Sea of Thieves News

Hello! Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few weeks, you’ll have noticed we’ve gone hard on Sea of Thieves’ fifth anniversary celebrations. From feature-length films to in-game events and beautiful login bonuses, we’ve ensured that our big day has been commemorated with the biggest bang possible. A mega-keg of shenanigans, if you will.

One of the most exciting events still to come in this anniversary month is our Community Weekend, taking place from March 25th-27th. It’s going to be a jam-packed weekend of gifts, on-sea action and an outrageous number of opportunities for loot – so to make sure you don’t miss any of the key information, we’re serving it up hot right here. We’ll get into the details in a moment, but not before we give you something else to entertain your eyeballs ahead of the event…

[h3]Voyage of a Lifetime[/h3]
On March 20th, the very day of Sea of Thieves’ anniversary, we released a feature-length documentary tracing our journey as a studio since starting work on everyone’s favourite shared world pirate adventure. From inception to where we are now, the documentary features candid interviews with the development team, never-before-seen prototype footage and the most in-depth peek behind the curtain we’ve ever offered.

Voyage of a Lifetime is available to stream now for all curious corsairs wanting to know how Sea of Thieves came to life, and because we’re nice, we’ve included a link to it right here:

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For those of you who have recently flicked through your favourite streaming services and thought “ugh, there’s nothing to watch!” – keep this brilliant documentary in mind next time you go searching for a show. We’re incredibly proud of it and the story it tells.

RIGHT. Back to Community Weekend. Who wants to know what’s going on? You do? Perfect, you’re in the right place. Let’s get into it!

[h3]Twice as Nice[/h3]
You might be thinking “hang on a second, aren’t these usually Community Days?” – and you’d be right, these types of events usually last for 24 hours and no longer. However, for this celebration we’re doubling down on the fun and offering players the opportunity to get involved across 48 hours.

Starting at 10am UTC on Saturday, March 25th and finishing at the same time on Monday, March 27th, our Community Weekend will once again challenge you all to raise the Community Emissary Grade together – this time on Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, YouTube and Instagram. All you’ll need to do is use the shiny new event hashtag, #SoTAnniversaryPromo, instead of #SeaOfThievesCommunityDay, to notch up the progress bars. Raising the Grade will increase the multipliers active on gold, reputation, Renown and Allegiance, with the top Grade dishing out two-and-a-half times the regular amount of rewards usually available.

We’re incredibly excited to be bringing more players into this community celebration by including more social channels, and we can’t wait to see what sort of amazing content you all create across the web this time, not just on Twitter. Good times!

[h3]Login Bonus Bonanza[/h3]
Pirates setting sail for Community Weekend are in luck, as playing over this period will score you not just two, but three nifty login bonuses! The Community Day Flag returns in the form of the distinguished Gilded Flag of Fellowship for the duration of the event, and the Baker’s Barrel Disguise Emote will be awarded to active players over the weekend too.



The third and final login bonus will be a free Pirate Legend Voyage to all who play over the period. A Legendary Search for the Skull of Destiny Voyage will appear in the inventories of players logging in from March 25th–27th (10am UTC). This new Voyage, which arrived with Season Nine, allows players to find a Skull of Destiny – a handy new loot item that contains all colours of the Flames of Fate and acts as a Ritual Skull for those pirates wanting to tackle the Fort of the Damned.

Usually exclusive to Pirate Legends, this special free Voyage can be taken on by any pirate as a taster of what’s to come upon reaching that vaunted rank! Deploy your Voyage strategically this weekend to maximise your profit (if you’re not robbed, that is)...

[h3]50 Million Ancient Coins up for Grabs![/h3]
It's not just gold, reputation, Renown and Allegiance ready for the taking on this special celebration. Should you fine folks hit that fifth and final Community Emissary Grade, you’ll also inspire a surge of Ancient Skeleton spawns across the Sea of Thieves. Yes, that’s right: we’ll be standing ready to actively increase the number of Ancient Skeletons clinking around the islands of our world as soon as that fifth Grade is hit!

Pirates will see a notable increase in these Ancient Coin-dropping creatures scurrying around our shores as soon as that final cumulative Grade is hit – so while the Community Weekend event is live, keep an eye on our dedicated page to monitor the community’s progress towards that goal.



You’ll need to be quick about jumping into the game to find these shimmering skellies, too: the Ancient Skeletons will be generous, but there will be a cap of 50 million Ancient Coins in their event purses. As soon as this number of Ancient Coins have been scored by lucky sailors, our Ancient Skeletons will return to their previous, rarer spawn rate.

Players lucky enough to find and smash an Ancient Skeleton will immediately receive a random number of Ancient Coins in their in-game wallet, which they can then take to the Pirate Emporium and spend on whatever premium wares take their fancy. All players need to do to participate is play Sea of Thieves while this part of the event is active – and it’ll be available to all who play, on all available platforms and in all regions that Sea of Thieves is available.

[h3]A Shipload of Bargains[/h3]
If the login freebies and super-boosted rewards aren’t enough for you, don’t worry: there’s more! Players swinging by the Pirate Emporium to spend their Ancient Coins will find they can get more for their money thanks to a huge Anniversary Sale running until March 28th. This sale includes some classic ship sets, costumes, weapons and Sea of Thieves: A Pirate’s Life items – and visitors to the Emporium can also pick up a Down the Hatch Emote for free while the sale is live!

Not to be outdone, the Rare merchandise store is also getting in on the action with a shimmering selection of special foil Reaper’s Mark tees. A time-limited Community Weekend T-shirt and Flag will also be making an appearance – and you can make your real-life coin travel a little further over the weekend by using discount code SOTANNIVERSARYPROMO. That’ll knock 30% off the cost of your Sea of Thieves-themed swag, with only the newest items excluded from this super-sized saving.


