Sea of Thieves News

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[h3]Sea of Thieves on Demand[/h3]
Access all the adventure you crave more quickly than ever before with Season 11’s overhaul of Voyages and encounters! Explore a redesigned Quest system, major expansions to most Trading Companies and new rewards and Distinctions to earn as you progress.

On Demand

• With a Quest Table on board each ship now providing the ability to choose from all available outings and dive directly to the scene of a Voyage, Tall Tale or new Raid Voyage, players have unprecedented freedom to explore everything the seas can offer. The refreshed Discover Tab is also on hand with tailored suggestions!
  
• Raid Voyages are new Trading Company-themed versions of World Events with unique treasure types on offer, unlocked from the Quest Table as players climb the Company ranks.
  
• For the first time, some reputation is now earned at the point of Voyage completion, but treasure must still be handed in for maximum profit as anything on board is lost if a player chooses to dive again.
  
• The majority of Trading Companies have raised their level cap to 100. Reaching Company reputation level 100 now unlocks a Distinction, providing a reward and resetting a player’s level with that Company to allow progress towards the next Distinction.
  
• To improve the onboarding experience, new Tutorial Voyages led by the Pirate Lord are in place for new players, covering the Gold Hoarders, Merchant Alliance and Order of Souls. These can be revisited from the Quest Table.
  
• To learn more about this new Season’s headline features, head over to our dedicated Season 11 page.

[h3]Season 11[/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! Read on for more on all this plus details of the quality of life improvements landing with this Season’s launch...

Season 11 Rewards and Plunder Pass

• Progressing through Season 11 will reward players with the Cunning Serpent clothing set and unique Season 11 specials alongside time-limited Swift-Winged Wayfarer collectibles. Head to the Seasons profile page to browse the new rewards and check your pirate’s progress!
  
• Purchase the Plunder Pass to gain access to a plethora of unlockable, never-before-seen rewards from the Well-Travelled Trader set, all available to earn by climbing the levels of Seasonal progression. Purchase in-game through the Pirate Log or Pirate Emporium, or via the Pirate Emporium webpage or Steam Item Store.

Season 11 Emissary Ledger Rewards

• This Season, the Trading Companies each offer a themed Speaking Trumpet and Lantern to Emissaries who represent them well and perform proudly in the Ledgers. Log in and track your performance on the Emissary Ledgers page!

Chest of Fortune

• For the duration of Season 11, the Chest of Fortune will surface following the defeat of an emergent Fleet of Fortune. These special Skeleton Fleet encounters are signified by a glowing red cloud in the sky when active.
  
• Crews who retrieve Chests of Fortune can now earn the next Grade of the Fortune’s Favour Commendation, unlocking access to the Fates of Fortune Cannon, Flag, Capstan and Wheel.

Reaper’s Chests

• In Season 11, crews coveting the precious Reaper’s Chest or Reaper’s Bounty can earn the next Grade of the Reaper’s Riches Commendation and start unlocking access to the Fates of Fortune Blunderbuss and Eye of Reach.

[h3]Gameplay Improvements[/h3]
Improved Hit Markers

• Players now have further control over the hit markers shown when striking targets with a projectile weapon. The game settings now enable switching from the existing client-predicted markers to server-confirmed markers, which only display hits confirmed directly by the server for improved accuracy.

Bounty Voyage Improvements

• A new Order of Souls Bounty Voyage has been added which tasks crews with hunting a Skeleton Lord that drops Dark Relics.
  
• A new Ghost Ship Voyage within The Devil’s Roar is now available from the Order of Souls.
  
• Bounty contracts now provide the landmark location of the target along with the island to help guide players to the correct location.
  
• The difficulty of all Bounty Voyages has been rebalanced to make them more satisfying to play.

Emissary Voyage Improvements

• Emissary Voyages have been improved for each Trading Company with a focus on reduced sailing times and smaller quantities of higher-value treasure to transport, refreshing the gameplay and delivering improved rewards for participation.
  
• Upon reaching Emissary Grade V for a Trading Company, crews can now head to Morrow’s Peak Outpost and speak to their Company representative for an Emissary Voyage in The Devil’s Roar that will yield Ashen-themed rewards.
  
