Sea of Thieves: Sailing guide Sea Of Thieves guide, walkthrough
Last update: 13 July 2020
From this chapter of the Sea of Thieves guide, the player will learn what steps to take in order to leave the port, how to steer the ship while sailing, and how to repair holes in the hull of the ship and prevent it from sinking.
During gameplay, you will spend the vast majority of your time at sea carrying out various tasks, searching for additional treasures, and participating in sea battles against skeleton ships or other players. As a result, it is important to know how to sail properly, how to effectively stop a ship and how to repair the hull when the ship is damaged.
- How to sail in Sea of Thieves
- How do I stop a ship in Sea of Thieves?
- How do I get back on the ship if I fall overboard?
- Repairing a ship in Sea of Thieves
How to sail in Sea of Thieves
In Sea of Thieves standing on a ship is not equivalent to sailing. Before embarking on an adventure, you must first do a few routine activities, without which you cannot set sail from a port or island. To go to sea in the Sea of Thieves you need to do the following actions:
- Raise the anchor - to do so, press the action button (default: the F key, then the key responsible for the character's movement forward or backward) on the four-arm crank near the steering wheel and have your character push it until a golden ring appears and the mechanism locks in place. On the galleon this activity is noticeably slower when you do it by yourself, so it is worth to call another player for help;
- Raise the sails - you'll find metal cleats on the sides with the set sails height option. How much you raise the sails (F key and then arrow up/down) will affect the speed of the ship. Half-raised sails can be used, for example, when anchoring. In the galleon you have to repeat the operation for each mast;
- Setting the sails accordingly with the wind - this is not mandatory, but it will make the best use of the vessel and save some time during the journey. Behind the sailing cleat you'll see a small reel with the set sails angle option. Press right/left arrows to observe when the sails catch the wind. Sometimes, however, the weather will be too "nice" to sail or you will be sailing upwind and maneuvering at an angle will do nothing. In the galleon you have to repeat the operation for each mast;
- Stand by the steering wheel and watch the ship's direction by observing the compass. In Sea of Thieves you won't find a helpful HUD on your screen. The only facilitation is the position of your ship on a large map in the cabin. You must remember in which direction (north, east, etc.) lays your destination and keep the correct course by looking at the compass. The golden rings on one of the wheel handles indicate that the rudder is in the straight-ahead position.
If you are sailing alone, you need to control the position of your vessel and the distance from your destination by yourself. But you don't have to constantly run down. Near the rudder, just behind the crank of the anchor you will find a gap to watch the map. Once you have set the right zoom level and mark your destination, you can quickly assess your course. In the case of crews, one person may inform the helmsman of any necessary amendments to the course. The flag above the stork shows the current direction of the wind.
How do I stop a ship in Sea of Thieves?
To stop a ship in the Sea of Thieves, simply drop the anchor by clicking the action button (default: LPM) at the anchor wheel (Lower Anchor). The ship will stop even when under full sails. Remember, however, that ships cannot hit the shoreline because they will reach the ground or break up against rocks. In the bases and some islands you can try to stop at the piers, somewhere else you have to stop at a certain distance from the shore.
Please note that a large vessel will not turn immediately after the rudder is turned and will not stop immediately after the anchor is dropped. All this must be done in advance. At first, it is worth to stop a bit further rather than risking damage to the ship. If you don't want to go so far to the island, you can always shoot yourself from the cannon, which enables you to travel the long distance in no time without much damage!
How do I get back on the ship if I fall overboard?
While sailing in Sea of Thieves, your character may find himself overboard - whether to hunt down a drifting treasure, take out an opponent who wants to get on your ship or fire a cannon for reconnaissance purposes. If your ship has sailed into the sea without you, you can quickly return to it!
When your ship is within a certain distance of you, a mermaid will appear in the sea to offer to help you return to the ship. Just swim to her and press the action button, and after a short while your character will be back on board!
You can also use this trick as you float past small islets with supply barrels on them. Adjust the direction of the sailing accordingly, then jump ashore or fire yourself from a cannon. Collect the items you need, then enter the water, swim to the mermaid and teleport back to your ship.
Repairing a ship in Sea of Thieves
There may appear holes in the ship's hull through which water will pour in. Damage can result from enemy fire, a raging storm, a cursed chest on board, or an unfortunate mooring incident. To repair a leak (which may appear at the bottom of the hold or at deck level), you need to activate the planks (default: Q) and press the Item Use button (LPM) on the hole. If you don't have the planks in your equipment, you need to take them from one of the barrels in the hold. For long, multi-stage voyages, be sure to replenish your plank supply from time to time. You will find them in barrels scattered all over the islands.
The last step is to drain water from the hold. For this purpose, select the bucket from the item menu (Q), use the item key (LPM) to collect water and then pour it out of the window or overboard, repeating the operation until the hold is dry. Failure to notice leaks or delay in repair will eventually lead to the ship sinking.
Note: if you pour the water elsewhere on board rather than overboard, you will not dispose of it.
This small trick will help you when having to repair or perform any action that requires you to hold the action button down. Enter Accessibility Settings and change "Reduce hold to interact" and "Reduce hold to use item" to "on" - then just use the button once without constantly holding it and wait for the action to be done.