Naval combat is core to Assassin’s Creed 4. If you want to survive in the open sea, you will need a ship you can count on. A ship that cannot only survive the onslaught of pirate hunters but can also fight the legendary ships you might encounter during your adventures.
It’s tough to ask all that from your ship when you start your journey but as you progress through the game, it will become a necessity.
If you are looking to upgrade your ship to the fullest, you will need to find all the buried treasure chests and loot all the chests in underwater shipwrecks.
If you can’t locate any of these, I recommended you read our in-depth Buried Treasure Locations and Underwater Shipwrecks Locations Guides.
Assassin’s Creed 4 Black Flag Elite Design Plans
In total, there are 12 elite design plans you need to find in Assassin’s Creed 4. These design plans add different dimensions to your ship. For example, they may strengthen your cannons or increase mortar storage or strengthen your harpoon.
You need all these elite plans if you are looking to survive at higher difficulties of the game. Following are the locations you can retrieve these plans from:
Elite Ram
Location. La Concepcion, 181,296
You will find elite ram upgrade design plan in the La Concepcion underwater shipwreck at 181,296; from the mast platform, go down the small staircase to retrieve it.
Elite Hull Armor
Location. San Ignacio, 379,770
You will find elite hull armor upgrade design plan in the San Ignacio underwater shipwreck at the 379,770.
Elite Round Shot Strength
Location. Kabah Ruins, 769,145
You will find elite round shot strength upgrade design plan in the Kabah Ruins underwater shipwreck at 769,145; inside the lower level of the ruins on the other side.
Elite Broadside Cannons
Location. The Blue Hole, 471,170
You will find elite broadside cannons upgrade design plan in the The Blue Hole underwater shipwreck at 471,170.
Elite Mortars
Location. Antocha, 630,660
You will find elite mortars upgrade design plan in the Antocha underwater shipwreck at 630,660; from the corridor northeast of the fore section of the wreck, go through the small opening to find it.
It’s a bit tricky since there is a shark nearby but you can avoid her altogether using two patches of the sea weed.
Elite Swivel Guns
Location. Devil’s Eye Caverns, 488,353
You will find elite swivel guns upgrade design plan in the Devil’s Eye Caverns underwater shipwreck at 488,353; take the tunnel nearby and swim with the water current to a water pocket and after replenishing oxygen supply, exit the water near the slope and head up to retrieve the plan from the chest.
Elite Heavy Shot Strength
Location. Misteriosa Island, 307,195
You will find elite heavy shot strength upgrade design plan in Misteriosa Island at 307,195; in a buried treasure by the giant structure. You will get the treasure map for this buried treasure in Ambergris Key.
Elite Fire Barrel Strength
Location. San Juan, 479,487
You will find elite fire barrel strength upgrade design plan in San Juan at 479,487; in Smuggler’s Den, break the wooden planks and clear the smugglers to dig the buried treasure chest. You will need Santanillas treasure map to dig this buried treasure.
Elite Heavy Shot Storage
Location. Petite Cavern, 901,263
You will find elite heavy shot storage upgrade design plan in Petite Cavern at 901,263; in a buried treasure chest in the restricted section of Petite Cavern near the fire next to small rocks. You will find the treasure map for this buried treasure in Cayman Sound.
Elite Mortar Storage
Location. Mantanzas, 333,650
You will find elite mortar storage upgrade design plan in Mantanzas at 333,650; in a buried treasure chest near the ruins. You will find the treasure map for this buried treasure in Tortuga.
Elite Fire Barrel Storage
Location. Isla Providencia, 502,44
You will find elite fire barrel storage upgrade design plan in Isla Providencia at 502,44; in a buried treasure chest along the southern coastline near the wrecked ship. You will find the treasure map by sending Kenway’s fleet to Eastern Canada and completing ‘Scarlatina’ mission.
Elite Harpoon Strength
Location. Andreas Island, 579,720
You will find elite harpoon strength upgrade design plan in Andreas Island at 579,720; in a buried treasure chest near some palm trees. You will get the treasure map for this buried treasure at Mariguana Island.
If you find something confusing, comment and we will try to help you out!
