Sea of Thieves News

The open ocean has always been a dangerous place to navigate thanks to the ever-present threat of sea monsters and skeleton ships, but things have gotten even more treacherous in recent days. This is thanks largely to the sudden arrival of six new Sea Forts – imposing bastions packed with Phantoms eager to take pot-shots at passing pirates.

The arrival of these ghostly garrisons was foreshadowed in the events of ‘Shrouded Islands’, Sea of Thieves’ first story-driven Adventure. Before we explore what these Sea Forts might mean for Flameheart’s future, it’s worth recalling how they came to be…

[h3]Give Us a Belle
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The sudden onset of an ominous fog across the Sea of Thieves was bound to draw comment sooner rather than later – particularly from visitors to Golden Sands Outpost, who learned that the once-tranquil trading point had been laid waste and its residents were nowhere to be seen.

This supernatural smog also drew the attention of a long-awaited arrival on the seas: Belle, known to many as a Legend of the Deep, arrived on the scene soon after. As someone with unfathomable knowledge of the Sea of the Damned, Belle is determined to prevent the likes of Captain Flameheart from using that ethereal realm for their own ends.

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[h3]Misty Misdeeds
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Pirates dispatched by Belle to investigate these shrouded islands found themselves at Shipwreck Bay, a landmark that’s gloomy enough at the best of times. Lanterns furnished with the Flame of Souls revealed moments from the past – more specifically, an occult ritual by masked Phantoms loyal to The Reaper’s Bones.

Leading these renegades was none other than the Servant of the Flame, confessing a familial tie to Flameheart (and putting an end to some long-standing arguments in the process). While they’ve always stood firmly against the established Trading Companies, the Reapers have now begun moving to more actively assist Flameheart in his plans for conquest. Like father, like son, it would seem.

[h3]Heart and Soul
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The purpose of the Reapers’ rituals became clear when crews ignited an oversized brazier at Shipwreck Bay, summoning forth a Soulflame Captain – a figure thought by most to be nothing more than a myth. Pirates were all too eager to take up arms against this new threat, which unfortunately proved to be rather foolhardy…

The Soulflame Captain was intended to be a sacrifice rather than a soldier; its destruction released energies that briefly bridged the divide between two worlds. Flameheart took full advantage of this event to bring forth his Sea Forts, created from the memories of those who dwell within the Sea of the Damned, and manifest them permanently in the land of the living.



[h3]I Fort the Lore
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With the Sea Forts in place and their soldiers pledging allegiance to Flameheart, the fog cloaking those afflicted islands has mostly vanished, although Golden Sands remains as stubbornly shrouded as ever. Unwilling to leave the Outpost’s denizens to an unknown fate, Belle has continued her search and has an idea of their location at last.

Pirates will soon have reasons other than riches to face the Phantom hordes, for it’s in the newly manifested Sea Forts that the hapless captives have been imprisoned. If they’re not saved from the intimidating Phantom Jailor and those he serves, Wonda and her neighbours are sure to face a sticky end before too long.

Pirate crews looking to enact a daring rescue (not to mention earn an exclusive Memento from this Adventure) should sharpen their swords and prepare themselves to lay siege in ‘Forts of the Forgotten’, running from March 24th to April 7th. After all, who knows what useful information Flameheart’s prisoners might have gathered during their time in captivity…?

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Previously
Adventures Ahead: ‘Shrouded Islands’

Season Six is here, and we hope you’re all enjoying taking on Sea Forts and uncovering the secrets stashed within! As is now the tradition around the launch of a new Seasonal release, we’re entering the diving bell and heading beneath the waves for a deeper dive into its headline features – and Sea Forts are the main attraction this time with their unique soundscapes, Phantom guards and exciting architecture for pirates to marvel at, when they aren’t busy stealing anything that isn’t nailed down.

Acting as your guides for this latest video sortie are an intrepid crew covering the disciplines of design, music and art, all eager to add detail to what you can expect when firing up this Season. Give it a watch!

