Best Weapons In Sea Of Thieves

May 6, 2024

Highlights

Sea of Thieves has a variety of weapons available to new players, each with unique advantages and disadvantages.
Players need to choose a playstyle or weapon combination that suits their preferences and gameplay style.
With the introduction of new weapons in Season 12, players have more options to explore and find the best weapons for their adventures.

Sea of Thieves has a unique combat system in that it seems quite basic, but there are a lot of layers to the weapons in the game. Players are limited to carrying just two weapons at any one time and, usually, one of those slots will be taken by the humble cutlass.

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Unlike some progression-based games, all the weapons are available to new players as soon as they start the game. The only real problem for each player is choosing a playstyle or finding the right weapon combination. Some combinations are good for specific Sea of Thieves adventures, while others are more well-rounded. There are pros and cons to each weapon though.

Updated May 6th, 2024, by Gemma Johnson: Sea of Thieves gives players an arsenal of weapons and tools for their pirate adventures, from guns to throwables, and beyond. Sea of Thieves Season 12 introduces players to more exciting weapons, including throwing knives, a double-barrel pistol, tools like the Horn of Fair Winds to blow enemies off ships, and more. With so many new weapons, some players might be eager to know which are the best weapons in Sea of Thieves, especially given the most recent additions. Of course, every weapon comes with strengths and weaknesses, and no doubt many players have their preferred tactics, like double or perhaps even triple gunning. However, some weapons are more effective than others. There are also other Sea of Thieves weapons to look forward to, with the Harpoon gun on the horizon. This List has been updated to feature the weapons released in Sea of Thieves newest update, to showcase where they rank among the best weapons in the game.

12 Blunderbomb

Knock Back Players And Ships

Advantages	Disadvantages
Causes AOE damage to players or other enemies via a knock-back effect. Throwable and shootable from cannons. Small supply obtainable from player ship cannonball barrel or randomly in barrels in the world.	Players can only carry a limited amount. Doesn’t damage ships.

Blunderbombs are a type of throwable Sea of Thieves weapon that explodes shrapnel upon impact, causing damage to players within a given AOE, albeit rather minimal as a weapon that focuses more on knock-back, such as knocking a player off a ship. They can be shot out of cannons as well as thrown, but players can only carry a limited supply of up to five at any one time, although players could buy or obtain more in the world.

The main disadvantage of Blunderbombs is they only damage players, not ships, but could deploy some knock-back effects if deployed strategically.

11 Trident Of Dark Tides

Powerful But Slow

Advantages	Disadvantages
Inflicts variable damage, including powerful high damage from large bubble shots capable of one-shotting gold skeletons. Ideal for shooting from a distance and taking out groups.	Can be slow to charge. It only has 30 shots, so not unlimited. Only discoverable randomly in the world.

While not necessarily a fan-favorite, the Trident of Dark Tides offers some of the most varied shots when it comes to Sea of Thieves‘ best weapons. It fires small, medium, and large charged bubbles that damage and knock back enemies. The longer a player charges the weapon, the bigger the bubble will become. On one hand, it works well as a powerful, long-range weapon that also does splash damage, making it great for fighting multiple enemies.

On the flip side, it’s weaker in close combat owning to its slow charge-up. Tridents also only contain 30 shots and will disappear once used. Players will also have to search the open game world for them as loot.

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10 Firebomb

Set Ships And Enemies Ablaze

Advantages	Disadvantages
Cause damage over time to players and ships. Can be thrown or shot out of cannons. Fire can cause a big distraction. Small supply obtainable from player ship cannonball barrel or randomly in barrels in the world.	Players can only carry a limited supply. Doesn’t inflict high damage immediately and brings a risk of catching fire if not thrown far enough.

Firebombs can be thrown or shot out of cannon to cause fiery chaos and a big distraction, especially when setting fire to other players’ ships. While they don’t inflict high levels of damage immediately, they can cause damage over time until the flames are put out with water or go out.

Although players can only carry a maximum of up to five Firebombs at a time, they can be handy to give players the edge, especially for solo Sea of Thieves players who might struggle to master other weapons.

9 Ashen Winds Skull

Inflict Flamethrower Damage For A Price

Advantages	Disadvantages
Flame-thrower ability is great for setting fire to players and ships like a glorified Firebomb. Can be sold as a way to make money, albeit considerably less than the Skull of Siren Song. Provides a boost to reputation.	Limited supply, decreasing in value quickly with use. Requires defeating an Ashen Lord, which can be time-consuming. Causes minimal damage beyond D.O.T. Doesn’t work underwater (as is perhaps expected).

There is little to rival the panic that players can cause with a burning Ashen Winds Skull that carries the flaming power of an Ashen Lord when looted from its corpse. While it’s powerful in setting fire to players and ships during naval combat, it doesn’t cause that much damage immediately as another damage-over-time weapon.

