In a game where defending your loot from other pirates and keeping your ship afloat on the dangerous seas is your number 1 concern, combat proves to be a vital ingredient in the Sea of Thieves formula. As for all games, some weapons are better than others, some almost required to use, and some that may cause more problems than solutions. From a skull that exhales flames, to a little cutlass that secretly packs a punch, here are the 10 best weapons you can currently use in Rare’s hit game, Sea ofThieves.

10. Ashen Winds Skull

A game like Sea of Thieves relies heavily on its PVE aspects to keep the game fresh and moving, and offers quite a few ways to fulfill your desire to destroy skeletons, phantoms, and other sea monsters. Some of these weapons can be more satisfying to use than others, but that does not mean acquiring them is an easy task.

Look no further than the Ashen Winds Skull, which requires you to hope RNG spawns in the Ashen Winds event, arrive at the island and beat the event  while you are more than likely fending off other players while simultaneously slashing through hoards of skeletons, and finally complete a small  boss fight. After all that work you are awarded with the Ashen Winds Skull, and then… well, you sell it. And on top of that, the value of the skull decreases with each use, so why even use it at all? You will need this weapon for certain commendations, and it is very satisfying to burn through groups of skellies, but it is more loot than weapon, and it is just not practical in any way to obtain it.

• Type: Bounty Skull
• Companies: Order of the Souls
• Sell Price: 10,000
• Emissary Value: 10,500-15,750
• Sells To: Madames, Sovereigns, The Servant of the Flame

9. Skull of Siren Song

Side quests and short voyages are always a fun way to get in a quick game of Sea of Thieves if your time is limited. Luckily, Rare provided just that with the relatively recent Skull of Siren Song Voyage. While very similar to the Ashen Winds Skull in many ways, it has its advantages that make it a slightly more viable option.

The Skull of Siren Song Voyage will require you to vote for the voyage, located on your ship’s mast, sail to the required islands (they will change each game), find the Chest and Key of Siren Song, and then take the skull to the marked island, fighting off coral skeletons, and finally delivering the skull to Briggsy for a hefty 50,000 gold. The downside? Well, that’s all you do with this weapon. You don’t get your gold until it is delivered, but you do not want to keep it because it applies a curse to your ship, slowing it down at sea. The amount of gold and the fact that you can complete the mission whenever you would like push it above the Ashen Winds Skull, but it still isn’t a useful PVP or PVE tool

• Type: Bounty Skull
• Restrictions: High Seas only
• Sell Price: 50,000
• Sells To: Briggsy

8. Blunderbomb

While there may be a wide variety of weapon choices that are readily available and very powerful, few that are available right from the start are quite as fun as Blunderbombs. As soon as you load into a lobby, your ship grants you2 Blunderbombs in each cannonball barrel, and more can be found in barrels across the islands and looted from other ships.

While its accessibility makes for a quick and easy way to take out an enemy or two, the lack of abundance and slightly too low damage takes away from what could be a really cool weapon. From my time on the high seas, it seems like the only pirates who use Blunderbombs are those who think they damage ships, and unfortunately that is not the case, as it only knocks the ship back. However, Blunderbombs can be a whole lot of fun when it comes to trolling your friends and sending them overboard.

• Type: Throwable
• Damage: Direct Hit: 50%, Splash Radius: 15%

7. Trident of Dark Tides

Introduced with the Pirates Life tall tale, a Pirates of the Caribbean tie-in, the Trident of Dark Tides has become a rather common mainstay in the weapons and loot cycles in Sea of Thieves. Your chances of not coming across one during your play session is pretty slim, and sometimes it can become a hassle to lug them all around.
While it is fair to say the Trident is underrated as it seems to have garnered more attention in recent times, it is still far from the best weapon in the game. Your lack of ability to run while carrying this weapon definitely drags it down in ways, and its limited use does not help. That being said, the ability to charge the shots makes for a decent weapon for taking out Ocean Crawlers and hoards of skellies. On top of that, the recent addition of allowing you to sell your tridents makes them slightly more handy, but still, the drawbacks outway the uses on this one.

• Type: Weapon
• Damage: 30 (small), 60 (medium), 90 (large)

6. Firebomb

A key component to Sea of Thieves’ gameplay is fire. So. Much. Fire. And what better way to watch the sea burn than to start the fire yourself? Similar to Blunderbombs, Firebombs are available in your ship’s cannonball barrels from the start, and can be collected as you travel around the world.
What makes Firebombs better than its explosive counterpart is the fact that they actually come in handy in taking down ships. In certain scenarios, you may even find more use in the Firebombs than you will in cannonballs. As long as fire reaches the bilge of a ship, then it will break holes in the hull. Throw in the fact that one of thieves can take out a full hoard of skeletons during a Fort of the Damned or Fort of Fortune wave, and you will find that the firebombs are easily one of the most efficient (and fun) weapons in the game.

