Danger is a crucial element of the pirate fantasy, which is why the oceans of Sea of Thieves and Skull and Bones are plagued with enemy ships. Trying to live a quiet life on a merchant vessel free of conflict isn’t an option in Skull and Bones, because there’s always somebody with a deck full of cannons waiting to deprive you of whatever you have on board. There are a ton of PvE enemies in the game belonging to various factions, but what about PvP foes? You’re sharing the high seas with plenty of players, but what happens if they turn their cannons on you? Does Skull and Bones have PvP?
Skull and Bones PvP Details
Skull and Bones does have PvP, but it has some restrictions that you need to be aware of. Unlike Eve Online and similar games, PvP is limited. You can’t just cruise up to another ship and start blasting them. Well, you can, but nothing will happen. Firing your cannons at another player’s ship does no damage, and you won’t take any damage from other players firing on you. Sailing is still dangerous, of course, but it’s PvP threats you’ll have to worry about instead of other players, at least by default. There isn’t a toggle in the options to turn PvP on, either. That said, there is PvP in Skull and Bones if you know where to look.
PvP in Skull and Bones is limited to specific world events since there are no PvP servers. Instead, a PvP event like Cutthroat Cargo Hunt will periodically spawn on the map, and you can join it by sailing to that location. It’s every pirate for themselves in these free-for-all events as you compete to make off with a legendary treasure map. Unfortunately, poorly balanced sailing speeds mean there’s no real way to catch another player if they have a headstart. That means you’ll only get to fight another player if both of you feel like it. With any luck, Ubisoft will add more (and better) PvP options to Skull and Bones in the future, because right now the pirate’s life is a bit meek.
Skull and Bones is available for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
