The Burning Blade World Event
Command or Conquer? The Choice is Yours
Season 13’s headline feature is the addition of a brand new World Event- Captain Flameheart’s mighty flagship, the Burning Blade!
This isn’t just an enemy to defeat, however, as crews who manage to best the boat are given a choice: sink her to depths and collect the loot, or pledge allegiance to Flameheart and take command of the ship yourself! Finally YOU can become the World Event that other crews want to take on
Seeking the Blade
Where can I find this fiery foe?
When the Burning Blade World Event is active, players will be able to find its location by looking at their map table or for the beam on the horizon. On the map table the ship will be marked with a unique icon.
- The ship will roam the world until it has found a target, meaning that if you should stray too close to it then you may find yourself under fire!
- This warship boasts ten cannons (five a side, with two being near the wheel), three decks, a luxurious Captain’s Cabin, and the ability to launch flaming balls of fire from the prow.
- The Burning Blade can be attacked just like any ship, you can choose to fight from a distance using your firepower, or attempt to board and cut down the skeletons, but take note that the ship is immune to all fire-based attacks!
- Once the ship has taken on enough water, it will go into a defeated “idle phase”
Becoming the Blade
Pledging Allegiance to Flameheart
To pledge your Allegiance, players must board the idle Burning Blade and choose to pledge themselves via a prompt at the Table in front of the statue of Flameheart.
- Becoming the crew of the Burning Blade will cause your previous ship to scuttle. The Burning Blade will be your new respawn point, it will become your ship! So make sure to bring any treasure over from your old ship before it sinks, there are no Moving Trucks in Sea of Thieves!
- You’ll also lose Emissary Flag and Grade you had before, as the Burning Blade permanently flies its own Reaper’s Bones Emissary Flag
- Because the ship is so large and unwieldy, you’ll be joined by a crew of loyal Obsidian Skeletons to help fire cannons and repair hull damage. Otherwise, the ship is controlled just like any other
Pull the Lever…
The Burning Blade has one unique attack up its sleeve- a giant front facing Fire Ball Launching, which can be activated every so often by a lever near the ship’s helm.
Crews aboard the ship will also find Obsidian Ashen Winds Skulls to aid in attacking other pirates- don’t forget, the ship itself and the Obsidian Skeletons aboard it are immune to fire damage!
The Journey
Pledging your allegiance to the Burning Blade doesn’t just mean causing mayhem, it also comes with a goal; to seek out the Ancient Temples, collect Ancient Knowledge, and return this Knowledge to Flameheart himself.
Ancient Knowledge can be found in the Ancient Temples that lie underneath Skeleton Camps. The Skeleton Camps can be found on the map marked by the flaming heart icon, and there are six in total to be found across the Sea of Thieves.
Read more about taking on Skeleton Camps in our handy Guide
- Each time your crew completes a ritual deep beneath a Skeleton Camp, a “Ritual Completion” stat will be added to the Burning Blade ship, representing increasing ancient knowledge stored within. The more Ritual Completions, the higher value the ship contains. There is no cap to how high this value can go, but crews must cash it in at some point or risk losing it all
- At the Reaper’s Hideout, Captain Flameheart sits atop a throne and gives crews the option to return the vessel back to Flameheart and cash in the reward for their gains- a hefty amount of Gold and Reputation based on how many Ritual Completions the ship had aboard.
Burning the Blade
Sending the ship to the Depths
Rather than pledging allegiance and taking control of the ship, players can choose to continue assaulting the idle ship. If they sink it, loot will rise much like defeating any other ship on the sea
- Among the loot players will discover the sword/loot item The Blade of Souls. This can be used like a regular cutlass, but is a loot item that must be carried and dropped much like an Ashen Winds Skull, Trident of Dark Tides, etc.
- As a weapon, the sword deals fire damage to every enemy it strikes
- As loot, the sword can be sold to any Trading Company, and its value is half that of the Burning Blade Ship’s Ritual Completion value when it went down
That just about wraps up everything you need to know about the Burning Blade! This unique World Event allows players the opportunity to become the big bad, providing a challenge to those who want to see just how long they can control the ship… or those who want a skilled crew to take down. Keep your wits about you whilst the Burning Blade roams the Seas, and good luck dousing- or fanning- the Flames!