[h3]Groove Is in the Hat[/h3]
Our #BeMorePirate rampage returns for this Community Weekend, so make sure you’re sharing the love with your favourite friends and crewmates in celebration of our fifth anniversary! The weekend’s bumper event presents the perfect opportunity to shout out amazing artists, players, creators and other community MVPs. We’ll be scouring our channels and the #BeMorePirate hashtag for standout Sea of Thieves stories from now until the end of Community Weekend – so go ahead and start tagging your favourites from around the community!

A selection of worthy winners will be awarded the Hat of Unfeasibly Glorious Fame, so get your submissions in soon to see if your antics warrant your (or your nominee’s) pirate’s head being graced with one of the sea’s most coveted caps.

[h3]Five Had the Time of My Life[/h3]
Finally, before we finish this lengthy article of news and goodies, we wanted to say thank you for five amazing years on the Sea of Thieves. This Community Weekend is one of the last events in a month-long line-up of celebratory shenanigans scheduled to spotlight our fifth anniversary, and we hope you enjoy the fitting finale to the festivities.

We’re so grateful for you, our wonderful community of kind, creative and caring pirates who’ve set sail with us over the last five years, and the future continues to look incredibly bright with all of you as our crewmates. Cheers!

Season Nine of Sea of Thieves has arrived, packed to bursting with fresh features, prized plunder and many quality of life improvements to make the pirate life more approachable and enjoyable for all.
As players have come to expect, a new Season also brings 100 levels of progression to be climbed by living the pirate life and raising Renown, picking up a steady stream of rewards while rising through the ranks – while Season Nine’s optional Plunder Pass adds exclusive extra content to that treasure pile. Find out more about how Seasons work in our Seasons Explained and Plunder Pass Explained articles!

[h3]Fortune Favours the Bold[/h3]
Valuable Chests of Fortune have begun to surface across the Sea of Thieves, and will require strategy and skill to acquire, as a single Chest can only found within a conquered Fort of Fortune. Acquiring them can be quite the accomplishment, especially when other crews arrive to ‘help’ you empty the Vault’s contents...

But the effort is well worth it, as players who hand in Chests of Fortune will gradually earn the right to possess cosmetics from the prestigious Fates of Fortune set. This new range is ready to expand in future updates, and showing it off will let everyone know the kind of truly tenacious treasure hunter you really are.

Never ones to be outdone, The Reaper’s Bones have acquired their own Fates of Fortune pieces and are reserving these for pirates who bring them large numbers of Reaper’s Chests and Reaper’s Bounties. Since these blighted boxes now cast a shining beacon into the sky at all times, not just until they’re handled, this may prove easier said than done.


[h3]Smoother Sailing[/h3]
Pirate Legends, meanwhile, can embark on several useful new Voyages guaranteed to uncover helpful, hard-to-find treasures. One of these is the new Skull of Destiny, a Ritual Skull filled with the flames necessary to instigate a Fort of the Damned Event – with no trips to the afterlife required.

Elsewhere, crews aboard Captained ships will find that their Captain’s Logbooks now contain a blow-by-blow account of their most recent exploits, detailing everything from islands visited and ships sighted to frenzied battles against aggravated sea monsters. If you have spoils from those encounters, the Sovereigns have struck up an agreement with The Hunter’s Call and will deliver fish and cooked meat on your behalf – although the Seaposts’ residents now offer more gold for a fresh, direct delivery.

It’s not just Captains and fearless Fort enthusiasts who’ll benefit from Season Nine, of course, thanks to a raft of improvements and enhancements across the game. Check out the release notes for more information on everything that’s been given a spit and polish.

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[h3]Now We Are Five[/h3]
All these additions and changes keep the game evolving and improving as Sea of Thieves approaches its fifth anniversary, and we’ve got an extravagant birthday bash all planned out. Naturally, you’re all invited, so be sure to check out the rundown of what’s in the diary and how you can join in the celebratory shenanigans. We look forward to seeing you on the seas!

If you’ve yet to dive into Sea of Thieves’ inviting waters but you’re keen to be part of the anniversary revelry, the newly released Deluxe Edition gives you another option to get involved. Containing all the permanent content added to the game since launch, it also includes a wide-ranging assortment of bonus content – cosmetics, emotes and Ancient Coins to spend in the Pirate Emporium – that ensures you’ll sail in style from the very start. If you’re a Steam gamer, there’s more good news as Sea of Thieves is now Steam Deck Verified too!

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[h3]Emporium Endeavours[/h3]
The tireless traders of the Pirate Emporium have prepared a wealth of new stock ready for the launch of Season Nine. Inspiration for their wares this month has been taken from the many creatures that can be found lurking below the waves. Purchase a Plunder Pass, build your Seasonal Renown, and you’ll be able to inspire some jellyfish jealousy with the Sting Tide ship set and evolving costume, the latter of which comes with three fluorescent flavours to unlock and a Blowing Bubbles Emote.

Alternatively, you may find the ferocity of the Emporium’s Sea Serpent ship and weapon sets suits your pirate to a tee, or you might prefer to preserve your sense of mystery entirely and make use of the Enigmatic Emote Bundle. Additionally, owners of Captained ships can spruce up their Ship’s Crest with the Lodestar variant, ensuring there’s always a star to sail by. And why sail alone when you could bring a Gold Curse Barbary along for the ride? Just remember not to try and sell it.


[h3]Find Out More[/h3]
For more information on the Sea of Thieves Season Nine update, including full release notes, visit the Sea of Thieves website. The update is available for free to all Sea of Thieves players on Steam. Simply download and install the latest Sea of Thieves update to get access.

