You’re sailing through a thick fog near the Devil’s Roar, your ship creaking against the waves, and suddenly you spot it. A glint. Not just any glint, but the kind that suggests you've finally found a piece of the puzzle for Captain Henqua’s spoils. If you play Sea of Thieves, you know the name. Or at least, you’ve seen the maps.
Henqua isn't just some random NPC. He’s part of the deeper lore that keeps the Sea of Thieves feeling alive, even when you're just staring at a horizon of blue water. Digging up treasure in this game used to be simple. You get a map, you find the X, you go home. But the community’s obsession with specific legendary hauls has changed the meta.
The Reality of Captain Henqua’s Spoils
Let's get one thing straight: Henqua is a name that pops up in the procedural generation of the game's voyage system. He is a skeleton captain. In the world of Rare’s pirate sandbox, these captains are the gatekeepers of the "good stuff." When we talk about Captain Henqua’s spoils, we are talking about the high-tier loot dropped during Bounty Voyages or found via Mysterious Notes.
It’s usually Villainous Bounty Skulls or Hateful Bounty Skulls. Sometimes, if the RNG gods are smiling, you’re looking at Ancient Bone Dust.
People get confused because they think there's one "hidden" treasure chest out there with Henqua’s name on it. There isn't. It’s about the voyage cycle. You’re hunting a ghost. Well, a skeleton.
Why the Devil’s Roar Changes the Stakes
If you find a map for Captain Henqua’s spoils located in the Devil’s Roar, the value of that loot basically doubles. Ashen variants of these items—like the Ashen Villainous Bounty Skull—are the actual prizes.
The Roar is miserable. Geysers blow your ship into the stratosphere. Volcanoes turn your deck into a grill. But that’s where the high-level players hang out because the gold-per-hour ratio is just better.
I’ve seen crews spend three hours chasing a single Henqua map just because it was pinned to a quest board at Morrow’s Peak. Is it worth it? Gold-wise, maybe. For the Commendations? Absolutely.
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The Math Behind the Loot
Most players don't realize that the "spoils" are tied to your level with the Order of Souls. If you’re level 25, Henqua is going to drop trash. If you’re a Pirate Legend pushing level 75, that same skeleton captain is suddenly carrying the keys to the kingdom.
- Standard Bounty: 500 to 1,100 Gold.
- Ashen Bounty: 1,000 to 2,300 Gold.
- Emissary Bonus: This is the multiplier that actually matters. If you aren't running a Grade V Order of Souls flag while hunting these spoils, you are quite literally leaving money on the table. A Grade V multiplier adds 150% to the base value.
That 2,000 gold skull suddenly becomes a 5,000 gold payday.
Defeating the Captain
Henqua usually spawns with a wave of subordinates. Sometimes they are Gold Skeletons. If you don't have firebombs or a bucket of water, you're going to have a bad time.
Pro tip: don't use your sword on Gold Skeletons. You'll just bounce off and look like an idiot while they blunderbuss you in the face.
The fight itself is the barrier. You kill the waves, the music shifts—that heavy, brassy skeleton theme—and Henqua emerges. He’s got more health than your average bone-wiggler, but a few well-placed blunderbuss shots or a sniper hit to the dome will finish the job.
Where Most Pirates Mess Up
The biggest mistake? Leaving the island too fast.
People think the "spoils" end with the skull the captain drops. Wrong. Usually, when you defeat a named captain like Henqua, the island itself has "emergent" loot that spawns nearby. Check the shoreline. Look for the glint of a Collector’s Chest half-buried in the sand.
Honestly, the loot you find around the quest objective is often better than the objective itself.
I’ve found Chests of a Thousand Grogs just sitting near where a bounty captain was standing. If you just grab the skull and run back to your sloop because you're scared of a Reaper on the horizon, you're missing out on the actual "spoils."
Maximizing Your Haul
If you want to actually make progress, stop doing single maps. You need to stack.
- Start at an Outpost: Grab every single Bounty Voyage available.
- Check the Quest Board: Look specifically for maps mentioning "Captain Henqua" or other named skeletons in the same region.
- The Loop: Hit the islands in a circle. Do not go back to the Outpost until your ship is glowing like a Christmas tree with skulls.
The danger is the "sink risk." But high risk is the only way to play Sea of Thieves if you actually want to buy those expensive Dark Adventurer ship parts.
The Lore Connection
While Henqua doesn't have a 500-page backstory in the Sea of Thieves novels, these named captains represent the "Lost Souls" mentioned by Madame Olivia. They are pirates who fell to the skeleton curse. Every time you "liberate" Captain Henqua’s spoils, you’re essentially cleaning up the mess left behind by the Flameheart era.
It’s kind of dark if you think about it too long. You’re killing a guy, stealing his head, and selling it to a lady who drinks soul-soup.
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Practical Steps for Your Next Session
Stop wandering aimlessly. If you want to efficiently track down and profit from these encounters, follow this specific workflow.
First, hit the Order of Souls representative and buy the highest-level "Bounty Quest" you can afford. Don't bother with the cheap ones. You want the ones that promise multiple captains on a single island.
Second, check your map radial. If the islands are spread across the whole map, discard the quest and start a new one. You want a "cluster." A cluster of islands saves on sailing time and keeps you out of open water where Krakens and bored Galleon crews like to linger.
Third, when you land, use fire. Fire spreads between skeletons. It saves ammo and keeps the crowd controlled. Once the captain is down, do a full 360-degree perimeter check of the island.
Finally, head to the nearest Sovereigns tent if you’re a Captain. It’s faster than walking each skull up to the Order of Souls tent. Time is gold.
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The spoils of Captain Henqua are out there, but they aren't going to jump into your boat. You have to go get them, and you have to be ready to fight anyone who tries to take them at the dock.