• Type: Throwable
• Damage: 33% Fire Damage Overtime

5. Cannon

No true swashbuckling experience is complete without the most iconic pirate weapon of all: the cannon. Your ship will come loaded with anywhere between 2 and 8 cannons, depending on your ship size. While it can be a pain to aim sometimes, there is no doubt that the cannon is the most versatile weapon in Sea of Thieves.
As you travel around the islands and collect loot, you will most likely end up with a stockpile of cannonballs, cursed cannonballs, blunderbombs, firebombs, and fireworks, all of which can be used to take down enemies and ships through the cannon. Not only that, but you can even launch yourself, your friends, and even your pets out of the cannon, which can come in handy when trying to get closer to an enemy ship or an island. It is impossible not to put this one in the latter half of a list ranking Sea of Thieves weapons, as you can not really play the game without using it, even if only once.

• Type (Cannonball): Resource
• Damage (Cannonball): 100+ (Direct Hit)

4. Eye of Reach

As anyone who plays Sea of Thieves knows, the handheld weapons in this game are easily the most important weapons you can use. You can basically say goodbye to any chance of winning a fight if you do not know how to use at least one of these, and you will need them to take down all sorts of enemies on land and at sea. And that is exactly where I think the Eye of Reach is dragged down.
Apart from mostly being used by hardcore players and hackers with ridiculous auto-aim, this weapon does not seem to serve much of a use in PvE combat, and the accuracy makes it difficult to use against players when your ship is rocking through the waves and getting obliterated by cannon fire. Although it is easily the hardest of the main weapons to use, it still has the highest damage per single pellet, and if you do know how to use it, then you have basically won all your duels.

• Type: Weapon
• Damage: 70
• Reload Speed: 3.116s

3. Blunderbuss

In most video games, close range weapons tend to be a bit of a mixed bag. You want one because it does so much damage, but when you need to hit something from afar, well, you can’t. That conundrum is present in Sea of Thieves as well, with none other than the Blunderbuss. Don’t get me wrong, it is an amazing weapon choice, but you will often find yourself swapping out your weapons for something with a bit more range. 
Even with those slight drawbacks, the Blunderbuss is still a more than viable weapon choice, as it is incredible for taking down Ocean Crawlers specifically, and can take out many skeletons and phantoms with one shot. Not to mention it is also the only one of the four main weapons that can kill players in one shot if all pellets land on your target. Pair that with the second fastest reload speed in the game, and you have got yourself a truly useful weapon.

• Type: Weapon
• Damage: 10 Per Pellet (10 Pellets Per Shot)
• Reload Speed: 2.716s

2. Flintlock

Although many people would rank the Flintlock much lower, I believe I have to make the case for this excellent weapon. Although it does not do as much damage as the Blunderbuss and Eye of Reach, it still has its major ups when compared to its two powerful counterparts.
First off, for new players, the Eye of Reach is going to be a tough weapon to get acquainted with, and the Flintlock still offers a decent range to play around with. It works as both a close and mid-range weapon, and if you land your shots, it still only takes two pellets to take out a full health player, just like the eye of reach. Unlike the Blunderbuss, you can also take this onto the islands to wipe out any gunpowder skellies you find walking around without getting yourself killed. All of this, plus the fastest reload speed, and the Flintlock proves to be the jack of all trades when it comes to your main weapon choice.

• Type: Weapon
• Damage: 55
• Reload Speed: 2.333s

1. Cutlass

Rounding out the list of the best weapons in Sea of Thieves is none other than the Cutlass. It doesn’t matter what weapon you are using in Sea of Thieves, you will almost definitely have the Cutlass as your secondary, or even your main weapon. It is definitely an integral part of the pirate experience, but it is also just a very fun weapon to use.
When fighting skeletons, phantoms, or players, you will more than likely be attacked with a cutlass, and you will need the cutlass yourself to block their attacks, already making this weapon essential for combat. The fact that you never half to reload or even refill any sort of ammo for this weapon is another major draw, and it makes it so you never have to leave your fight part of the way through. On top of its many uses in combat, you can use the sword to lunge yourself onto ships or get yourself closer, similar to launching yourself out of a cannon. Like the Blunderbomb, it has just as many “for fun” uses as it does actual combat uses, easily earning itself the title of best weapon in Sea of Thieves.

• Type: Weapon
• Damage: 25 (Slash), 25 (x3: Combo), 60 (Lunge)
• Attack Speed: 1.150s (Slash), 0.616s (Combo Hit)