New to Sea of Thieves? Find out about the latest free content updates on our What’s New page, get familiar with Who’s Who or pick up some gameplay tips from our Pirate Academy, which provides invaluable information on topics ranging from sailing to swordplay as you prepare for your maiden voyage. Learn more about Sea of Thieves here, or join the ongoing adventure at www.seaofthieves.com where you can embark on an epic journey with one of gaming’s most welcoming communities!

Time to seek your fortune all over again as Season Nine offers up a wealth of additions, improvements and refinements of classic features. New chests, new Voyages and new rewards, a shot in the arm for World Events and countless tweaks to make the pirate life more gratifying than ever – get an overview in the official Season Nine Content Update video below, and if you've already seen it, tag along for the Deep Dive instead!

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There's a lot to break down into bullet point format, so get the kettle on and come back when you're all set to skim-read like a champ. All of the above plus 100 levels of spring-fresh Seasonal rewards lie ahead!

[h3]Chests of Fortune[/h3]
Infiltrate Forts of Fortune, find Chests of Fortune, earn Fates of Fortune. Simple! Except the new Fates of Fortune cosmetics are behind Commendations also tied to Reaper's Chests, and neither those nor the precious new Chests of Fortune are easy to hold on to for long enough to sell...

Chest of Fortune

• A new high-value chest has arrived on the seas, offering a fortune in gold and the promise of exclusive rewards if safely cashed in. Expect the Chest of Fortune to be highly sought after by crews across the waves!
  
• In Season Nine, Chests of Fortune have been locked away in Fort of Fortune Vaults, ready for the taking. Cunning crews who claim them will progress the Fortune’s Favour Commendation to unlock the first ship items from the new Fates of Fortune cosmetic set.
  
• In future Seasons, expect Chests of Fortune to move around and bring the fight to new locations, while enabling new Commendation Grades and expanding the Fates of Fortune set.

Reaper’s Chests

• The beacon visible from across the seas that highlights a Reaper’s Chest or Reaper’s Bounty will now stay visible even when the chest is collected by players – no more hiding! Pirates can now use the beacon along with the Ship’s Map table icon to track this valuable cargo being transported by rival crews.
  
• With these chests now much more visible when being transported, there is an additional reward for crews who successfully hand them in. Crews will now progress the Reaper’s Riches Commendation and start unlocking access to the Fates of Fortune weapon set!

Chests of Fortune Achievements

• New Xbox and Steam achievements can be unlocked by progressing through the game’s variety of new features. A total of 150 gamerscore is available to earn from this update, and these achievements will remain in the game indefinitely.
  • Getting a Head [10G]
    
  • Hot-Headed [15G]
    
  • Fortune-ate Outcome [25G]
    
  • A Favour for the Flame [50G]
    
  • Favour the Bold [50G]

[h3]World Events and Encounters[/h3]
When you set sail into a world carefully rebalanced by Season Nine, the new level of life and variety out there will soon come into focus. Forts have been lavished with attention across the board, marauding Ghost Fleets are back and encounters now scale satisfyingly to all crew sizes!

Fort of Fortune

• The gruelling Fort of Fortune has been reimagined for Season Nine as a more approachable and enjoyable experience for all crew sizes. This encounter will also appear more frequently than before, and crews successfully raiding the vault will be rewarded with the exclusive new Chest of Fortune.
  
• While the Fort encounter itself has been rebalanced to dynamically scale in difficulty to the number of pirates in the fight, each wave of skeletons is now a roll of the dice with different skeleton forms appearing to challenge the crews’ skills in combat.

Fort of the Damned

• Crews taking on this wicked encounter will find the Shadows of Fate and Ghost of Graymarrow now dynamically scale in difficulty to the number of pirates storming the Fort.
  
• The Shadows of Fate summoned to battle will now always appear as a single colour within a wave, requiring less switching the Flames of Fate during the encounter.
  
• Resources have been replenished around the Fort of the Damned, so crews can find more food barrels stacked with a range of fruit, along with additional Ammo Chests and an Armoury.

Skeleton Forts

• The original Skeleton Fort encounter has been improved and rebalanced to dynamically scale in difficulty with the number of pirates storming the vault.
  
• Skeleton Forts across the sea are now stocked with more plentiful resources and include both Ammo Chests and Armouries, allowing players to switch their loadout during the battle!

Ashen Lords

• Crews willing to go toe to toe with a menacing Ashen Lord will now find that this heated encounter dynamically scales in difficulty based on the number of pirates in the fight.

Skeleton Fleet

• Crews heading towards the ominous Ship Cloud signifying a Skeleton Fleet battle will now find that the encounter dynamically scales to the number of players in the area.
  
• Along with scaling difficulty, the skeleton crews onboard the Galleons are now more easily dispatched by boarders, and crews will find repairers less frequently return to defend the ship.
  
• After defeating a Skeleton Ship, crews now have more time to resupply before the next wave arrives and will find sunken Galleons now drop Storage Crates of supplies for even easier restocking.

Ghost Fleet Encounter Returns

• Once again, crews can encounter Ghost Ships summoned through the rift before facing off against Flameheart’s flagship, the Burning Blade.
  
• Following Flameheart’s resurrection, he no longer watches over this encounter. However, crews should look for a swirling tornado in the sky to indicate the encounter has begun.

Megalodon Encounters

• Emergent Megalodon encounters can now occur in a wider variety of locations across the seas, including those previously restricted due to the distance between islands.

Shipwreck Locations

• Sunken wrecks will now appear more frequently between islands rather than on the outer areas of the map, making them more easily discovered by crews during their journeys.

Fog Locations

• Visibility-reducing fog banks can now appear in even more locations across the seas.

[h3]Expanding Captaincy[/h3]
Season Seven's headline feature continues to expand and evolve! New Voyages for Captains and Legends are the main draw in Season Nine, not least those that lead to a Skull of Destiny, but Logbook upgrades and new deals with the Sovereigns are notable additions too.

