I thought that all ships must have a duration of life, so in Xml file there are not link with it. Even your canoes can sunk ! Moreover I thought ships could also sank in the new world(except in ports ).
True, but I was differentiating that ship lifetime (which controls when a canoe could sank
randomly according to X,Y,Z,... variables )
and the seal range of a ship (which limits the capabilities of a ship independently of its lifetime,
when it will sink without any doubt).
Just an analogy: at the start, traveling between America and Europe was dangerous for a caravel (the ship could sink), for a galley it would have been impossible ( it would have sunk).
Both ships could be at their best in lifetime-maintenance terms, so considering only that point both ships would have the same probabilities of sinking; but both ships are not prepared for the same sea environments due to the nature of their hull and their purpose.
In the end of its life, all ships will have 100% probability of being sunk but players will have an preventive information that will say them to be carefull(or not ), however its duration of life will be written in a XML file. The difference between ships will be here.
Haha, ok. I only asked you to add the tag to be easily editable in the XML files.
The new naval system you suggest should be in the files you consider more appropriated. As you said, in the XML files it would be easier to modify it.
I have been considering other aspects for the naval system which I will explain you more detailed in the suggestion list post:
-The wind (in this case, a fictitious wind flow) could have some importance in the movement of ships and combats (?)
Adding a realistic and precise wind flow would be hard, but maybe there are easier ways:
From Europe tiles to the left/right, from the sea to near land tiles, etc.
-I think you have already mentioned it (at least for land units) but the ships should not win/loose the battle and therefore die/survive only because of encountering other enemy ships, only a battle should not determine the fate of the ships in all the cases; sometimes multiple battles could be required to sink a ship. Dynamic naval combat. (?)
-Piracy. (?)
...
I will explain all the suggestions in detail as I have already written.