Sailing Era – Ultimate Characters Guide (Recruitment, Abilities, Bonuses and Languages)

Here you can find every recruitable character I know of in alphabetical order, along with how to recruit them, their special abilities, and any bonus they may have with certain pieces of equipment.

Definitive Guide to Characters

Asia

Character: Abdullah

• Recruitment: Muscat after beating the game as him.

Specialties:

• Skilled Fighter – Increased exp gain from battles
• Ship Seizing Tactics – Ability to recruit ships that have surrendered
• Loot – Increases supply gained when plundering ships

Languages – Arabic

Character: Aji

• Recruitment: Rose banner questline (triggered by a Garaba event in Malacca?)

Specialties:

• Southeast Asian Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in the central south peninsula cultural sphere
• Together as One – Increases sailor max morale
• Hand-to-Hand Tactics – Inflicts enemy ships with water leakage after hand-to-hand combat

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Horn – +1 brawling +1 music

Languages: Khmer / Siamese

Character: Garaba

• Recruitment: Picked up in a stowaway event seemingly somewhere in Southeast Asia (would like more detail if possible)

Specialties:

• Java Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in Southeast Asian cultural sphere
• Pick the Lock – Chests can be opened immediately
• Hidden Cargos – Ship cabins can hold +10 items

Languages: Indonesia / Khmer / Chines

Character: Hiyar O’Worley

• Recruitment: Pick up in (random?) port

Specialties:

• Arabic Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in the Arabic and East African cultural spheres
• Doctor’s Kindness – Restores sailor morale after battle
• Desert Traveler – Reduces supply consumption on Gobi terrain

Languages: Arabic

Character: Katelyn

• Recruitment: Requires Sassi Palmis. Look for a fleet called the Pirate Queen’s Fleet in the Red Sea and defeat it. After finding the five treasures, find her just north of Toamasina.

Specialties:

• Pirate Star – Reduces exp required for upgrades
• Rapid-Fire Cannon Expertise – Increased damage, accuracy, and penetration of Rapid-Fire Cannons

Languages: Spanish

Character: Lu Liyuan

• Recruitment – Must find random event in a port first (not sure if the port is random?). Then, travel to Istanbul to see another event, and find him in the Western Turkey expedition (skill requirement?)

Specialties:

• Ming Empire Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in the Ming Empire and Korean cultural spheres
• Mountain Traveler – Reduce supply consumption on hills or swamp
• Stone Identification – Increases trade profit of gemstones

Languages – Chinese

Character: Nasser

• Recruitment: Rose banner questline (started by Garaba event in Malacca?)

Specialties:

• Knowledgeable – Increase sailor max morale
• Confusion Tactics – Inflicts confusion after hand-to-hand combat
• Business Adept – Increases trade profits and contribution in the Persian cultural sphere

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Dice – +1 negotiation +2 firearm

Languages: Arabic

Character: Sassi Palmis

• Recruitment: Complete the Holi questline in Calicut and attend the festival (requires completing Kanam’s questline?)

Specialties:

• Indian Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in Indian cultural sphere
• Dancing Grace – Increases sailor morale cap

Languages: Hindustani / Sanskrit

Character: Shen Shi

• Recruitment: Pick up from the oceans around China in a random event

Specialties:

• Scout – Reduce stamina loss during expeditions

Languages: Chinese

Character: Takigawa Amagai

• Recruitment: Meet in Nagasaki tavern and then learn about Moro-haku sake (Sakai I think?). Rescue from pirates.

Specialties:

• Japanese Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in the Japanese cultural sphere
• Ronin – When hp reaches 0 in duel, restore 1 hp and unleash an ultimate
• Provocation – If both sides have morale after hand-to-hand combat, challenge the enemy to a duel

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Delicate Katana – +2 brawling

Languages: Japanese

Character: Yoshitaka Shizuma

• Recruitment: Nagasaki after beating the game as them

Specialties:

• Prestigious Shipbuilder – Grant exp when shipbuilding
• Cats at Hand – protects fleet from rats
• Craftsmanship Knowledge – Increase trade profit of industrial goods
• Nature Surpassing – Can freely modify ship cabins

Languages: Japanese

Africa

Character: Beluget

• Recruitment: After learning about the Minos fleet in west Africa, find and defeat the fleet. They will not attack you, you must attack them. Then, find Beluget in Cape Verde.

Specialties:

• Has one specialty that does nothing. (Quest upgrade?)

Languages: Swahili / Spanish

Character: Kornelly

• Recruitment: Event and expedition in Toamasina

Specialties:

• Wilderness Resident – Reduce supply consumption in forest
• Way of Preservation – Increase fish gained from fishing and trade profit on fish

Languages: Hausa

Europe

Character: Anastasia

• Recruitment: Complete an event in the Western Turkey expedition landing and then recruit along with Mustafa Amir in Beirut.

Specialties:

• Eastern European Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in the Balkan cultural sphere
• Spinner – Increases profits of textile goods
• Neat Cargos – Ship cabins can hold +10 items

Languages: Slavic

Character: Andrea

• Recruitment: Bring black pepper to Calais and recruit in the tavern

Specialties:

• French Climate: Increases trade profits and contribution in French cultural sphere

Languages: French

Character: Andreas Heinrich

• Recruitment: See event in Pisa and then find event in Naples expedition

Specialties:

• Nordic Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in the Northern European cultural sphere
• March – Reduces supply consumption
• Strong Willed – Protects fleet from hallucination

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Knight’s Longsword – +50hp +1 brawling

Languages: German

Character: Andrew

• Recruitment: After beating the game as Andrew, recruit at the Lisbon pier.