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With the aim of Sea Forts being to add a new, on-demand experience that helps those seeking snappier Sea of Thieves activities, the goal was to fill these derelict fortifications with as much stuff as possible in order to make each visit compelling. Some bonus background insights? Let’s do it. Senior Designer George Orton puts it best:

“Pulled through from the Sea of the Damned, our new Sea Forts offered us a chance to freshen up the sandbox a bit. We were particularly excited to build these encounters with a shorter experience in mind. Creating a ‘snackable’ combat encounter that still rewards players with a healthy amount of loot makes these Sea Forts a natural first objective at the start of a longer session, or a truly tempting proposition when you’re sailing past on your way to another adventure.”

But how do you make these spaces interesting? Tons of interactables! From opening creaky cupboards to find loot or using the Fort’s lifts to transport treasure, there’s plenty to mess around with once you exorcise the Phantom inhabitants:

“Creating environments filled with interactivity was always at the heart of the design. We’re excited to see players truly embrace the raiding of these Forts by rummaging through cupboards, crates and chests as they search for the inhabitants’ well-hidden treasures! We made sure that each Fort has a wide spread of hidden stash locations, as well as making each Fort’s placement unique, so that every raid feels fresh and every storage space is filled with potential.”



Sea Forts also provide a new sonic space for pirates, with each Fort having its own soundscape for players to get lost in. With bugs buzzing, doors creaking and the ethereal sound of each Fort’s bell, they’re great playgrounds for experimenting with new sounds, as Senior Sound Designer Katie Tarrant attests:

“Season Six has been great fun to work on – I always love adding new areas to explore in Sea of Thieves and taking those from a silent space to an environment that’s brimming with new sounds to listen to. The Forts have a very different vibe to them when they’re riddled with Phantoms compared to when the Phantoms have been vanquished, and I’ve loved adding in plenty of little details so that every time you visit one of these Forts, you’ll notice something a bit different.

“I’m hoping that players will enjoy the Forts both as a replayable combat experience and as a new social space where they can spend time together with their crew. I’d love players to have a listen to the different ambiences and ear snacks throughout the Forts, and take a guess at the audio source we used for each one!”

And who could forget the new music? With these Sea Forts having their origins in the Spanish Navy, it was only natural that the soundtrack should have a distinctly Spanish flavour, with flamenco guitars and that bright trumpet sound. Talking to Robin Beanland, Music Director and composer of the Season Six music, we found out that it wasn’t actually a trumpet that was used…

“I really, really enjoyed writing the music for this update. Not just because it uses one of the best sounds in the world (a snare drum with the snare off) but I also got to have a bit of a rinse on my Flumpet… yes, you read that correctly, it’s actually a Flumpet – a hybrid of a flugelhorn and a trumpet. But seriously, it was really nice to be able to introduce some different flavour and instrumentation to the Sea of Thieves soundtrack, while keeping it bedded in the Sea of Thieves universe.”



With Phantoms staffing the six Sea Forts, there also needed to be some keen consideration to making these highly mobile enemies fun to fight in enclosed spaces. As George explains, it took some jiggerypokery to get the combat experience to a sweet spot that’s challenging but not overwhelming:

“Balancing our Phantom enemies was an interesting challenge for this new encounter. We always aimed for these to be ‘new player friendly’, which meant making some changes to their spectral behaviour and slightly reducing their health. This has had a wicked effect on the feel of combat as players are now able to crunch through individual Phantoms like popcorn, making each victory extremely satisfying.

“We also had to be very careful with introducing Phantom encounters in such a tight and claustrophobic environment. This required careful tweaks to their teleport behaviour to ensure the right balance between being an understandable and readable enemy, and the player not feeling overwhelmed by too many rapidly approaching angry ghosts.

“We learned a lot from making these changes, and will be looking to expand them to the Phantoms out there in the wider world in some form in the future!”

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Thanks to everyone for those additional insights! Season Six is out now, with an in-depth set of release notes and a heaping helping of new items in the Pirate Emporium – including a brand new Plunder Pass. If you want to know what other exciting additions are coming this Season, make sure you watch the Sea of Thieves social channels: that’s Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitch, TikTok and the official Forums and Discord server. See you out on the seas, pirates!

