Maritime Weather

GHOST//NET runs a living weather system. It is not random flips between sunny and rainy: a real atmospheric model decides the weather, storms form and travel across the map, and the seasons follow the actual calendar. If you fish, run a boat, or just want to know whether a hurricane is coming, this is your guide.

The basics

• Seasons are real. The server reads the real date and runs winter, spring, summer, and autumn. The season changes what fish are biting and how rough the seas get.
• Pressure systems move. Highs and lows form off the west coast and drift east across the map over time, the way real weather does. They do not pop up on top of you out of nowhere.
• Lows bring weather, highs bring calm. A low-pressure system means clouds, rain, and storms. A high-pressure system means clear skies.
• Hurricanes are rare and dangerous. In summer and autumn a tropical system can spin up over the southern ocean, track northwest, then curve northeast and break apart over land. You get a server-wide warning when one forms.

Reading the weather map

Open your Neural HUD (F1) and select the WEATHER tab. You get a live map of the whole coast with the weather painted over it:

• Soft color masses are the weather. Clear skies let the map show through, while clouds, rain, and storms build up heavier color.
• Spinning swirls are storms. A low-pressure storm is a loose swirl; a hurricane spins tighter and faster with a clear eye in the middle.
• H, L, and TC markers mark high-pressure, low-pressure, and tropical (hurricane) centers, with the pressure in hPa.
• The green YOU dot is you.
• Drag to pan, scroll to zoom. The weather layer tracks the map at any zoom.

The side panel shows your local conditions: the weather type, pressure, temperature in Fahrenheit, wind in mph, and the current season.

Why it matters

• Storms hurt fishing and boating. Rough seas and high wind make casting impossible, and a hurricane shuts fishing down entirely until it passes. Check the map before you head out.
• Rain can help. Calm overcast and light rain actually improve the bite. Flat sun and thunderstorms are worse.
• Seasons rotate the catch. Cold-water fish run in winter and spring, the prized warm-water fish in summer and autumn. Out-of-season fish still sell, just for less. See the Fishing guide.

A hurricane warning is not flavor text. If you are out on the water when one forms, head for port. The seas will lock you out of fishing and the storm will find you.

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