Black Flag has a remarkable ability to turn a simple journey into an evening-long distraction. You set sail for a mission, spot some ruins, find a treasure map and suddenly Edward is swimming through a tunnel while a shark takes an unhealthy interest in his legs.
For me, that freedom is the game’s strongest attraction. The Caribbean feels worth exploring even when nobody has asked you to explore it.
Its secrets include a locked Maya armour chamber, submerged wrecks, smugglers’ caves and buried treasure containing some of the Jackdaw’s most useful upgrades. This guide brings those destinations together, with coordinates and the requirements that can otherwise leave you staring at a locked door.
Version note: This guide covers the original Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, released in 2013. Black Flag Resynced changes locations and rewards, so its coordinates should be treated separately.
Spoilers: Hidden armour rewards and later story destinations appear below.
What Counts as a Secret Location in Black Flag?
“Secret location” is a useful description, rather than a single category in the game. Some places are genuinely concealed behind puzzles or underwater passages. Others appear on the map but are easy to overlook because the main story gives you little reason to visit.
The main groups worth tracking are:
- Locked armour locations: Tulum’s Maya chamber and the Templar armour display at Great Inagua.
- Maya puzzle sites: The islands containing all 16 stelae.
- Underwater locations: Wrecks, caverns and submerged ruins.
- Smugglers’ dens: Hidden coastal interiors, sometimes reached through underwater tunnels.
- Buried treasure: All 22 map-linked treasure destinations.
- Bonus islands: Additional locations available with particular editions or installed content.
Ordinary collectible chests and Animus fragments are separate from these larger discoveries. Otherwise, “every secret location” becomes a lengthy inventory of Edward checking behind barrels.
Tulum’s Secret Maya Armour Chamber
Location: Tulum, around 70, 405
Requirement: Collect all 16 Maya stones
Reward: Maya outfit
The locked chamber at Tulum is one of Black Flag’s best exploration rewards. You can find the door before you have the stones needed to open it, which makes it an effective invitation to start poking around the rest of the Caribbean.
Each stone comes from a stela puzzle. Climb the monument, interact with it and align the on-screen pattern with features in the landscape. Once the shapes match, collect the stone from the revealed spot.
After gathering all 16, return to Tulum and follow the Maya outfit marker to the locked entrance. The reward deflects bullets while worn in the original game. It is unusually practical for something acquired through Edward’s informal archaeology programme. steamcommunity.com
Every Maya Stela Location
There are 16 puzzles across 13 locations. Pinos Isle, Misteriosa and Santanillas each contain two, as does Isla Providencia.
The coordinates below identify the puzzle area or its island. Where two stones share an island coordinate, use the local map to locate both monuments.
| Location | Coordinates | Stones |
|---|---|---|
| Great Inagua | 845, 468 | 1, introduced during the story |
| Cape Bonavista | 179, 593 | 1 |
| Cat Island | 734, 694 | 1 |
| Matanzas | 343, 642 | 1 |
| Tulum | 70, 405 | 1 |
| Tortuga | Around 876, 377 | 1 |
| Pinos Isle | 342, 478 and 334, 476 | 2 |
| Misteriosa | 303, 199 and 296, 196 | 2 |
| New Bone | 431, 116 | 1 |
| Santanillas | 221, 242 and 217, 245 | 2 |
| Long Bay | 525, 253 | 1 |
| Isla Providencia | Island around 502, 44 | 2 |
Long Bay and Isla Providencia require story progress. If you have collected everything currently accessible and still lack stones, continue the campaign before attempting another exhaustive sweep of the map.
I would collect these gradually. Visiting an island for a contract or treasure map and solving its nearby puzzle feels much better than leaving yourself an entire Caribbean-wide shopping list at the end.
Great Inagua’s Locked Templar Armour
Location: The manor at Great Inagua
Requirement: Obtain all five Templar keys
Reward: Templar armour, reducing damage taken by 25 per cent
The armour is displayed at Edward’s home base, behind a lock requiring five keys. One comes through the main story involving Julien du Casse. The remaining four come from completing the Templar Hunt mission chains.
| Contact | Starting location | What to complete |
|---|---|---|
| Opía Apito | Cayman Sound | Her full Templar Hunt |
| Rhona Dinsmore | Havana | Her full Templar Hunt |
| Antó | Kingston | His full Templar Hunt |
| Vance Travers | Nassau | His full Templar Hunt |
Each hunt contains several missions. Finishing the opening task does not award the final key, so follow the chain through to its conclusion.
