There are a total of five Headless Monkey’s Captain journals hidden away in the A Pirate’s Life Tall Tale. This guide will show you where to find each journal.
The journals are in Sailor’s Grave, so you don’t need to worry about hunting any journals down in Dead Man’s Grotto. Make sure you find all five journals before placing the Cursed Captain’s skull back on his original body found in his ship in Sailor’s Grave.
Finding all five journals will unlock The Crew of the Headless Monkey commendation.
If you are looking for a guide to walk you through the Tall Tale and the remaining commendations, head on over to our A Pirate’s Life Tall Tale guide here.
Discover the Journals of the Headless Monkey’s Captain
You can find the journals at the Headless Monkey shipwreck found in Sailor’s Grave. However, you’ll have to put in some work before gaining access to the shipwreck and the journals.
Remember, if you want to gain access to the shipwreck and journals, make sure you do not place the Cursed Captain on his final body in his Captain’s Quarters on the Golden Hare.
You cannot reach the journals if you complete that part of the Tall Tale.
Steps to Gain Access to Journals
As we mentioned, to find the Headless Monkey’s Captain’s journals and complete ‘The Crew of the Headless Monkey’ commendation, you’ll need to put in some time completing five other commendations first.
‘The Crew of the Headless Monkey’ belongs to a series of six commendations. The six commendations are all connected, and you must complete them sequentially in a single visit to Sailor’s Grave!
The series includes the following commendations, in this order:
- A Powerful Thirst
- Raising the Dead
- Treasure for the Dead
- Ship of Thieves
- Secret of the Grave
- The Crew of the Headless Monkey
You must first complete ‘A Powerful Thirst,’ ‘Raising the Dead,’ ‘Treasure for the Dead,’ ‘Ship of Thieves,’ and ‘Secret of the Grave’—in this same session at sea.
Without completing those five commendations, you will not be able to reach the shipwreck with the journals and unlock the ‘The Crew of the Headless Monkey.’
So, if you have not done so already, make sure you’ve completed the previous five commendations. Once you have and you’ve arrived at the Secret of the Grave, you’ll be ready to unlock ‘The Crew of the Headless Monkey!’
Journals of the Headless Monkey’s Captain
There are five journals written by Captain Kate Capsize hidden away in Sailor’s Grave. You will want to find them all before you place the Cursed Captain on his body and step foot on a rowboat to board the Ferry of the Damned.
Somewhere in the Caribbean
Once aboard the Headless Monkey shipwreck, you will find this journal by the helm.
Somewhere in the Caribbean, by Captain Kate Capsize.
Today, with more than a little reluctance, I sold my beautiful glass-bottomed boat.
I could hardly bear to let her go, but she’s too small and too slow for the kind of lengthy sea journey I’ll be embarking on. So it’s bye-bye boat.
I have a pressing need for a galleon, something that will see me through thick and thin as I head out on a journey to find the man who framed me.
Luckily, that same man once chartered my glass-bottomed boat and led me to the location of a particularly spectacular shipwreck.
It’s a shipwreck I intend to salvage, repair, and use to track down the dolt who had me sent to jail in his stead. A dolt named Guybrush Threepwood.
Raising the Mad Monkey
Once aboard the Headless Monkey shipwreck, you will find this journal on the broken mast in front of the helm.
Raising the Mad Monkey, by Captain Kate Capsize.
If I’m to locate Threepwood and teach him a very pointy lesson about having innocent people locked up so you can steal their beverages, I’ll need help.
I knew I’d need the help of the local authorities, but infuriatingly, Governor Marley turned out to have eloped with non other than Threepwood himself. Yuck!
Fortunately, if there is one thing we’re not lacking in this part of the world, it’s bureaucrats. Governor Phatt was ready and willing to meet with me.
I must confess that it turns my stomach to think of my pieces of eight going to feed that man’s endless gluttony, but I’m willing to do what must be done.
Besides, if what I hear about Threepwood’s honeymoon destination is true, I’ll soon have more than enough treasure in my hold…
A Headless Monkey
Once aboard the Headless Monkey shipwreck, you will find this journal by the broken main mast in the middle of the shipwreck. It is sitting next to a lantern.
A Headless Monkey, by Captain Kate Capsize.
THREEPWOOD! A name I shall take great pleasure in etching into a gravestone with my own dagger for what he did to my new ship’s pride and joy.
I’d quite forgotten that the witless, hopeless, clueless buffoon previously removed the head of the figurehead that gives the Mad Monkey its name!
One day I shall take great pleasure in tying the selfish swindler to what remains of the figurehead and parading him around the port, but until then…
Making do, I have returned from the shipwright with a new nameplate for our ship. Together, my new crew and I shall sail on the Headless Monkey!
That’s a name that a certain Guybrush Threepwood, pirate pretender, and his job-ditching bride Governor Elaine would do well to remember…
A Fateful Pursuit
Once aboard the Headless Monkey shipwreck, you will want to find the Headless Monkey Key. You can find the key by the skeleton at the helm of the shipwreck. This key will open the door to Captain’s Cabin, which you can find on the Northside of the shipwreck.
Enter the Captain’s Cabin, and you’ll find the journal on the table.
A Fateful Pursuit, by Captain Kate Capsize.
Did Guybrush Threepwood make it to the Sea of Thieves? I may never know for sure. I, on the other hand, never arrived. Also, I think I might be slightly dead.
The Headless Monkey is a wreck once again, already part of the weird pirate town they’ve got going on here. There’ll be no salvaging her this time.
I do still have a ship, though – my little glass-bottomed boat! How can it be here, in this strange not-life fully of ghostly voices? Maybe I shouldn’t ask.
My crew are off in the tavern, and I don’t think they’ll be leaving any time soon. They’re at home here in a way that I can never be. I miss the sunlight!
I am going to set sail, find a way back to life and then… Well, let’s see what the seas have in store! I’ve realized revenge isn’t worth living, and certainly not dying, for.
Fresh Waters
While you are in the Captain’s Cabin, look to the left of the fourth journal to find the fifth journal sitting on a bookshelf.
Fresh Waters, by Captain Kate Capsize.
I have a ship, she has a name. I have a crew, we have our course!
The Sea of Thieves is a legendary pirate paradise, home to some of the most feared marauders to ever sail the seas – or so the stories go.
Naturally, only Threepwood would be arrogant enough to presume he has a place there, let alone treat it as a romantic getaway spot for his honeymoon.
If he’d been sailing alone I’m sure he’d be marooned by now, but while Elaine has seriously bad taste in husbands, she’s a capable pirate.
I have to assume that Threepwood somehow made it to the Sea of Thieves. And that means I must do the same.
