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1-Insignias are the reputation currency dropped by Blackbeard's forces in Windrose. Every player-facing faction accepts insignias because every faction hates Edward Teach, which makes insignias the workhorse cross-faction grinding item. They are turned in at Bounty Agents for reputation with the selected faction.
1+Insignias are the reputation currency dropped by Blackbeard's forces in Windrose. Every player-facing faction accepts insignias because every faction hates Edward Teach, which makes them the workhorse cross-faction grinding item. They are turned in at Bounty Agents for reputation with the selected faction.
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3-The Insignia Hierarchy
3+The Four Insignia Tiers
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5-TierInsigniaTypical SourceTurn-In ValueBaselineDeckhand InsigniaStandard Blackbeard deckhands on ships and at Pirate CampsSmall reputation boost; baseline bulk itemMidInsignia of a Blackbeard LieutenantBoarding Blackbeard's Pirates' Ketch and larger named shipsStandard mid-tier turn-in; the most common 'real' rep itemEliteInsignia of a Blackbeard Sergeant / GrenadierPirate Sergeants, Grenadiers, and other named lieutenants in dungeons and high-tier campsLargest single-item rep boost short of a full quest rewardNamedInsignia of a Blackbeard CaptainRare drop from high-tier ship captains and certain bossesHigh rep value; sometimes tied to specific lore items
5+TierInsigniaTypical SourceTurn-In ValueBaselineNewhand InsigniaStandard Blackbeard deckhands on ships and at Pirate CampsSmall reputation boost; baseline bulk itemMidDeckhand InsigniaBlackbeard Lieutenants, Undead Musketeers, and elite boarding crewsMid-tier reputation boost; workhorse item for pushing ranksEliteVeteran InsigniaPirate Sergeants, Grenadiers, and other named elites in high-tier camps and dungeonsLarge per-item reputation boost short of a full quest completionTopOld Salt InsigniaBoss-tier lieutenants and Frigate-class boarding actionsApproximately 80 reputation points per turn-in; rare drop
6+Name Correction
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8+Earlier community writeups sometimes used names like "Insignia of a Blackbeard Lieutenant," "Sergeant," or "Captain" for the mid-to-high tiers. Those names are not the in-game item names. The canonical tier names are Newhand, Deckhand, Veteran, and Old Salt. The descriptor-based community names should not be used in wiki content; if you see one in older writeups, cross-reference against the in-game Bounty Agent turn-in panel.
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610 Ship Combat Rewards More Than Sinking
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8-Sinking a Blackbeard ship outright produces deckhand insignias from the wreck loot, but boarding the ship produces more total insignias per encounter, because boarding rewards the defeated crew individually. For rep-per-minute farming, equip Boarding Party Gear and land on deck rather than rely on broadsides.
12+Sinking a Blackbeard ship outright produces Newhand Insignias from the wreck loot, but boarding the ship produces more total insignias per encounter, because boarding rewards the defeated crew individually. For reputation-per-minute farming, equip Boarding Party Gear and land on deck rather than rely on broadsides.
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1014 Universal Enmity: No Wasted Turn-Ins
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12-All four player-facing factions accept the full insignia ladder. There is no exclusive commitment mechanic; if you accidentally start farming at the wrong faction, subsequent turn-ins can re-route to any other Bounty Agent without wasting items. This is why the strongest launch-week advice is to commit hard to one faction first (typically Brethren of the Coast for ship progression or Smugglers of Port Royal for heavy armor and Windrose Naval Tactics) and only rotate to the next faction after hitting Rank 3.
16+All four player-facing factions accept every insignia tier. There is no exclusive commitment mechanic; if you accidentally start farming at the wrong faction, subsequent turn-ins can re-route to any other Bounty Agent without wasting items. This is why the strongest launch-week advice is to commit hard to one faction first (typically Brethren of the Coast for ship progression or Smugglers of Port Royal for heavy armor and Windrose Naval Tactics) and only rotate to the next faction after hitting Rank 3.
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1418 Combining Insignias With Letters of Favor
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1620 Insignias and Letters of Favor are complementary. Insignias come from combat; Letters come from non-combat faction quests. A session that kills Blackbeard crews on the water and runs faction couriers on land can earn both, which is the fastest way to push a single faction from Rank 1 to Rank 3 in a focused play session.
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1822 Turn-In Workflow
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20-Stack insignias in a dedicated chest at your base so they do not clog inventory during sortiesConfirm which Bounty Agent is closest to the faction Provisioner you plan to shop at; all three main Tortuga Bounty Agents share the waterfront/market with their Provisioner, while the Smugglers Bounty Agent lives at the hidden archipelago baseHand in elite-tier insignias last; they rep jump past small rank thresholds and can waste overflow if turned in while you are already at a rank ceiling
24+Stack insignias in a dedicated chest at your base so they do not clog inventory during sortiesConfirm which Bounty Agent is closest to the faction Provisioner you plan to shop atHand in elite-tier insignias (Veteran, Old Salt) last; they can jump past small rank thresholds and waste overflow if turned in while you are already at a rank ceilingSave your rarest Old Salt Insignias specifically for the single faction whose Rank 3 reward you want most
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26+Per-Tier Articles
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28+Newhand Insignia — baseline tierDeckhand Insignia — mid tierVeteran Insignia — elite tierOld Salt Insignia — top tier
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2230 See Also
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2432 Bounty Agents — faction reputation turn-in NPCsLetters of Favor — non-combat companion itemFaction Reputation — the full rep systemBoarding — the highest insignia-per-minute source