Once you have all five, return to the manor and unlock the display. The damage reduction makes this a worthwhile early side objective whenever the hunts become available. Edward’s property portfolio finally provides something more useful than a pleasant view.
Every Underwater Wreck and Ruin
The diving bell becomes available during Sequence 6, Memory 1, “Diving for Medicines”. Before that, reaching a wreck’s position does not give you access to its full underwater exploration area.
There are seven main diving locations, with further underwater passages associated with coastal caves and smugglers’ dens. Some older lists count those together and even duplicate Antocha under the spelling “Atocha”. They are not two separate wrecks.
| Underwater location | Approximate coordinates | Main reason to visit |
|---|---|---|
| San Ignacio Wreck | 379, 770 | Elite hull armour plan |
| Antocha Wreck | 630, 660 | Elite mortar plan |
| The Black Trench | 215, 449 | Underwater collectibles |
| Devil’s Eye Caverns | 487, 357 | Elite swivel gun plan |
| La Concepcion Wreck | 181, 296 | Elite ram plan |
| The Blue Hole | 471, 170 | Elite broadside cannon plan |
| Kabah Ruins | 769, 145 | Elite round shot plan |
The coordinates indicate each site, rather than the exact chest position. Once underwater, explore the wreck or cave interior and check the local collectible map.
The ship plans make these visits particularly valuable. Finding a plan unlocks the relevant upgrade for purchase; it does not automatically install it on the Jackdaw. You still need the required money and materials.
For survival, keep track of your return route and available air before chasing another chest. A slightly incomplete wreck is preferable to Edward making a permanent contribution to it.
Every Smuggler’s Den and Hidden Coastal Cave
The cave locations offer a different sort of exploration. Some involve swimming through submerged passages before you reach a dry interior occupied by smugglers. Others are approached more directly from the coast.
| Location | Coordinates | Hidden attraction |
|---|---|---|
| Jiguey | 565, 539 | Coastal cave and buried treasure |
| Petite Caverne | 901, 263 | Smugglers’ hideout and upgrade treasure |
| San Juan | 479, 487 | Underwater approach to a guarded interior |
| Anotto Bay | 621, 277 | Submerged passages leading to a den |
| Ambergris Key | 55, 178 | Underwater route into concealed ruins |
These places deserve a thorough search. Several contain treasure maps that lead somewhere else, meaning the reward for finding one hidden location is permission to go looking for another.
Ambergris Key is my pick for atmosphere. Moving from open water into enclosed passages and then discovering ruins gives it a stronger sense of discovery than simply following a chest icon across a beach.
San Juan and Petite Caverne are especially useful for ship upgrades, provided you have collected their corresponding treasure maps.
All 22 Buried Treasure Locations
Black Flag contains 22 treasure maps and corresponding buried chests. You must obtain the correct map before you can excavate its treasure.
The map’s coordinates identify the destination. Its drawing helps you find the actual patch of ground, using landmarks such as trees, ruins, rocks and wreckage.
The table below pairs every map source with its treasure destination.
| Treasure map source | Treasure destination | Destination coordinates |
|---|---|---|
| Cape Bonavista | Cape Bonavista | 179, 593 |
| Havana | Havana | 240, 607 |
| Mariguana Island | Andreas Island | 579, 720 |
| Andreas Island | Abaco Island | 606, 835 |
| Abaco Island | Salt Lagoon | 749, 625 |
| Great Inagua | Nassau | 633, 784 |
| Pinos Isle | Cayman Sound | 327, 334 |
| Cumberland Bay | Pinos Isle | 335, 469 |
| Cayman Sound | Petite Caverne | 901, 263 |
| Tortuga | Matanzas | 333, 650 |
| Île à Vache | Jiguey | 565, 539 |
| Petite Caverne | Tulum | 70, 405 |
| Salt Lagoon | New Bone | 442, 118 |
| Misteriosa | Kingston | 623, 172 |
| Santanillas | San Juan | 479, 487 |
| Ambergris Key | Misteriosa | 307, 195 |
| Anotto Bay | Principe | 992, 422 |
| Corozal | Ambergris Key | 55, 178 |
| Isla Providencia | Long Bay | 525, 253 |
| Kenway’s Fleet: The Empty Cellar | Cumberland Bay | 679, 381 |
| Kenway’s Fleet: Scarlatina | Isla Providencia | 502, 44 |
| Kenway’s Fleet: Great Reputation II | Anotto Bay | 621, 277 |
These are destination coordinates, not precise standing positions for the dig prompt.
