Since v0.8 there have been some changes in how to start out in the game.
Update: The tutorials have been deactivated by recent patch as well as available loan size has been reduced. This may force players to progress using the Roster as their first vessel (apart from the RowMeo rowboat.)

If you have accumulated enough money to buy the Flippy and outfit it for longlining (requires skill point for longlining skill) or instead, decide to follow a route of fish farming or cargo transport (you will need to invest a skill point into a Tier1 crane operator skill)
In the case of gaining mileage(to advance rank), cargo missions are a good way to go. Also you will gain skill points.
Longlining has always been a proven method to raise money quickly on game outset. If you plan on moving up to larger ships, it still likely is (even though some reports suggest the catch on the Flippy has been nerfed to mostly smaller fish). Due to this lower payout for smaller vessels, longlining atm, is not as lucrative as it once was. Tier 2 and 3 vessels may prove to be more profitable.


At the start of any new game is the option to set wave heights for that particular character profile.
If you are new to the game you may want to reduce those settings if you find the default in game waves too high. This option in game is still a work in progress - so it will be possible to eventually change this on the fly.(according to devs)

The other way of dealing with potential big waves or bad weather that might occur on game start, is to finish what missions you can in the rowboat, and as soon as possible upgrade to the Roster or Flippy (smallest fishing boat). You will be able to use the timeskip feature on the boat's dash clock.
The skip feature only becomes active if the boat is not pitching up and down or moving about.
Hit "E" over the clock to set the amount of hours to skip ahead. Be careful not to use before accepting any cargo missions or you may miss the delivery deadline.


Doing the RowMeo rowboat missions: (RowMeo can only reliably carry (atm) 1 single Extra Small XS cargo item. Check the mission stats on type of cargo before accepting - or cancel if desired.
Do as many missions as it takes to earn the skill point needed for upgrading your skill tree with the longlining skill (or if buying Roster Tier1 Crane operator skill) - if options are limited due to single mission XS cargo not being available, you may be forced to purchase the Roster in order to raise funds and earn skill points.
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[Tutorial disabled due to patch - may become relevant if it is reactivated in future:
(if you do part of the tutorial, it will ask to buy a drill and replace a fuse and light bulb at a marker on the shoreline. When done, you will be asked to return to Rost and get the jigging line.
Do not use the point for that. You can now stop the tutorial and use that skillpoint to get the longlining skill instead. (you should still get 20,000 NOK & cred for completing the tutorial mission)]
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Repairing your boat:
There is an Engineering repair skill in the skill tree that I encourage new players to spend XP points on as soon as they can after gaining their longlining or crane operator skill.
Docking can sometimes be very unforgiving and can cause a fair bit of damage. This repair skill can be upgraded to allow repairing higher levels of damage to the boat. It has a limit and some repairs can only be done in the shipyard.

Always try to park as far from the dock as you can while still being able to moor using "T". If needed the boat can be reeled in closer by hovering over the mooring bollards on the pier with the mouse pointer and pressing "E".
(this is mostly useful for loading cargo with the crane - for cargo related missions please check out my 'SAS cargo stats guide' linked below or in the SAS Guide section, you will also find a helpful section on boat autopilot functions there.)

At game start, skill points are typically earned by delivering goods via the RowMeo rowboat, Roster cargo boat or by longline fishing using the Flippy.

A bit about save game slots
Since there are still some issues with player progression and SAS is still a WIP, keeping a save after every successful mission is a smart choice. Save before dropping longlines and after picking them up (never during). Even doing cargo runs, it has always been safer to start and complete a mission during a single session of play.

Even with chained together missions, do as many as you are able - and if you need to save cancel any remaining missions before making the save.
(in the latest update 3/21/25 saving cargo on deck ie: missions in progress may be functioning tbd)
Better to moderate yourself to do only what you think you can reasonably do in the time you have without having to cancel any cargo missions (or have to save with cargo onboard, imo)
(Note: cargo not reliably being tracked may still be an issue so be aware)


Try keeping a backup of a save (or saves) so you always can have a fallback to load. Since there are only 12 official slots for saves available - plus some autosave slots. You could set aside a couple of those official ones as fallback saves.
The autosaves can be sometimes used to rollback previous to a mission that might have had a bug. In those cases hit Esc, go to main menu re-enter SAS then reload the autosave at the time stamp that you want. Autosaves get refreshed so if you want to save one, put in in a legit save slot.



Thanks to,
Robuk and others for helping to update this guide with new info for v0.8. plus patch :)

Links to my other SAS help guides
https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3377639514
https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3377063060
https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3377574919

First things first, when you start the game you are given 50,000k.
You can use this to sloooowly work your way up to the cash you need for a real boat or -
You can go to the bank and keep asking for loans and get 56000 twice. Third time is 30,000 nok, so about 192,000 total added together to outfit a new boat. (as of v0.8)
Further loans may be possible if the player has certain skills or has amassed X cash in the game.

There is usually one short delivery mission around the harbor you can do that has a good payout using either the Roster or the RowMeo, you may want to take advantage of that.
(Note: Requires knowledge of new mission system - briefly
activate the mission via the logbook or by hitting "TAB" then "Company" then choose the correct cargo mission to activate before making the delivery.)

At this point the best course of action is still to make money.

