Sea of Thieves News

We can scarcely believe that we’re already into the warm tides of June, but even as we turn our attention to the upcoming delights of the month ahead, we still have one more task to complete before we fully say farewell to May: the regular round-up. So please take a moment to join us in celebrating everything that happened last month in the world of Sea of Thieves…

[h3]Content Update[/h3]
After the major updates in April, it was a relatively quiet monthly update this time around. Following a small hotfix at the beginning of the month, May’s main update introduced numerous tweaks and improvements to recently implemented Season 12 features, as well as a range of new stock for Outpost and Emporium stores. As always, it’s all in the release notes for exploration!

Not that it stayed quiet for long, of course; halfway through May, Gilded Voyages made their triumphant return in a special week-long Event. Pirates flocked to The Ancient Isles in search of rich rewards, not least of which was the military-minded Seamark Tribute Tattoo awaiting anyone who got to the end of one of these glittering Voyages.

Pirates eager for even greater rewards didn’t have long to wait for another treat either, with a Gold & Glory Weekend right around the corner. Who knew that a sea full of thieves could be so generous?

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[h3]News and Features[/h3]
Outside of gameplay, May saw the much-anticipated arrival of Sea of Thieves: The Cookbook! Packed with culinary delights – even by our punishingly high standards – these recipes demand pride of place on any kitchen bookshelf. Not convinced? Maybe Daryl’s own cooking adventures will be enough to sway your opinion…

Elsewhere, it was time for another round of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Perks, this time offering subscribed players a chance to get their hands on the Ebon Flintlock Pistol, Obsidian Flag and an Onyx Tankard that’s perfect for the Golden Smoothie we’d just learned how to make.

And as always, we couldn’t let a full month go by without taking some time to celebrate the wonderful members of our community, and this time around that meant a Community Spotlight catching up with KeepinitTwisted! From a careful selection of panda-based ship names to the admirable and exhausting climbing of fifty-three floors to raise money for charity, the interview is a whirlwind adventure worth checking out.


[h3]Videos and Streams[/h3]
Since we, for once, weren’t poised to deliver a series of content trailers, May seemed like the perfect opportunity for the Video team to try out something different. Enter our Sea of Thieves Explained video series, answering new players’ vital questions such as what is Sea of Thieves, how is Sea of Thieves and even why is Sea of Thieves? Even the most weathered of sea dogs might find a few new tips and tricks tucked away in these whistle-stop tours of the pirate life, so they’re definitely worth a look no matter your experience level.

One tradition we weren’t about to weasel out of though was Sea of Thieves News, which arrived mid-month to bring everyone up to speed on recent and upcoming changes to the game and various surrounding activities. Please be sure to enjoy the implementation of some top-of-the-range scarf animation while you watch.

Not to be outdone, the team over in Audio wanted to share some more of their own creations and released the ‘Warriors of the Waves’ track for all you music lovers. Buckle up, buccaneers, we’ve got battles to fight.

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[h3]Social Channels[/h3]
Back at the beginning of May, we were still delighting over the recent addition of owls and desperately wanted to hear what everyone had called their new feathered friends. Of course, owls weren’t the only thing added with Season 12 and we continued to explore the new features throughout May, such as experimenting with running speeds and finding out where all these windy horns keep coming from.

As always, there were several rounds of prizes to be dished out. Over in the world of screenshots, we took some time to reflect on the beauty of nature with a Stunning Sunsets round of #SoTShot. Fans of the colour orange were having a particularly excellent time. We were enjoying everyone’s pictures so much, in fact, that we threw a new round of Community Hub picks into the mix as well.

The community’s collective creativity was as inspiring as ever, and our social team decided to carry it on with a little creativity of their own – with… mixed results. Recognising that our artistic powers were simply too strong, we moved along to admiring the knife skills of dextrous pirates and musing on avian crimes. In between that and peering into the near future, we didn’t even have time for a quick nap. Maybe if our crew would give us a hand it wouldn’t be so bad…


And that was May! A mid-Season month so a little quieter than what went before, but still plenty to be getting on with, wouldn’t you agree? Let us know! You can, as ever, find us in all of the usual social places: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Twitch, or via the official Forums and Discord. Otherwise, it’s time we were getting back to work. After all, we’ve got places to be! No time to hang around…
[hr][/hr][h3]Previously in 2024: [/h3]
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: April 2024 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: March 2024 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: February 2024 Sea of Thieves Round-Up: January 2024

It’s been just over a month since Sea of Thieves launched globally on PlayStation®5 – and wow, what a rollercoaster it’s been. We’ve been inspired, entertained and truly heartwarmed by the way our community has embraced the new, blue pirates who’ve set sail on our waters of late. Thank you to everyone who’s been a part of Sea of Thieves’ journey since Season 12 kicked off – it’s been such a special time here in the studio, and we can’t wait to continue this wild ride with such a spirited and united community on board.

[h3]A New Dawn[/h3]
And unite, you all did – we can’t quite believe how many of you have come together to indulge in the camaraderie of crossplay. Since we launched on PS5®, a whopping 1,797,963 crossplay crew sessions have taken place, adding up to an outrageous amount of seafaring shenanigans – with 7,283,307 hours of playtime covered in these sessions. That’s the equivalent of 831 years – you could only just finish all of Grey’s Anatomy in that time!


If you like numbers, don’t worry, we have more for you: an incredible 49.8% of all PlayStation 5 pirates have played with someone on a different platform, with so many old salts being wonderful enough to show their new pals the ropes. It’s been a beautiful thing to watch old players and new come together like this. And if you want stats on how many of our lovely new players have been sunk? We couldn’t possibly comment, but if there were any, then we’re sure they’ve learned their lesson.

