Big Merchant is a planned future ship hull in Windrose that is not playable in the Early Access launch build. The hull exists as an unlockable design entry in the live game files but cannot currently be obtained through any vendor, quest, drop, or crafting recipe. Big Merchant is one of three additional hull classes (alongside the Brigantine and Galleon) identified by data-mining and unfinished design-entry UI as future Early Access content.
Player Hull or Not
Big Merchant is not one of the hulls a player can build or sail in the current Early Access build. The confirmed buildable classes are the Ketch, the Brig, and the Frigate, each offered in Stock, Brethren, and Blackbeard variants, alongside the small starter Cutter a new captain begins with. Big Merchant does not appear among those buildable designs. Its name and a design entry exist in the game's data, but there is no vendor, quest, drop, or recipe that grants it, and no in-game stats are attached to it yet.
Whether Big Merchant will arrive as a player-controlled trade hull or be used some other way is not confirmed by the studio. The trade-focused reading below is the most plausible interpretation of the name, but until a patch enables the design and publishes stats, treat it as a future Roadmap entry rather than a usable ship.
Status
Property | Value |
|---|---|
Status as of April 26, 2026 | Not playable. Design entry exists in game files but cannot be obtained. |
Confirmed by | Game-file references and unlockable design-entry UI entries |
Expected release | Future Early Access content; no specific patch window announced |
Hull category | Trade-focused hull; expected to emphasize cargo capacity over combat |
Implied Role
Unlike the Brigantine and Galleon, which are clearly combat-leaning hulls in the historical Age of Piracy framing, the Big Merchant name suggests a trade-focused role. The most plausible reading is that the hull will emphasize Trade Goods cargo capacity and Merchant Contracts runs rather than naval combat against pirate fleets. That would fit the broader Windrose progression model where economy and combat sit on parallel tracks.
This interpretation is community speculation. The studio has not confirmed the role, stats, or variant pattern of the Big Merchant hull.
What is Not Confirmed
Whether the Big Merchant follows the Stock / Brethren / Blackbeard variant pattern of the playable launch hulls
Cargo capacity multiplier compared to the launch hulls
Cannon slot count and combat profile (the trade emphasis suggests reduced combat capability, but this is unconfirmed)
Crew size and operational requirements
Whether the hull unlocks via faction reputation or trade-route progression
Patch window during Early Access
How to Track Updates
When the Big Merchant ships, expect a Steam news patch announcement, an update to the in-game ship-building UI to enable the design entry, and updates to the Ship Types, Ships, and Trading and Merchants articles. Until then, treat this page as a placeholder confirming the hull exists in data only and that all gameplay specifics are unverified.
See Also
Ship Types - playable launch hulls
Trade Goods - cargo and trade item system
Trading and Merchants - trade overview
Brigantine - companion future hull
Galleon - companion future hull
Roadmap - Early Access content direction