However, players can sell Ashen Skulls for a considerable amount as another way to make money in Sea of Thieves, plus gain reputation boosts with various emissaries. Yet, the more used the skull is, the less it is worth.

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8 Skull Of Siren Song

A Weapon And A High-Value Treasure Item

Advantages	Disadvantages
Functions as both a weapon and a treasure, sellable for 50,000 gold once handed in to Captain Briggsy. Deploys soundwave damage to enemies and players. Unlike the Ashen Winds Skull, using it as a weapon does not diminish its value.	Takes time to kill enemies, weakening them over a short period, so it’s not instantaneously powerful. Can be challenging to obtain, requiring the chest and key, plus often beating other players to it. Can also only be sold to Briggsy. Obtaining it causes player ships to slow down when on board and a beacon to appear, making them vulnerable.

Although Season 11’s Skull of Siren Song is multi-functional, in many ways, it is more valuable as a treasure than as a weapon. While it looks extremely cool, it’s not a high-damage weapon, and doesn’t inflict as much damage as some players might expect. However, it does have some advantages over the Ashen Winds Skull, given that using it as a weapon doesn’t decrease its value in any way. Players can still sell it for a whopping 50,000, as potentially one of the best ways to make money in Sea of Thieves.

However, it can be time-consuming and challenging to acquire, especially when fighting or racing against other players for it. That said, it is possible to obtain the Skull of Siren Song without any opposition at all, so it’s worth a try, provided players are willing to become a potential target on the map in doing so.

7 Bone Caller

Summon Skeleton Friends To Turn The Tide Of Battle

Advantages	Disadvantages
Great for solo players to even the odds. Summoned skeletons last until killed. A great distraction to use when boarding other players’ ships.	When used against skeletons, it’s sometimes easy to lose track of which ones are enemies, and throwing more than one de-spawns the first set. There’s no control over how effective they are, and they are usually found randomly in some barrels in the world, such as from shipwrecks.

The Bone Caller is, in many ways, one of the best weapons in Sea of Thieves, at least in the throwables category. When playing solo in Sea of Thieves, it’s a fantastic way to even the odds in combat when fighting groups of enemies. When thrown, it summons a group of skeletons to fight on players’ behalf until they are destroyed, giving players their own personal skeleton army. Throwing the Bone Caller onto PVP is a fantastic distraction technique, potentially giving players time to quickly drop a ship’s anchor.

However, as it stands, there is no way to strengthen Bone Caller skeletons, so they don’t necessarily last that long. Although they have hilarious randomized name markers, it can sometimes also feel tricky to spot who is an enemy and who isn’t in skeleton battles amid the battle chaos, and throwing a second Bone Caller will just despawn the first one’s skeletons, rather than increasing their numbers.

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6 Double Barrel Pistol

Good When Up Close And Personal, But Not For Much Else

Advantages	Disadvantages
Gives players the option to fire up to two shots with an extra bullet, enabling tactical options like triple gunning if players equip another gun too. Players can also hold fire to shoot both bullets in a high-powered single shot. Reasonably fast single-fire shots are best fired at close range, and have the possibility to reload just one bullet. Accessible from the armory.	Weak and not very accurate when shooting from mid- to long-range. Slow to reload two bullets (three seconds).

Sea of Thieves‘ Double Barrel Pistol is essentially a cross between the Flintlock and Blunderbuss. It fires relatively quick, high-powered shots at close range without the Blunderbuss’ often less accurate spray. It is also a versatile weapon, as it gives players the choice of whether to fire a single or double shot, or even team it with another gun for triple-gunning tactics. However, it’s not very effective at mid-to-long range, making the Flintlock a better weapon all-round.

Like Throwing Knives, players can also obtain different Double Barrel Pistol skins by completing various commendations and then buying the skins with in-game gold from any Sea of Thieves outpost.

5 Throwing Knives

A Surprisingly Effective Throwing Or Melee-Combat Weapon

Advantages	Disadvantages
High damage at close range, killing some skeletons with one hit. Options for fast, stabbing, or throwing hits, ideal for individual targets in combat or via a stealth attack. Effectively gives unlimited ammo as long as the knives are retrieved. Equippable from the armory.	Easy to lose knives when thrown. Can be picked up by players, but not NPCs. Only effective at close to mid-range.

Sea of Thieves‘ Throwing Knives are a fun alternative to the Cutlass, and may remind some players of using throwing knives in Rare’s classic FPS game,Goldeneye. Players have the option to throw up to five knives or attack with them through small stabs or a charged, high-powered swipe that’s perfect for stealth attacks. This makes them a versatile weapon that’s also pretty powerful with the ability to take out some enemies in a single throw, such as Coral Skeletons.