• Emissary Voyages are now lost if the ship sinks or the Emissary Flag is lowered at the Outpost.

Merchant Cargo Run Improvements

• Delivery notes on cargo now provide care instructions which help players to protect their valuable goods.
  
• Cargo Run Quests now remind players how many items need to be collected and where to collect them, ensuring they pack all necessary items before setting sail. Supporting information is also now shown on the delivery note.
  
• Cloth Crates being held while swimming on the surface will no longer become drenched.

Merchant Contract Improvements

• Contracts to recover specific animals now show players which island they need to head to in order to fulfil the contract.
  
• Crews now recover the required Animal Crates from the beaches on the contracted island.
  
• All requested animals are now guaranteed to be found on the contracted island, including the various rarities.
  
• Crews will no longer trigger emergent skeleton encounters on their contracted island, to reduce scenarios where animals are caught in the crossfire.
  
• Contracts now complete when the crew returns them to the Outpost, rather than upon catching the animals on the island.

Treasure Vault Improvements

• Treasure Vaults now scale the available raiding time to the size of the crew – the smaller the crew, the more time to collect the treasure.
  
• Treasure Vault Quests now send crews to the nearest possible Vault once the Totem is recovered.
  
• The braziers surrounding the Vault’s altar are now extinguished over time as an indicator of how long the crew has left before the door slams shut.

Skeleton Encounter Balancing

• Skeleton encounters across the emergent world and on Voyages have been rebalanced, providing a more fun encounter with these bony fiends.
  
• Ambush skeleton groups now dynamically scale based on the size of the crew – the bigger the crew, the more ambush skeletons to fight!

Emergent Phantom Encounters

• Players leaving the ship to explore islands will now only encounter Phantoms at night.

Message in a Bottle Rewards

• Quests from a Message in a Bottle are now significantly more rewarding and likely more valuable than the Voyage already underway – so be sure to go exploring, you’ll be handsomely rewarded for your time!
  
• These Quests also have been refreshed with a focus on reduced sailing times and smaller quantities of higher-value treasure to transport, improving the overall experience.

Skeleton Captain Rewards

• Defeating a Skeleton Captain now yields increased rewards and ammunition, with the potential to recover Reaper’s Chests and Reaper’s Bounty, Gunpowder Barrels and ammunition-stocked Resource Crates. These new rewards are also recoverable from the same island as the encounter!

Shipwreck Rewards

• The rewards found within a sunken shipwreck have now been improved.

Ashen Guardian Rewards

• Crews defeating an Ashen Guardian will now be rewarded with a map to an Ashen Chest on the same island along with a Key to unlock it, no longer requiring them to seek out a Key Master.

Captain’s Bookshelf

• Captains can now adorn the Bookshelf where their Voyages were once stored with Trinkets instead!

Tutorial Notifications

• Tutorial notifications have been added to a range of experiences to assist new players’ onboarding. Quest archetypes, Tall Tales, Cargo Crates and even encounters with different skeleton forms now provide contextual tutorials.

[h3]Pirate Emporium[/h3]
Show off your personal style with purchases from the Pirate Emporium! Pick up exclusive cosmetics such as ship liveries, costumes, weapons, pets and emotes using your Ancient Coins, purchasable with real money. Head to the Pirate Emporium page to browse and buy the latest additions!

New Items – Now in Stock!

• Boarhunter Ship Collection
  
• Boarhunter Weapon Bundle
  
• Boarhunter Clothing Bundle
  
• Boarhunter Trinket
  
• Collector’s Lunar Festival Dragon Sails and Figurehead
  
• Exercise Emote Bundle
  
• Paradise Garden Eye of Reach (free!)
  
• Boars and Bounty Bundle (Steam Store)

[h3]Outpost Cosmetics [/h3]
New Outpost Stock!

• The Outpost clothing shops have received a new shipment of items from the Maestro set. Players are now able to purchase the Maestro clothing after unlocking The Artistic Souls Commendation.

Season Four Legacy Cosmetics

• Cosmetics previously available during Season Four have arrived in Outpost shops and can now be yours in exchange for Doubloons!
  
