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Blackbeard Crew's First Map is one of nine numbered treasure maps in Windrose, each pointing to a buried cache hidden by the historical Blackbeard's crew somewhere across the archipelago. The map is a one-time use item: opening it places a dig marker on the world map at a procedurally generated spot, and the marker is consumed once the cache is uncovered.
In-Game Description
A map that can lead its owner to treasures hidden in the archipelago by Blackbeard's crew.
A second flavour line sometimes appears on inspection: "X marks the spot."
How to Obtain
Maps drop from treasure chests inside pirate camps, which begin spawning across the archipelago once the player leaves the starting island and unlocks open-sea travel through the early main quest I Need a Bigger Boat. Pirate camps tend to cluster near coves, hidden beaches, and small uncharted islands, so taking time to scout coastline detail on a Brig or Frigate with a spyglass is the most reliable way to find them. Defeating the camp's defenders and looting the central chest is what rolls the map drop.
How to Use
Right-click the map in the inventory to read it. The map text describes a landmark at the dig site (a cliff overlook, a stretch of shoreline, a ruined tower, etc.), and on use a marker drops onto the world map showing the rough region. Sail to that area and the marker tightens to a small radius. Inside that radius the dig spot is signposted by a small grave or a fresh mound of dirt with a skeleton lying nearby. The skeleton is the visual confirmation that the player is standing in the right place.
Maps are single-use. Once the cache is dug up the dig marker disappears and the map is consumed.
Required Tool
Digging is only possible with a crafted Shovel, made at the Workbench from 3 Copper Ingots and 10 Wood. The Shovel recipe does not appear in the Workbench menu by default; it unlocks the moment the player removes a Copper Ingot from a Smelting Furnace for the first time. Carry the Shovel before sailing out to read the map, since the dig spot will not always be near a base.
Rewards
Treasure chests opened from a Blackbeard map most commonly contain a mix of:
Silver Ingot stacks suitable for buying mid-tier ship upgrades.
Piastres or other faction trade tokens used to barter at Faction Merchants.
Crafting blueprints, including the occasional plan that is otherwise gated behind faction reputation.
Journal notes that fill in the lore around Blackbeard's crew and the locations they hid loot at.
Ship cosmetic Style Books, often skewed toward the Privateer and Brethren design sets.
Tips
Dig at the exact centre of the marker. The shovel cone is shallow and a foot or two off-centre will miss the chest entirely.
Pack healing supplies before opening any chest. A small ambush wave of pirates regularly spawns at Blackbeard caches the moment the chest is broken open.
Sail back with cargo space to spare. The Silver Ingots and Piastre stacks from a single map can fill a backpack quickly, especially on early-game ships.
Map locations are procedurally generated per world, so screenshots of dig spots from other characters do not transfer. Read the landmark description on the map and search the rough area, not exact coordinates.
Trivia
The flavour line "X marks the spot" is a centuries-old shorthand for buried treasure that became inseparable from pirate fiction after Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel Treasure Island, where Long John Silver's chart famously placed a red X on the cache. The Blackbeard maps in Windrose use the same convention as a wink to the genre.