There’s no more dramatic part of a pirate adventure than a fierce naval battle that ends with the boarding of either ship. In Skull & Bones, you may not be able to fight aboard enemy ships, but you certainly can board them for extra spoils.
How to Board Ships in Skull & Bones
Unfortunately, the maneuver is a little tricky. You may have seen the prompt (R on keyboard, Y on controller) during a fierce battle with a Campagnie merchant that suggests you can board; however, every time you try, nothing happens.
To board an enemy vessel in Skull & Bones, you’ll first have to get it under half health. That’s when the prompt to board will appear if you are close enough while aiming your weapons. If you’re not aiming, you can pull out the spyglass instead. Pressing the prompt key while aiming will shoot out rope hooks that, even if they strike the enemy, may not allow you to board; this is because you have to line up nearly perfectly alongside the opposing ship first.
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It is much more difficult — if not impossible — to board an enemy ship if other ships are also in combat with you. Do so only if you’re engaging a single enemy.
The best way to board is to slow down (pressing the S key or pulling back on the joystick) as you approach from the rear of the sinking ship. Most ships do not have defenses on their stern, so should be relatively safe this way. Then, pull alongside and fire the rope hooks slightly ahead of where you want them to land. If you’ve done it correctly, a short cutscene that shows your crew boarding the enemy ship will trigger, and you’ll be awarded extra spoils for taking them out.
There’s no hand-to-hand combat in Skull & Bones at launch, so you don’t need to worry about fighting for your life.
With this information under your belt, you should be good to go for getting on board enemy ships in Skull & Bones. Enjoy the rare commodities earned that you can then sell or use to upgrade your own ship as you plunder the Red Isles and beyond.