• Players can purchase the Wicked Web clothing set, along with a range of unique one-off items that were available during this Season. Pirate Legends can also purchase the Cursed Adventurer Cutlass and Wanda’s Spyglass.
  
• The time-limited Siren’s Wrath items, however, remain exclusive to players who participated in Season Four.

[h3]Updates[/h3]
Skull of Siren Song Rewards

• Cosmetic rewards earned by completing the various Commendations associated with the Skull of Siren Song Voyage can now be found in the respective Outpost shops along with their unlock criteria.
  
• With this change, upon unlocking the relevant Commendation, players will now be required to purchase the reward from the Outpost shop rather than having it automatically awarded.

Maiden Voyage Visual Improvements

• The parting sequence and passage through the Devil’s Shroud during the Maiden Voyage have received a suite of improvements to visual fidelity, enhancing the visuals of the Shroud itself and clarity of direction for players.

Sea Rock Visuals

• Sea rocks have received a polish pass, with weathering and water marks now added to the bases of larger rocks to improve blending into the sea.

Emergent Voyage Changes

• Crews will no longer find emergent Voyage parchments in barrels across the Sea of Thieves and will now find that barrels only contain resources.
  
• Crews will now lose emergent Voyages such as a Message in a Bottle if they dive to a new experience. Emissary Voyages will continue to be retained through diving.

Retired Commendations and Adjusted Rewards

With the introduction of On Demand Voyages in Season 11, several legacy Commendations have been retired, and their associated rewards are now unlocked via different means.

• The Seeker of Lost Maps Title will now unlock via the Seeker of Pirate Plunder Commendation for the Bilge Rats.
  
• The Seeker of Lost Souls Title and ability to purchase the Order of Souls Cutlass, Pistol, Blunderbuss and Eye of Reach from a Company representative will now unlock via the Worthy Emissary of Souls Commendation for the Order of Souls.
  
• The Merchant Adventurer Title will now unlock via the Taker of Stolen Stock Commendation for the Merchant Alliance.
  
• The Seeker of Athena’s Fortune Title will now unlock via the Worthy Emissary of Athena Commendation for Athena’s Fortune.
  
• The Legend of Thieves’ Haven Title will now unlock via the Retreat to the Thrones’ Haven Commendation for the Bilge Rats.
  
• The ability to purchase the Legendary Treasure Seeker costume from the Pirate Legend Hideout will now unlock via the Legendary Treasure Hunter Commendation for Athena’s Fortune.

Additionally, several related achievements have had their completion criteria updated. Players who were working towards completing these achievements will start afresh on a new task, while those who have already unlocked the achievement will retain it.

• Seeker of Lost Maps: Dig up 250 chests whilst on Gold Hoarders X Marks the Spot Voyages.
  
• Merchant Adventurer: Fill 250 Animal Crates while on Merchant Alliance Cargo Run Voyages.
  
• Seeker of Lost Souls: Defeat 500 skeletons while on Order of Souls Bounty Voyages.
  
• A Veteran Voyager: Complete 30 Voyages while sailing aboard a Captained ship.

[h3]Fixed Issues[/h3]
Gameplay

• Players who attempt to rapidly switch weapons after migrating across servers should no longer find themselves unable to wield the weapon and hear a repeated audio effect when attempting it.
  
• Players should no longer experience scenarios where their equipped items are reset after returning from the Ferry of the Damned or recovering from being stuck.
  
• The Fortress Storage Key and expected quantity of gold pouches should now consistently appear at Sea Forts.
  
• After migrating across servers, players are now able to access the shops at Seaposts.
  
• Samuel will no longer purchase Ashen Keys within the Pirate Legend Hideout.
  
• ‘The Legendary Storyteller’ – All journals for this Tall Tale can now be read as intended.
  
• Unlocked Ship Milestone rewards such as Banners are now once again available for players to equip.

Skull of Siren Song Voyage

• Players placing the Skull of Siren Song in a Harpoon Rowboat dragged behind their ship will continue to be affected by its curse.
  
