Sea of Thieves PvP and the Hourglass of Fate
The Hourglass of Fate is opt-in PvP that matches you against another crew who also chose to fight, and it sits on your captain's table. Unlocking it takes the Maiden Voyage, the introductory voyages for Gold Hoarders, Order of Souls, and Merchant Alliance, and Reaper's Bones reputation level 25. You pick a side once, Servants of the Flame or Guardians of Fortune, and your rewards scale with your Faction Stash grade and your active win streak. Once you opt in you cannot back out for at least 15 minutes.
Open-world PvP in Sea of Thieves is chaotic and mostly one-sided, because the crew that starts the fight usually picked a target that could not fight back. The Hourglass exists to fix that. Both crews want the fight, both crews are ready, and nobody is a Sloop full of cargo that just wanted to sell.
How do you unlock the Hourglass?
Four requirements as of patch 3.7.0:
- Complete the Maiden Voyage.
- Complete the introductory voyage for Gold Hoarders.
- Complete the introductory voyage for Order of Souls and Merchant Alliance.
- Reach Reaper's Bones reputation level 25.
That last one is the real gate. Reaper's rep comes from selling any treasure at the Reaper's Hideout, so the fastest route is running normal voyages and cashing everything in at the Hideout instead of at outposts.
Servants or Guardians?
You choose a faction, and the choice shapes what loot feeds your progress.
| Servants of the Flame | Guardians of Fortune | |
|---|---|---|
| Loyalty | Captain Flameheart | The Pirate Lord |
| Feeds Allegiance with | Reaper's Bones loot and faction-agnostic items | Athena's Fortune loot |
| Typical player | Aggressive, Reaper's-focused | Legend-focused, Athena's-focused |
You can switch sides later, but doing so resets progress toward the side you left. Pick based on what loot you naturally collect. If you are already selling everything at the Reaper's Hideout, Servants fits. If you are chasing Athena's voyages, Guardians fits.
How a battle works
Interact with the Hourglass on your captain's table and you go into matchmaking. Two ways to play it:
Dive immediately. Use the War Map to drop into a battle fast. This forfeits the treasure currently on your ship, so it is the clean option when you are empty.
Sail and accumulate. Keep playing normally, build up loot, and defend it when the battle starts. Riskier, and worth more.
When matched, both ships descend and surface near each other. The fight runs until one ship sinks.
Opting in commits you for at least 15 minutes. You cannot cancel out of the queue immediately if you change your mind, so do not start an Hourglass battle when you have somewhere else to be in 10 minutes.
Faction Stash and why your rewards vary so much
Instead of the emissary grades used elsewhere, Hourglass uses a Faction Stash, shown when you look at your Hourglass. Collecting loot aligned with your faction raises the stash grade, and the grade directly scales your battle rewards.
The important consequence: two crews can win identical battles and be paid very differently. A crew that loaded up on faction loot before queueing earns substantially more than a crew that dove in empty.
You also gain faction reputation by turning in your hourglass at the appropriate emissary table regardless of whether you won, though a stash turn-in pays better than a loss does.
Streaks
Consecutive wins build a streak, and rewards climb with it. Losing breaks the streak.
This produces the defining Hourglass experience: the fifth win in a row is worth far more than the first, and losing it stings accordingly. Crews chasing a long streak get progressively more cautious, which is worth knowing if you are fighting one. A crew on a high streak has more to lose than you do.
Practical advice for actually winning
Fight the ship, not the crew. Sinking them ends it. Killing one player just delays them a few seconds while they respawn on their own ship.
Chain shot their masts first. A ship that cannot move cannot control range, and controlling range is the whole game at sea.
Do not over-board. Sending a player onto the enemy ship leaves your own ship short-handed. On a Sloop, boarding means one person is now sailing and repairing alone.
Keep planks stocked between battles. Back-to-back Hourglass fights drain resources fast, and the crew that ran out of planks in round three loses round four to a fight they could have won.
Learn to bucket water out of a hole you cannot reach. Sometimes the hull is too damaged to patch under fire, and staying afloat 30 more seconds is all you need.
Practice the anchor turn until it is automatic. In Hourglass fights the crew that can reverse direction fastest controls whether the fight happens at close range or long range, and that single choice decides most matches.
Open-world PvP is a different game
Everything above applies to opt-in fights. Out in High Seas, PvP looks different:
- Crews attack because you are flying an emissary flag or sitting at a world event.
- Nobody is obliged to fight you, and running is always legitimate.
- Your loot is on the line, not a streak.
Sailing upwind on a Sloop escapes most pursuers. There is no shame in it, and there is no penalty for it.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you unlock the Hourglass of Fate?
Complete the Maiden Voyage, finish the introductory voyages for Gold Hoarders, Order of Souls, and Merchant Alliance, and reach Reaper's Bones reputation level 25. The Reaper's requirement is the slow part, and selling any treasure at the Reaper's Hideout is the fastest way to it.
What is the difference between Servants of the Flame and Guardians of Fortune?
Servants of the Flame follow Captain Flameheart and gain Allegiance from Reaper's Bones and faction-agnostic loot. Guardians of Fortune follow the Pirate Lord and gain Allegiance from Athena's Fortune loot. You can switch, but doing so resets progress on the side you leave.
Can you cancel an Hourglass battle?
Not right away. Opting in commits you for at least 15 minutes, so you cannot immediately back out of the queue after starting. Do not begin an Hourglass battle if you need to stop playing shortly.
Why do Hourglass rewards vary so much between battles?
Your Faction Stash grade scales them. Loot aligned with your chosen faction raises the stash, and a crew that loaded up before queueing earns far more from an identical win than a crew that dove in with an empty hold.
Do you lose your treasure when you dive to an Hourglass battle?
Only if you dive immediately from the War Map, which forfeits the treasure currently aboard. Sailing normally and letting the battle come to you keeps your loot on the ship, but then you have to defend it during the fight.
What to Read Next
- Ship Combat and Damage Control. Cannonball types, the repair order, and boarding defense that decide these fights.
- Ships and Sailing. The anchor turn and wind control that win range battles.
- Trading Companies and Reputation. Getting Reaper's Bones to 25 to unlock the Hourglass at all.
- Safer Seas and High Seas. Why Hourglass does not exist in Safer Seas.
- Achievements: Combat and PvP. The Hourglass and combat achievements, including some of the rarest in the game.