The Lore of Haunted Shores
They came from the great beyond…
Flameheart has made his grand appearance to all who sail the Sea of Thieves in the Haunted Shores content update, terrorising all with his ghostly visage and his ethereal ships summoned from the Sea of the Damned. Read on as we peer beyond the veil and see what lore reveals itself.
What’s the Story So Far?
How did we get here? Get caught up, or refresh yourself, on all the Lore that has transpired in the previous months by visiting the linked articles below.
Gloomy Galleons
Using magics unknown, Flameheart has managed to bridge the gap between realities and is bringing forth ghost ships from the Sea of the Damned to form his own personal armada. Could this be an extension of what we saw happen to Old Boot Fort when it became Fort of the Damned?
Inescapable to the eye of everyone sailing, Flameheart makes his presence known by appearing in the skies in the same form seen after he was released from his skull at the conclusion of events during the Seabound Soul. His ghastly red skull watches over the ghost ships as if they are pawns on a playing board, as he leads assaults on localised areas, taunting pirates to challenge him and his phantoms. Two familiar ships sail in these clashes with Flameheart; the Ashen Dragon and the Burning Blade, both previously having been seen in an astral form in the two most recent Tall Tales, The Seabound Soul and The Heart of Fire. Flameheart himself gave us a glimpse of his plan as the ghost of the Burning Blade could be seen in the depths of the Heart of Fire.
Rogue gatherings of ghosts ships have also been seen roaming the shores of islands across the seas, bereft of a physical form and crew. The Order of Souls have taken note of these, and are sending brave pirates to their locations to deal with. The Order are also accepting of new ghostly near-incorporeal Skulls of the Damned. Perhaps they are using these to strengthen their powers of divination to create the maps to locate more of these ghastly apparitions.
Curiously, whatever magic is being invoked to pull these ships from the Sea of the Damned has weakened the veil and is the reasoning for why pirates are now able to revive a fallen ally before they are sent to the Ferry of the Damned.
Scooby Duke
Duke is still the taverns second best regular, just behind the Mysterious Stranger, as he continues to drink away his pains and offer information up to any pirate willing to listen to him.
The main topic of conversation this time is the ghost ships, but he also speaks briefly on Flameheart. More on that particular point later…
Duke has been speaking with Madame Olivia of the Order of Souls about the appearance of ghost ships, and what to do about them, seemingly striking a deal with her to make more pirates aware of this threat and enlist them in the fight against the spectral ships.
Duke’s hint on how to damage the ghost ships has founding in folklore and superstitions, that iron could be used to ward spirits away. Presumably, the cannonballs in the Sea of Thieves contain some amounts of iron.
Flameheart’s “waging a war on multiple fronts”. Duke mentions this, and in a manner so does Flameheart himself when you approach him for the world encounter. Ashen Skeletons, the Ghost Ships, and the Heart of Fire. All singled out as a ‘front’ from which Flameheart is advancing his forces. It’s easy to understand how ashen skeletons and ghost ships could be considered moving forward on a front, but his lair? Is there something specifically special about the Heart of Fire? Is it the only place the ritual to summon forth the Ashen Lords can be conducted, or is there more past that door that Stitcher Jim made his indignant exit through?
Family Matters
Duke lets slip an important piece of information that helps to answer a hotly discussed question; is it Flameheart Senior or Flameheart Junior that we are currently seeing in-game?
Duke says that “He even had family once”, strongly implying that this Flameheart is Senior. A man who was feared across the Sea of Thieves, left to have a family but eventually returned to continue his reign of terror. Now this in itself isn’t exactly damning, but when combined with the words of Creative Director Mike Chapman it truly hammers down the final nail.
So, there we have it. We are currently facing down Flameheart Senior, and all images of Flameheart we have seen are of Senior. Where does this leave Junior? It is uncertain. The timeline of Sea of Thieves isn’t quite clear currently, Junior could have met his demise as written in Tales from the Sea of Thieves years ago or mere days ago. Mike Chapman does assure us that he is out there somewhere…
It is an interesting character quirk that Flameheart would even foster a child if he was a maniacal tyrant hellbent on ruling the Sea of Thieves with a flaming fist. Could something have happened that changed his course and made him a more vicious man as he aged?
What do you make of these revelations? How do you feel about Flameheart being confirmed as Senior? And what do you think his next move will be? He can’t be too happy that pirates are taking the fight to him and in many cases succeeding. Let us know your thoughts, and let’s discuss over at https://twitter.com/GoldenSandsBlog
