Harpooning Made Easy

You start (as you would expect) with all your harpooning equipment at level 1
Throughout this guide you will be told which level of equipment will be needed most when harpooning your targets
While you do not need to harpoon before upgrading the Jackdaw (your ship)
Many of the upgrades for Edward will require harpooning
We will cover what there is to harpoon, how dangerous it is and how to counter any damage to the rowboat

The first target you can easily harpoon

Requred Upgrades: none
To harpoon the Bull Shark, you do not need any improved equipment
Just make sure that your shots are on target
Improved equipment helps to take it down quicker, but is not required

Danger Rating: Low
The Bull Shark can only ram the underside of the rowboat
And if you can harpoon it again before it hits
The shark will cease its attack and start pulling again

Shark No.2

Requred Upgrades: none
Once again, you require no upgrades except a good aim
If you find you are running out of harpoons, upgrade the harpoon capacity

Danger Level: Low
Like the Bull Shark, the Hammerhead can only ram the boat
It does do more damage, so be aware of where it is
and intercept before it strikes

Anyone remember Jaws©?

Required Upgrades: All
Also known as 'White Death'
The Great White is a true fiend
Upgrading the Harpoon Strength and Capacity and the Rowboat will help here
The quicker you can be done with this target, the better


Danger Level: High
When injured, the Great White will explode out of the water to attack the boat
If you keep an eye out for the water frothing in front of the boat, you can be ready
If you strike the shark before it hits, it will cease its attack
Be aware: the window of opportunity between reveal and attack is small

The first of the Whales

Required Upgrades: All
The first whale is a definite step up from the sharks
Be prepared for using plenty of harpoons, as target health goes up dramatically
Upgrading Harpoon capacity to level 3 will certainly help from here



Danger Level: Medium
The Killer Whale can only ram the boat, but it can do plenty of damage
Before it attacks, it rises out of the water, and then charges
If you harpoon it again while it is charging, you can prevent damage to the boat

Largest Whale in game and the only one not to pull you around at breakneck speeds

Required Upgrades: All
Upgrading the Harpoons to level 3 will certainly help here
If you have not, be prepared for a lengthy battle
The Humpback can be hard to hit as it stays well below the surface
And it also has a large pool of health


Danger Level: Medium
Likethe Great White Shark, the Humpback can rise out of the water
Also identical is the tell-tale frothing of the water
If you do not Harpoon the whale again before it falls back down
be prepared to lose a lot of rowboat health

Event driven monster of the deep, only available for short lengths of time

Requred Upgrades: All
Upgrading the Harpoon Strength and Capacity to level 3 are required for this encounter
If you do not, you may run out of harpoons or boat health before taking this monster down
It has a large pool of health and is not easy to take down


Danger Level: Medium-High
Just like the Humpback, the White Whale will rise from the depths to attack
If it strikes, be prepared to lose A LOT of rowboat health
If you are quick, you can get two high charge harpoons off before it drops
Be sure to intercept it's tail when the crew calls out, as that too can do damage

When Great Whites and Killer Whales are attacking, striking them in the head appears to do more damage

Upgrade the Harpoon Capacity first, then the Harpoon Strength

If you are good enough, you will not need the Rowboat strength to be higher than level 2

Do not prioritise Harpooning over upgrading the Jackdaw. Fighting enemy ships is more important

When you encounter White Whales, drop everything (unless you are in a mission). White Whale skins sell for 4000 reales