During your time sailing in Sea of Thieves, you will have undoubtedly noticed a giant skull cloud appearing in the sky every once in a while. With glowing green eyes, the Sea of Thieves skull cloud may initially seem like an ominous environmental detail, though in reality, it indicates a tough event for players to take part in.
What Does the Sea of Thieves Skull Cloud Mean?
There are numerous skull clouds dotted around Sea of Thieves, and each one indicates the location of a Cursed Island. These Cursed Islands are one of Sea of Thieves‘ World Events, allowing players from various crews to take them on together (or stab each other in the back for that horde of loot).
To take part in the event, you’ll need to set sail towards the skull. Be careful, as the skeleton hordes are manning their cannons, and they have a much more precise shot than your average player. Pick a skilled captain to navigate their way towards the ship, and have your crew on hand to take down the skeletons with your own cannons.
Once you make your way to the Cursed Island, you’ll be tasked with taking on waves of skeletons. Each wave will be signaled by a horn, so use your time between battles to eat your bananas and stock up on supplies.
There are skeletons of various strength levels to take on, including intimidating golden skeletons, and after defeating all of the waves you’ll be tasked with fighting their captain. After defeating the captain, he’ll drop a Skeleton Fort Key.
How to Get the Skeleton Fort Key in Sea of Thieves
The Skeleton Fort Key, or Stronghold Key as it is also known, will grant you access to the Cursed Island’s treasure room. These Cursed Islands are best tackled alongside a crew given the number of skeletons you’ll be fending off, and also because actually ferrying all of the treasure back to your ship will be extremely difficult if you’re a one-person crew.
Remember, the skull cloud will also appear in other crews’ games, so chances are that if you are traveling towards the cloud then other players will be, too. This means that even if you’ve somehow managed to put in all the work and killed all of the enemies by yourself, there’s a strong chance that other players will be around to swoop in and take all your loot. Having a full crew to not only complete the event but also haul the loot back to your ship is more beneficial, and will save you the headache of putting in all the effort only to get shot down as you’re about to claim your rewards.
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