Sea of Thieves Trading Companies and Reputation
Six Trading Companies take reputation and each caps at level 100, not 50. Promotions go on sale every five levels, or every ten for Athena's Fortune, and you have to actually buy them for the title and the higher-tier voyages to unlock. Pirate Legend needs level 50 in any three companies plus the level 50 promotion purchased from each, then a visit to the Mysterious Stranger. Two more factions, the Bilge Rats and the Smugglers' League, pay in Doubloons and contraband instead of reputation.
The company you sell to decides what you unlock, and most players pick one early without realizing they are choosing their entire progression path for the next 40 hours.
What are the eight factions?
Six take reputation. Two do not, and that catches people out.
| Faction | Reputation | Sells from | What they want |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold Hoarders | Yes, to 100 | Every outpost | Locked chests and artifacts |
| Order of Souls | Yes, to 100 | Every outpost | Cursed skulls from skeleton captains |
| Merchant Alliance | Yes, to 100 | Outpost docks | Cargo, livestock, trade goods |
| The Hunter's Call | Yes, to 100 | Outposts and seaposts | Cooked fish and meat |
| Reaper's Bones | Yes, to 100 | Reaper's Hideout only | Nearly everything, from anyone |
| Athena's Fortune | Yes, to 100 | Pirate Legend hideout | Athena's treasure |
| Bilge Rats | No, commendations | Black Market | Time-limited mercenary work |
| Smugglers' League | No, none at all | Eight hidden hideouts | Contraband |
Reputation runs to level 100 across the board. Gold Hoarders, Order of Souls, Merchant Alliance, Athena's Fortune, and Reaper's Bones were raised to 100 in patch 2.10.0, and The Hunter's Call caught up in patch 3.3.0. The cap sat at 50 for years before those patches raised it.
Level 100 is not the end of the track. Passing it moves a company into Distinction 1, the Distinctions run to V, and each one carries its own icon in the Progress tab. So the real ceiling is five times the number the menu shows you. Guilds use the same idea on a longer scale, covered in Pirate Legend and Endgame.
Reaper's Bones has no representative at any outpost. Everything sells at the Reaper's Hideout in the middle of the map, which is deliberately the most dangerous place to dock. That risk is the price of being able to sell almost any loot to one faction.
How does reputation actually progress?
You earn reputation by selling that company's treasure to that company. Selling a Gold Hoarders chest to Reaper's still pays the same gold, but the reputation lands with Reaper's instead.
The Reaper's catch-all has a short list of refusals: Smugglers' League contraband, which sells only at the League's hideouts, Hunter's Call fish and meat, empty animal crates, and most quest items and keys.
When you do offer an item to a company that will not take it, the game tells you why. Patch 3.8.2 fixed that message for two cases it had been getting wrong, Ashen Chests and Mermaid Gems handed to the wrong Trading Company, so the guidance you get now points at the right place. Mermaid Gems sell to every company except Athena's Fortune.
Every five levels the company puts a Promotion on sale. Athena's Fortune runs on a ten-level cycle instead. Promotions are not automatic. You have to walk up and buy them, and until you do:
- The title stays locked.
- Higher-tier voyages stay locked.
- Company cosmetics stay locked.
That last point trips up more players than anything else in the progression system. Voyages offered by Gold Hoarders, Order of Souls, and Merchant Alliance scale with purchased promotions, not your raw reputation number. Someone at level 40 who never bought a promotion is still being handed level 5 voyages.
Buy your promotions as they unlock. Skipping them means grinding higher reputation while still running low-tier, low-paying voyages, which is the slowest possible way to play.
How do you become a Pirate Legend?
Three requirements, in this order:
- Reach reputation level 50 in any three Trading Companies.
- Buy the level 50 Promotion from each of those three.
- Visit the Mysterious Stranger at any outpost tavern.
That unlocks Athena's Fortune, the Pirate Legend hideout beneath the tavern, and Athena's voyages.
Step 2 is where people stall for days. Hitting 50 does nothing on its own. The promotion purchase is what the Stranger checks.
Pirate Legend cannot be earned in Safer Seas. Every company there is capped at rank 25, and both Athena's Fortune and Reaper's Bones are locked out of the mode entirely.
Emissaries, grades, and the Ledger
Reaching rank 15 with a company lets you buy its Emissary Flag. Fly it and your ship climbs five grades as you sell that company's loot, multiplying gold and reputation up to plus 150 percent at Grade 5. The full grade table is in Voyages and Treasure.
Two changes since patch 3.7.0 are worth building a session around.
Faction Battles raise a flag for you. Dive to a battle from the Hourglass of Fate and the game raises an Emissary Flag on your behalf, Athena's Fortune for Guardians of Fortune and The Reaper's Bones for Servants of the Flame, provided you own that flag. Every battle now feeds Emissary Grade progression whether or not you remembered to raise anything.
Wednesdays pay more. The Emissaries of Fortune event runs for 24 hours every Wednesday from 10:00 UTC, adding a reward multiplier per Grade that stacks on top of the bonuses you already have. If you are going to run a Grade 5 flag and defend it, that is the day to do it.
What matters at the faction level is what the flag costs you socially. Most emissary flags never appear on the map at all, but Reaper's Bones emissaries at Grade 5 can see every emissary ship on theirs, and a Reaper's Bones flag of any grade broadcasts your own ship to the whole server. Grade 5 is an advertisement.