• Crews who harpoon the open chest with the Skull of Siren Song still inside will now bring the curse’s effects onto their ship along with the Chest and Skull.
  
• Players are no longer able to opt in to the Skull of Siren Song Voyage after the Skull has been revealed.

Guilds

• Crews in a Guild session without the Captain present will now see Ship Milestone progress within the Guild Chronicles.
  
• Earned Guild clothing can now be equipped in any session and is no longer locked to sailing for the Guild that unlocked access to it.
  
• Using a spyglass to observe a Guild ship at range should now consistently display the appropriate Guild name on the Banner.
  
• The correct Guild name should now show consistently on the Guild Emissary Table, Logbook, Guild Plaque and Guild Invite Emote.

‘The Journey to Mêlée Island’

• Players can now head up to the Mansion as soon as the guard leaves his post, and are no longer blocked by parts of the environment.
  
• When players have constructed a body for Murray, any players joining the session after the initial sequence will now be able to see Murray’s body.
  
• Players will no longer see a silhouette of Walt the violin-playing skeleton through the church window.
  
• Fog seen in the Mansion now behaves correctly throughout the location.

‘The Quest for Guybrush’

• Players should no longer see a patch of mist on the stairs near the Lookout Point after the fog has cleared from the mountaintop.

‘The Lair of LeChuck’

• A Quest Book is now present during the ship chase sequence, giving players the option of leaving the Tall Tale during this section.
  
• Herman’s Supply Crate will no longer appear to move around while the player is viewing it.
  
• The front-facing cannons on the Headless Monkey now have more restricted movement to prevent issues with aiming.
  
• The Head of the Navigator can now be taken from another player when offered.
  
• Liquids in the cooking pot now appear to drain correctly when collecting Banana Grease.
  
• The Banana Grease jar will now appear correctly after it has been used.
  
• The notification shown to players when the Chilled Banana Soup has been discovered or lost now references the correct item.
  
• Players will no longer become stuck on the palm tree within Herman's camp.

Environment

• Players should now find a new sea rock near K11, a common location for mysteriously wrecked ships.
  
• The Rowboat dock underneath the tavern on Port Merrick is now fully functional.
  
• Players can no longer become stuck on the palm tree near the Order of Souls tent at Morrow’s Peak Outpost.
  
• Players can no longer fall through certain areas of the environment around the Treasury of Sunken Shores.
  
• Chests placed near the doorway of the Vault at Kraken Watchtower will no longer disappear through the floor.
  
• Players’ legs will no longer appear to merge into the tower structure when using the sitting spots at Skeleton Forts.
  
• If a player safe teleports while inside the Treasury of Sunken Shores, they will now be placed in a suitable location.
  
• Placing treasure in various Sea Fort windows will no longer cause the item to fall into the environment.
  
• Rain no longer passes through tunnels located at Shark Bait Cove.
  
• Dagger Tooth Outpost’s pier no longer contains invisible obstacles.
  
• The barrel at the shipwright’s shop in Port Merrick no longer appears to merge into the hanging platform.
  
• ‘Shores of Gold’ – Players will no longer be able to walk through parts of the environment inside the various caves.

Visual and Audio

• The visual effects on the Down the Hatch Emote now play as intended.
  
• Players wearing the Soaring Oracle Costume should no longer see equipped jackets showing through the costume.
  
• Visual improvements have been made to the constellations on the Lodestar weapons.
  
• Visual improvements have been made to the Layered Shirt of the Ashen Dragon.
  
• Players with the Order of Souls Hook equipped will now find that they grip the ship’s wheel correctly.
  
• The Snapping Shark Emote and Shark Dance Emote now appear with different icons to avoid confusion.
  
• The Ashen Key now sits in the lock of the Ashen Chest correctly when used.
  
• The Sovereign Ship’s Crest will now attach correctly when equipped on a Brigantine.
  
• The light given off by the Magpie’s Glory Lantern now shines in the correct location.
  
• The Eastern Winds Ruby Bucket will no longer show water inside when empty.
  
• Fog will now appear as intended when entering the Vault at Molten Sands Fortress.
  
• The Sweet Treat Capstan will now display correctly in fog.
  
