Since you’ve decided to continue Sunless Skies, you’ve probably made it out of the Reach and ventured forth to Albion, and you're probably in need of some more Sunless Skies tips. Things start to get bigger in scope, and the story expands much more once you get out of the Reach. That's why we've put together this Sunless Skies Advanced Tips Guide to help you get to grips with the later, tougher sections of the game through upgrades, weapons, enemy hints, and more.
Upgrading Your Locomotive
Don’t add more crew to your locomotive until you need them. Unless you’re going on a particularly risky expedition and need four extra officers, they’re just going to use up more supplies while you go about your normal business. Note: If you’re the type of Captain who runs through crew like a 14-year-old goes through pixie stix, you may want to grab some more. There are different strategies that you can use for different play styles.
Add on pieces to your locomotive that do more than one thing. If you need a cannery for the Butcher skill, take one that also adds hold space. Crew quarters a necessity, so grab ones that also add armor. The extra cost is worth it, and it can also help you balance the weight of your locomotive. The Royal Society in Albion is particularly helpful for finding multipurpose add-ons, though they charge unusual prices.
Some add-ons for your locomotive require skills to be at a certain level before they can be used. While it's easy enough to get all of your skill points up to 25, particularly with Officers equipped, it's much harder to get levels up to 50 and 75. If there’s a piece of specific equipment that you’re aiming for, try tailoring your level ups to acquire it quicker.
Upgrading Weapons
Weapons fire either one shot or multiple ones at a time, and the pictures next to them denote which is which. Pay attention to what type of salvo you use and change your equipment or your tactics depending on which enemy you’re facing.
When equipping weapons, check Heat vs Damage. Once you overheat your engine, you can’t strafe left and right to dodge attacks. You might do more with a 5-damage weapon that you can fire 10 times in a row instead of a 20-damage weapon you can only fire twice.
Different weapons also have different ranges, so depending on what your fighting style is you may want to equip differently. Just because one weapon is more expensive doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better for your captain. If you fight well with short-range weapons, there's no reason to waste sovereigns buying a long range one.
Pieces of certain defeated monsters can help you acquire better weapons if you don’t want to use them as lab specimens or other purposes.
Enemies and General Hints
Enemies that randomly spawn when you collect honey or scavenge from a wreck can be frustrating, so sometimes if you’re running super low on Hull, it may be better to avoid picking up any extra cargo.
Some items appear as Bargains with greater frequency than others. Figure out which are the rare ones and make sure you stock up for your Bank when you find them. Items will also appear as Prospects with varying frequency, but they aren't necessarily the rare Bargains.
Sometimes if you're in a tight spot, the best way to deal with the situation is to flee. Not all enemies can be outrun, and some have a longer range that they’re willing to chase you over than others. Thankfully, all ports and transit relays are safe zones. It is extremely important to remember that an enemy may still hang around while you’re docked and attack you once you leave.
We also have some beginner's tips for any players who are still learning the ropes, or you might enjoy our look back at the game's first anniversary.
Be sure to also check out our Eleutheria and the Blue Kingdom guide.
Courtney Ehrenholfer is an aspiring novelist and screenwriter, and current journalist who greatly enjoys video games, especially those of the point and… More about Courtney
