Getting Ahead in Sunless Sea

I've been playing Sunless Sea almost every night since the official release, and I'm still enjoying it a lot. I've been thinking about why this, unlike most so-called roguelikes as well as the original Rogue and Nethack, keeps my attention, and not unrelated, the approach that is serving me well.

The most unusual thing about Sunless Sea is that you have more to show for yourself after "losing" than in most rogue-likes. Not only have you learned better how to play the game, you can pass on a small portion of your accomplishments to your "heir". You can also unlock permanent starting advantages for your lineage by completing various accomplishments.

Between these two factors, Sunless Sea is as much a builder's game as an explorer's. Seeing each captain as a building-block for your lineage - seeing your lineage itself as your "character" - gives intermediate goals and feelings of accomplishment instead of the letdown of "another failure".

With this mindset, here are a few tips for building up your lineage.

1. Consider totally cheesing your first captain. Sell off your starting gun, all but one fuel and all your supplies, trade in your starter ship for the tiny launch, and make a short trip to Hunter's Keep, which is always just northwest of London. Wait with your engines and light off at the port circle there until Something Awaits You In Port, then land. Get a port report, meet the sisters and talk to one of them (probably the middle one, though for this captain it doesn't really matter). Then head back to London, turn in the port report, sell your remaining supplies and fuel, and either retire or head out to die at sea. Choose to keep half your wealth for your next captain. This will give your first real captain a comfortable amount of extra cash. (There is not a lot of advantage to cheesing more than one captain, as you'll have to play a decent amount of the game to significantly boost the halved cash value.)
   
   If you don't want to cheese quite this badly, be aware that your first captain is going to die pretty quickly anyway. Pick which stat legacy you're going to work on (I'd at recommend going with Mirrors or Veils, as those are the two choices that also pass along money. You won't have a great weapon or officer without a lot of playtime, and passing on Pages and your chart is a net loss because you get only half the Pages but lose all the Fragments from rediscovering the map.) and put all your Secrets except the first one (which you want to use for the University) into that stat.
2. The starting ship is not made of Kleenex but it's pretty weak; the starting weapon is a BB gun. The only things you can safely fight with this equipment are Bat Swarms and Pirate Steam Pinnaces. In general, the part of the map directly north of London (the fixed locations Venderbight and Whither/Codex) and the first couple areas east and north of London but not all the way to the north edge will be the least dangerous for a beginning captain. The fixed location just south of London (The Cumean Canal) is somewhat safe but you may encounter Jillyfish.
   
   Despite this, your first priority is probably to upgrade your engine. A faster engine means less time for terror to accumulate, and a better chance of avoiding or fleeing a fight.
   
   Of the recruitable officers' quests, the one you can probably complete earlier than the others and that will benefit you a lot early on is the Genial Magician; completing his whole quest chain will get you an engine that is as powerful as the middle ones you can buy but that uses less fuel.
   
   That said, the best engineers to use in play are the Tireless Mechanic, who increases your fuel efficiency, and Maybe's Daughter, who boosts engine power.
3. The next thing to think about in your lineage is upgrading to a Townhouse and starting to accumulate Heirlooms. Heirlooms are a way to invest extra cash to give later captains the option of cashing them in if they run low on money. Note, however, that you will lose your townhouse or mansion and all your heirlooms if any captain dies before buying An Ironclad Will. Once you've got a townhouse, getting a will is every captain's first priority.
4. Once you are living long enough to work on something more than survival, the first lineage unlock you want is Scion, which lets you pick two legacy options instead of one when you die. You earn this by having a child and giving them enough Zee Fever that they will go to sea themselves.
   
   There are several steps in getting to having a Child In London that involve rolling a random chance, but if you keep trying you will hit them. Carouse on the docks every time you can (which is once per return to London if Something Awaits You) until you meet a Likely Lass/Dapper Chap and they give you their locket. Be romantic about the locket when the choice presents itself. Eventually you will get the even that lets you choose how your child came to you.
   
   Once you have a child and at least a townhouse, take every opportunity to Spend Time With Your Family instead of carousing. Use the options to tell stories and give gifts to raise your child's Zee Fever until they want to go to Zee, and let them. You will now have the Scion unlock forever (unless you return to London with Salt's Curse).
5. Most but not all of the remaining legacy unlocks involve game-ending or game-crippling actions; they are still a lot easier than accomplishing an Ambition (which is how you win the game) but require planning and generally dedicating a captain's life to achieving them. Check out the wiki for the set and consider how some can be combined (like getting the Book of Sharpes the same game that you get A Dream of Red by combining tips to the Surface).
   
   For the game-ending ones, I probably don't have to point out that you should plan out how to pass on the maximum to your captain's successor - for example carefully considering how much fuel and supplies you need to get to where you will be going and selling off the rest.

There are lots more bits of strategy to be learned by gleaning from the wiki and simply playing the game. I provide these primarily as a leg up to getting to the more fun parts of the game.