As long as players retrieve the knives when thrown, they’re also the only Sea of Thieves weapon with the potential for unlimited ammo. However, that’s assuming players can find them once thrown, as they can get lost in the environment or picked up by other players. They can also be more challenging to wield in combat compared to the Cutlass, especially against groups of foes.

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4 Flintlock

Versatile And Accurate Shooting

Advantages	Disadvantages
Medium reload time of about 3 seconds per shot, so faster than the Eye of Reach, with the possibility for more accuracy at close to medium range. Deals high damage at various ranges and often more accurately than the Double Barrel Pistol. Accessible from the armory.	Shots deal a bit less damage than Blunderbuss and Eye of Reach. Poor long-range capabilities. Often easier and more accurate to use than the Blunderbuss at close range.

Not everyone’s favorite gun, but a good staple for many starting in their pirate career that can be very effective. Everyone that begins Sea of Thieves will start automatically with a Cutlass and Flintlock pistol. The Flintlock should only be used at close- to mid-range due to its weakness at long-range, but when used well, it is powerful and can kill enemies in two shots. However, it has a notorious bullet drop and can be hard to master when fighting other players in Sea of Thieves PVP.

The Flintlock has a decent reload speed and can be fired accurately without having to aim down sights. One bullet could reduce a player’s health by around half, so it may only take two shots to kill them. One way to learn how to use this weapon effectively is to pick up a skin that offers iron sights, which helps considerably with aiming.

3 Blunderbuss

Inflict High-Powered Close-Range Damage

Advantages	Disdavantages
Can be deadly at close range, with the potential for a one-shot kill. Takes only 2 seconds to reload each shot. Somewhat easier to use than the Flintlock as accuracy is not always as important. Accessible immediately in the armory.	Poor accuracy shooting from a distance owing to bullet spread. Not necessarily as accurate or as versatile as the Flintlock.

A step-up in damage and unpredictability, the Blunderbuss is a close-range execution in the hands of a skilled pirate. Many players will experience an enemy tucking on their ship and appearing from seemingly nowhere before aiming a blunderbuss.

This is a lesson that teaches many a new pirate about its power. From close range, it fires a spread of 10 bullets that will one-shot anyone if the distance is right. Aiming down sight will reduce the spread of the bullets, increasing its deadliness at close range. It is inconsistent to aim with, can be tricky in close range, and is next to useless at long range. Players will need to be cautious fighting against Sea of Thieves PVE enemies, with some skeletons masters of the weapon.

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2 Cutlass

A Staple, And A Versatile Weapon For Any Pirate

Advantages	Disadvantages
Blocks incoming melee attacks and doesn’t rely upon ammo. Fast swipe attacks are quicker than reloading. Players can alternate between a single-swipe and a powered-up attack, which deals much more damage. Accessible from the armory.	Takes 2 seconds to charge up a powered attack, leaving players vulnerable. Takes 2 seconds to recover from a charged-up attack which fatigues players. Can be challenging to learn.

A close call above the Blunderbuss is the pirate classic, the Cutlass. The Cutlass is devastating when used correctly, but there is a skill and nuance to it. Many players begin sword fighting with a slash-and-hope method until they learn the timing. Slashes damage any enemies within reach in a wide arc, perfect for when players are fighting multiple enemies.

The Cutlass’ heavy attack lunges the player forward causing deadline damage. It can be hard to time but devastating if it lands. Hitting an enemy with the Cutlass will also interrupt their actions, so landing chain hits will usually result in victory. Combined with gun combat, the Cutlass will often put the finishing touches on any Sea Thieves PVP battle.

1 Eye Of Reach

Deadly, Pinpoint Accuracy As The Best Weapon In Sea of Thieves

Advantages	Disadvantages
Most powerful, high-damage gunshots. Scope for increased accuracy, enabling shooting from long distances and a cracked lens marker. Can also be used for close-range shots. Accessible in the player’s armory	Slowest reload time at 4 seconds per shot reload. Scope reflects sunlight, which can give away the player’s position.

The Eye of Reach is arguably the Sea of Thieves’ best weapon yet, but in many ways, the hardest gun to master, albeit with the most rewards in terms of its skill cap. This pirate-themed sniper rifle is deadly at both long and short ranges. If a player can master a quick-scope mechanic or hip-firing then this gun can even beat the Blunderbuss in close-range combat.

At long range, it comfortably beats the Pistol in terms of bullet range, making it easier to predict shots. The downside is its slowest reload time, but one shot could damage a player’s health by around 70%. A quick Eye of Reach shot and Cutlass lunge is all it takes to end a fight.

Sea of Thieves

Released: March 20, 2018
Genre(s): Adventure

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