• ‘Captains of the Damned’ – Pirates in the bayou now hold the candles correctly.

Text and Localisation

• The Stand to Attention Emote no longer has a placeholder title and description in the Vanity Chest.
  
• When speaking to Zharick at Brian’s Bazaar, the dialogue will no longer refer to Golden Sands.
  
• ‘The Legendary Storyteller’ – The 'Fish Friends' puzzle in the Quest Book no longer refers to Golden Sands.
  
• ‘A Pirate’s Life’ – Captain Jack Sparrow’s name is now present within his subtitles when escaping from the Ferry of the Damned.
  
• ‘Fate of the Morningstar’ – The Ferryman's intended subtitles now appear while he is speaking.

Performance and Stability

• Ongoing improvements made to server stability to reduce instances where players are disconnected from their session.
  
• Improved game stability to reduce scenarios where players experience an unexpected exit from the game.

[h3]Known Issues[/h3]
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: 7.34 GB

Oh yes, that’s right, we’re not quite ready to be finished with 2023 just yet. Still one last round-up to squeeze in! Now, we might have been winding down for the end of the year in December, but that didn’t stop us from delivering a Community Weekend, two in-game Events and a monthly content update, did it? Of course not. So let’s take a look at everything you might have missed…

[h3]Content Update[/h3]
We wasted no time in kicking off the December excitements by hosting Season Ten Community Weekend right at the beginning of the month. With some distinctly fishy Pop-Up Plunder maps pointing players in the direction of highly desirable loot, a reward multiplier growing in line with Twitch viewership and an exclusive Title on offer for Skull of Siren Song victors, the Weekend was absolutely packed with adventures to get involved in.

From there, our third instalment of Season Ten was ready to go and so we opened the way to the long-awaited Safer Seas! Letting players explore the world of Sea of Thieves alone or with just their own crew of friends for the first time, this new mode offers a liberating alternative approach to the pirate life. Need more info on how it works, along with December’s other additions and fixes? The release notes await.

And of course, we couldn’t make it through the festive season without throwing in a couple of end-of-year Events. First up was a Gifts & Glory Event where players could pick up a festive flag and double rewards from all their expeditions, followed by the traditional Grogmanay celebration offering a new notch for your Annual Tankard as we toasted the new year together.

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[h3]News and Features[/h3]
While everyone was preparing to boost their bonuses and smash some grog, we were able to put the finishing touches on our big December release, and thus we finally arrived at Safer Seas! There were a fair few changes packaged in with this new game mode, so we helped out by posting a handy launch article to go with it.

December is also the month in which we traditionally invite you to check out some of your personal sea-soaked stats in Your Story So Far – still available to view until January 15th! And further contributing to ending the year with a bang was a fresh round of the ever-popular Style of Thieves competition. Before we could get there though, announcing the themes was essential so that pirates could spend the month preparing their perfect outfit.

With all that happening and Community Weekend too, there was only time for one Creator Spotlight in December, so we made sure it was a goodie: meme queen and pirate menace Toxie Sinclaire filled us in on her journey to becoming a Sea of Thieves content creator and highlights of her career. Just don’t ask us what’s going on in some of those Spotlight screenshots. We don’t know and at this point we’re scared to ask.


[h3]Videos and Streams[/h3]
In the run-up to the release of Safer Seas, we wanted to answer as many of your questions ahead of time as we could, culminating in our official Safer Seas Explained video! Once that had time to do the rounds, it was on to release day with a launch trailer and a look at all the new styles coming to the Pirate Emporium and Outpost shops. And surrounding this, in keeping with the spirit of the Festival of Giving, were no less than three sets of Twitch Drops to snag throughout the month.

With the end of 2023 in our spyglasses, we found ourselves reflecting on Sea of Thieves’ progress throughout the year and what everyone in the community can expect from the next one. With that in mind, some familiar team faces stopped by the Tavern one last time before the holidays to record 2023’s final podcast. Give it a watch or a listen to reminisce over highlights, consider lessons learned and admire how quickly John’s festive quiz gets derailed by seemingly innocuous buzzer sounds.