We have no doubt that with the expertise of our storied and seasoned sailors, many of our brand new swabbies will make it to Pirate Legend in no time. We know that 39,431 PlayStation-based corsairs have already hit Legend status, and we’re looking forward to seeing many more join the fabled ranks of Athena’s Fortune. Of course, you know what’d help everyone grasp their goals a little more quickly, right? A big ol’ Community Weekend, with absolute stonks on offer? Well, on that note, have we got news for you. Drum roll please!

[h3]Season 12 Community Weekend[/h3]
For those of you new here, Community Weekend is something we take super-seriously on Sea of Thieves. It’s a once-a-Season extravaganza of all things community, where we take a full 48 hours to reward and celebrate you all for being the kindest, quirkiest set of pirates to sail the gaming seas. We do this with generous multipliers, a smorgasbord of freebies, time-limited Pop-Up Plunder and tons more – all of which you can expect between 11am UTC on Saturday, June 15th and 11am UTC on Monday, June 17th.

So without any further ado, let’s get into exactly what you can expect during this 48-hour frenzy of fun…


[h3]Full Stream Ahead[/h3]
To raise the Community Emissary Grade, players will once again be tasked with tuning in to Twitch to level up the generosity of our active multiplier, with the total watch time powering Grade progress. It’s simple: all you need to do to help raise the Emissary Grade – and thus increase in-game rewards – is watch any of your favourite content creators within the Sea of Thieves category between 11am UTC on Saturday, June 15th and 11am UTC on Monday, June 17th. We’ll also be hosting a very special stream on our own Sea of Thieves Twitch channel – but more on that soon…

Every time the Community Emissary Grade levels up, so does the boost to gold, reputation, Seasonal Renown, Allegiance and Guild Reputation for everyone – with the top Grade offering two-and-a-half times the rewards for your work. These multipliers affect High Seas sailors only, so make sure you plan accordingly (and keep an eye on the horizon during your Community Weekend sessions for fellow pirates looking to steal your fortune).

Of course, we also have a range of Twitch Drops for folks tuning in, with the Stormy Sea Dog Concertina, Eastern Winds Sapphire Silken Gloves, Sage Sea Dog Bucket and Eastern Winds Sapphire Padded Belt all on offer to those who spend a chunk of time watching Sea of Thieves creators over the weekend. The special Drop that will be unlocked after the magic goal of 100,000 Voyages dived to and completed will be the Obsidian Captain’s Bed – another brand new Obsidian item debuting with this special Event.


More goodies await you when you play for the first time during Community Weekend: during the Event period, pirates logging in to Sea of Thieves will swipe a blue-and-green Community Weekend Flag (matching the Picture Walls present at every Outpost!) and the impossibly cute Performing Pup Emote. We can heartily recommend pairing your brand new flag with your New Dawn Sails – a commemorative set of sails available to all who play during Season 12, with a very complementary colour palette.

[h3]Dive Right In[/h3]
We’re also bringing a new dynamic to Community Weekend, letting newer players taste the freedom of diving to more World Events! While many of these are usually locked behind Trading Company progression, for this window only we’re letting all players, of any standing, dive to Skeleton Forts for all core Trading Companies. And even better: during the course of the weekend, players will be able to undertake these as many times as they want. For Pirate Legends of any level, Skeleton Forts for Athena’s Fortune will be unlocked and repeatable too. Result.


Everyone regardless of Pirate Legend status will also be given the option to undertake a single Legend of the Veil Voyage, so newer players can get a taste of the daring and high-value Voyages that await those who cross the threshold (legitimately) into the Pirate Legend Hideout. So, not only is there lots more gold on offer this weekend, there are also a lot more ways to go about making it!

[h3]Pop-Up Plunder Powers On[/h3]
Our time-limited, social media-based loot roulette shenanigans are back for Season 12 Community Weekend! Stay tuned to our social channels for clues on where we’ve tucked away some tantalising treasures on every single High Seas server. Each dig spot will be live for one hour only, so you’ll be racing against time and other crews to make sure you’re first to the loot location.

Good luck, pirates – may your compasses point true and your spades strike our stashes swiftly.

[h3]Tell It to My Hat[/h3]
As is customary with Community Weekend, we love taking the time to bestow both love and rewards upon the unsung heroes and MVPs of our community. The way we do this is to honour a selection of fine folks with the Hat of Unfeasibly Glorious Fame – a rare, funny hat worn by the cream of our pirate crop.

Whether you’ve performed an astonishing feat on the seas and would like us to tip the Hat in your direction, or you’d like to shout out a crewmate or friend who embodies the Be More Pirate mantra for less specific but no less worthy reasons, we’ll take nominations all the way up to, and during, the weekend. So, if there’s something or someone you’d like to draw our attention to, tell us about it on Sea of Thieves social channels such as Twitter/X, Facebook and Instagram (the more info the better) with the #BeMorePirate tag. We’ll be watching!

[h3]A Multi-Platform Party[/h3]
We’re so excited to be throwing this Event for new players and old, whatever their choice of platform. Our PlayStation pirates are yet to experience the always-welcoming, sometimes-chaotic wholesome good vibes that come with our Community Weekends, and we hope every single sailor is anticipating what an adventure this first true multi-platform Event will prove to be. It’s set to be a very special event – one where you can reconnect with old friends, make new ones and then maybe sink them if you’re feeling spicy.

Either way, we hope to see you all on the seas – and if you do, please be kind to us. We’re friendly!