Search for the Skull of Destiny

• This new Voyage exclusive to Pirate Legends can now be acquired from the shipwrights or the Pirate Lord. Legends will be provided with the Wayfinder of Legends Compass to help direct their crew towards the mysterious Skull of Destiny.
  
• Crews retrieving the Skull of Destiny will find it imbued with the glowing Flames of Fate and able to cycle through the six coloured flames. Use it to light all the statues at the Fort of the Damned, then place the Skull itself into the ritual cage to begin the Fort of the Damned event.

The Legendary Search for Cursed Treasure

• This new Voyage exclusive to Pirate Legends aims to test crews’ sailing skills against the hazards that hoarding accursed treasure may bring. Along with a range of cursed treasures to uncover along the way, players may encounter the new Chest of Boundless Sorrow which awards more gold but never stops weeping – a true test of an organised crew!
  
• Crews navigating this perilous Voyage will be richly rewarded from the cursed loot they return – and should keep a keen eye out for the chance to uncover a Chest of Legends among the treasure!

Black Powder Stashes

• Pirate Legends can now acquire this explosive new Voyage. It will direct crews to a nearby Skeleton Fort where a range of armaments have been stashed, possibly including the explosive Keg of Ancient Black Powder. Restock quickly and prepare for battle!

Expanded Company Voyages

• The shipwrights have expanded their stock of Trading Company Voyages, giving Captains access to more experiences directly from the Captain’s Bookcase. Crews can now venture into The Devil’s Roar on Ashen Voyages, raid Vaults for the Gold Hoarders, track Lost Shipments for the Merchants and hunt down Ghost Ships for the Order of Souls. Grab a bundle from the nearest shipwright before setting sail.

Captain’s Logbook

• Captains will find their trusty Logbook now chronicles the ship’s endeavors each day, populating the pages with events encountered while sailing. At the end of each day the Captain will bookmark the day’s efforts with a hand-drafted image of a memorable moment from the day.
  
• Along with this new addition, the Captain’s Logbook now requires players to press and hold to interact with it, preventing accidental use.
  
• Logbooks acquired from sunken ships can now be stored in Collector’s Chests and Merfolk Statues for safekeeping.

Sovereign Expansion

• Captains and their crew will now be able to conveniently hand in their catches to the Sovereigns at the Outposts, who will accept them on behalf of The Hunter’s Call. For the greatest payout, however, The Hunter’s Call representatives themselves now pay extra for direct delivery to the Seaposts!

Captain’s Supply and Voyage Shop Improvements

• Captains browsing the exclusive services available from the shipwrights will now find that a new categorised menu allows faster access to the Voyages or supplies required.

Milestone Notifications

• Players now have the option to disable both Pirate and Ship Milestone notifications from the Settings Menu.

[h3]Gameplay Improvements[/h3]
Read on for a real grab bag of refined and rebalanced features with something to please pirates of all persuasions. Check out new resource types and radials, streamlined sailing and selling, tricky treasures brought within reach and The Hunter's Call brought back up to capacity...

Treasure in the Devil’s Shroud

• Treasure left behind in the Devil’s Shroud will no longer remain out of reach and will be transported to a safer location for retrieval.

Seagulls Above Sunken Treasure

• As well as gathering above shipwrecks and floating barrels, seagulls can now be spotted circling over any treasure left behind at sea.

Six Ships on the Horizon

• Following performance improvements delivered in recent updates, all servers have now returned to supporting six crews. When starting a session or migrating, servers will now actively matchmake six crews of different sizes in order to meet both six-crew and 17-player limits.
  
• The team will continue to monitor server performance following launch and adjust the player limit outside the update process to optimise the experience.

Stashing Quests

• Unwanted Quests can now be stashed away, allowing players to tidy up their Quest Radial and only show those they are interested in. Stashed Quests can be unhidden at any time.

Improved Collector’s Chest Selling

• Pirates can now sell all treasure items inside a Collector’s Chest without having to remove them one by one. Trading Company representatives can now cash in all items they accept from within the chest.
  
• Captains looking to speed up the experience even further can sell everything inside the Collector’s Chest to the Sovereigns, leaving the crew with the chest itself for future use.

Musical Hit Audio Effects

• Within the Audio Settings, players now have direct control of musical effects heard when attacking ships and striking enemies. A new ‘Musical Hit Notification Volume’ slider offers this control while allowing other game music to be adjusted independently.
  
• Players will also hear a distinctive new audio effect when striking a rival ship with a cannonball, clearly indicating a successful hit. This new effect can also be controlled with the ‘Musical Hit Notification Volume’ slider.

Harpoon Improvements

• When using a ship’s harpoon, players will now find that treasure will instantly detach from their harpoon onto the deck, removing the need to stop and remove it manually.
  
• Rowboats equipped with a harpoon will also place any harpooned treasure in the middle of the Rowboat, and the Sovereigns’ hut harpoon will place treasure on the lift platform even if the platform is down, making it even easier to cash in there.

Bait Crates

• A new type of resource crate is now on offer from the Merchant Alliance and The Hunter’s Call: the Bait Crate. These crates are filled with enough grubs, worms and leeches to keep any fishing enthusiast happy for days!
  
• Bait Crates will set players back 5000 gold and can also be sold back to the Merchant Alliance, The Hunter’s Call, The Reaper’s Bones and the Sovereigns.

Fishing Bait Radial

• When wielding a fishing rod, players can now access a Bait Radial using the Left Trigger on controller or right mouse button when using keyboard and mouse to select the preferred bait before casting.

Food Radial

• When holding an item of food, players can now access a Food Radial using the B button on controller or R on keyboard to quickly select a specific food from their inventory.