Specialties:

• Adventurous Spirit – Increases EXP gained from sailing
• Innate Leader – Reduces EXP required to level up character who are below Andrew’s level
• Route Pathfinder – Discovering new ports grants +100 local contribution

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Compass – +2 leadership +1 geography

Languages: Portuguese

Character: Beatrice

• Recruitment: Tulip quest line in Amsterdam

Specialties:

• Craftmanship – Increases trade profit of artware
• Lowland Climate – Increases trade profit and contribution in Dutch cultural sphere

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Tulip brooch – +3 organization

Languages: Dutch

Character: Carlos Cortez

• Recruitment: In Seville after recruiting Blackbeard (and possibly Costello?).

Specialties:

• Spanish Nobility – Increases trade profit and contribution in Iberian cultural sphere
• Cannon Expertise – Increases damage, accuracy, and penetration of cannons

Languages: Spanish

Character: Costello Hermann

• Recruitment: Monica (Seville Barmaid) questline

Specialties:

• Seasoned Pirate – Increased chance of inflicting abnormal status with cannons
• Troublemaker – Inflicts enemy ship with burning after hand-to-hand combat
• Master of Love – Unlocks sweet talk interaction with barmaids. Random chance for either +50 or -20 favorability.

Languages: Spanish

Character: Daniel Crete

• Recruitment: See event in Trieste then travel a few times between Venice and Trieste. Eventually rescue from pirates.

Specialties:

• Surgery – Recovers a portion of dead sailors after battle
• Plague Doctor – Protects from plague while sailing

Languages: Italian

Character: Dietlind

• Recruitment: Starts with the quest in Benghazi from the merchant. You then meet her in the tavern at Hamburg. After that, find the deed to a ship from Lübeck and order a ship at the shipyard there. After a pirate encounter outside the port, she joins.

Specialties:

• German Climate: Increases trade profit and contribution in German cultural sphere
• Sniper – Increased damage in boarding attacks

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Daybreak – +30 hp +1 firearm

Languages: German / Slavic

Character: Esmeralda

• Recruitment: Find in Marseilles and then Palma (Requires Daniel I think)

Specialties:

• Thought Reader – Interpret news topic that barmaids are interested in
• Caravan – Increases expedition load (seems to double)

Languages: French / Slavic / Greek

Character: Henry

• Recruitment – Recruit Blackbeard and then find in London

Specialties:

• Remote Combat – Increases damage, accuracy, and penetration of long-barreled cannons
• Briber – Increases max sailor morale

Languages: English

Character: Joyce de Fritz

• Recruitment: Recruit in Amsterdam

Specialties:

• Precise Routing – Increase Fleet auto-sail speed
• Mathematics – Increase fleet artillery accuracy
• Orange Addict – Protects the fleet from scurvy

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Sextant – +1 mapping +1 geography

Languages: Dutch / Portugeuese / German

Character: Loris Falaise

• Recruitment: Purchase his songbook in the London item shop and then recruit in the London tavern

Specialties:

• Italian Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in Italian cultural sphere
• Oenology – Increases alcohol trade profits

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Gone with the Wind – +1 music +1 treasure

Languages: Italian

Character: Maltim Almeida Blanca

Recruitment: Travel to Genoa and speak to him in the tavern. Then, discover Ras ben Sakka (is this Andrew only?)

Specialties:

• Seasoned Officer – Increases negotiation success rate with NPCs
• Climate Conqueror – Drastically reduces hull damage in storms
• Supply Utilization – Reduces consumption of supplies while sailing

Languages: Portuguese

Character: Mustafa Amir

• Recruitment: Complete an event in the Western Turkey expedition landing and then recruit along with Anastasia in Beirut.

Specialties:

• Turkish Nobility – Increases trade profits and contribution in the Turkish and North African cultural spheres
• Treasure Appraisal – Adds a chance to obtain precious items when trading
• Fire Cannon Expertise – Increases damage, accuracy, and penetration ability of fire cannons

Languages: Turkish

Character: William Ansel

• Recruitment: Pick up in London and take him to Ceuta to recruit.

Specialties:

• British Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in British cultural sphere
• Sketch – Increases rewards and contribution from reporting discoveries
• Journey of Odysseus – No longer become out of control in storms

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Scholar Flat Cap – +1 geography +1 humanities +1 biology

Languages: English / Latin / Greek / Portuguese / Spanish

Character: Yuskin

• Recruitment: Tulip quest line in Amsterdam. After recruiting Beatrice, go to Venice.

Specialties:

• Penny Pinching – Reduce fleet supply and sailor wage costs
• Merchant of Venice – increased experience and profits from trading specialties
• Business Craft – increased rewards from completing business contracts

Languages: Italian / Dutch

Americas

Character: Blackbeard

• Recruitment: Finish his questline in Nassau

Specialties:

• Coercion – Adds chance to cause confusion when battles take place
• Reign of Terror – Provides protection from confusion
• Tyrannical – Can recruit surrendered small and medium ships

Languages: English

Character: Jaca

• Recruitment: Nassau tavern after recruiting Blackbeard

Specialties:

• Caribbean Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in the Caribbean cultural sphere
• Boarding Tactics – Allows hand-to-hand combat immediately when a ram collides with an enemy ship

Extra Equipment Bonus:

• Eagle Warrior Armor – +1 leadership +1 brawling

Languages: Indian / Spanish

Character: Marma Cora

• Recruitment: Wolf child clue in Veracruz

Specialties:

• Inca Climate – Increases trade profits and contribution in the Central and South American and West Coast American cultural spheres
• Instincts – Increase Field of View in expeditions

Languages: Indian

W.I.P.

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