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Sea of Thieves Seasons and Events

Tactical Quick Answer

Sea of Thieves runs roughly three-month seasons, and Season 20 began on 18 June 2026 with a 13-week run. Season 20 restructured the pass to 50 levels across 10 tiers, down from the old 100-level format, paying Doubloons, Voyages, and a Cosmetic Choice at each tier. Progress is measured in Renown, earned from normal play and boosted heavily by Daily Deeds and Trials. The optional Plunder Pass costs 999 Ancient Coins and adds Pirate Emporium rewards on top.

This is the one guide on the site that is openly a snapshot. Everything else about Sea of Thieves holds for years. Seasons do not.

The current season​

Detail
SeasonSeason 20
Started18 June 2026
Length13 weeks
Headline featureCustom Seas
Game version at writing3.8.1, released 9 July 2026

Season 20 shipped Custom Seas as a free feature, rebalanced Bone Callers so their effect scales with ship size, and added the ability to trigger an emote while in Free Camera.

How does the season pass work now?​

Season 20 changed the structure, so older explanations no longer match what you see in game.

Old formatSeason 20 onward
Levels10050
GroupingFlat10 tiers, rewards in sets of 5
Per-tier rewardsVariedDoubloons, Voyages, and a Cosmetic Choice

Renown is the progression currency. You earn it from ordinary play, which includes visiting islands, collecting treasure, and fighting skeletons. Nothing about seasons requires you to change how you play.

Daily Deeds and Trials are where the real Renown lives. They are small objectives that pay out far more than the equivalent time spent grinding, and skipping them is the main reason players feel like the pass is slow.

tip

Check Deeds and Trials at the start of every session and steer your voyage choice toward them. A Deed asking for Order of Souls turn-ins is worth taking an Order of Souls voyage for, even if you had something else planned. It costs nothing and multiplies your Renown for the session.

The Plunder Pass​

The free track is available to everyone. The Plunder Pass costs 999 Ancient Coins and adds extra Pirate Emporium items as season rewards on top of the free track.

Ancient Coins come from real money purchases and from Ancient Skeletons, which spawn randomly in the world and run away from you. Chasing one down is worth it, and shooting it works better than trying to outrun it.

Season history​

Seasons have run since January 2021 at roughly three-month intervals, with some stretching longer.

SeasonStartedSeasonStarted
One28 Jan 20211123 Jan 2024
Two15 Apr 20211230 Apr 2024
Three22 Jun 20211325 Jul 2024
Four23 Sep 20211417 Oct 2024
Five2 Dec 20211520 Feb 2025
Six10 Mar 20221622 May 2025
Seven4 Aug 20221714 Aug 2025
Eight22 Nov 20221811 Dec 2025
Nine16 Mar 20231919 Mar 2026
Ten19 Oct 20232018 Jun 2026

Season 17 is worth noting because it introduced the Smugglers' League, which is now a permanent faction rather than seasonal content.

Monthly events​

Between seasons, Rare runs shorter events. A recurring Emissary event boosts rewards for crews flying Trading Company flags, with an additional multiplier per Grade for 24 hours every Wednesday from 10:00 UTC.

Gold and Glory style events raise gold and reputation across the board for a limited window. These do not run in Safer Seas.

Bilge Rats voyages are the usual delivery mechanism for event content, paying Doubloons and commendations rather than reputation.

What has been vaulted​

Content does get removed permanently, and this is the part players are most often wrong about.

The Arena and the Sea Dogs company were removed in patch 2.5.0. The Arena was the dedicated competitive PvP mode with 15-minute organized matches, and Sea Dogs was its 50-rank Trading Company. Neither has returned, and the Sea Dogs reputation track no longer exists. Anyone who ranked it before removal keeps the cosmetics, and nobody new can earn them.

Ghost Fleet was disabled after patch 2.4.2 and later reinstated in Season 9 with a thin green tornado replacing its old sky signal. It is a returned event rather than a vaulted one.

Tall Tales have never been vaulted. All four campaigns plus the Maiden Voyage remain playable, including both licensed crossovers.

warning

Seasonal cosmetic rewards are generally time-limited. A cosmetic tied to a season pass or a limited event is usually gone when that window closes, which is the one genuine reason to care about finishing a pass before it ends.

Frequently Asked Questions​

What season is Sea of Thieves on right now?

Season 20, which began on 18 June 2026 and runs for 13 weeks. It shipped Custom Seas as a free feature and restructured the season pass from 100 levels to 50 levels split across 10 tiers.

How much does the Plunder Pass cost?

999 Ancient Coins. It adds extra Pirate Emporium items on top of the free season track. Ancient Coins come from real money purchases and from Ancient Skeletons, which spawn randomly and flee, so shooting them beats chasing them.

What is Renown in Sea of Thieves?

The season progression currency, earned from ordinary play such as visiting islands, collecting treasure, and fighting skeletons. Daily Deeds and Trials pay far more Renown per minute than general play, and ignoring them is the usual reason a pass feels slow.

Was the Arena removed from Sea of Thieves?

Yes, permanently. The Arena and its Sea Dogs Trading Company were removed in patch 2.5.0. Sea Dogs had a 50-rank reputation track that no longer exists, and its cosmetics can no longer be earned by anyone who did not rank it before removal.

How long does a Sea of Thieves season last?

Roughly three months, though the range has varied from about 10 to 20 weeks across the twenty seasons run since January 2021. Season 20 is a 13-week season starting 18 June 2026.