Sea of Thieves World Events and Raids
World events announce themselves with a cloud or beacon in the sky, and every crew on the server sees the same signal at the same moment. Green means a standard event and red means the high-value version, so a red skull cloud or red ship cloud will pull far more crews than a green one. The Kraken is the exception with no sky signal at all, announcing itself only through sound and the water around your ship turning black.
Reading the sky is the highest-value skill in Sea of Thieves that nobody teaches you. Every signal tells you what the event is, roughly how rich it is, and how many other crews are already sailing toward it.
What does each sky signal mean?
| Event | Signal in the sky | Contest level |
|---|---|---|
| Skeleton Fort | Large skull cloud with green thundering eyes | High |
| Fort of Fortune | Glowing red cracked skull cloud | Very high |
| Reaper Fortress | Dark gray skull cloud in a hat, glowing red eyes | Very high |
| Skeleton Fleet | Large green cloud shaped like a ship | High |
| Fleet of Fortune | Large glowing red cloud shaped like a ship | Very high |
| Ghost Fleet | Thin green tornado over an island | Medium |
| Ashen Winds | Massive red tornado on the horizon | Medium |
| Burning Blade | Red-orange beacon from the flame atop the center mast | High |
| Kraken | Nothing. Sound cue and black water | None, it finds you |
The color rule is worth memorizing on its own. Green is the standard version. Red is the fortune version, worth substantially more and guaranteed to be busy.
Before you commit to a red event, count the sails between you and it. A Fort of Fortune with three ships already converging is not a treasure run, it is a three-way naval battle where the loot goes to whoever is left. Sometimes the smart play is letting them fight and arriving late.
Forts
Skeleton Fort is the entry-level raid. Sail into range, the event activates, and you fight waves of skeletons until a boss wave drops a key. The key opens the vault, and the vault holds Stronghold treasure, an Ashen Chest, a Villainous Bounty Skull, and Mermaid Gems.
Fort of Fortune is the same structure with harder waves and much better loot, including Athena's-tier items.
Reaper Fortress drops Reaper's Bones and Smugglers' League valued items and comes with phantom waves rather than standard skeletons.
The standard fort mistake is anchoring right at the dock. Your ship sits unattended for the entire fight, in plain view, at the exact location every other crew is sailing toward. Park around the back of the island instead, out of the approach line.
Fleets
Skeleton Fleet spawns in open water and runs in waves of skeleton ships. Sinking them drops Skeleton Captain's Chests, Ritual Skulls, and Ashen Chests, and the final wave is the payout wave.
Fleet of Fortune is the red version and adds the Chest of Fortune.
Fleets are more dangerous than forts for one reason: you fight them at sea, with your ship taking damage the entire time, which leaves you already holed and already low on planks when a real crew shows up. Bring resources. Fights at fleets are decided by who has planks left.
Ghost Fleet works differently. A thin green tornado over an island summons Flameheart's armada, and the ghost ships fade in and out rather than sitting solid. It drops the Captain Skull of the Damned and ghostly treasures. It was pulled from the game after patch 2.4.2 and brought back in Season 9 with the tornado indicator replacing Flameheart's old appearance in the sky.
Ashen Winds and the Burning Blade
Ashen Winds puts a massive red tornado on the horizon and summons an Ashen Lord. Kill it and you get the Ashen Winds Skull, which is the one piece of treasure in the game that doubles as a weapon: hold it and it breathes fire, with limited charges. Players routinely sell it without ever firing it, which is a waste.
Burning Blade is a ship rather than a place. Captain Flameheart's flagship sails with a red-orange flame beacon at its center mast, and a crew can board it, take it, and then sail it themselves. Taking the helm of the Burning Blade turns you into the server's most visible target instantly, because everyone can see that beacon from anywhere on the map.
The Kraken and the Megalodon
Neither of these is a cloud event. Both come to you.
The Kraken announces itself with a sound cue and the water around your ship turning black with ink. Tentacles come up around the hull, grab crew members, and can swallow them. It has no health bar you can see and it does not drop a treasure hoard worth chasing.
The honest advice: a new crew should sail out of the ink and keep going. The Kraken does not follow you, and fighting it costs you hull integrity and planks you will want later.
Megalodons are roaming sharks that ram your hull. Same logic applies early on. Sail away.
The Kraken frequently spawns on ships that are already loaded with loot after finishing another event. Getting jumped by it with a full hold and a damaged hull is how crews lose four hours of work to an enemy they never had to fight.
How do you decide which event to run?
Ask three questions before turning the wheel.
- How full is your hold? A loaded ship should be selling, not raiding.
- How many sails can you see? Every visible ship is a crew that also saw the signal.
- Do you have planks, cannonballs, and food? Events drain all three, and the fight after the event is the one that matters.
Crews that treat world events as loot piñatas lose their haul constantly. Crews that treat them as bait, and plan the sell run before they start, keep it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a red skull cloud mean in Sea of Thieves?
A red cracked skull cloud is a Fort of Fortune, the high-value version of the standard Skeleton Fort. Green signals mean the standard version of an event and red signals mean the fortune version, which pays far more and draws far more crews.
Does the Kraken have a sky signal?
No. The Kraken is the only major encounter with no cloud or beacon. It announces itself through a sound cue and the water around your ship turning black with ink, and it targets ships directly rather than spawning at a location.
What is the Ashen Winds Skull used for?
It is treasure that also works as a weapon. Hold it and it breathes fire with a limited number of charges, which makes it useful against boarders or skeleton waves before you sell it. Most players cash it in without ever firing it.
Where should you park your ship at a Skeleton Fort?
Around the back of the island, off the approach line, rather than at the dock. Your ship sits unattended for the whole fight, and docking in plain sight puts it directly in the path of every crew sailing toward the same skull cloud.
Was the Ghost Fleet removed from Sea of Thieves?
It was disabled after patch 2.4.2 and later brought back in Season 9. The returning version uses a thin green tornado over an island as its signal, replacing Captain Flameheart's earlier appearance in the sky.
What to Read Next
- Ship Combat and Damage Control. Surviving the crew that turns up while you are mid-raid.
- Voyages and Treasure. What Stronghold chests and Ancient Tributes sell for and where.
- PvP and the Hourglass of Fate. Opting into fights instead of having them find you at a fort.
- Ships and Sailing. Getting to the event before the other three crews do.
- Trading Companies and Reputation. Which faction to sell event loot to.