Ship Scuttle Improvements

• Crews wishing to scuttle their ship will now be presented with two options. Crews can ‘Scuttle the Ship and Change Seas’ which will move them to a fresh server, providing a predictable way of leaving a server behind for a fresh encounter on likely calmer waters. Crews are still free to choose the original ‘Scuttle Ship’ option, which destroys their vessel while keeping them on the same server.

Trading Company Voyages

• When purchasing Trading Company Voyages, the Company representatives will no longer only refresh their choice of Voyages after a day but will now offer fresh Voyages as soon as one has been purchased.
  
• When browsing the range of Voyages available for your rank, every type of Voyage is now offered on the selection page for purchase.
  
• Pirates can now also purchase and hold up to 12 Voyages in their inventory. Bilge Rat Voyages (excluding the Athena’s Run) will not be counted towards this limit.
  
• Players visiting the Pirate Lord are also now presented with two full pages of Voyages to choose from.

The Reaper’s Bones Outpost Representative

• The Reaper’s Bones skeleton hanging out at the Outpost will now accept Emissary Flags ‘recovered’ by cutthroat pirate crews, in return for gold and reputation. Crews aligned with the Servants of the Flame will also earn Allegiance when cashing in these Flags.

Selling Tridents of Dark Tides

• Crews can now cash in a Trident of Dark Tides at their local Merchant Alliance, Sovereign or Hunter’s Call representative in return for gold and Seasonal Renown.

Cursed Mermaid Statue Rewards

• Cursed Mermaid Statues have now been rebalanced, allowing all sizes of crew the ability to destroy them for the precious gems inside. Sapphire, Emerald and Ruby statues no longer require multiple crewmates to defeat.
  
• All Cursed Mermaid Statues now offer better rewards when destroyed, with a chance of multiple Gems for lucky crews.
  
• With Mermaid Gems becoming more readily available from statues, pirates will no longer find them washed up on islands, and only Sapphire Gems can now be discovered within shipwrecks.

New Hunter’s Call Representative

• Stephen’s Spoils has felt empty since Merrick was lured away to his fate by the Dark Brethren. To help fill the void in pirates’ hearts, a new member of The Hunter’s Call has arrived to call Stephen’s Spoils home: Adelrick is now stationed at Merrick’s old post, continuing to trade on behalf of the family business.

Flags

• Tired of climbing up all the way to the crow’s nest? Pirates can now equip flags from the Ship Customisation Chest near the shipwright in the same way as equipping other ship customisations.

Resource Container Limits

• All resource containers, including barrels, Merchant crates and Rowboat seats, now clearly show the total number of items in each category that are being stored. As pirates fill these containers, they can easily see how close a category is to reaching its limit.

Brightness and Contrast Settings

• Within the Video Settings menu, players can now use sliders to increase and decrease the brightness and contrast of the game to further customise their

Sea of Thieves experience.Disable Trinket and Sitting Points

• Players can now choose to reduce the interaction points found around a ship. Interaction points for sitting locations and areas for placing Trinkets can be disabled independently via the Input Settings menu.

Starting Outpost Location

• Crews arriving on the seas at the start of a session will now begin at a wider variety of Outpost locations, and no longer emerge so frequently in The Wilds.

Barrels of Plenty Balancing

• The number of floating barrels that appear in a group has now been reduced. However, the likelihood of finding rare items in these barrels has been increased.

Chest of Sorrow Balancing

• Crews recovering a Chest of Sorrow during their journey will now find that the weeping fills the ship at a much slower rate.

Skeleton Form Balancing

• When protected by their metal casing, Gold Skeletons will now take reduced damage from blunderbuss and flintlock shots. Weaken them with water before attacking!

[h3]Season Nine[/h3]
Another Season means 100 new levels to climb by raising your Renown, with racks full of rewards to snag along the way – and an optional Plunder Pass adding even more. Emissaries aren't forgotten either, with the latest Company-themed cosmetics for qualifying Ledger performances!

Season Nine Progression and Rewards

• Season Nine offers a refreshed progression path with Trials, Deeds and Renown actions for new and experienced pirates alike. Weekly, monthly and Seasonal goals all reward players for exploring the Sea of Thieves.
  
• Players can capitalise on the new treasure items introduced to the seas and will earn Renown when cashing them in!
  
• Progressing through the 100 levels of this Season will reward pirates with the Prosperous Privateer cosmetics, new to Season Nine along with time-limited Gilded Age rewards.
  
• Legendary pirates or those who become a Pirate Legend during Season Nine can also earn the Legendary Bone Hunter Jacket and Spyglass.
  
• Completing tiers of Seasonal progression will also award unique Titles with a Gilded Age theme, allowing players to display their success for all to see.

Season Nine Plunder Pass

• Purchase Season Nine’s Plunder Pass to gain access to a plethora of unlockable, never-before-seen rewards along with an additional 750 Ancient Coins, all available to earn by climbing the levels of Seasonal progression.
  
• Plunder Pass purchasers this Season can earn the full Sting Tide ship set, including Collector’s Figurehead and Sails.
  
• For those looking to truly transform themselves, the Sting Tide Costume can also be earned, evolving as players progress through the Season.
  
• The Season Nine Plunder Pass is available to purchase in-game through the Pirate Log or Pirate Emporium, or from the Steam Item Store.

Season Nine Emissary Ledger Rewards

• Representing the Gold Hoarders in their Emissary Ledger can now earn players the Tribute Peak Fishing Rod and Tankard.
  
• Players seeking out secrets for the Order of Souls can earn the Relic of Darkness Fishing Rod and Tankard.
  
• The Merchant Alliance honour their high-performing Ledger representatives with the Merchant Ambassador Fishing Rod and Tankard.
  
• Flying the flag of The Reaper’s Bones and earning a high rank in their Ledger can earn players the Masked Renegade Fishing Rod and Tankard.
  