If due to the v0.8 + patch the Roster might be the best path forwards, regardless of whether you can purchase the Flippy to advance in a longlining path.

If you have the money to invest in the Flippy Teir 1 fishing boat.
Via Tab go to skilltree/fishing and enable longliner skill. (if you don't have the skill points you will need to earn those first doing some cargo missions in either the Roster or the RowMeo rowboat.
Once done.
Go to the shipyard, purchase the Flippy, outfit it for longlining and you are ready to go. Head to the Tackle shop and Fisheries Office to purchase longlines, buy as many as you can afford Note: Since v0.8 Flippy is presently limited to 4 x 500m length lines.

You still need to bait your longlines so you need to buy bait too. Buy a half dozen or so large bags if you can or buy lots of smaller ones, whatever you can afford. Bags of Mackerel are good for catching Haddock, Shrimp catching Cod. (results may vary)

One more thing you need is a Gaff Hook for pulling the fish into the boat - buy at tackle shop.
To equip yourself with it before hauling in longline fish, use the 1-0 keys to access it's storage slot.(make sure it is in personal inventory)

Before heading out use whatever remaining cash to upgrade your boat, starting with a good prop, then engine, then fuel tank.

Bait your longlines - you may wish to do this now - or later when you are at the fishing spot.
(Important note: Make sure the gaff hook is in personal inventory, also move one of the bait bags into Company inventory ("I" key) SAS needs to always have one available working slot free in personal inventory for baiting hooks.)

Once you have what you need, board your boat, make sure you have enough fuel (there is a fuel depot nearby if you need to top up) and head out of the harbor to your desired fishing spot.
(in v0.8 there are new local fishing areas so travel there is quicker)

Save game at that point. Next time you play, the trip there will be out of the way and you can start laying lines right after they have been baited (unless previously baited).

At this point in SAS fishing is a WIP so tactics and results are unknowns. (however, learning to use the sonar fishfinder & overlay function will likely become important)
Usual detection ranges are 500meters - so hitting the refresh key frequently is recommended
Once you have laid your lines, timeskip. (hover mouse over Clock on dash and hit 'E' when option appears) I usually skip about 15 -17hrs and then start to retrieve my lines.

Capturing buoys:
Depending on boats ability/inability to turn, wind speed, size of wave, low visibility, darkness or fog, can make that frustratingly complex at times. There is such a variety of conditions that some days lend themselves far better than others for being able to pick up buoys. If you find that the wind or water is making retrieval of buoys too difficult, try to advance time by an hour or two on the boat's clock and see if that improves wave/wind conditions.
In approaching a buoy I like to place myself between any incoming wind and the buoy so the boat will drift towards it. Also speeding towards the left side of a buoy then turning off the engine just seconds before the boat reaches it has some value.
Any imparted momentum is usually enough to easily snag the buoy with the hauler as it passes by the boat.

After the buoy capture - this is where the minigame of hooking the fish happens, try to hook as many as possible to get top haul. Aim for the hook on the line.
Once all lines are retrieved, you can again save game. Next time (bait permitting) you can lay more longlines or take your catch to port and sell it at the Fisheries.
(your catch is saved in your boat's inventory)
Gutting fish scores are higher when done with a players catch while in the shipyard, afaik.
seems to be a work in progress...

Whether pursuing longlining or cargo missions (or both) you should soon be able to afford the larger boats.. and likely be able to pay back any loan at the bank easily.

You will still need to get mileage towards your tier 2 ticket to drive the larger boats though - at the moment mileage towards your ticket may only be gained through doing cargo runs. AFAIK
XP points = when earning these, best to put points into engineering for boat repair and later for eco driving IMO.


There are additional SAS Guides I have written on Cargo boats (the new mission system) and Navigation Tools to help you further. Good fishing - good travels :)

Since SAS in in EA it seems sensible to keep back ups of ones progress.
In the event where existing saves become corrupted and rollback to a previous save state or character profile can spare a player from having to start over.

Backing up save files:
In windows bottom left search bar type: run then in box type %appdata%
Explorer should open the directory called AppData/Roaming
Go up one directory to Appdata
You should see Local, LocalLow and Roaming, open Local
Scroll down the list of directories until you get to the one titled "Sas"
Clicking on it will open the directory and show another called "Saved"
Now open that directory, in it you will see a folder called "SaveGames"
This is the directory you want to save.
(inside are all the save and autosave files relating to whatever profiles you have created.)

Save and profile files are separate so having one without the other will likely cause loading problems, unless you know what profile belongs to what save.
Right click on the "SaveGames" directory and select copy.
Now create an SAS Save backup folder on your desktop or elsewhere.
Right click and past the "SaveGames" directory into it. You can alter or append the name of the "SaveGames" folder with a number to remind you of which one was last(or check properties) Just make sure to restore the name back to "SaveGames" again if planning to return it to the SAS "Saved" directory.

Restoring a backup to SAS
Probably wise to delete any recent SaveGames directory before copying your backup "SaveGames" folder to that directory. (simply overwriting may leave stray files)

Once done, you should be able to run SAS and load any restored save/profile files.

Hope this info stops some from breaking their keyboards :)

Made a couple of quick keyboard maps (dated 2025/03/25)
Mostly for convenience and to help those new to SAS

There will likely be updates to controls mapping, hopefully this will be helpful until then:
A dark and also lighter variant for printing;