The final three maps are rewards from Kenway’s Fleet. Their acquisition depends on access to that connected feature on your platform. If the feature is unavailable, sailing to the destination cannot substitute for obtaining the map.
Which Hidden Treasures Are Worth Finding First?
If your Jackdaw is struggling, prioritise discoveries that improve its fighting ability rather than treating every chest as equally urgent.
The most useful early exploration targets are the elite hull plan at San Ignacio, broadside cannon plan at the Blue Hole and round shot plan at Kabah Ruins. Together, these support the fairly sensible strategy of surviving enemy fire while delivering more of your own.
For buried treasure, the map from Ambergris Key leads to the elite heavy shot plan at Misteriosa. The Santanillas map leads to elite fire barrels at San Juan, while the Cayman Sound map leads to elite heavy shot storage at Petite Caverne.
My preference would be to improve the ship first, collect Maya stones along the way and finish the armour hunt when the remaining islands become accessible. It keeps exploration connected to what you are actually doing, rather than turning it into unpaid administrative work.
The Giant Squid Easter Egg at Antocha
Location: Antocha Wreck, around 630, 660
Antocha contains a memorable underwater Easter egg: a giant squid attacking a whale outside the wreck.
Explore the ship’s interior and look through its openings to catch the encounter. It is a brief environmental spectacle rather than a boss fight or a treasure reward.
I like that the game leaves it as something you can simply witness. The sea becomes a little stranger, Edward remains very small, and nobody asks you to collect twelve squid parts.
Black Island, Sacrifice Island and Mystery Island
These three locations belong to Black Flag’s bonus content. Access depends on your edition and installed extras, so they should not be confused with islands unlocked by normal story progression.
| Bonus location | Coordinates | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Black Island | 985, 626 | Additional exploration and special treasure |
| Sacrifice Island | 37, 533 | Guarded ruins and special treasure chests |
| Mystery Island | 980, 79 | Restricted areas and special treasure chests |
Sacrifice Island and Mystery Island contain hostile pirates, so arriving under the assumption that everyone shares Edward’s professional interests can end badly.
If these islands are absent from your game, check its included content before searching for a hidden access quest.
How to Find Secrets Without Constant Backtracking
The most efficient approach is to search each location properly when you first visit it.
- Synchronise viewpoints to make local exploration easier.
- Check the location’s collectible totals before leaving.
- Collect treasure maps when you find them, even if their destinations are far away.
- Check for a second stela on islands with multiple Maya puzzles.
- Leave story-locked destinations until later, particularly Long Bay and Isla Providencia.
- Use nearby landmarks at dig sites, rather than standing directly on the world-map coordinate.
I would also keep the exploration pace slightly loose. Black Flag’s islands are more enjoyable when you have room to follow an interesting path, rather than sprinting through them with the grim determination of someone clearing their inbox.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you dig up treasure without its map?
No. In the original Black Flag, you need the corresponding treasure map before the buried chest can be excavated. Knowing the destination is not enough.
Why can’t I explore a shipwreck yet?
The diving bell unlocks through “Diving for Medicines” in Sequence 6. Continue the story if you have reached a diving site before gaining the equipment.
Where do you unlock the Maya outfit?
At the locked chamber in Tulum, after collecting all 16 Maya stones.
Where do you unlock the Templar armour?
At the manor on Great Inagua, after obtaining the story key and completing all four Templar Hunt chains.
Do these coordinates work in Black Flag Resynced?
Use a version-specific guide. Resynced changes coordinates and some collectible arrangements, including the Maya stone locations.
