Return of the Obra Dinn – Hints and Solutions in Chronological Order

A guide for the correct fates of all passengers on the Obra Dinn, in the order that they are listed in your journal. Also includes short explanations of each event, important pieces to find in each memory, and some details you may not have noticed. Spoiler tags are separate for each part of the solution so you can choose to reveal the whole fate or just parts at a time.

Guide to Hints and Solutions

All credit goes to polkadotc!

Intro

This is mostly intended for people who have experienced all the events of the game but don’t quite get what facts you should have seen by now, or where to find them. With this you should be able to navigate right to whatever piece of information you’re need to get unstuck and be able to move forward. I also added some tidbits that I thought were neat details.

Each part has the solution you can put in your notebook, and then the relevance of the event you’re witnessing. I tried to put each piece of info in a separate spoiler tag so you don’t pick up anything you’re not ready to know yet.

Because the events all depict deaths, these descriptions of the events may include how someone dies. They do not include names of culprits or victims.

For example, a description might say that the victim is stabbed after fighting with the culprit, but it will not say who those parties actually are. It’s generally stuff you see right away when you watch the event, plus places you might want to go back and investigate.

This is based off of my own results after playing, so other options for responses are just what I would assume or quickly read from others. I also played the entire game in one night for about 8 hours straight, so this might be missing information or have inaccuracies.

Chapter I: Loose Cargo

Part 1

• Samuel Peters (seaman) was crushed by falling cargo.
• Was underneath the cargo when it collapsed. Head was crushed.

Part 2

• An unidentified stowaway was crushed inside a falling barrel.
• No corpse visible. The game provides this info for you when you view the scene.

Chapter II: A Bitter Cold

Part 1

• Soloman Syed (seaman) succumbed to a tragic illness.
• Dies in his hammock due to lung illness.

Part 2

• Renfred Rajub (seaman) succumbed to a tragic illness.
• Dies from lung illness (the same that killed the previous victim). Was treated but medicine was not administered in time to save him.

Part 3

• A large cow was slaughtered for its meat.
• The game will provide this info when you view the scene. This scene is about giving identifying details for some of the crew present.

Chapter III: Murder

Part 1

• Nunzio Pasqua (passenger) was knifed by Edward Nichols (second mate).
• Killed after investigating the noise made by the culprit as they attempted to break into the cargo hold containing a magic treasure.

Part 2

• Hok-Seng Lan (passenger) was shot with a gun by Henry Brennan.
• Shot by firing squad after being framed for the death of the previous victim. Three bullets miss him; if you follow the smoke trails of the shots, you will see that only the culprit’s bullet lands.

Part 3

• Timothy Butement (topman) was shot with a gun by Edward Nichols (second mate).
• Shot trying to defend the hostage from the culprit. The culprit here is stealing from the ship and takes small boats towards islands in an attempt to escape. This context is important to understand the next chapter’s events.

Chapter IV: The Calling

Part 1

• Li Hong (topman) was speared by a terrible beast.
• The culprit spears the victim in the attack. Other causes of death, such as spiked, may be accepted as long as the culprit is correctly identified.

Part 2

• Patrick O’Hagan (seaman) was speared by a terrible beast.
• Next to die in the attack. Can be identified from the following victim’s dialogue.

Part 3

• Samuel Galligan (2nd mate’s steward) was knifed by It-Beng Sia (passenger).
• The culprit stabs the victim in order to get to the treasure chest, which contains magic that repels the attackers. He is not killed by the attackers.

Part 4

• Bun-Lan Lim (passenger) was clawed by a terrible beast.
• Victim is killed by attackers just before they retreat. I personally thought the attacker took a bite out of her neck, but that answer is not accepted.

Part 5

• It-Beng Sia (passenger) burned to death.
• When the victim opens the chest, the magic melts his arm off (which eventually kills him). It can be hard to see what actually killed him; look at the coloration of the chest and then the corpse. This is confirmed by a similar event in another chapter.

Part 6

• Edward Nichols (second mate) was shot with a gun by Chioh Tan (passenger).
• The culprit is the last of his country to survive. The victim could assume to have been killed either for vengeance for comrades or to prevent the treasure chest from boarding.

