so be careful with this area. The few times I’ve visited there are more than 10 people. Unless you don’t mind people it’s a large vast area to Rez and get started. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Barbarossa/184/48/23
Satori Bay (3 region location various things to do and places to rez)
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Barbarossa/184/48/23
This is a good option for a beginner because it has a little bit of everything to start you off. It’s three regions and it’s a mixture of a marina, place to chat, walk, and shop like anywhere else in Second Life, place to rez, a place to rent boats if you don’t want to go out and buy your own yet, stores for rent, there is just so much to do so if you don’t rez here at least check it out! It won’t be a waste of time I went here for the first time yesterday and it’s a new favorite place for me to chill with my little sailboat.
Second Life Sailing Center and History Museum
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Barbarossa/184/48/23
This is a wonderful place for beginners as it is a Yacht club, history museum for sailing where you can learn a lot of new things on you’re sailing adventures. It also has UPDATED listings and information for Yacht clubs, sailing blogs, and the history of sailing in Second Life. A place to go as a beginner it has helped me out so much everyone thinks I’m a seasoned boater and I’m a noob at boating in Second Life. So this is a huge suggestion from me.
What Seas Are There to Sail in?
Good question there is a variety of different places where you can go sailing, however, the most popular places are going to be as followed:
- Sea of Fables
- Blake Sea
- Ahab’s Hunt
- Gulf of Lauren
- Greta
- Puerto Arianti
These are the major seas and gulfs where you can sail your boat if you look any of these up you can start sailing pretty much once you get to those regions of water. I will post links later on when I can find all of them for you guys. But for right now you can just search these places inside Second Life and teleport to these major bodies of water. Hopefully for now though this helps you! One thing I wanted to add is in the Blake Sea there are places to Rez your ships there as well.
These are just a few things to get beginners started when it comes to sailing in Second Life and even in other open sim virtual worlds. Hopefully, this helps you on you’re journey and some of these links will help you get to where you want to be with your sailing experience. Some users are so into the boating community that they dock and just live on their boat. Or they explore the open seas and just relax in the middle of the Blake Sea on their boat. This is an actual living alternative which I’ll explain in another post later on. Second Life is an amazing place to try sailing and the sailing on Second Life is a great alternative to an actual boating simulator and there is so much more to do and experience. If you have any more questions please feel free to ask me or read some other blogs based around the Second Life sailing community. Don’t forget there are so many places to learn how to be a part of the sailing community on Second Life there are so many Yacht clubs and marinas and a ton of Second Life sailing blogs to look into. Use your resources you will be happy that you did.
Bon Voyage!
Charming Ellie 