It’s finally time, time for us to disembark from the old trusty; let our peg leg touch grass and share with you all our top beginner tips for surviving Skull and Bones.
Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate’s life for me
We pillage plunder, we rifle and loot
Drink up me hearties, yo ho
For those who don’t already know, Skull and Bones is Ubisoft’s long-awaited open-work RPG where players get to step into the shoes (or shoe) of a pirate captain and take to the seas.
We’re rascals and scoundrels, we’re villains and knaves
Drink up me hearties, yo ho
We’re devils and black sheep, we’re really bad eggs
Drink up me hearties, yo ho
Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate’s life for me
The game is filled with treasures and dangers, and whether you’re a captain without a crew or one with a full ship, this guide is for you.
We hope this helps as you ready your sails, and may the best pirate be you.
I’ll Never Spill The Doubloons About The Treasure!
Skull and Bones is a game filled to the veritable brim with resources, and more often than not, specific tools are required to collect everything.
One of the best tools you can get, though, is the Skyglass, which will allow you to inspect a target vessel and reveal information like the target’s faction, the type of ship, its armour, the loot it carries, and whether or not it’s part of a quest.
And as any good pirate knows, you could use all the help you can get. Trust us.
It’ll Be Nautical Miles And Miles Before A Pirate Decides To Return To The Shore
One of the first places you’ll get to in Skull and Bones, Sainte-Anne, acts as the pirate hub and haven of the game. From there, players will discover the rest of the game’s outposts and locations.
It’s a good idea always to disembark when you find new land and tag the location. Tagging a location will save it as a future fast travel point – of course, this costs silver, but it will save you from having to reach every point the old-fashioned way.
Retired Pirates Love Yoga Because Of All The Ex-sailing
Throughout Skull and Bones, you’ll come across bounty targets and privateers that tend to be far more challenging to sink than the rest of the ships littering your seas.
It’s a good idea to pay attention to the ship’s weak spots, especially when the targets are tricker. These weak spots will be marked with a red glow, and targeting them will deal critical damage.
Do enough damage, and the ship might even be vulnerable to boarding, earning you extra treasure for your troubles.
Seeing A Pirate Ship In Person Is Truly Oar-Inspiring
This tip seems obvious, but it’s always good to ensure you’re well stocked on Metal Salvage, which you can use for ammunition.
Basically, metal salvage is a flawed Material that is very common near shipwrecks and sites of battle, and what makes this special is that you can go after Cannonball Crates with them, which will provide you with 100 Cannonballs.
It is a lifesaver when your other ammo has run out.
The High Seas Are Where Me Heart-y Be
Much of the valuable information you need in the game will be delivered via conversation with your ship’s crew. Often, they’ll remark on outposts and settlements or even tell you when it’s time to upgrade your tools.
However, this dialogue can be easy to miss in the chaos of Skull and Bones, so we recommend going into the game settings and ensuring that ship subtitles are turned on so that you never miss a single line.
A Pirate Plunders The High Seas; A Pie-Rat Plunders The Pantry
Grabbing all the blueprints you can get your grubby little mits on is always a good idea. Blueprints are available for some silver from most merchants and vendors worldwide, and they will unlock weapons, armour, and ships.
The blueprint selection is unique from vendor to vendor, and each specific blueprint can only be found in one of two places, depending on the blueprint itself, and some can only be earned by completing contracts or looting ships.
It’s also worth selecting blueprints after you’ve unlocked them to more easily track the materials needed to craft it right from your map.
I’m A Pirate, Off To Sea! It’s A Plunderful Life For Me
The core system around which Skill and Bones is built is the Infamy system. Infamy lets players unlock rewards like weapons, ships and other treasures to aid them in their naval adventures.
To build up your Infamy levels as fast as you can, we recommend a healthy balance between Main Contracts via campaign progression and Side Contracts via the contract board.
While working your way through these, make sure you’re also hunting any wildlife you come across, plundering any settlements and sinking any ships because it will all count toward making you one of the most feared pirates to sail the seas.
We Set Sail At The Kraken Of Dawn
As a good adventurer or pirate, in this case, will know, it’s dangerous to go alone, which is why you should always bring a friend or two along for the journey.
Thankfully, Skull and Bones allows up to two friends to join you for a co-op adventure, which can help turn the tides (pun intended) on some of the game’s more difficult challenges.
If you don’t have crew members ready, everything is not lost. Players can select a settlement or quest at any point and then choose the Call Help option. This activates a distress beacon, inviting nearby pirates to lend you a hand or hook.
If you found this beginner’s guide to be helpful, stick around for our full Skull and Bones review that should be docking soon.