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[h3]Social Channels [/h3]
Adding to Twitch Drops, Emporium items and Event rewards in December was a separate bundle of cosmetics available to players with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, who had (and still have) a chance to pick up the Nightshine Parrot Bundle via XGPU Perks. Meanwhile, a select few joined the Hat of Unfeasibly Glorious Fame crew when their creations were featured in the Community Hub, and in case that still didn’t prove enough to satisfy the demanding Festival of Giving spirits, Golden Hour Sails were awarded to our favourite #SoTShot entries on the theme of Festive Fun.

We didn’t want to leave everyone hanging for too long after teasing the latest Style of Thieves themes, so we shared the winners ahead of the holidays and rewarded them with the coveted Fashionista’s Finery Gloves. More presents! From there, everything got a bit nostalgic as we all looked back on the year together, inviting you to cast your mind back to when you were first setting out on the seas and what sort of personal legend you’ve built up since then.

By that point we really were coming up on the end of the year, so with a few extra well wishes and final bits of trivia we took our leave for a brief, hard-earned break. Of course, you’re never really far from the seas. Especially when John’s reminding you that you’ve got Tall Tales to complete.


And thus endeth the month, the year and our only-slightly-late December round-up! A lot happened in the past 12 months out on the seas, and we loved sharing every minute of it with you all. If you’re in the mood for more nostalgia, take a look back over the other 11 round-ups from 2023 and feel free to share your thoughts with us on all the usual channels: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Twitch the official Forums and Discord. Beyond that, a happy new year to all and we hope you look forward to the tempting troves of new features and exciting announcements coming in 2024!
[hr][/hr][h3]Previously in 2023:[/h3]
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: November 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: October 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: September 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: August 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: July 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: June 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: May 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: April 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: March 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: February 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: January 2023

[h3]Fixed Issues[/h3]
Gameplay

• Lost Shipments and Prized Merchant Alliance Commission Voyages are once again available for purchase.
  
• Crews taking on a Lost Shipments Voyage should now encounter the correct number of Merchant Crates when unlocking the Captain’s Cabin.

Guilds

• Players who are part of a Guild that has unlocked Guild clothing rewards are once again free to wear the rewards when sailing as part of any other Guild, or outside a Guild session.

Performance and Stability

• Improved server stability to avoid instances of players being disconnected from their session.

[h3]Known Issues[/h3]
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]Full Release Notes[/h3]
These release notes cover a hotfix. For full details on recently added game features, see the release notes on our latest content update.

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

• Steam: 5.35 GB

Spooky season is officially out the door, which means it’s practically the festive holidays already, right? Well, okay, November isn’t quite the end of the year, but we weren’t going to let that stop us from kicking off the celebrations early with new game content, seasonal fashions and a thoroughly chaotic stream. In case you missed anything, or want a quick refresher on everything that happened last month, take a look…

[h3]Content Update[/h3]
November heralded the second instalment of the juggernaut that is Season Ten: the competitive Skull of Siren Song Voyage! This new type of World Event calls on players from across the sea to come together and battle it out for the titular ancient artefact. With two treasure maps shared across all participating crews, and a powerful curse slowing down any ship bearing the Skull, the results are frequently as nail-biting as you’d expect. To explore everything in this update, November’s release notes (plus those for the hotfix sliding in at the end of the month) are the place to go.

Beyond the anticipated increase in incidents of mayhem and mischief, this update also brought in new Briggsy-inspired rewards for Voyage victors. At the same time, Ravenwood cosmetics from a Plunder Pass of the past embraced their assassins’ roots as the ship set snuck into the Pirate Emporium – and to ensure that you can carry out your kills without compromising your brand, you can now accessorise with weapons and a stealthy spyglass too.

Our clothing-related ventures didn’t end there, as the merchandise crew decided to get involved and revealed this year’s real-life Sea of Thieves Festival of Giving jumper. See how comfy Daryl looks? That could be you!

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[h3]News and Features[/h3]
Giving everyone a timely overview of the Skull of Siren Song Voyage on launch day was of course our primary news-based concern for November, and dropping some details into our ever-expanding Season Ten page while we were at it.