The Emissary Ledger ranks players monthly by accumulated emissary value:
| Ledger tier | Reward |
|---|---|
| Tier 3 or better (top 50%) | Company sails |
| Tier 2 or better | A title |
Guilds run their own emissary track, with a reputation multiplier up to 75 percent at Grade 5.
The two factions that work differently
Bilge Rats never give reputation. They hand out time-limited mercenary voyages tied to whatever content is newest, and pay in Doubloons and commendations. Doubloons spend at the Black Market on cosmetics you cannot buy with gold, so treat them as a separate currency with a separate shop.
Smugglers' League has no titles, no reputation, and no emissary license. They deal in contraband out of eight hideouts spread across the map, The Devil's Roar included. Named traders include Lottie in the southern cave on Crescent Isle, Solomon at the back of the cave at Smugglers' Bay, and Wei-Lin in the cave south of Plunder Valley.
The hideout caves are trapped. Wooden pressure plates sit almost flush with the floor and trigger the moment you step on one, so walk in slowly and look down.
Their Smugglers' Route Run was moved in patch 3.7.0 and now runs between Plunder Valley and Crescent Isle. The route is drawn on the Ship's Map for everyone on the server, not just for you, so anyone who wants to intercept a contraband run knows exactly where to sit.
Doubloons are scarce now
Patch 3.7.1 reset the Doubloon economy and the change is severe enough that any older advice about stockpiling them is worthless.
What happened:
- Existing Doubloon balances were converted to gold on your first session after the patch, with the Season 19 Renown Doubloons handed back afterward.
- Wallets now cap at 4000 Doubloons. Past that you have to spend before you can earn more.
- Every Outpost item that used to cost Doubloons now costs gold instead.
- The ways to earn them were cut back. Rare's own wording is that the currency became much scarcer.
Where they still come from:
| Source | Notes |
|---|---|
| Bilge Rats Weekender activities | The largest payouts by a wide margin |
| Returning Reaper's Chests to The Reaper's Bones | 20 Doubloons per chest since patch 3.7.2, boosted further as a Reaper's Bones Emissary |
| Levels of Seasonal Renown | Paid out as Doubloon Pouches on the Season Pass |
| The Insider programme | A weekly opportunity to add a few more |
Do not sit on a full wallet. The 4000 cap is a hard ceiling on earnings, not a soft one, so a crew that hoards through a Weekender stops earning partway through it. Spend at the Black Market or at Duke's Smugglers' Market first, then go earn.
Both of those shops now hold their stock for over a year instead of rotating out in weeks, so there is no rush to buy a specific item the day you see it.
Which company should you commit to first?
If you want gold with the least friction, Gold Hoarders. Riddle maps teach you island geography, which pays off in every other company's voyages.
If you like combat, Order of Souls. Bounty voyages are constant skeleton fighting and the skulls are compact, so a full haul takes very little deck space.
If you want the highest payout per hour and can accept pressure, Merchant Alliance. Timed deliveries pay well because detours actively cost you.
Avoid committing to Reaper's Bones early. Selling there gives up all other company reputation, and you need three companies at 50 for Pirate Legend.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the maximum reputation level in Sea of Thieves?
Every reputation company runs to level 100, raised in patch 2.10.0 with The Hunter's Call following in 3.3.0. Passing 100 moves the company into Distinction 1 instead of stopping, and the Distinctions run to V, so the real track is five times 100. The old level 50 cap is long gone.
How do you become a Pirate Legend?
Reach reputation level 50 in any three Trading Companies, buy the level 50 Promotion from each of those three, then speak to the Mysterious Stranger in any outpost tavern. Hitting level 50 alone does nothing, because the Stranger checks for the purchased promotions.
Do you have to buy promotions in Sea of Thieves?
Yes. Promotions go on sale every five levels, or every ten for Athena's Fortune, and they unlock titles, cosmetics, and higher-tier voyages. Voyage difficulty and payout scale with promotions you have purchased, not your raw reputation level.
Why is there no Reaper's Bones representative at outposts?
Reaper's Bones sells exclusively at the Reaper's Hideout in the middle of the map. That location is deliberately the most contested dock in the game, and the risk is the tradeoff for being the one faction that buys nearly any treasure from anyone. The refusals are Smugglers' League contraband, Hunter's Call fish and meat, empty animal crates, and most quest items.
What do Bilge Rats give you instead of reputation?
Doubloons and commendations. Bilge Rats run time-limited mercenary voyages tied to the newest content, and Doubloons spend at the Black Market on cosmetics that gold cannot buy, making it a separate currency with its own shop.
How do you earn Doubloons after the economy reset?
Mostly through Bilge Rats Weekender activities, which pay the largest amounts. Outside a Weekender you get 20 Doubloons per Reaper's Chest returned to The Reaper's Bones, more as a Reaper's Bones Emissary, plus Doubloon Pouches from Seasonal Renown levels. Wallets cap at 4000.
What to Read Next
- Voyages and Treasure. The emissary grade multiplier table, voyage types per company, and what treasure sells for.
- Pirate Legend and Endgame. Athena's Fortune, Captaincy, Guilds, and what sits past level 50.
- Safer Seas and High Seas. Why the rank 25 cap blocks the Legend path entirely.
- Getting Started. The core loop and why none of this reputation makes you stronger in a fight.
- Fishing, Cooking, and The Hunter's Call. The one company you can rank up without a single voyage.
- Tips and Tricks. Emissary grades, reputation caps, and the real Pirate Legend requirement.