Disappearances

• Aleksei Toporov (seaman) was drowned by a terrible beast.
• Disappears by the time the Obra Dinn reaches the small boats. This death is ambiguous, so causes like falling overboard may also be accepted.

• Alarcus Nikishin (seaman) was drowned by a terrible beast.
• Disappears by the time the Obra Dinn reaches the small boats. This death is ambiguous, so causes like falling overboard may also be accepted.

Chapter V: Unholy Captives

Part 1

• Chioh Tan (passenger) was spiked by a terrible beast.
• One of the captured beasts launches a spike that tears through both victims on this page. “Spiked” and “speared” are interchangeable here.

• Hamadou Diom (seaman) was spiked by a terrible beast.
• One of the captured beasts launches a spike that tears through both victims on this page. “Spiked” and “speared” are interchangeable here.

Part 2

• Thomas Sefton (cook) was struck dead by a beast’s tail.
• The victim attempts to take a shell that the captured beast is holding. It reacts and hits him with its tail. This death is the direct cause of the following one.

Part 3

• William Wasim (seaman) was crushed by falling cargo.
• When the previous death occurs, the men carrying the beast lose their balance and drop the cargo down the stairs. The victim gets caught between it and the wall.

Part 4

• John Naples (seaman) was killed with a sword by Fillip Dahl (captain’s steward).
• The culprit attacks the victim in an attempt to prevent the beast from being locked in the cargo hold. He is concerned about them being cursed. The culprit is locked away in the same room as the beasts to keep others safe from his “insanity”. “Torn apart” may be used instead of “killed with a sword” (due to the leg being torn off).

Chapter VI: Soldiers of the Sea

Part 1

• Huang Li (topman) was electrocuted.
• Struck by lightning from a sudden storm. He is dropped from the rigging down onto the main deck.

Part 2

• Nicholas Botterill (topman) was speared by a terrible beast.
• Killed as the beasts board the ship. A character in the following scene identifies this victim. “Speared” may also be accepted.

Part 3

• Marcus Gibbs (carpenter’s mate) was spiked by a terrible beast.
• Dies trying to protect his comrades. His boss tells him that “Nick” has already been killed by the beasts. “Speared” may also be accepted.

Part 4

• James Wallace (surgeon’s mate) was decapitated by a terrible beast.
• Dies in the attack.

• Jie Zhang (topman) was decapitated by a terrible beast.
• Dies in the attack.

Part 5

• Charles Hershtik (midshipman) was speared by a terrible beast.
• Victim lights the beast on fire and holds it down, killing them both in the process. The actual cause of death is ambiguous because you cannot tell what actually killed him, so “speared”, “spiked”, and “burned” should all work.

Part 6

• Emil O’Farrell (butcher) was speared by a terrible beast.
• Pinned to the wall with spikes by the monster. He bleeds out when he is removed from the wall. He can be identified by the event where a cow is slaughtered. “Spiked” may also be accepted.

Part 7

• Zungi Sathi (ship’s steward) was shot with a gun by Charles Miner (bosun’s mate).
• Pay attention to what the actual moment of death is. You may have noticed from earlier scenes that he was hit by a spike and crawled away, but he doesn’t die until the culprit fires at the attackers. The spike isn’t the cause of death.

Part 8

• Winston Smith (carpenter) was spiked by a terrible beast.
• Skewered by the final beast as it died. “Speared” may also be accepted.

Chapter VII: The Doom

Part 1

• Lars Linde (seaman) was clubbed by Nathan Peters (seaman).
• The culprit blames the victim for the death of his brother (the first death aboard the Obra Dinn) and kills him for trying to escape with him and the others present. The culprit tells you the victim’s nationality, and can be identified by his relationship to his brother.
• A hint for later: when you see the corpse, the non-culprits are hovering over his body. They are still on the boat when the next scenes occur!

Part 2

• Edward Spratt (artist) was crushed by a terrible beast.
• Killed while using the bathroom on the bow of the gun deck.You can actually identify this person before having ever seen a memory. I did it on accident before figuring out how to actually play the game. Try comparing the name roster with the sketch; there’s someone who doesn’t have their face in any of the drawings. You may also answer that he was drowned by the beast.