But the week before that brought another announcement, for the much-anticipated Season Ten Community Weekend at the start of December! After the community smashed it out of the park during our last collaborative celebration, we didn’t want to keep you waiting for details of the next one. With the reveal that Pop-Up Plunder will be making a triumphant (if a tad fishy) return and the promise of more enticing Twitch Drops and login bonuses, the announcement hopefully had you counting down the days.

There was of course more Spotlighting of popular players going in in the midst of all that, as we sat down to catch up with a fishing legend both in and out of the game: CJShiz! From tips for new content creators to finding a work-life balance and fishing up real-life Treacherous Plunder, it’s well worth a read – as are any of the articles from our archive of Community, Creator and Legend Spotlights stretching back through the years.


[h3]Videos and Streams[/h3]
As November’s new competitive Voyage crested the horizon, people were bound to have questions… and fortunately, our Video team were one step ahead with a Skull of Siren Song Explained video released a few days before the update. That was followed up with the traditional launch trailer and, just in case there could possibly still be any questions left unanswered, a full Deep Dive into how the Voyage came to be.

And if you thought relentless back-to-back feature releases would slow our Video team down, you’d be wrong! Even in amongst all the other demands on their time, they still put together two episodes of Sea of Thieves News during November to keep you up to date on everything going on. We salute their dedication.

Still, the Community team weren’t about to let them hog all the glory, celebrating the arrival of the Skull of Siren Song with a livestream of their own. A couple of technical hitches along the way might have resulted in the stream briefly masquerading as a radio show, but we weren’t about to let a little thing like that dampen the mood. Not with a Voyage to be won…

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[h3]Social Channels[/h3]
Setting us up in the competitive spirit early, we kicked off November with a decidedly spooky edition of #SoTShot: Sinister Scenes! Entries were exceptional as always, and we may never sleep again. Good job, everyone. But we learned our lesson, and the next round was the substantially cheerier Favourites category, which made for much more relaxing viewing. Phew.

With our spirits freshly raised, we took the time to crack a few (bad) jokes, encouraged reminiscence over the times you made it away with someone else’s loot and corrected a minor pet peeve. (The writing team is watching you. We know what you did.) After that, it felt only fair to throw in a couple of Community Hub updates to celebrate some players’ astounding creations, before our resident musical maestros stepped away from their instruments to thank you for listening to a few creations of their own. No word yet on whether either of them actually finished their bananas.

In case things started feeling a little too chummy after all those feelgood moments, we reintroduced a touch of friction with the naming and shaming of crewmates, and toyed with implementing a highly requested feature to keep people on their toes. And, leaving chaos in our wake, it was time to wrap things up with an utterly baffling addition to our TikTok channel and, finally – blessedly – a nice sit down. What a month.


So ended November! It’s a bit of a whirlwind rush from here on as we speed towards the end of the year, with just one more month left to go before we can say our goodbyes to 2023. For now, make sure you stop by and see us on TwiXer, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube or Twitch or the official Forums or Discord to stay in the loop as things happen. Otherwise, we hope you have an excellent festive season, and we’ll see you again in the new year!
[hr][/hr][h3]Previously in 2023:[/h3]
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: October 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: September 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: August 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: July 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: June 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: May 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: April 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: March 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: February 2023 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: January 2023

After two months of back-to-back content updates, Sea of Thieves completes the trio promised back at the start of Season Ten by introducing a brand new game mode for players to explore: Safer Seas! Allowing exploration and adventure on a single-crew server, either alone or with a crew of chosen friends, this update opens the door to an entirely new way of playing the game.

[h3]A Peaceful Voyage[/h3]
In Safer Seas, players can elect to sail solo or with a crew of up to three friends, with no other player-controlled crews present in the world. For fresh-faced pirates just starting their journey, this means a chance to learn the ropes without having to keep an eye out for hostile rivals, and an opportunity to understand the world and its key mechanics before diving into the traditional mayhem of the main Sea of Thieves game mode, now known as High Seas.

There’s no shortage of content in Safer Seas for players old or new to tackle. As in High Seas, a wide range of Voyages can be undertaken for the various Trading Companies, while World Events are frequently encountered, from fending off a Megalodon attack to striking down fearsome Ashen Lords. The ability to unlock the corresponding Commendations for these activities will also be present in Safer Seas.

