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11 Ammunition is the cannon-ammo system for ships in Windrose. Two ammunition types cover every engagement in the launch build: standard cannonballs for hull damage and Chain Shot for sail debuffs. Both are swapped on the fly using the 1 and 2 keys. Neither is a consumable: there are no ammo crafting recipes, no counts, and no magazines to manage, so the choice is purely a toggle on the cannon itself.
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33 Ammunition Types
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55 TypeKeyEffectBest UseStandard Cannonballs1Raw hull damage, no special effect.Sinking a target quickly, or reducing it to the disabled state before boarding.Chain Shot2Targets sails and rigging; applies a stacking speed debuff and deals minimal hull damage.Stripping speed off a fleeing patrol or setting up a hauler for a boarding action without risking a sink.
66 Standard Cannonballs (Key 1)
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88 The default ammo for every cannon. It deals raw hull damage with no special effect and is what actually sinks a ship. Use it to finish off ships that need to go down fast, or to push a target into the disabled state before boarding.
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1010 Chain Shot (Key 2)
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1212 Sail-targeting ammo that applies a stacking speed debuff. See Chain Shot for the full profile. Use it to strip fleeing patrol speed or to set up a hauler for a boarding action without risking a sink. A common opener is to slow a target with Chain Shot, then switch to cannonballs to sink it or push it to the disabled state.
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1414 Cannon Calibers
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1616 Ammunition is fired from cannons, which come in three caliber tiers. The caliber sets how much hull damage a standard cannonball volley deals, and which hulls can mount the gun. Plans are sold by the Rogue Buccaneers Provisioner at the listed reputation.
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1818 CaliberCannonball VolleyFitsPlans At12-Pounders1,500Starter tier; the Stock Ketch and every early hull variant.Rep 224-Pounders2,000Mid tier; the Brigantine family and larger Frigates.Rep 336-Pounders2,500Endgame tier; exclusive to the Blackbeard Frigate.Rep 4
1919 The volley figures above are the standard-cannonball output per caliber; Chain Shot trades nearly all of that hull damage for its speed debuff. The 36-Pounders are the strongest guns in the current Early Access build, with each variant reaching 380 attack at the maximum cannon level of 15, the highest direct hull damage in the game.
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2121 Switching in Combat
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2323 Ammunition types are bound to the 1 and 2 keys during ship combat. Switching is instant, and the cannon's next shot fires the selected ammo. Reload timers are not affected by ammo type, but the next-shot delay is still subject to the per-cannon reload stat.
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2525 Each ship carries three independent batteries (front, port, and starboard) with separate reload timers, so you can stagger ammo across them. A common rhythm on a Brig or Frigate is to keep one broadside firing Chain Shot to hold the slow while the opposite side reloads cannonballs for the kill volley.
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2727 Build Synergy
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2929 The Devastating cannon-tier Epic perk applies a debuff that stacks up to three times on enemy ships, increasing incoming damage across both ammunition types. Perfectly Ordered cannons shorten reload after a hit, which benefits sustained fire regardless of ammo choice. Tempered cannons prioritize raw damage per shot and are most effective with standard cannonballs on escorts that need to be sunk quickly.
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3131 See Also
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3333 Chain Shot: the sail-debuff ammoCannons: cannon families and tiersNaval Combat: overall naval engagement guideBoarding Combat: the loot pathShip Repair: mid-combat healing