I've been wondering recently if the Devil's Triangle spawned between Jack (a dozen years before PotC 1) and Henry (decades after PotC 1).
I've concluded that it did.
Salazar has done experiments on humans during his first years in the Triangle.
He has mastered the psychology of fear to such a degree that he can accurately predict in advance what his opponent will do. He doesn't trust words because he knows they're just noise to save themself. What's more, he consciously generates brain lag, delays, and errors in his opponent, which he exploits.
He thinks in 3D and in vectors – he has a coordinate system in his head, onto which he simply maps data. He's developed a statistical understanding of human psychology, so he... knows what you'll do. Because according to his research, a statistical 95% of people would do the same in a similar situation, under such and such pressure.
I imagine it this way: in the early years, he took some mortals from ships and lined them up one by one to fight his crew - ordering them to attack the humans in a precisely defined way. He stood aside and carefully observed what mistakes they made under stress - instinctive mistakes. Stepping back in straight line, blocking too hard, striking too far... It was the same every time. Hence, he simply anticipates what his opponent will do in a given situation, and what's more, he can exploit this and force errors and delays in their reactions so that they fall over without bigger help.
He generates micro-delays, which he exploits.
Experiments perfectly explain where he gets this knowledge, and it's instinctive at that.
Another time, he sat mortals at a desk in his cabin and tested various masks (I mean false expressions). Again, by observing their reactions, he developed statistics on what worked, and selected the most effective facial expressions, tone of voice, physical distance, and general behavior - what generated the greatest brain lag and the greatest embarrassment. What broke resistance. What irritated. What lowered alertness. What intensified the pleas for mercy. What increased the terror.
(He had to learn masks because he was the lynchpin of the entire crew's psyche. If he broke down publicly, everyone would break down. But it's impossible that he never broke down—he has trauma and PTSD. It's impossible that he didn't crack. He had to vent his emotions secretly. That's why he learned the mask—when he was crying in the corner of the cabin and someone knocked the door at the same moment, he had to look tough and serious. That's why he learned masks. If a crack were visible, everyone would crack.)
That's how he learned how the brain works. It explains his actions very coherently. That's why he easily breaks even the toughest opponents, like Barbossa.
I don't know if you noticed how much fun he had disorienting his opponent.
First, he had the expression of a monster.
Then the tone and expression of a tavern storyteller.
"Cordial intent... you hear that? This pirate wishes to be cordial. (...)"
(Remember Scrum in PotC 4? "Hey! Did you see that? This man forgot his name!")
Then the expression and tone of a polite child (puppy eyes).
"Might want to go go a bit faster, captain!"
Then he took off his mask and revealed his true face: a terrifying monster searching for Jack Sparrow.
Then he donned the mask of a father explaining the obvious to a child.
"Nooo, the sea belongs to the dead."
Then he was an executioner.
Then he laughed because he saw the statistical reaction. Finally, he assumed the tone, facial expressions, and "warmth" of his barbecue buddy.
"Ole! Take what's left of them!"
He plays with facial expressions, tone of voice, and words. He inverts their meaning and juxtaposes them with incongruous ones.
He plays with the brain. He mixes up the settings and turns them against himself.
Furthermore, he disrupts the "enemy=aggressive" model.
He forces the facial expressions of someone friendly into a death situation.
The victim is unable to assign him a stable personality or react, because none of the brain patterns match him. Man tries to assign him a single identity, but he switches modes mid-sentence. Victim's brain goes haywire.
He generated such brain lag in Barbossa that the pirate... froze.
His brain suspended his reaction.
Therefore, the pirate stood there and didn't react.
What's more, throughout the entire film, he let Sparrow feel the knife on his throat without killing him. He let him escape, narrowly avoiding death. He kept him in a state of danger.
If he wanted to, he could have killed him instantly. But then it wouldn't have been fun.
The most interesting thing is that he doesn't fake emotions like an actor.
He uses learned masks like a mechanic uses wrenches:
He selects a tool for the type of resistance,
He tests the reaction, and if it doesn't work, he changes the mode. He puts on a different mask.
He doesn't enter into a relation, just toggles functions like a switch. It's inhumane. The victim tries to understand him as a human being, while he behaves like a stress management system.
This is partly due to his past experiments and his good memory.
After growing bored with the experiments—because he already knew everything—he decided to start releasing people for terror.
Psychological weaponry from a distance.
He didn't have to do anything. The system worked for him.
