{"id":24387,"date":"2026-10-15T14:45:44","date_gmt":"2026-10-15T14:45:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/igamemag.com\/?p=24387"},"modified":"2026-10-15T14:45:45","modified_gmt":"2026-10-15T14:45:45","slug":"windrose-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/igamemag.com\/en-gb\/windrose-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Windrose Guide: 15 Tips Every New Captain Should Know (2026)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Windrose doesn’t explain itself, and its first few hours can be brutal. This Windrose guide<\/strong> collects the 15 things we wish every new captain knew, from surviving its punishing combat to getting your first ship and handling sea battles. It also covers what’s coming next, because Kraken Express has confirmed the first major update, Ashlands<\/strong>, is due this winter<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Windrose has been in Early Access on Steam and the Epic Games Store since 14 April 2026, has sold more than 2 million copies, and costs \u00a324.99 \/ $29.99 (10% off at the time of writing). The tips below are based on Kraken Express’s official FAQ and patch notes, and on the most helpful Steam community guides, credited at the end.<\/p>\n

Windrose guide: the essentials at a glance<\/h2>\n\n
Genre<\/strong><\/td>Pirate survival adventure (PvE)<\/td><\/tr>\n
Status<\/strong><\/td>Early Access since 14 April 2026 (Steam and Epic)<\/td><\/tr>\n
Price<\/strong><\/td>\u00a324.99 \/ $29.99 (currently \u00a322.49 \/ $26.99 on Steam)<\/td><\/tr>\n
Players<\/strong><\/td>Solo offline or co-op up to 8 (developer recommends up to 4)<\/td><\/tr>\n
Servers<\/strong><\/td>Self-hosted or dedicated servers<\/td><\/tr>\n
Developer<\/strong><\/td>Kraken Express (publisher in Japan: Pocketpair Publishing)<\/td><\/tr>\n
Next update<\/strong><\/td>Ashlands, expected this winter<\/td><\/tr>\n
Steam reviews<\/strong><\/td>Very Positive, 87% of 53,000+<\/td><\/tr>\n<\/tbody><\/table>\n

1. Learn to dodge and parry from your first fight<\/h2>\n

You start weak and you stay fragile, so brute force gets you killed. Combat is a soulslite stamina system: fight in short bursts, back off, let your stamina recover, then go again. Dodge<\/strong> and parry<\/strong> are your best tools against both animals and pirates, so practise them on the first boars you meet, and put your early points into stamina<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

2. Never sprint until your stamina runs out<\/h2>\n

Running on empty leaves you defenceless if a group of boars jumps you. Sprint to about half your stamina, walk for a moment, then sprint again. Stamina comes back quickly, so you lose almost no time and always keep a reserve for a fight. In the jungle, keep your weapon drawn so you can react straight away.<\/p>\n

3. Treat guns as an opener, not your main weapon<\/h2>\n

Pistols and muskets hit hard but reload slowly, and ammunition is scarce early on. Fire one shot as an enemy closes in, then switch to melee. Later, with better guns, headshots become a real option. Keep an eye out for closed scallops<\/strong> on beaches, because they can contain pearls you can use as ammunition.<\/p>\n

4. Eat before you head out, not while you’re at home<\/h2>\n

Food gives powerful buffs, much stronger than in most survival games, and you won’t starve to death while you’re safe in your base. Save your cooked food for when you leave to explore, fight or take on a boss, and eat it close to the danger so the buff lasts. Coconuts are everywhere early on and stack up to 50.<\/p>\n

5. How do you level up in Windrose?<\/h2>\n

Levelling is slow, and you don’t earn XP for killing the same enemies over and over. XP comes mainly from quests<\/strong> and discoveries<\/strong>, such as looting the one-off chests at points of interest. The map shows how many you’ve found at each location (for example 0\/2), so clear every discovery on an island before moving on. Each level gives points for your attributes and talents.<\/p>\n

6. Build early, and build to fight<\/h2>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Plant fibres from bushes are enough to build your first small shelter, and you can recycle any building piece for its materials. Building isn’t just for bases, either: put up a quick wall, platform or tower before a tough fight so enemies can’t surround you, and funnel them towards you one or two at a time. Building pieces got cheaper in patch 0.10.0.4, so experiment.<\/p>\n