Happy anniversary, everyone! It’s been four eventful years since we first set sail on the ocean in search of gold and adventure, and the excitement continues apace. We’ve fought against terrors from the deep, sailed through volcanic waters, worked together to save the very pirate way of life and now in our fourth year, we’re embarking on bold new Adventures to broaden the narrative horizons of this sea we call our home.

But that’s enough schmaltz, it’s time to party! As is customary for a Sea of Thieves anniversary, we’ve lined up some special goodies with which to mark this temporal milestone, ranging from free goodies to exclusive discounts. So grab yourselves a grog cocktail, put on a party hat and let’s see what activities we’ve got lined up!



First up, anyone who logs into Sea of Thieves between Friday March 18th (10am UTC) and Monday March 21st (10am UTC) can grab the lustrous Golden Sailor Wheel as a free anniversary gift! Larinna and the Merchant Alliance have also been able to wrangle some limited edition stock, with the Golden Sailor Cannon Flare and commemorative Anniversary Firework Crate on sale in-game throughout this celebratory weekend.

As an extra anniversary treat, we’ll be holding a Gold & Glory Weekend over the same dates and times, ideal for those looking to double their gold and reputation and get a Renown boost while rattling through Season Six’s 100 levels of progression.



Meanwhile, the Pirate Emporium is also hosting a sea of discounts between March 18th and 21st. The focus of this sale is squarely on ranges celebrating our Sea of Thieves: A Pirate’s Life crossover with Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean, so enjoy saving Ancient Coins on everything from the Captain Jack Sparrow and Captain Barbossa Costumes to themed ship sets, emotes and pets!

If you’re in the market for some physical swag to mark this anniversary, the Rare Store is offering a 20% discount on certain Sea of Thieves items over the weekend, as well as releasing a line of limited edition Sea of Thieves shoes! We have it on good authority that they make great dancing shoes for when you’re tackling a merry jig.

Those are all our exciting plans for the weekend ahead – take a look at some of them in action in the very latest episode of Sea of Thieves News, and we hope you’ll join in the anniversary celebrations out on the seas. Here’s to many more!

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As the birds begin chirping and the buds start blooming, a new Season springs into life for Sea of Thieves! Along with an offering of brand new Seasonal rewards, Season Six is all about expanding Sea of Thieves’ narrative through time-limited Adventures, while still giving you opportunities to forge your own epic tales of derring-do – with Sea Forts and the new Pirate Legend-exclusive Voyage, Legend of the Veil. If you can’t wait to write the next chapter in your pirate’s memoir of high-seas adventure, Season Six is now available as a free update for all players on Steam.

Like our past Seasons, Season Six and its 100 levels of rewards are free to all Sea of Thieves players, with cosmetics and other goodies earnable as you build Renown by going about your pirate business. If you want to spice up your Seasonal climb to Level 100 with more premium items not yet available anywhere else, you can purchase the optional Season Six Plunder Pass! Find out more in our Seasons Explained and Plunder Pass Explained articles.

[h3]Smash and Grab
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Brought forth from the Sea of the Damned by the machinations of Captain Flameheart, six Phantom-filled Sea Forts have now appeared around the Sea of Thieves for brave pirates to plunder. With a focus on combat and loot to be liberated, Sea Forts provide a satisfying on-demand experience for battle-hungry sailors or those who may not have time for a longer Voyage. Enter a Fort, cut down its spectral defenders, scour every nook and cranny for hidden riches, and defeat the Sea Fort Captain to gain the key to the Treasury.



Once a Sea Fort is cleared, you can make the most of its home comforts – including the well-stocked Homestead room with chairs and a blazing fire to put your feet up and share a well-earned grog with your crew. Just be prepared to defend your little sanctuary from other crews who might want it for themselves!

[h3]Piercing the Veil
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Narrative-driven Adventures will continue throughout Season Six and beyond, keeping the Sea of Thieves world and lore in constant motion. Adventure 2, ‘Forts of the Forgotten’, will soon pick up the thread from the recently concluded ‘Shrouded Islands’. But another story-centric feature is also set to make its mark later in Season Six. Legend of the Veil, a new Voyage exclusive to Pirate Legends, will send you out hunting for lost Veil Stones across dramatic new locations and facing an ever-changing series of challenges. From haunted islands and shipwreck graveyards to a climactic naval battle against a Ghost Garrison, this is a Voyage you don’t want to miss!



