After saving the town of Oasis and getting their first Sandskiff, the Vault Hunters go to the Wurmwater area in order to meet the titular Captain Scarlett, a pirate who leads her own gang. Shade, of course, puts them to speed on what's happening:
However, just by setting foot on the area, they receive a help request, turns out Sandman's pirates are invading her own skiff. After helping clean out the skiff from bandits, the Vault Hunters reach the upper echelon of the skiff in order to meet Scarlett herself, who puts them to speed on the legend.
The mission takes place in the area of Wurmwater, which also hosts the side missions "Message in a Bottle" (Wurmwater), "Declaration Against Independents", "Smells Like Victory", "Ye Scurvy Dogs", "Just Desserts for Desert Deserters" and "Faster than the Speed of Love", as well as the challenges "Skiffless", "Comb the Desert!", "Refined Tastes" and, of course, "Cult of the Vault".
The mission, the related sidequests and challenges, and the Wurmwater area in general, provide examples of:
- Assassin Outclassin': One of the deserters of "Just Dessert For Desert Deserters" is an old cook that tried to poison Scarlett's food six times.
- Brick Joke: When Scarlett gives you the sidequest "Just Desserts For Desert Deserters", she says that one of the rules of her ship is "no fatties". After you finish the mission and turn it in, it turns out that was a joke on her part:Scarlett: Really don't understand just how un-serious I was being about the "no fatties" thing. I actually prefer overweight men.
- Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: Captain Scarlett outright tells you she's going to betray you, but she still gives you missions anyway. And you go ahead and do them.
- Collection Sidequest: "Ye Scurvy Dogs" has you collecting 20 fruit from trees located around a pirate camp in the Wurmwater Flats sub-area.
- I'm a Humanitarian: According to Murray, a pirate that's being treated in Scarlett's skiff during "Ye Scurvy Dogs", Sandman ate their parents. In the end it's revealed that Mercer, the actual questgiver, was the murderer of Murray's parents.
- Obviously Evil: The game makes absolutely no attempt to hide the fact that Scarlett is going to betray you. In fact, it tells you as much as soon as you meet her.
- Timed Mission: The "Faster than the Speed of Love" sidequest requires you to drive across The Wurmwater with your sandskiff for 2:15 minutes.
- Too Spicy for Yog-Sothoth: Shiv-Spike, the pirate that's set for execution as Sand Worm food, is so smelly that even the Sand Worms themselves wouldn't touch him. So the Buccaneer's Bachanal's cook, Mercer, sends you into a quest to retrieve condiments to pour into Shiv-Spike in order to get the Worms to eat him.
- Visual Pun: The mission "Smells Like Victory" has you retrieve a bottle of catsup to make Captain Scarlett's radio operator smell better. There is a cat on the label.
- Walk the Plank: The sidequest "Smells Like Victory" is about retrieving some condiments to pour into a pirate that's being thrown to the Sand Worms below via the usual plank walking.
- Weird Trade Union: The sidequest "Declaration Against Independents" reveal that there's apparently a Pirates Union.
- Would Hurt a Child: During the sidequest "Just Desserts For Desert Deserters", Scarlett revealed that she willingly killed children, but she doesn't like to brag about it. Not because she's remorseful or anything. She's just not especially inclined to show off.
