2018-05-08T19:00:15 02:00

Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire - Ship Guide

In our ship guide for Pillars of Eternity 2 you will learn:

What you need to take care of at sea
Where to get equipment and crew members
How to successfully fight sea battles

Although Pillars of Eternity 2 starts on a small island, where you complete the first quests and battles with your hero and his crewmates, the game world opens up pretty quickly.

Then there are lots of large and small islands open to you, to which you can sail with your own sailing ship. However, your barge is not just a means of transportation, but a game element in its own right that demands a lot of attention.

To survive on the water, you need a crew and supplies. These will help you with logistics and battles on the high seas. So that you don't sink to the bottom of the sea time and time again in the first few hours of the game, we'll tell you here what you should keep in mind when sailing in Pillars of Eternity 2.

All ship values in Pillars of Eternity 2 explained
How do I get provisions?
Where can I hire new crew members?
How do ship battles occur in Pillars of Eternity 2?
How do the naval battles work?
What is the best tactic to use?

All ship stats explained in Pillars of Eternity 2

Ship management is one of the most important elements in Pillars of Eternity 2 (), because the better you take care of your sloop's equipment and crew, the more successful you will be at sea.

You'll have to keep an eye on the following values:

Morale: This value shows how the mood of your crew is. The maximum value is 100, and the lower it gets, the angrier your crew is. This can lead to scuffles among your men and, in the worst case, even mut iny. Morale can be boosted by eating better, defeating enemy ships, and sharing loot with your crew.
Food supply: Here you can see how the provisions on your ship are doing. If you have little food, the morale of your crew will inevitably drop. Therefore you can read via mouse-over how much food is consumed per day. Your crewmates can survive up to 15 days without meals, but then there is a risk that the boys and girls will die.

Drinks: Similar to food, the morale of a thirsty crew drops. Therefore, you should always have enough drinks with you. The crew will only last three days before the chance of your fellow crew members dying increases enormously.
Medicine: Food and drink alone will not keep your crew on their feet if they are injured in battle. Therefore, you should always have enough medicine on board. Injured crew members will only heal if they are in the reserve cabins. In addition, having a surgeon later on will help reduce the consumption of medicine.

Ammunition: This value indicates how many bullets you have for your ship's cannons. Without enough ammunition, you won't even need to enter the battle.
Repair: Here you can find out if your ship is damaged. The repair will only take place if you have the appropriate materials such as mortar, wood or linen cloth with you and only as long as the supply lasts.

How do I get provisions, medicine and materials?

Now you know that you need provisions, medicine and materials to keep your ship running in Pillars of Eternity 2. But of course we also want to tell you where you can get all these things.

The best places to go are port citiessuch as Port Maje. You'll discover the city on the first island you explore in Deadfire. In such metropolises there is a trading post at the port. There you can not only change your hero's specialization, but also buy food, ammunition and so on for your ship.

But of course, the merchants don't sell their important goods for free. Therefore, you should make sure that you sell unnecessary equipment so that you have enough cash to buy enough food and drink for your crew. Because if you run out of meals and drinks on the high seas, it can be fatal.

Where can I hire new crew members?

Now that you know where to get all the materials you need to keep your ship running smoothly, let's move on to the crew itself. These ladies and gentlemen are essential for your excursions on the high seas.

If you don't have enough people on board, important positions will remain unfilled. You may not be able to use any or all of your cannons in a naval battle - just to name one negative effect as an example.

General note: If you want to manage your crew, click on the ship icon at the bottom center of Pillars of Eternity 2's main screen. There you'll see all the important information and stats (see screenshot above), and you can also assign crew to their positions. As long as you have an exactly fitting crew, Pillars of Eternity 2 will do this for you automatically.

At the beginning, you'll first have to recruit a crew. Again, port cities like Port Maje are the right place to start. Go to the tavern and talk to the barkeeper. You can not only trade with him, take a room for the night or hire adventurers for the trips ashore. The guy also knows who of his guests is a good sailor.

Accordingly, you can inspect and hire the potential crew members in a separate screen. For each character, Pillars of Eternity 2 will show you what positions he or she can take on and how good the character is at this job - that is, whether he or she is fit to be a gunner, navigator and so on. You'll also find out how many gold pieces you 'll have to pay for the character per day and how much food and drink he or she consumes.

You should always keep in mind which positions you may already have filled or what experience level your crew has, so that you don't hire unsuitable candidates who consume money and provisions unnecessarily.

How do ship battles happen in Pillars of Eternity 2?

When you finally have everything your ship needs to progress on the high seas, then nothing will stand in the way of your sailing trip in Pillars of Eternity 2.

In the vastness of the ocean, there are not only new islands, valuable treasures, or sunken ships waiting for you to explore or salvage them. You'll also meet other ships again and again, which aren't always up to no good.

Pillars of Eternity 2 presents such moments in the form of interactive texts. Here you can read what's happening and you'll always have to decide how you want to act. An alien ship doesn't always have to be an enemy pirate.

Therefore you have to decide if you want to try to escape or if you want to wait and see what the stranger is up to. Of course, you can also switch directly to attack mode and fire your cannons to ask questions afterwards.

How do the naval battles work?

Ship battles in Pillars of Eternity 2 are turn-based. You can see the stats of your ship in the lower area of the screen on the left and those of your opponent on the right. There, Pillars of Eternity 2 shows you how much ammo both parties have left, how many crew members are still alive and how your ship is doing.

In the upper text area, you have the choice between various actions, of which one per round can be executed. Before doing so, however, you'll have to decide whether you're going to engage in ranged combat or head straight for the other ship.

Once the battle is underway, you have the following options:

sail at full power or half power to shorten the distance to the enemy
stand still to improve the accuracy of the cannons
turn the ship to the left or right
replace injured crew members
fire the cannons
prepare for a collision and thus reduce damage

Once you give an order, your crew will execute it. After that, it's your opponent's turn. At the bottom center, you can also see how far away you are from the enemy ship and how the two ships stand in relation to each other.

This information will help you decide whether it's worth firing and how likely your opponent is to hit you. You'll also see when it's possible to start a boarding maneuver and fight against the remains of the enemy crew on the planks.

What is the best tactic in ship combat?

The best tactic always depends on your ship and the enemy ship. Who is faster and who has the higher firepower? These are aspects that you should strongly consider. In the course of the game you can acquire various ships. However, with your starting ship, the Defiant, you'll be fine for quite a while.

Here are some examples of combat scenarios and how you should approach them:

If your cannons have a higher range than your opponent's, destroy his sail and keep him at a distance.
If your cannons are effective at close range, but the enemy's are not, then drive up to him and strafe his crew (works especially well with large ships).
With a fast ship like the Defiant, use your speed advantage over large ships that often take several rounds to turn.

Finally, a few general tips that will make your sea travels easier:

Get the binoculars in Sanza's Map Imperium in Neketaka for 5,000 coins.
The most powerful cannons in the game are the Double Bronzers.
With an inexperienced crew, changing positions in battle can take two turns - remember to press Repost!
You can swap seamen only in one city.
Always go into ranged combat first before boarding to weaken the enemy crew.
Raise certain flags to be left alone by some factions.

If you're starting a new game and wondering if it's worth creating a multi-class character, we've got the Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire character guide for you.

Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire was released on May 08, 2018 for the PC. In the meantime, there are also versions for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.