7. Get the Rested buff by decorating<\/h2>\n

The Rested<\/strong> buff is one of the strongest in the game. You raise your comfort level by building at least one item from each decoration category in your home, so a cosy base with a bed, a chair, lighting and a few decorations is worth the effort.<\/p>\n

8. Mark everything on your map<\/h2>\n

Resources and important spots on an island always spawn in the same places. Right-click your map to add markers for plants, dodo nests, clay near the shore, sulphur rocks, camps and ruins, and tick the option to show them outside the mini-map border. Farming an island becomes much quicker when you can see where everything is as you walk. Torches cost just two wood, so light up caves as you go.<\/p>\n

9. Mines respawn, so clear them fully<\/h2>\n

You need copper from mines for early weapons and tools, and nearly every island has one. Ore respawns after a few in-game days, so empty your inventory before you go in and clear the whole mine. Sleeping in your bed passes time if you’re waiting for it to refill.<\/p>\n

10. Plant a fast travel point on every new island<\/h2>\n

Fast travel only takes seconds, which makes inventory space much less of a problem. Whenever you land on a new island, build a fast travel structure<\/strong> on the beach straight away, so carry the materials with you. A small hut with a bed you can set as your respawn point is worth building too.<\/p>\n

11. Know what you lose when you die<\/h2>\n

When you die, you keep your equipped gear, but your inventory stays with your body, and you need to go back to collect it. Common items stay on your corpse, while rarer items in your inventory are kept. Fight a little away from where enemies spawn, so your body isn’t sitting in the middle of them when you go back.<\/p>\n

12. Recall your ship from anywhere<\/h2>\n

Getting your first ship takes a while, so don’t rush it. Once you have one, you can recall it<\/strong> from almost anywhere, even after fast travelling, which makes it easy to haul cargo between islands. Choose your hull to suit your style: Windrose lets you sail anything from a nimble ketch to a brig or a heavy frigate.<\/p>\n

13. Avoid sea battles until you’re ready<\/h2>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Dying at sea is painful: you respawn on land and have to sail back to your body. Naval fights mix cannon fire at range with boarding actions, and one or two ship upgrades make a huge difference, so upgrade before you pick fights. Cannon fire works properly again after patches 0.10.0.8 and 0.10.0.9, which fixed hits not registering on hulls, sails and sterns. Expect plenty of enemy ships, which is one of players’ most common complaints.<\/p>\n

14. Play co-op in groups of four or fewer<\/h2>\n

Windrose supports up to 8 players, but Kraken Express recommends up to 4 for the best performance, especially late in the game, and says bosses aren’t balanced for bigger groups. If you can’t connect to friends, the official FAQ suggests everyone picks the same connection region, then trying Force Relay Connection<\/strong> in the settings, or a direct IP connection. Dedicated servers are supported, including Linux Docker images since patch 0.10.0.7.<\/p>\n

15. Back up your saves<\/h2>\n

Early Access saves have had problems. Patch 0.10.0.5 added automatic backups every 10 minutes and on exit, and a recovery screen if a save breaks. Your saves live in %localappdata%R5SavedSaveProfiles<\/strong>, so copy that folder somewhere safe before big updates like Ashlands, and follow the official FAQ if a save won’t load. Kraken Express also asks you to back up before using mods.<\/p>\n

Windrose PC requirements<\/h2>\n\n
<\/td>Minimum<\/strong><\/td>Recommended<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>\n
CPU<\/strong><\/td>Intel Core i7-8700K \/ AMD Ryzen 7 2700X<\/td>Intel Core i7-10700 \/ AMD Ryzen 7 5800X<\/td><\/tr>\n
RAM<\/strong><\/td>16 GB (more if you host)<\/td>32 GB<\/td><\/tr>\n
GPU<\/strong><\/td>GTX 1080 Ti \/ RX 6800<\/td>RTX 3080 \/ RX 6800 XT<\/td><\/tr>\n
Storage<\/strong><\/td>30 GB, SSD strongly recommended<\/td><\/tr>\n<\/tbody><\/table>\n

If you’re on an AMD graphics card and crashing, the official FAQ notes stability problems with one Adrenalin driver version and suggests trying an earlier stable driver.<\/p>\n

When is the Windrose Ashlands update?<\/h2>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Kraken Express revealed the release window in its trailer for the Triple-i Initiative on 8 October: Ashlands is expected this winter<\/strong>. There’s no exact date yet. It’s Windrose’s first major update since Early Access launch, and the studio says it includes:<\/p>\n