Be a Pirate: How to Progress Fast (and in What Order)

Quick answer

Repeat the treasure run: sail to an island, dig up a chest, carry it back to Starter Port and open it at the Treasure Broker, sinking the weak pirate ships you pass on the way — then reinvest every coin in a bigger ship at the Shipwright. Claim your Daily Rewards whenever you log in; they are free money.

• Digging up and selling chests is the demonstrated way to make money in Be a Pirate.
• Sinking enemy ships awards their loot and produces level-ups; the Pirate Rowboat Lv1 is an early, winnable target.
• A bigger ship carries more chests per run, so the next Shipwright purchase multiplies everything you do.
• Daily Rewards grow with your login streak and cost nothing.

The order to do things in

Be a Pirate runs every captain through the same engine: loot islands, sell at port, upgrade the ship, sail further out. The sequence below is the order one progression guide recommends — nobody has stopwatch-tested it against alternatives, but each step demonstrably sets up the next.

Roadmap

1. 1

   Open your first chest and buy the Dinghy

   First coins and a first real boat

   • Sail to the small island beside Starter Port and dig with your shovel until you unearth a chest.
   • Carry the chest back and open it at the Treasure Broker — early opens demonstrated a pocket pistol, and about $280 plus gear such as a bandana.
   • Spend the coins at the Shipwright on the Dinghy: faster, sturdier and with more cargo space.
2. 2

   Loot Calm Sea and hunt Lv1 rowboats

   A safe cushion of coins and levels

   • Beach islands across Calm Sea hold more chests, some sitting open on the sand.
   • Take the 'SINK THE PIRATE BOAT!' objective against a Pirate Rowboat Lv1 for its loot and a level-up.
   • Enemy ships shoot back, so stay on weaker targets while your hull is small.
3. 3

   Reinvest every coin in the next ship

   More speed, cannons and cargo per run

   • Climb the Shipwright lineup from sloop to cutter and beyond, on the way to the game's 24 ships.
   • Treat the next ship unlock as the default use of your coins — it multiplies every run after it.
   • A bigger hold means more chests per trip instead of leaving loot on the beach.
4. 4

   Push into new seas as you grow

   Every area matched to your power level

   • Sailing itself grants EXP along the way, and discovering a new island is a tracked quest that pays coins on completion.
   • Quest completions add up: one recorded pass finished for 400 coins, and an earn-5,000 quest paid about 10,000.
   • Move through the seas in order and leave the green-fogged Cursed Sea for a sturdier ship.
5. 5

   Bank the free money and aim for the Ironclad

   Endgame-ready

   • Claim Daily Rewards every day you play — the loot grows with your streak.
   • Dig any treasure you spot along the way; legendary finds give big coin boosts.
   • The Shipwright's Ironclad is the strongest boat in the game: 44 cannons, 170 cargo, 36 crew and 95% wave resistance.

A progression-tips walkthrough that covers the same order — early loot, the first purchases, and the reinvest-everything habit:

Watch the full video on YouTube.

The Be a Pirate experience guide covers what leveling gives you. For spending decisions, see Be a Pirate how to get ships and Be a Pirate ship upgrades.

The treasure run, step by step

The treasure run is the earning loop the whole game is built around, and it is fully repeatable.

How the cycle works

1. 01

   Sail to an island

   Start with the small island beside Starter Port; beach islands across Calm Sea hold more dig spots and open chests.

2. 02

   Dig up a chest

   Digging with the shovel unearths a chest. If another player already claimed it, you cannot pick it up.

3. 03

   Carry it onto your ship

   Cargo capacity limits how many chests you can stow, and captains do run out of room mid-island.

4. 04

   Open it at the Treasure Broker

   The broker by the WELCOME TO STARTER PORT sign trades chests for coins and items — for example, about $280 plus a bandana.

5. 05

   Reinvest at the Shipwright

   Coins become your next hull: more cargo space, more cannons, more speed.

Each run funds the next ship, and the next ship carries more chests per run — that is what turns this loop into fast progression.

Two restrictions shape how much a run earns: chests already claimed by other players cannot be picked up, and your cargo hold caps each trip. Neither slows you down for long — sail to the next island (Be a Pirate treasure locations), sell as soon as you are full (Be a Pirate selling guide), and grow into a hull with a bigger hold (Be a Pirate cargo hold guide). Dig any treasure you spot along the route, because legendary finds give big coin boosts.

Combat that pays for your upgrades

Sinking an enemy ship awards its loot and produces level-ups — coins and character levels from the same fight. The early 'SINK THE PIRATE BOAT!' objective sends you after a Pirate Rowboat Lv1 that shoots back, and the starter Dinghy can sink it. The game description also lists defeating rival players and claiming other ships' treasures as coin sources. Because everything on the water returns fire, work from the weakest ships upward and save larger targets for when your cannons and hull can answer them. The Be a Pirate combat guide covers picking weaker targets and the fighting itself.

When progress stalls

Problems and fixes

A chest will not let you pick it up

Another player claimed it first

Suggested response

Leave it and sail on — other beach islands in Calm Sea hold more chests.

You run out of cargo room mid-island

Your ship's hold is full

Suggested response

Sail back and sell what you are carrying, then upgrade to a hull with more cargo space so future trips carry more.

A giant tentacle rises on your route

A kraken haunts the waters near the starter route

Suggested response

Turn back to port as the objective says, and return once your ship has better defenses and health.

Your Dinghy gets sunk in the Cursed Sea

Sharks hit back hard when attacked

Suggested response

Leave wildlife alone in an under-geared ship, and prepare defenses plus enough health before Kraken and boss events.

Hazards are the main thing that turns a fast session into a respawn, so match the water to your ship before pushing outward. The Be a Pirate kraken guide covers the tentacled threat, and the Be a Pirate sailing guide covers getting from island to island.

Free coins and paid shortcuts

The Daily Rewards panel pays free coins and items just for logging in, and it rewards streaks: Week 1 rises from $1,600 on Day 1 (plus 10 planks) to a $7,800 jackpot on Day 7, with one claim available roughly once a day. Those values come from a single session and can change with updates (see the updates page), so treat the panel in game as the source of truth.

If you are willing to spend Robux, the Pirate Store's Gifts tab sells accelerators that map onto the loops above: 2x Treasure Value, 2x Experience, Big Cargo Hold and VIP Captain. Auto farm is free for everyone, and Premium players start with +100 coins. Prices were observed in one session and change over time, so confirm them in the store — and see Be a Pirate best game passes before buying.