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11 Windrose generates a procedural archipelago for each player, with island layouts, resource distribution, and biome placement varying between games. The April 14, 2026 Early Access launch shipped with 3 biomes across approximately 30 procedurally generated islands: Coastal Jungle, Foothills, and Cursed Swamps. Additional biomes are planned across the 1.5 to 2.5 year Early Access period, with the Ashlands volcanic biome the most prominent announced future addition. Character progression carries between worlds, so players can start a fresh world without losing levels or recipes.
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33 Biome Progression at Launch
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55 Biomes are gear-tiered. Each biome is balanced for a specific gear level range, and a local-threat boss guards each one. The community-tracked gear tiers from the discovery map are:
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77 BiomeGear TierLocal Threat BossCoastal Jungle1 to 5Thomas RichardsFoothills6 to 10Israel HandsCursed Swamps11 to 15High Priestess
88 Coastal Jungle
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1010 The starting biome, described as the "cradle of piracy." This is where players wash ashore after being shipwrecked by Blackbeard. It served as the Steam Next Fest demo zone and covers the first 4 to 6 hours of gameplay. It teaches survival, crafting, and combat fundamentals. Local-threat boss: Thomas Richards.
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1313 CategoryDetailsResourcesWood, Stone, Plant Fiber, Clay, Copper Ore, Coconut, Banana, Dodo Eggs, Rough HideEnemiesCoastal Dodos (passive), Sows/Wild Pigs (aggressive, level 3), Crabs, Drowners (zombie-like), Swollen Drowned (toxic spit), Pirate Sailors, Musketeers, Pirate SergeantsPoints of InterestSmuggler's Cache, Abandoned Buccaneer Camp, Copper Caves, Ancient Ruins, Traveller's Camp, Pirate Camps, ShipwrecksLocal ThreatThomas Richards
1414 Foothills
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1616 An elevated biome southeast of the starting area with rocky terrain and distinct resource deposits. The Foothills are a significant progression milestone because they contain resources not available in the Coastal Jungle, enabling the next tier of crafting and progression.
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1818 CategoryDetailsUnique ResourcesIron Ore (mined with Copper Pickaxe), Sulfur (mined with Iron Pickaxe), Fertile Soil (from Ancient Farms), Flax, HardwoodAncient FarmsSpecific locations where Fertile Soil can be harvested with a pickaxe, enabling the farming systemFarming UnlockFertile Soil from Ancient Farms is required to build Seedbeds and begin growing cropsMining ProgressionIron Ore leads to Iron Pickaxes, which can mine Sulfur for gunpowder crafting at the MillstoneEnemiesTougher than the Coastal Jungle; includes Grenadier pirates revealed in the December 2025 content updateLocal ThreatIsrael Hands
1919 The Foothills represent the transition from early-game copper-tier crafting to mid-game iron-tier equipment. Players must travel here to advance their mining progression and unlock farming.
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2121 Cursed Swamps
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2323 Marshy, fog-choked islands with dangerous supernatural creatures. The Cursed Swamps are the third launch biome, gear-tiered 11 to 15, and serve as the endgame zone for the Early Access launch. The biome is heavily associated with plague and undead enemies, and its boss is the High Priestess, a towering pink-flower entity found in a cursed swampland. See the dedicated Cursed Swamps article for in-depth coverage.
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2525 CategoryDetailsResourcesUnique plant-based alchemy and cooking materials, Obsidian (rare; used for jewelry and Vial Table), Mire MetalEnemiesDrowners, Swollen Drowned (toxic spit in 180-degree arc), Swamp Creature, plague thrallsBossHigh PriestessHazardsReduced visibility, uneven terrain creating ambush opportunities
2626 Planned Biomes
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2828 Ashlands (Planned)
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3030 A scorched, volcanic biome revealed in the August 2025 Devblog #5 but NOT available at Early Access launch. The Ashlands are planned as a late-game area with high-tier resources and some of the most dangerous enemies in the game. The region was covered by a volcanic eruption 100 years ago, and players will use pickaxes to dig through volcanic ash to uncover secrets once it releases. See the dedicated Ashlands article for full details on this planned biome.
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3232 Biome-Specific Resources
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3434 BiomeUnique/Key ResourcesCoastal JungleCopper Ore, Clay, Coconut, Banana, Dodo Eggs, Rough Hide, Crab ShellFoothillsIron Ore, Sulfur, Fertile Soil, Flax, HardwoodCursed SwampsObsidian, Mire Metal, unique alchemy plants, plague-tier resourcesAshlands (planned)High-tier resources buried under volcanic ash
3535 World Generation
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3737 Every player gets their own world, and every new game generates a different island layout. At the April 2026 Early Access launch, the map contains approximately 30 procedurally generated islands with 90+ hand-crafted points of interest. The Kraken Express team has stated the 1.0 version "could be several times bigger in content and scale than the demo, like x10 islands, x10 points of interest."
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3939 Difficulty Settings
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4141 World difficulty is set at creation and cannot be changed afterward. It applies globally across all biomes:
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4343 SettingEffectCalm WatersReduced enemy damage and pressure; for casual/exploration focusHigh SeasAll modifiers at 100%; the intended balanced experienceStorm's EdgeEnemies hit harder and have more healthCaptain's ChoiceFully custom, with individual modifiers adjustable up to 500%; enemy health, damage, ship health, ship damage, and boarding difficulty can all be tuned independently
4444 Within each difficulty setting, enemy levels scale by island/area rather than per dungeon. Enemies on the second island are level 6 while players may still be level 3, making travel to harder biomes a significant risk-reward decision. Custom Captain's Choice also offers an EasyExplore mode that disables most map markers for a more immersive exploration experience.
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4646 Environmental Storytelling
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4848 Story in Windrose is "woven into the atmosphere rather than delivered through dialogue alone." Locations and objects are placed to "spark a question and reward curiosity with a piece of lore, a hidden item, or a clue pointing to something bigger." This means biomes work as resource zones, but they also act as narrative spaces that reveal the game's supernatural mysteries through exploration.
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5050 Navigation
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5252 MethodDetailsAuto-navigationAn auto-move-forward toggle is available for both walking and sailingWind directionA visual wind direction indicator is visible in the sky. The exact gameplay impact of wind at launch has not been documented in developer postsShip summoningPress K to summon your ship to any coastlineFast Travel BellsTeleport between placed bells or return home from your boat via the world mapWorld mapOpen the map to place markers, chart routes, and select fast travel destinations. Points of interest appear as question marks for progressive discovery
5353 Future Biomes
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5555 The roadmap through Early Access includes additional biomes beyond the launch three. Kraken Express has stated that the 1.0 release will contain roughly 50 percent more content than Early Access launch, with new biomes a core part of that expansion. The Ashlands is the most well-documented planned addition. Character progress carries between different procedurally generated worlds, so players can start a fresh world to explore new biome arrangements without losing levels or recipes. Each building set is planned to reflect its biome, so outposts feel naturally rooted in their surroundings.
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5757 Dedicated Biome Pages
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5959 This overview page remains the best short summary of the full launch ladder, but the two launch biomes players most often search directly now also have their own dedicated pages.
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6161 Coastal Jungle - the starting biome and opening survival routeFoothills - the iron, sulfur, and Israel Hands biomeCursed Swamps - the late-launch-biome plague zone