Part 3

• Abraham Akbar (seaman) was crushed by a terrible beast.
• The monster grabs both the victim and the cannon he was firing through the porthole. Notice that the fuse is lit at the moment of death!

Part 4

• Christian Wolff (gunner) was blasted with a cannon by Abraham Akbar (seaman).
• Killed when the previous victim’s cannon fires into the gun deck. You can also answer that he is shot by the beast, since it aims the cannon at him.

• George Shirley (seaman) was blasted with a cannon by Abraham Akbar (seaman).
• Killed when the previous victim’s cannon fires into the gun deck. His body is launched off of the boat, so you may answer that he fell overboard. You can also answer that he is shot by the beast, since it aims the cannon at him.

Part 5

• Roderick Anderson (3rd mate’s steward) was crushed by a loose cannon.
• A cannon rolls into a wall as the boat rocks, crushing the victim between them.

Part 6

• Peter Milroy (midshipman) was blasted by an explosion.
• Picked up by the beast while trying to get gunpowder to other crew members. The gunpowder lights and explodes. There’s a crewmate that tries to pull him away from the beast with a rope before the powder lights; this is referenced in a death in chapter IX.

Part 7

• Maba (topman) was torn apart by a terrible beast.
• Self-explanatory. Ouch. While you’re here, look closely behind the beast, out towards the sky. You might notice three people falling through the air. You can’t zoom in to see their faces, but you can figure out who they are by the small boat falling next to them. Who are three people we’ve seen in a small boat recently?

Part 8

• Abigail Hoscut Witterel (passenger) was crushed by a terrible beast.
• Victim fearfully runs out onto the main deck searching for her husband. The beast brings down some of the rigging onto her head, killing her. She identifies who “Martin” is in this scene.
• You can look in the opposite direction of the beast to spot a disappeared soul falling overboard. He should be close enough to see characteristics of his face, even if you can’t zoom in on him. You can see three more disappeared souls being pulled overboard by the beast. There’s only one disappeared soul fate that you cannot know until a later chapter. May also accept that she was crushed by falling rigging.

Disappearances

• Omid Gul (topman) fell overboard to his death.
• Can be seen opposite from the beast in part 8. May also accept “drowned by a terrible beast”.

• Nathan Peters (seaman) fell overboard to his death.
• One of three men who attempted to leave on a small boat. Can be seen falling in part 7. May also accept “drowned by a terrible beast”.

• Alexander Booth (seaman) fell overboard to his death.
• One of three men who attempted to leave on a small boat. Can be seen falling in part 7. May also accept “drowned by a terrible beast”.

• Duncan McKay (purser) fell overboard to his death.
• One of three men who attempted to leave on a small boat. Can be seen falling in part 7. May also accept “drowned by a terrible beast”.

• Wei Lee (topman) was drowned by a terrible beast.
• Can be seen being held in the air by a tentacle in part 8. May also accept “torn apart”.

• Finley Dalton (helmsmen) was drowned by a terrible beast.
• Can be seen dangling above you in part 8. May also accept “torn apart”.

• Charles Miner (bosun’s mate)was torn apart by a terrible beast.
• Disappears after part 8. Dialogue in chapter IV indicates his fate.

Chapter VIII: Bargaining

Warning! You cannot complete this chapter unless you have correctly identified the rest of the fates on the Obra Dinn. The game will notify you when “there is nothing left to do on the Obra Dinn”. I’m mostly just including this section for story explanation purposes. If you haven’t at least viewed the events for yourself, do that first and then come back to this section!

Part 1

• Fillip Dahl (captain’s steward) burned to death.
• Remember what happened when the treasure chest was opened in chapter IV? If you were confused by what happened then, the victim’s dialogue tells you here: “quicksilver!”. Mercury doesn’t actually burn you like that, but the implication is along the lines of a chemical burn. I ended up guessing correctly for those two victims just because it looked sort of like the chest spit out fire magic or something.

