Naval Warfare Guide

<section>
  <h2>Ship roles</h2>
  <p>
    The roster splits into clear jobs. <strong>Ships of the line</strong>
    (First, Second, Third Rates) carry the most guns and form your battle line.
    <strong>Frigates, brigs and sloops</strong> are faster and lighter — use
    them to scout, chase routing enemies and raid trade. <strong>Bomb
    ketches and rocket ships</strong> deliver explosive payloads useful
    against fixed positions and clusters. <strong>Steam ships and ironclads</strong>
    appear with later technology and ignore the wind. Compare any of them in the
    <a href="/tools/naval-compare/">Naval Comparator</a>; browse the full list on
    the <a href="/naval/">Naval roster</a>.
  </p>
</section>

<section>
  <h2>The three ammunition types</h2>
  <p>Every cannon can load one of three shots, and choosing the right one wins fights:</p>
  <ul>
    <li><strong>Round shot</strong> — hull damage. Your default against enemy ships; focus it to sink or cripple.</li>
    <li><strong>Chain shot</strong> — shreds sails and masts. Use it to slow a fleeing enemy or dismast a ship so it can’t manoeuvre or escape.</li>
    <li><strong>Grape shot</strong> — crew damage. Switch to it when you want to break enemy morale and force a surrender rather than a slow sink.</li>
  </ul>
</section>

<section>
  <h2>Broadside and raking</h2>
  <p>
    Cannons fire from the <strong>sides</strong> of the ship, so your damage
    comes from presenting a broadside — sailing parallel to the enemy, not
    bow-on. The killer manoeuvre is <strong>raking</strong>: firing down the
    length of an enemy ship through its bow or stern, where there is no armour
    and the shot travels the full deck. A well-timed rake can cripple a bigger
    ship.
  </p>
</section>

<section>
  <h2>Wind and positioning</h2>
  <p>
    Sailing <strong>into</strong> the wind is slow; sailing <strong>with</strong>
    it is fast. Use the wind to close on an enemy that can’t, or to break off
    and reload at range. Steam and ironclad vessels ignore this entirely, which
    is their great advantage. Keep your heavy ships in a <strong>line of
    battle</strong> — a single file presenting continuous broadsides — rather
    than a clump that blocks its own guns.
  </p>
</section>

<section>
  <h2>Building a winning fleet</h2>
  <p>
    A good fleet is mostly ships of the line backed by a few fast frigates. The
    line ships trade the heavy broadsides that decide a fleet action; the frigates
    scout, chase routers, and capture isolated enemies after the main line has done
    its work. Resist the urge to fill your navy with cheap light ships — they cannot
    stand in a line of battle and will be picked off. Bomb vessels earn a place only
    when you expect to bombard coastal targets. Browse the real stats in the
    <a href="/naval/">naval roster</a> and line up suspects in the
    <a href="/tools/naval-compare/">comparator</a> before you commission a fleet.
  </p>
</section>

<section>
  <h2>Boarding and capture</h2>
  <p>
    When an enemy crew is battered by grape shot, boarding becomes the cheapest way
    to take a ship intact — a captured first rate is worth more than a sunk one,
    because you can repair and commission it. The trick is to soften the crew first
    with grape, close alongside, and board before the enemy reloads round shot. A
    ship with a damaged rig is the easiest capture, because it cannot turn away to
    present a fresh broadside. Boarding is also the counter to a ship that is trying
    to disengage and flee with valuable cargo.
  </p>
</section>

<section>
  <h2>Naval strategy on the campaign map</h2>
  <p>
    At the strategic level, naval supremacy is about controlling sea regions so your
    armies can land where the enemy isn’t. A fleet parked off a coast blocks enemy
    reinforcements and protects your own transports. For a trading power like Great
    Britain, hunting enemy trade ships is as valuable as winning fleet actions, because
    every captured merchant weakens the rival economy. And remember that naval techs —
    copper sheathing and topsails — make the difference between a fleet that arrives in
    time and one that arrives broken, so research them before any long voyage.
  </p>
</section>

<section>
  <h2>A winning tactic</h2>
  <ol class="steps">
    <li><strong>Form the line.</strong> Arrange your ships of the line bow-to-stern, parallel to the enemy, so every broadside bears.</li>
    <li><strong>Focus fire.</strong> Concentrate round shot on one target at a time to sink or dismast it before moving to the next.</li>
    <li><strong>Dismast runners with chain shot.</strong> Once an enemy is slowed, it’s a sitting target.</li>
    <li><strong>Use light ships to flank.</strong> Send frigates around the enemy’s rear to rake from bow and stern.</li>
    <li><strong>Board or break morale.</strong> With grape shot softening the crew, boarding captures a ship intact — cheaper than sinking it.</li>
    <li><strong>Mind the wind on retreat.</strong> If a fight goes bad, the wind decides whether you can escape to fight another day.</li>
  </ol>
</section>

<section>
  <h2>Weather, wind and sea state</h2>
  <p>
    Wind is the invisible terrain of naval combat. Sailing with it lets you close or escape;
    sailing into it leaves you slow and exposed. A skilled admiral uses a favourable wind to
    run down a fleeing enemy and to break off when a fight turns bad. Calm or stormy sea
    states also affect gunnery — heavy swell degrades accuracy and makes long-range duels
    wasteful, so in rough water close the distance and rely on grape and boarding rather than
    long-range round shot. Reading the wind arrow at the start of a battle tells you which
    side holds the strategic advantage before a single broadside is fired.
  </p>
</section>

<section>
  <h2>Commerce raiding</h2>
  <p>
    Beyond fleet actions, a fast frigate or two can win the economic war by hunting enemy
    trade ships. Each merchant you capture or sink weakens the rival's treasury and, over a
    long campaign, can matter as much as a battle. For a trading power like Great Britain this
    is a core strategy: patrol the enemy's trade lanes, let your ships of the line control the
    strategic sea regions, and let your light ships reap the commerce. The naval roster and
    comparator help you pick the fastest, hardest-hitting frigate for the job.
  </p>
</section>

<section class="related">
  <h2>Related</h2>
  <ul>
    <li><a href="/naval/">Naval roster</a> — every ship, stats included</li>
    <li><a href="/tools/naval-compare/">Naval Comparator</a> — line up ships side by side</li>
    <li><a href="/tools/planner/">Faction Planner</a> — see a faction’s naval depth</li>
    <li><a href="/guides/tactics/">Tactics guide</a> — land-battle fundamentals</li>
  </ul>
</section>