• Legendary pirates representing Athena’s Fortune in their Ledger can earn the Magpie’s Glory Fishing Rod and Tankard to show their allegiance to the Pirate Lord.

[h3]Events[/h3]
This Season lands squarely in the middle of Sea of Thieves' fifth anniversary month, so allow us to list some of the things still on the celebratory schedule. Meanwhile, Twitch Drops will keep on bringing incentives to those who support Sea of Thieves streamers throughout Season Nine!

Sea of Thieves’ Fifth Anniversary

• The Marauder's Medley Event ends with the arrival of Season Nine, but there's plenty more to enjoy: all players who set sail in Sea of Thieves before March 22nd (10am UTC) can acquire the Lustrous Legend Figurehead as a free anniversary gift.
  
• A bombastic Pirate Emporium sale runs from March 17th-28th, with deep discounts on ship sets, costumes, weapons, pets and emotes from some of the most popular ranges, Rare heritage sets,

Sea of Thieves: A Pirate's Life and more!
Starting from Sea of Thieves' special day on March 20th, you can make a stop at New Golden Sands Outpost to find a special wall set up for fifth anniversary pirate selfies. Get some pictures for posterity as it's a temporary fixture only...
Also on March 20th, head to the Sea of Thieves YouTube channel to watch Sea of Thieves: Voyage of a Lifetime, a feature-length exploration of the game from its birth all the way through to today.
From March 25th-27th, all pirates are welcome to join in the festivities throughout our Community Weekend, with more freebies to snap up and in-game boosts to unlock by using the #SoTAnniversaryPromo hashtag on social media to raise the Community Emissary Grade!
Find out more about the month-long celebrations in our dedicated fifth anniversary news article.Twitch Drops

• Continue to unlock cosmetics throughout Season Nine with Twitch Drops! Stay tuned to Sea of Thieves social channels to find out when Twitch Drops will be active, some for Partnered streamers and some for all streamers, allowing players to earn a selection of new and classic items from the Omen and Eastern Winds Sapphire sets.
  
• Find out how to link your accounts and more on our dedicated Twitch Drops page.

[h3]Pirate Emporium[/h3]
You may never have seen a Sea Serpent, but some hunters have and they've got the trophies to show for it. This month's new ship set, costume and weapons let you live that life, but if it's not for you, try acting all inscrutable with Enigmatic Emotes or pick up a polished pet instead.

Sea Serpent Ship Collection

• Adorn your ship with trophies of your most exciting hunts with the Sea Serpent Ship Bundle. Collector’s Sails and Figurehead are available to purchase separately.
  
• Players can also pick up just the core components of this set at a discount in the form of an Essential Ship Bundle.

Sea Serpent Costume

• This outfit borrows not only the protective scales of a fearsome beast of the seas, but its waterproof nature too.
  
• Players wearing this costume can also use the Hunter’s Harpoon Emote. Prepare for future battles and familiarise yourself with your harpoon using this kata.

Sea Serpent Weapon Bundle

• Pick up the weapons of a true hunter, crafted from the scales of the very beasts you seek to destroy.

Sea Serpent Lantern

• Light your way with a flame stolen from the maw of an ancient beast.

Lodestar Ship’s Crest

• Set your ship's name among the stars with a crest that embraces the night sky.

Gold Curse Barbary

• Even the most intelligent monkeys aren't immune to the irresistible lure of cursed gold.

Enigmatic Emote Bundle

• A range of gestures suited to pirates of a more retiring, mysterious nature.

Freebie Hearing Things Emote

• Give the appearance of listening out for threats, or simply encourage the ripostes of your enemies.

Striking Serpent Bundle (Store Only)

• Available only from the Xbox, Microsoft and Steam Stores, the Striking Serpent Bundle contains the Sea Serpent Costume, Weapon Bundle and Lantern, along with 550 Ancient Coins to spend in the Pirate Emporium and a free bonus of 25,000 gold. Head to the Steam Item Store to find out more.

[h3]Outpost Cosmetics[/h3]
Gold Hoarders Cosmetics

• Loyal followers of the Gold Hoarders can now find a range of clothing, weapons and equipment in stock at the Outpost shops to help them complete the Gold Hoarders set.

Season One Legacy Cosmetics

• Cosmetics previously available during Season One have now arrived in the Outpost shops for a sizeable Doubloon cost, allowing all players to add them to their collection – for a price! Pirates can now purchase the Frostbite clothing set, the Legendary Hair and Beard and items from the Accomplished set. The time-limited Shroudbreaker items, however, remain exclusive to players who participated in Season One.

[h3]Accessibility [/h3]
Sailing Audio Accessibility Improvements

• Within the Audio Settings, players now have access to a new setting to enhance the audio effects heard while sailing to aid in navigation. This setting is Off by default, but when enabled it improves the audio cues around navigational threats such as sea rocks, allowing players to hear approaching dangers and react appropriately.

[h3]Fixed Issues[/h3]
Gameplay

• Players can no longer place items on the ship’s capstan, and any item placed here will now drop onto the deck.
  
• Players engaging in melee combat and blocking with a sword will now find the block consistently prevents the player from taking damage.
  
• Phantoms’ charging attack now has a reduced range, preventing players from taking damage when successfully dodging.
  
• Supply barrels jettisoned from a ship will now be more spread out, ensuring they do not intersect with each other when surfacing.
  
• Crews who remove all items from a washed-up Storage Crate and then leave the area will no longer gain additional resources when returning later to the same crate.
  
• Players rapidly removing resources from Storage Crates should now consistently remove the correct number of items.

Battle for the Sea of Thieves

• Crews diving beneath the waves will no longer bring the lit state of lanterns at the Fort of the Damned to their destination server. However, crews migrating naturally will continue to bring this state with them.
  
