All Sea of Thieves world events and cloud markers

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We explain every world event in Sea of Thieves and what clouds or tornadoes mean

Sea of Thieves world events
(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)

The Sea of Thieves world events are special randomised events that appear at different points in servers, with at least one active at any one time. If you've seen giant clouds shaped like skulls or tornadoes on the horizons, those mark SoT's various world events - special challenges for brave or bold players that can be triggered by whoever approaches them. If you survive, you'll sail away with a hold full of treasure - but that's a big if. Still, if you're seeing strange portents on the horizon, here's all the world events in Sea of Thieves, and what you can expect to find once you make it there.

All World Events in Sea of Thieves

Sea of Thieves world events

(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)

At time of writing there are five world events in Sea of Thieves, some of which involve fighting enemies hand-to-hand, others of which focus more on ship combat. We've listed them all below, as well as what weather and cloud markers show them, and what you can expect once you sail there. 

Keep in mind that no matter which of these you're heading for, you'll want to be ready for combat, either on the high seas or hand-to-hand, so make sure you have plenty of food provisions and throwables ready to go.

  • Skull-shaped cloud with green eyes: Skeleton Fort world event. Players who land at the Sea of Thieves skeleton fort under the Cloud fight twelve waves of Skeleton enemies, all to earn a key that opens the fort's vault.
  • Skull-shaped cloud with red/orange eyes and vertical cracks on its crown. Fort of Fortune world event. A more deadly version of the Skeleton Fort, where players have to fight an Ashen Lord for greater rewards.
  • Red/orange cloud in the shape of a three-sailed ship. Skeleton Fleet world event. Sailing to this marker triggers skeleton-controlled ships to appear and attack the player. Three waves of ships attack, and each ship drops loot.
  • Green tornado rising up to a black cloud. Ghost Fleet world event. Sailing to this marker causes ghostly ships to appear and attack the player in waves. The final wave includes the Burning Blade, a boss ship. The Burning Blade and all ships with the Ashen Dragon symbol on their sails drops loot when defeated.
  • Red/orange tornado rising up to a grey cloud. Ashen Winds world event. Sailing to the island beneath this marker will push you into an encounter with an Ashen Lord, a powerful skeleton boss with fire powers. Defeating the Ashen Lord drops a variety of treasure, including the Ashen Winds Skull, which is sold for large amounts of money and reputation, or can be used as a flamethrower.

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Joel Franey
Joel Franey
Guides Editor, GamesRadar+

Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and Very Tired Man with a BA from Brunel University, a Masters from Sussex University and a decade working in games journalism, often focused on guides coverage but also in reviews, features and news. His love of games is strongest when it comes to groundbreaking narratives like Disco Elysium, UnderTale and Baldur's Gate 3, as well as innovative or refined gameplay experiences like XCOM, Sifu, Arkham Asylum or Slay the Spire. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at Eurogamer, Gfinity, USgamer, SFX Magazine, RPS, Dicebreaker, VG247, and more.