For story-hungry pirates, Safer Seas still gives access to all the game’s narrative-driven Tall Tales, including the crossover experiences that make up 2023’s Sea of Thieves: The Legend of Monkey Island and 2021’s Pirates of the Caribbean-themed Sea of Thieves: A Pirate’s Life. In the absence of enemy crews, you’ll now be able to immerse yourself in all this lore at your leisure, without the risk of being interrupted by anyone who thinks you might have valuable loot tucked away.


[h3]Reduced Risk, Reduced Reward[/h3]
While Safer Seas presents players with a wealth of content to explore at their own pace, there are of course some aspects of the game incompatible with a strictly single-crew experience. As a result, Safer Seas has a slightly reduced range of activities in comparison to High Seas.

For instance, content built around player vs. player interactions has no place in Safer Seas by design, such as Faction battles using the Hourglass of Fate or the competitive Skull of Siren Song Voyage. Similarly, The Reaper’s Bones Trading Company will not be accessible there due to its focus on player combat.

There are also some limits placed on progression within Safer Seas to account for the reduced risk in the absence of other players. Gold and reputation rewards will be accrued at 30% of that awarded in High Seas, and Trading Company reputation levels are capped at 40. This means that players will not be able to obtain the coveted title of Pirate Legend without venturing onto High Seas and, correspondingly, Safer Seas isn’t the place to engage with the Pirate Legend-focused Trading Company, Athena’s Fortune.

These limitations have been put in place to maintain a balance between Safer and High Seas, and to encourage players to try out both modes to see which suits their play style and needs. Even with these in place, however, Safer Seas presents a world alive with opportunities, whether it’s diving into Sea of Thieves lore through the Tall Tales, spending an undisturbed evening working on your fishing skills, or getting to grips with the game’s combat mechanics by taking on veritable hordes of skeletons. After all, Safer Seas isn’t entirely without risk – with or without roving pirate crews, the Sea of Thieves is a perilous place!


[h3]Fashion for All[/h3]
One thing remaining consistent across Safer and High Seas is pirate style. The Outpost shops and Pirate Emporium are accessible in either mode, and Ancient Coin earnings won’t be subject to the 30% cap on gold and reputation. Seasonal Renown can also be earned at the same rate across both High Seas and Safer Seas, so your progress towards the active Season’s cosmetic and currency rewards (and the rewards themselves) will be consistent no matter how you choose to play.

If you’ve picked up the Season Ten Plunder Pass, you’ll still be able to work towards unlocking the Stormfish Chaser ship set and clothing alongside all the usual gold, Doubloons and Ancient Coins available through the 100 levels of Renown on offer during this Season.

Over in the Pirate Emporium, a range of time-limited seasonal goodies make a comeback this month, including the Festival of Giving weapons and pet outfits. The Bonechiller Costume is also back for the holidays, and this time it’s bringing with it an entire ship collection and bundle of weapons to fill out that frightfully festive look. Combined with the Ransacking Emote, you shouldn’t have any problem getting into the holiday spirit…

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[h3]A Jam-Packed Season[/h3]
Of course, Safer Seas is far from the only content to explore in Season Ten. December’s monthly update is the third to arrive this Season, following the introduction of Guilds in October and the Skull of Siren Song Voyage in November.

With Guilds, players can team up with fellow sailors beyond the usual limit of a four-person crew. By forming or joining a Guild, pirates can contribute to its shared Guild Reputation and unlock exclusive rewards for all Guild Members as they progress. And, for those of a less collaborative persuasion, the Skull of Siren Song Voyage sees the notorious Captain Briggsy summon pirates from across the waves into a competitive race to claim an ancient and powerful artefact.

All these new updates have been accompanied by a host of improvements and fixes to various areas of Sea of Thieves, to ensure that you’re able to have the experience you want out on the waves. With Safer Seas, that personalized experience is more accessible than ever, and we can’t wait to see you out there!

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[h3]Find Out More[/h3]
For more information on this Sea of Thieves 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!