To complement this Legendary content, the maximum rank achievable with the Athena’s Fortune Trading Company will be raised from 20 to 30. With a host of new cosmetics, Commendations and achievements on offer, get ready to continue your climb to the top in Season Six!

[h3]Pirate Emporium Plunder
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For pirates keen to boost their Seasonal reward pool, the Season Six Plunder Pass is headlined by the complete set of items making up the brand new Spring Blossom ship set, alongside the evolving Forest’s Blessing costume which transforms as you climb the Season’s 100 levels. As always, Plunder Pass items are temporary exclusives before heading to the Pirate Emporium sometime in the future.

Other standout selections new to the Pirate Emporium in March are the loud and proud Islehopper Outlaw ship set with matching costume, weapons and even a banjo – perfect for the wild-hearted hellraisers, rabble-rousers and ruffians of the seas. Or if you can’t help striking a pose at a moment’s notice, style it out with the Bunch of Posers Emote Bundle. While you’re browsing the Emporium’s new wares, remember to pick up this month’s free emote too!



[h3]Find Out More
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For more information on the Sea of Thieves Season Six update, including full release notes, visit the Sea of Thieves website. The update is available for free to all Sea of Thieves players who have bought the game 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 and pick up some 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 at www.xbox.com/seaofthieves, 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!

Is it March already? Time flies when you’re having fun, they say, and we did our best to whip up plenty of that for the Sea of Thieves faithful in February. Amongst other things we paved the way for all our pirates to explore ‘Shrouded Islands’, held a 24-hour charity stream as part of GameBlast ’22 and tackled some hard topics in the latest episode of the SoT Podcast. Yes, we did talk about hit reg – cue the gasps. So if you’re sitting comfortably, we shall begin with our rip-roaring retrospective of February’s fun!

[h3]Content Update
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Obviously, the month’s main content update was designed to turn on the ethereal fog machine, put Flameheart back in his box, ring Belle’s bell and open up our first Adventure – ‘Shrouded Islands’. We’ve had a debrief with the Phantoms after the Adventure, and they’ve promised to calm it down a bit on the snoop shouting. A new Adventures page on the SoT site ushered in this latest era, as did our debut Adventures Ahead primer article written to set the scene. If you’re awaiting the next chapter in the unfolding story of Golden Sands Outpost, be sure to come back for ‘Forts of the Forgotten’ later in March!

Along with the thrill of Adventure, we had our usual freshening up of monthly stock in the Pirate Emporium – with the wider availability of the Jack O’ Looter cosmetics from the Season Four Plunder Pass, some truly Cutthroat weapons and outlandish Props Master emotes, among other things. As always, pirates with an eye for detail should head on over to the release notes for the blow-by-blow breakdown of February’s update, Adventure and everything else.

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[h3]News and Features
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While a cohort of pirate journalists were busy writing salacious stories about the ghostly haze covering islands, our own intrepid newshounds were out on the prowl for the biggest scoops this side of the Devil’s Shroud.

February update, new episode of Sea of Thieves News and a juicy podcast all in the space of a few days? Got it covered. More entries in our programme of enlightening Spotlights? Yep, in February it was the turn of Boatswain and Voyage-avoider DrBullhammer along with Aussie plunderer Micromads. Work also continued apace for our artisan headwear makers as eight more Hats of Unfeasibly Glorious Fame flew out of the doors and onto the heads of deserving pirates. We’ll have to branch out further in more haberdashery – we’d love a new set of gloves.

As we celebrated the Lunar New Year, pirates looking to show off their stripes (don’t groan, it’s a classic) could pick up special Year of the Tiger merch over on the Rare Store. We also announced the new Legendary Fortune weapons on the way in Season Six, filling out the suite of flashy Pirate Legend cosmetics following the closure of The Arena.