• Emissary Flags now grant Allegiance when sold to the Mysterious Stranger.
  
• Ships that dive below the waves looking for opponents should now be automatically repaired even when damaged prior to diving.
  
• Becoming a Servant Champion no longer unlocks the Become Pirate Legend achievement.
  
• Players who sneak on board another Faction ship and attempt to use a ship interactable as it dives beneath the waves will retain control when returning to their ship.

Environment

• Players will no longer be able to walk through the textures of a Sea Fort basement.
  
• Players can no longer walk through textures at the Shrine of Tribute.
  
• Within the Pirate Legend Hideout, players should no longer be able to push through the environment and appear in the sea.
  
• The player’s camera will no longer intersect with environment set dressings in two seating spots within the Pirate Legend Hideout and Glorious Sea Dog Tavern.

Visual and Audio

• Performing the Armour Mock Emote now displays an explosive visual effect.
  
• When a cutlass three-hit combo is performed, the defending pirate will now only visually react to three strikes, whether they’re blocked or successful.
  
• To prevent overlapping graphical issues, pets are no longer able to sleep on the ship’s bed.
  
• When performing the Oar-Inspiring Balance Emote, players zooming in with the camera will now keep their pirate in view.
  
• The ‘Disable Blur’ option now continues to work after travelling through the Tunnels of the Damned.
  
• Performing a weapon pose with the Infinite Depths Cutlass now shows the pirate’s hands in the correct location.
  
• Players rebinding their Secondary Interact and Primary Interact before sitting down can now continue to use the third-person camera.
  
• ‘Lords of the Sea’ – Captain Jack Sparrow can no longer be seen floating above the ground during the cutscene for this Tall Tale.

Text and Localisation

• The prompt for the skeleton in the Store Room at Royal Crest Fortress has been made more descriptive for screen readers.
  
• The ‘Place Trinket’, ‘Restore My Ship’ and ‘Browse Captain’s Voyages’ prompts are now translated in all non-English languages.
  
• The ‘Show/Hide Tall Tale’ prompt on the ship’s map has now been translated into multiple languages.
  
• Corrected a spelling mistake after players finished ‘The Cursed Rogue’ Tall Tale.

Performance and Stability

• Reduced instances of server instability that cause players to be disconnected from their session.
  
• Players are no longer mistakenly issued with a placeholder belt when launching the game, and those who received it will now find it has been removed from their inventory. Fear not – this golden belt will return in a later Season.

[h3]Known Issues[/h3]
Pirate’s Log Season UI

• Players on lower-spec hardware may experience issues when browsing the Pirate Log, finding they are unable to navigate to the active Season to check progress, Trials and Deeds. However, players continue to earn Seasonal Renown for their actions, and progress through the Season can be checked on the Sea of Thieves website.

Reduced Server Performance

• Players may experience scenarios where they encounter ping spikes at random while playing, resulting in rubberbanding or client stutters. While improvements were most recently released in update 2.7.3, the team continue to work on further improvements for future updates.

Ranged and Melee Weapon Hit Detection

• In areas of intense action, players may find themselves firing shots or landing strikes that do not cause damage to their targets. While small improvements continue to be delivered during our regular updates, we are continuing to investigate and identify further improvements to the player combat experience.

To learn more about known issues in Sea of Thieves currently being tracked and their status, head over to our Known Issues support site article.

[h3]Download and Installation[/h3]
Download Size:

• Steam: 7.49 GB

There’s a lot going on around Sea of Thieves’ fifth anniversary, but one thing you may not have noticed in the barrage of freebies, announcements and events is the arrival of a couple of new editions of Sea of Thieves itself. Both include all the permanent content released for the game up to now, and both are available from today! Here’s a quick breakdown of what makes each one different…

2023 Edition
The new standard version of Sea of Thieves. Anyone buying the game and joining us on the seas starting from today will get the 2023 Edition, which comes with a nice cache of extras to help you look sharp from your very first Voyage: the Hunter Cutlass, Pistol, Compass, Hat, Jacket and Sails, plus 10,000 gold for a shopping spree around the nearest Outpost.

Don’t you worry, existing players – you’ll be granted those gifts of gold and cosmetics too, so expect to see them pop up when you set sail over the next few days.

Deluxe Edition
For players who want to treat themselves to an even more lavish array of goodies when they first set sail. In addition to the 2023 Edition of the game including Hunter items and 10,000 gold, this Deluxe Edition comes with a Deluxe Bundle of extra cosmetics and currency: the Black Phoenix Figurehead and Sails, the Crab Dab and Deck Hide Emotes, plus 550 Ancient Coins to spend recklessly in the Pirate Emporium. Steam buyers also get access to the Sea of Thieves Original Soundtrack – 5th Anniversary Edition, Athena's Fortune audiobook and a set of 4K wallpapers.

We know there’ll be players who already own the game and want to add these treasures without buying an entire new edition, so we’ve made that possible too: while it comes as standard with the Deluxe Edition, the Deluxe Bundle Upgrade can also be snapped up separately.



If you’re looking for a new route onto the seas as we hurtle past this five-year milestone, we’re pleased to say that Sea of Thieves is now officially Steam Deck Verified too! The game team really put the work in to optimise the Sea of Thieves experience for this platform, so anyone setting sail with a Steam Deck can expect all the good stuff: full controller inputs, native resolution, steady 30-60fps gameplay, voice communication and a pop-out keyboard for in-game text chat.

Should you have a Steam Deck and already own Sea of Thieves on Steam, the game will be ready and waiting to install on your device, so you can rally your crew and go tracking down treasure or smashing up skeletons without missing a beat. There’s also an official FAQ to field any queries about the Steam Deck itself.