Part 2

• An unholy creature’s defiant shrieks were greeted with a fatal bullet.
• The captain has realized the attacking beast was drawn in by the ones locked in the cargo hold, and attempts to threaten them to send it away. He shoots the first caged beast.

Part 3

• A captured beast fought against its jailer and was speared for the trouble.
• The captain has realized the attacking beast was drawn in by the ones locked in the cargo hold, and attempts to threaten them to send it away. This succeeds after the second beast is stabbed.

Part 4

• Martin Perrott (third mate) was spiked by a terrible beast.
• The victim and two others attempt to set the third beast free in order to save the remaining crew. When it is released, it spikes the victim. The victim returns its shell, and in return asks it to ensure the Obra Dinn returns home.

Part 5

• A friendly but not entirely pleasant monkey companion was sacrificed in the pursuit of knowledge.
• The surgeon tricks his monkey into entering the empty hold and shoots it. By killing it and taking a piece, he creates a path for someone using the death compass to see what happened in the chamber. In some previous scenes, you can see the monkey sitting on the surgeon’s shoulder.

Chapter IV: Escape

Part 1

• Alfred Klestil (bosun) was torn apart by a terrible beast.
• The victim was present on the main deck during the attack and is now missing his arm. You can assume it was forcibly removed. The dialogue tells you what happened to the victim’s mate in the attack (who disappears between the last memory of the attack and this scene).

Part 2

• Paul Moss (1st mate’s steward) was killed with a sword by Leonid Volkov (topman).
• The victim is killed while trying to help some others escape on the last small boat. The dialogue tells you his name.

Part 3

• Leonid Volkov (topman) was shot with a gun by Emily Jackson (passenger).
• This victim is the culprit of the previous murder; if you know one, you can fill in the other. You will need to identify this culprit from the two remaining women on the ship. “Miss” as a title means a woman isn’t married, so try to see which one is the married woman. You may want to revisit other scenes including them to investigate this.

Part 4

• Olus Wiatrr (gunner’s mate) was shot with a gun by John Davies (fourth mate).
• The victim is shot after he attacks a crewmate with a knife for trying to report his mutiny. The culprit kills the victim to try and save the fleeing crewmate.

Part 5

• John Davies (fourth mate) was clubbed by Henry Brennan (seaman).
• The culprit finds the victim immediately after the previous memory and strikes him dead in retaliation.

Part 6

• Thomas Lanke (midshipman) was knifed by Olus Wiater (gunner’s mate).
• The victim is the man that was stabbed in the first memory of this chapter. He crawls away before bleeding out. He mentions having tried to pull his friend Pete to safety before he was killed; this is a reference to the man who exploded in chapter IIX.

Disappearances

• Emily Jackson (passenger), Miss Jane Bird (passenger), Davey James (4th mate’s steward), and Henry Evans (surgeon) are all alive in Africa.
• These are the four who escaped the Obra Dinn on the last small boat. You can determine where they went from the map on the title page of chapter IX. They can’t get very far in a little boat without supplies, so where could they have gone?

Chapter V: The End

Part 1

• William Hoscut (first mate) was shot with a gun by Captain Robert Witterel.
• The victim and two remaining passengers attempt to overtake the captain and steer the boat to shore. They want to sell anything they can and get away from the Obra Dinn. The victim is shot when they attempt to storm the captain’s quarters.

Part 2

• Henry Brennan (seaman) was knifed by Captain Robert Witterel.
• This victim makes it further than the last, but has his throat slashed in the fight that ensues. He can be heard gurgling in the next scene.

Part 3

• Lewis Walker (topman) was clubbed by Captain Robert Witterel.
• While the previous two victims storm the cabin from the front, this victim climbs around to the back and attempts to knife the culprit. He lands a hit but is quickly killed before he can overtake the culprit.

Part 4

• Captain Robert Witterel shot himself.
• The final soul on the Obra Dinn. He laments to his dead wife, whose remains lay in his quarters, about what he has done. He identifies the man he has shot as her brother, which means his last name matches her maiden name. He asks for her forgiveness and promptly blasts a hole in his abdomen with the gun.