Sea of Thieves adds fiery new boss battles in today's Ashen Winds update

Rare's multiplayer pirate adventure Sea of Thieves has just received its latest monthly helping of fresh nautical goodness on Xbox One and PC, this time in the form of flamethrower skulls and fiery new bosses as part of today's Ashen Winds update.

This month's additions might not be quite as dazzling as the wonderfully cinematic ghost ship battles introduced in June's Haunted Shores update, but the four new Ashen Lord boss battles do at least promise to bring more challenge and variety to the oceans.

These new encounters are initiated by visiting islands marked with a fiery tornado cloud on the horizon, and battles against either Captain Grimm, Red Ruth, Old Horatio, or Warden Chi await those that make the trip. Each boss has new tricks up its sleeves for pirates to contend with - ranging from a thick ash cloud that reduces visibility to fireballs raining from the heavens - and a variety of rewards are available for those that defeat them.

Alongside valuable treasure, there's the new flamethrower-like Ashen Winds Skull, which can be turned in to the Order of Souls for a cash reward or used to wreak havoc on enemy players. Additionally, completing Commendations tied to the new Ashen Lords will unlock new titles, the Ashen Winds Skull Sail, and a selection of Ashen tattoos.

Elsewhere in today's update, the premium currency Pirate Emporium has a striking selection of limited-time, Ashen-themed pets for purchase (and there are discounts on ship sets inspired by Rare's back catalogue), and pirates can also acquire new Fearless Bone Crusher and Nightshine Parrot equipment from Duke's Black Market using doubloons.

Rare has also implemented a range of new accessibility features, improvements, and fixes as part of today's update, as detailed in the developer's latest patch notes.

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