Lost Ark Sailing Hazardous Waters Guide

The waters of Arkesia are populated by hazardous seas. You can choose to safely sail around them but what kind of lily-livered swashbuckler would do that?? Instead, crew up, and tame those wild seas till they purr like Blackfang’s sword.

There are 6 different Hazardous Waters in Arkesia: Kelp, Sandstorm, Siren, Cold Snap, Tempest, and Dead. Each Hazard has 4 different levels, with level 4 being the strongest and doing the most damage to your ship. You can negate heavy durability loss by increasing the level of your ship and equipping sailors with strong resistances to the hazards you’ll be sailing in.

Your Ship’s Hazard Meter

After entering any Hazardous Waters, a Hazard Debuff will be placed on your ship and the glass Hazard Meter will begin to fill. When it’s full, a stronger debuff will hit your ship which usually includes a hefty durability loss.

The rate at which the meter fills depends on how resistant your ship is to that Hazard. Leaving the Hazard waters will empty the Hazard meter, but timed debuffs will continue until they time out.

Hazardous Waters Interface

You can plan ahead if you know which level of Hazardous Waters you will be sailing in by hitting the arrow keys to the right and left of the Hazardous Waters level in the Docking UI. In the picture below, Hazardous Waters Level 3 is selected. 

Your Ship’s Safety Levels

There are 5 arrow icons that represent your ship’s Safety Level. They indicate at a glance how resistant it is to every Hazardous Water type. The safety level determines the level of debuffs the ship will receive while sailing in each water type. A green upward arrow indicates the ship is strong in that Hazard and will receive the lowest level of debuff. A double red downward arrow indicates your ship is in serious danger and will receive the highest level of debuff.

This ship is Strong in level 3 Dead Waters, but Dangerous in level 3 Tempest Seas. If I sail into Tempest waters using this configuration, I would expect frequent debuffs with huge durability losses.

Kelp Beds

Kelp Beds are the first hazardous water you’ll encounter after acquiring your sea legs and leaving Wavestrand Port. It’s the only hazardous water you can’t see on the in-game map.

Kelp Beds debuff your sailing speed but do not decrease durability.

Sandstorm

Sandstorm seas have a continuous durability debuff that ticks off every few seconds. When the meter fills, expect a hefty chunk of durability loss and reduced visibility according to your ship’s safety level.

Siren

Siren seas have a continuous durability debuff that ticks off every few seconds. When the meter fills, expect a huge chunk of durability loss and a short stun according to your ship’s safety level.

Cold Snap

Cold Snap seas have two continuous durability debuffs that tick off every few seconds. One if you are sitting still and an additional one if you are moving. When the meter fills, expect some durability loss and reduced sailing speed according to your ship’s safety level. Reduced sailing speed stacks up to 9x.

Tempest

Tempest seas have two continuous debuffs, one consumes durability and the other consumes fast sailling gauge. When the hazard meter fills, expect a hefty chunk of durability loss and the inability to use any ship skills for several seconds.

Dead Waters

Dead waters have two continuous debuffs that reduce durability and sailing speed.