If it’s Sea of Thieves you have more questions about, well, as it happens we’ve been buffing up a brand new trailer to showcase what the game has to offer in 2023. Welcome to our playground…

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
So there you go, a pirate sandbox shaped by five years of evolution and free content updates, now offering more options than ever for getting involved. And it’s an absolutely action-packed time to do so: as mentioned, we’re in the midst of our fifth anniversary celebrations, with another big content drop imminent as Season Nine ships out this week. There’s much more to come throughout the rest of 2023 and beyond, including some very exciting things we’ve yet to mention…


https://store.steampowered.com/sub/830712/

The shortest of months has passed us by in record time, but that hasn’t stopped us from packing those 28 days with exciting content to get stuck into. There’s so much to cover that we’re just going to skip the preamble and dive right in, okay? Okay. Let’s go.

[h3]Content Update[/h3]
After the stargazing Adventure that took up the second half of January, we decided that in February we’d keep our attentions a little closer to home with the latest Community Day! On February 11th, pirates from across the seas came together to celebrate, and many of you took to Twitter to share your adventures and bump the collective Emissary Grade to the max. The more adventurous souls also tackled a Community Day-themed bingo card – were you able to cross off any squares?

Later in the month, the Trading Companies and Factions came together and agreed that it was time for a deeply uncharacteristic show of generosity. So was born Double Rewards Week! They took turns in offering variations on doubled gold, reputation, Renown and Allegiance bonuses to all pirates for one day only, before a traditional Gold & Glory Weekend capped things off neatly.

The Pirate Emporium took on an otherworldly look halfway through the month, when February’s update brought not just PvP matchmaking improvements and miscellaneous tweaks and balances, but saw the Infinite Depths collection phasing into view. A comprehensive collection it is too, with a ship set, costume, weapons and emote. The same theme extended to February’s freebie, the not-so-protective Armour Mock Emote, while sweet-toothed pirates were in for a treat of their own with the Pancake Puzzler Emote as a free login bonus for the week around Shrove Tuesday. Where does it go though?

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[h3]News and Features[/h3]
We kicked off the month with our very own article bracing everyone for Season Eight Community Day, then quickly followed it up with preparations for the prestigious Style of Thieves competition, by way of articles explaining the rules of engagement and Season Eight’s themes. The latest tournament has now finished, but it’s still good to read up on if you want to get your planning in early for the next bout…

February saw two new player Spotlights for you to enjoy. First up was MiniMeMarcLee’s Community Spotlight, discussing his woodworking creations and how he sailed as one of the Pioneers of Sea of Thieves. Then our Creator Spotlight zeroed in on harmonica harmoniser LazyBuzzard, the conversation ranging from how he started streaming during the first Covid lockdown to his work in raising awareness of mental health, with a sprinkling of advice for anyone looking to follow in his footsteps.

The Community Hub was also updated with fresh batches of fantastic player creations. In February we were snuggling up warm with treats like a Company-inspired blanket and celebrating some of the phenomenal highlights from Community Day. Of course, there’s another day worthy of note in February too…


[h3]Videos and Streams[/h3]
With Season Nine taking shape on the horizon, episode 10 of our official podcast started off the month by looking back on everything that happened during Season Eight and what’s coming in the near future. And even if you’d rather avoid possible spoilers, you can still enjoy the team’s discussion about their… favourite days of the week?

Once we’d gotten over Mike Chapman’s baffling answer of “Monday”, it was time for Season Eight Community Day! We weren’t about to let the festivities pass without getting involved ourselves, so a keen team of Rare team members headed over to the in-house Tavern to put on a sneaky stream of our own.

By the time we hit the middle of the month, Sea of Thieves News was back, giving us a hint of what would be coming up over the next few weeks and beyond. Lead Designer Chris Davies even stopped by to fill us in on the future of Adventures…

Closing out the month, we teamed up with SpecialEffect for GameBlast 2023! Heading back to the Tavern for another stream, we set crews against one another in an explosive battle over Gunpowder Barrels. Together, the community managed to raise more than £11,000 to help make gaming more accessible to people with disabilities – thank you so much to everyone who joined us!


[h3]Social Channels[/h3]
Amongst the excitement around Community Day, February also found time to host one of the most important social media events of the Season – the Style of Thieves competition. Players were tasked with dressing up their pirate in ways that reflected the four categories: Historical Dress Up, Athena Ambassadors, Party Gear and Repping Reapers. Winners walked away with their very own Fashionista’s Finery Gloves, and the knowledge that they really do have a Clothing Chest to die for.

Style of Thieves wasn’t the only competition to get involved with, of course. There were two #SoTShot draws this month, starting with a quick trip to Hollywood for the cinematic Movie Moments category. From there we wanted to carry on the camaraderie of Community Day, and thus came the Friendship theme to help us all feel warm and fuzzy. Skills lie elsewhere? Who’s up for an island identification challenge? Maybe even two?

In less competitive news, Twitter got creative with sharing their approaches to piracy, alternative names for the Chest of Sorrow and what this goodest of boys should be called (dogs being a particularly big deal on some channels). It wasn’t all peaceful though: elsewhere, we had arguments over kegs, took a stand on spelling and got salty over a contentious Outpost. But the good news for a month centered on Community Day is that the sea ahead is clear and nothing bad’s about to happen. Small mercies.



So that was February! For the shortest month, we managed to cram a lot in there and it doesn’t look like we’re slowing down even a little bit for March, so stick with us! If you want to follow along with everything that’s happening as it happens, hitch your Rowboat to our social ship on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube or Twitch, or join the official Forums or Discord. For now though, farewell! We’re off to chill out to some undersea vibes in an attempt to retain our composure before Sea of Thieves’ fifth anniversary hits. See you then!

[hr][/hr][h3]Previously in 2023: [/h3]
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: January 2023