Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event: Blowdarts, grapple gun, traps, and more in Season 14

The Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event's final section contained information about Season 14, which aims to target two specific areas of the game - stealth and mischief. The final seasonal update of 2024 will introduce new ways to traverse the maps while also bringing in some pesky tools and mechanisms to make combat more mischievous.

This article explores the new additions, like the harpoon gun, and discusses all the changes the developers discussed in the Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event for Season 14.

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Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event: Developers' thoughts for Season 14

Developers at Rare want to focus on a more sandbox-focused approach so that players can bring out their own flair with various options available to them. In the Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event, developers said:

"Internally we're referring to Season 14 as Pirates of Mischief. Sea of Thieves has always had this playful, mischievous, and funny sense of humor, and with Season 14 we're expanding on that. The two main areas that we're exploring are new ways to stealth and new ways to cause mischief in the world."

Stealth is not new to Sea of Thieves, and tucking has been a core mechanic for players in the game. The Preview Event talked about adding a possible feature where players can hide inside treasure chests, taking inspiration from the Metal Gear Solid series.

Potentially, players can also carry these chests with other players inside them, unknowingly sabotaging their own ship in the process.

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Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event: New weapons and tools in Season 14

Although Season 12 will see the addition of a few new weapons, Rare takes it a step forward with even more weapons for Season 14 :

Blowdarts

The Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event talked about a possible blowdart weapon that players can wield from the armory. These blowdarts could possibly have a variety of effects, like tracking whatever it sticks to, be it a player, a ship, or even loot. Blowdarts can also have possible lure effects that can taunt a horde of enemies to one spot and then blow them up with a big boom.

Blowdarts can even have effects that replicate sound effects, like the dropping of a capstan or the continuous spinning of the wheel. Developers term this as "quite evil and cunning".

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Grapple Gun

The Grapple Gun as seen in Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event (Image via Rare)

The Grapple Gun resembles an Eye of Reach, except its muzzle is loaded with a sharp arrow. It allows pirates to zip around by grappling onto ledges and higher areas, saving them precious time. This grappling prowess also extends to boarding enemy ships.

Players can fire themselves from cannons toward enemy ships and grapple onto their decks or swing from their own ship to a target vessel. The Grapple Gun even adds a new layer of complexity to combat, allowing pirates to snag items and even other players.

But it's not all fun and games, as the grapple gun has limited ammo that breaks upon use. This forces players to be strategic and accurate with their shots, adding a skill element to mastering this exciting new tool.

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Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event: Traps in Season 14

In the Sea of Thieves 2024 Preview Event, developers at Rare mentioned that they are looking to increase the mischief factor in Sea of Thieves.

"And then thinking about some of the ways that we want to add more mischief to the world, one of these is the idea of traps."

Taking inspiration from blunderbombs and firebombs, developers are looking to add mischief to the world of Sea of Thieves in Season 14 with throwable traps. These traps, envisioned as spring-loaded contraptions, could be strategically placed in various locations to hinder enemy pirates.

Players can also employ these traps defensively by placing them at the top of their ship's ladders to deny an unsuspecting pirate attempting to board their vessel, only to be met with a nasty surprise from a well-placed trap.