Skeleton Ships

@phenexspirit I'm a solo slooper and yes taking them out is hard but not impossible. My best advice is before you get too far out to sea, stop at every barrel that you can find for CCB's. That and a keg or two in the hold will give you a decent edge but if executed poorly, you will lose. They are tough sons o bananas that's for sure! I have defeated a few but until after they've dang near depleted my stores of cannon balls and planks.

You can also rub up along side them to punch a hole in your boat and bail all your water into them. Make sure you hit them at least once with a cannonball first so it counts for you sinking it.

Can also throw a chest of sorrows on their deck :)

As others have said, even solo those can be easily dispatched once you know how to use those tricks against them. Take notes on the suggestions here, people are giving great advices.

My strategy of choice with cursed balls is the ballastball. Pepper holes on the same side (waterline or not, won't matter) then one ballastball and water pours in from every holes you made, sinks them super fast. An anchorball beforehand to give you more time to spread damage is even better.

So yeah, taking in account all the strategies given in this thread, I don't think the ghost ships need any nerfing either. Good luck on the seas!

Apologies bro, but you need to up your strategy. Please don't asks for nerfs. Kraken been nerfed so bad it runs back to its room crying if you call it names.

@phenexspirit there many like me that solo them.

Skeleton ships are perfectly suited to handle with any type of crew. It just requires practice and some strategy.

If you need help there people that have written guides, in short:

1. have a good start, the moment the music plays start moving
2. don't get knocked off or die, watch out for flying objects
3. stay near them or in their blind spot, avoid being fully broadsided.
4. they cannot bail, so anything that adds water is progress. Cannon shots, kegs, bailing water into them, rain, etc. All will cause them to perish.

Good luck out there and practice, learn from those moments that you sink.

I often solo skellie ships and rarely get sunk. A lot of good advice has been given here. But my favorite tactic is to run for the nearest large island. I get as close as I can, then turn and fight. The skellie ship will start to orbit the island, giving you plenty of time to repair and bail between volleys. Some islands even have cannons you can use to your advantage while the ship circles. You'll also have plenty of time to keg the vessel, bail water on it, or whatever else you want. It slows down the fight so you can win the battle on your own terms. It's not the fastest method, but it never fails me.

If you're caught on the open sea and can't make it to a large island, you'll have to use the tactics others have given above to win the battle. It's not that hard, especially with a two-person crew. Keep at it!

I play solo quite often (and got my levels into the mid 30s solo as well) and what you need is experience and patience. These ships are not as hard as you think they are. Make sure you stock up with supplies, even cursed cannonballs. Don't forget to stay calm and have 1 person dedicated to repairs/bailing water as much as possible. if solo make sure you keep your boat afloat more than trying to sink the skele ship. always be on the lookout for other ships too as they might try to swoop in and take advantage of the situation too.

@PhenexSpirit As someone who actively seeks out skelly ships, this is excellent advice from @Genuine-Heather here. When out on the open seas there have been a lot of great suggestions here, and one thing I always make sure of is stopping at the first inactive fort to load up on gunpowder barrels. There's always one in sight when you spawn in, and often come with a rowboat to make transportation easier.

@phenexspirit HEY THERE! Sorry to burst the bubble on this but Skeleton Ships are not as hard to take down...at all. It takes quick planning when they spawn and the right cannonballs (curse ones) to take then down. I solo sloop and managed to take down a couple (those that come up next to you while out in about), but if you are your friend are in a predicament, here are some tips:

• Have one shoot while on is bucketing water and repairing.
• If the Skeleton Ship hits you, use the water and throw it on their boat (make sure you are clear from them shooting at you on the Skeleton).
• Watch your surroundings (sometimes you will get distracted and hit something).
• Curse Cannonballs are key (use them [if one does have some]). If not, then blast the lowest deck on the boat.
• Serpentine all the time, there is a 50/50 percent accuracy with them shooting at you.
• Get in a position to where they cannot cannon fire you (go in front or behind if they are trying to turn as well).
• Eat bananas whenever you are less than %75 of health.

I hope these work for you next time you go out there again. Besides, it takes like 12 to 15 shots to the bottom and 7 to 8 at the mid-deck and then they are defeated.

@bugaboo-bill agreed. Take a day off from voyages and load up with everything that we've mentioned here and go skellie ship hunting, they're everywhere. You can't teach experience and this is the best way to get it. By nerfing the skellie ships, you degrade the play for those with experience.

My two man sloop took on and defeated several last night. I'm sure it has been mentioned to take advantage of islands and rocks. Skellies seem to not worry about smashing their ships into these obstacles. Run about half sail and hug the island/rocks.

Good luck.

@phenexspirit said in Skeleton Ships:

Could I get a Nerf here? If you're in a sloop, with only a two-man crew, YOU CAN NOT ESCAPE OR DESTROY SKELETON SHIPS...

What?! You can easily down a skele with a little bit of coordination and strategy on a 2-man sloop. I do it on a solo sloop.

What you said is just flat-out incorrect.

@prorapidkiller said in Skeleton Ships:

@phenexspirit HEY THERE! Sorry to burst the bubble on this but Skeleton Ships are not as hard to take down...at all. It takes quick planning when they spawn and the right cannonballs (curse ones) to take then down. I solo sloop and managed to take down a couple (those that come up next to you while out in about), but if you are your friend are in a predicament, here are some tips:

• Have one shoot while on is bucketing water and repairing.
• If the Skeleton Ship hits you, use the water and throw it on their boat (make sure you are clear from them shooting at you on the Skeleton).
• Watch your surroundings (sometimes you will get distracted and hit something).
• Curse Cannonballs are key (use them [if one does have some]). If not, then blast the lowest deck on the boat.
• Serpentine all the time, there is a 50/50 percent accuracy with them shooting at you.
• Get in a position to where they cannot cannon fire you (go in front or behind if they are trying to turn as well).
• Eat bananas whenever you are less than %75 of health.

I hope these work for you next time you go out there again. Besides, it takes like 12 to 15 shots to the bottom and 7 to 8 at the mid-deck and then they are defeated.

You forgot a couple of things...

• Powder kegs are your friend. You can either keg the skele from outside, or jump their deck and keg them from the inside.
• Skeles can be killed and prevented from repairing, just like anyone else. If you are inside, you can camp their lower deck to prevent them from plugging holes that you've made.

(Man, there really is some solid advice in this thread)

lol you just need to get good at the game, i solo sloop and I easily sink alot of skelly ships

@phenexspirit Me and my friend on a sloop have sunk like 20+ skelly ships in the past 2 days easy. Get a gunpowder, dump it on their lowest level right by the stairs. Run away so you don't die then just stop them from reparing till it fills up. If you're scared to do that then just take 2 gunpowder, 1 on top 1 on bottom them bam it'll sink in about 20 seconds.