With Season Five Community Day firmly in the rear-view mirror and a certain jam-adjacent pirate back in his jar, we took the time to pore over all the community’s amazing creations on the day in a dedicated lookback article. There was no missing the chance to be all lovey-dovey on Valentine’s Day either, with a special round-up of romantic activities. The main draw this year was, of course, our rousing rendition of the crooner’s classic ‘It Had to Be You’, sung valiantly by our Senior Audio Director. Some people might prefer chocolates as a gift, but we politely beg to differ.

If you’re feeling up for a song yourself, why not join in with our segue anthem? All together now as we effortlessly transition to…



[h3]Videos and Streams
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VIIIIIDEOS AND STREEEEEEAMS. You in the back row, a little flat on that last note – practise for next month. The pirate video shop was mighty busy in February, as we had podcasts, reveal trailers and newsreels in our ‘Coming Attractions’ section. For starters, following on from the cinematic trailer last month came a gameplay trailer for ‘Shrouded Islands’, offering a quick taste of the adventures you’d be having on this… Adventure.

After a brand new episode of SoT News which highlighted some of February’s main beats, we donned our flame-resistant suits and dived straight into the fires of controversy in the newest edition of the SoT Podcast. Hit reg, spawn camping, weapon balance – if someone’s written a long forum thread about it, we did our best to tackle it in this no-holds-barred discussion moderated by our very own Head of Community, Christina. One note for the next podcast – work on the winking.

If live video content is more your bag, February brought plenty of streaming action with three new episodes of The Gauntlet going live on SoT TV. Rather than Sea of Thieves Partners filling the hero role this time, it was the turn of actual Rare staff members to triumph over devious rivals and riddles. You bet we made the riddles extra tough, just to see if they really knew their stuff.

We also joined in on the GameBlast action at the end of the month, hosting a 24-hour charity livestream to help raise money for SpecialEffect. With a crew of Rare staff and SoT Partners giving it their best, we’re happy to say almost £10,000 was raised – thanks to all you generous souls! If you were tuning in to Twitch throughout February, you may also have also picked up more Twilight Hunter gear in our ongoing Twitch Drops campaign. Yes, there was a little snafu with the shirt, but the pirate costumier who caused the mix-up is now wearing nothing but a barrel as punishment for their crimes.



[h3]Social Channels
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While parts of the Sea of Thieves were gripped in a ghostly haze, our social channels remained a shining beacon of quality content, freebies and maybe just one or two memes. One long-awaited nugget was that if you’re active in a local Sea of Thieves fan community, you might soon have a chance to earn the new Affiliate Alliance sails. On Valentine’s Day, we offered specially made artwork and a repurposed Quest Board for the pinning of pirate love notes. We also celebrated a newfound calm after the disappearance of a certain flaming head, taught everyone the difference between Belle, Bel and a bell, berated some rats, spared a thought for a poor soul left behind and revealed that the Soulflame Captain is actually a massive Sea of Thieves fan.

A steady port in any weather, our trio of regular hashtags kept up the interesting factoids, beautiful scenery and loot showcases to make you green with envy. #TriviaTuesday was naturally focused on facts surrounding ‘Shrouded Islands’, with info on Belle’s previous showings, Flameheart’s fleet and the Soulflame Captain, while #SoTGear invited admiration of items like the Legendary Treasure Seeker Costume and Jacket of the Damned.

As if we were advertising pirate pleasure cruises, February’s #SoTShot contest encouraged players to go see the sights of the Sea of Thieves, with views that would get anyone down to the travel agents post haste. But we’re swapping sun-drenched views for gloomy vistas in March’s competition, putting out a call for pictures of the best Misty Moments. Our #SundayVibes tag would be a good stop for inspiration, with February’s selections touring the fog-blanketed Golden Sands Outpost, Devil’s Ridge and Shipwreck Bay.



The temporal train is picking up speed now as we start to barrel through 2022! It’s going to be non-stop for the remainder of the year, so follow our social channels to avoid missing any precious crumbs of info. If you need reminding, you can find Sea of Thieves on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitch, TikTok and the official Forums and Discord server. As we’ll be full of the joys of spring next month, you’ll have to find the next round-up by breaking open the various Easter eggs we’ve hidden around your house. Either that or we’ll hire a giant talking rabbit to read it to you.

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[h3]Previously in 2022:
[/h3]Sea of Thieves Round-Up: January 2022