The aim of this guide is to explain the role of different types of ships in battle and how to get the best out of them. Where possible it will avoid restating information that is readily available in other places, and instead focus on data that is somewhat hidden from view, but has a meaningful impact on the units.

The strategic context has more impact on naval battles than it does on land battles and this will be explored briefly in the guide.

In the game, armies exist to capture and defend provinces which are the core to a faction's existence. Fleets cannot gain territory, so their role is more strategic in terms of supporting the overall position of a faction. For example, a faction with a strong focus on a single global region, like Austria, Prussia, Russia or Poland-Lithuania will not have much need for fleets in the early game. However, Great Britain, Spain, France or the United Provinces will live or die by their ability to bring trade goods back from overseas colonies, so will have to fill more diverse roles with their navies. Broadly speaking, there are five roles that fleets need to fill in the game.


Trade routes provide opportunities to inflict financial loss on enemies and gain for yourself. Given the length of inter-continental trade routes, there is a lot of opportunity for solo vessels to raid out of range of enemy forces. Ships provide the same amount of return whether they are in one combined fleet or in separate, however there is some difference to the return according to ship type. As an example, on a trade route with ~6000 gold going through it, a Sloop will capture 368, a Brig/6th Rate/5th Rate will take 421 and a ship 4th rate and up will take 526. Taking upkeep into account, smaller ships have a better return on investment individually as well as being able to spread out geographically to make it harder to counteract their effect.


If an enemy faction is earning strongly from trade, then it either is from overseas colonies or trade fleets on trading posts. These fleets are juicy targets in wartime, and their defeat not only sets your opponent back in earnings but will net decent prize money. Small fleets of fast, powerful vessels are good for this role as most merchant vessels are poorly armed. Spain and the United Provinces have powerful merchants that fight light small ships of the line.


Blockading a trade port prevent all trade through the port so it is very effective, and if the port is unoccupied it is raided and damaged. However, unlike commerce raiding no income is earned by the blockading. Blockading a port does not prevent naval recruitment, but if the port is unoccupied and your forces raid this will damage the facility and prevent recruitment. The most vulnerable end of the trading route is a faction's home trade ports as it prevents all trade from arriving, especially early in the game when they may only have one trade port.

The impact of blockading is often significant enough to justify sizeable home fleets for defence. Home port blockading is therefore high risk and either performed by solo fast ships which are expendable or large enough enough force to make the blockade permanent. Distant port blockading only prevents the trade originating from that port returning home, so the financial benefits need to be weighed against raiding the trade route for income.


The only way for armies to cross water is via ship. This can present a high risk as the loss of the fleet results in the total loss of the army. As such, it is either best kept to a minimum, or performed with significant protection. Any vessel can transport any number of troops.


The most basic role for fleets is the destruction of other fleets, generally in response to one of the roles above. Fleets can travel large distances, so a strong fleet in port can project its influence across a wide area, for example the Caribbean Sea, intercepting enemy forces as they appear. The type of vessels needed for this role will depend on what they are countering. To hunt light fast commerce raiders, you will want good fast frigates, not slow ships of the line.

The vessels in the game can be grouped into several categories within which there is progression representing roughly the historical evolution of naval strategy. At a battle level, historically, large vessels existed at the start of the period and evolution was more subtle than represented in game. Of particular note are Galleons and Fluyts which are available to two factions as representation of their naval dominance in 1700 - these are antique battleships which operate as tradeships and so are harder to categorise. The pure trade ships Indiamen and Dhows are not covered.

There are three Auxiliary Ship types: Brig, Sloop and Xebec. The Xebec has some attributes of a Frigate, but is just too weak to perform the role well. The Brig has stern chasers while the Xebec has both bow and stern chasers.

All three ships are fast. The Xebec is the slowest, about as fast as a Frigate. The Sloop and Xebec respond better to the wind. Brigs can obtain Top Gallants.

Auxiliaries are some of the weakest ships in the game, weaker than Indiamen. They have vulnerable magazines and prone to explosion in battle.

Broadside damage is low, but these ships all have long range guns and decent reload rates.

• Commerce raiding: fast enough to escape, cheap enough to be cost effective and expendable (Brigs return more than Sloops)
  
• Blockading unprotected ports: fast enough to escape, cheap enough to be cost effective and expendable
  
• Transporting armies: can be produced in any port and are fast

The strength of these ships is their speed and manoeuvrability. As such, unless they greatly outnumber the enemy, they need to try to stay at long range, and chain shot the enemy sails. Their speed allows them to dictate when and where combat will happen and the stern chasers on the Brig and Xebec come in handy.

Getting into range of pretty much any vessel. These ships can be knocked out in a single volley from a decent ship, and they have poor morale.

There are two Galley types: Light Galley and Galley. They both only have fore-mounted guns and while the Galley is quite a large ship, the Light Galley is absolutely tiny. They are only recruitable in the Mediterranean and the Baltic from any port type. Being the cheapest ships to produce they are useful for occupying friendly ports to prevent naval raids.

Galleys are one of the slowest ships, on par with a 1st Rate but very manoeuvrable and can pretty much rotate on the spot. They are able to move swiftly against the wind as they are oared.

These ships are quite weak and have vulnerable magazines meaning they are prone to explosion. However, the Light Galley's size means it often is hard to hit. Being oared, they are not impacted by chain shot very much.

These ships have 4 powerful front facing cannons with range 400. What is important to note is that the total damage output of the cannons is 320, which is on par with the broadside of a Galleon and greater than that of a Fifth Rate.

• Commerce raiding: cheap enough to be cost effective and expendable
  
• Blockading unprotected ports: cheap enough to be cost effective and expendable
  
• Transporting armies: cheap to produce
  
• Destroying fleets: able to be produced in any port, they can be used to counter blockades by auxiliaries

The strength of these ships is forward firepower often allowing them to fire first in battle and to concentrate fire in line abreast (either of the arc formations is best). They can give auxiliaries a hard time as the power of their cannons can make big holes in hulls and trigger magazine explosions. At 320 damage, the output tends to trigger flooding in their targets and often results in them sinking.

An interesting asset for the Galleys is that they have the largest number of Marines of any ship at 50 however they generally take a lot of hits in the lead up to boarding which reduces their number. The low profile of the ships makes them hard to hit, plus the Light Galley is even harder so avoid close range.

Getting into close range of pretty much any vessel, but especially ships of the line. These ships can be knocked out in a single volley from a decent ship, and they have poor morale. Their poor speed means they cannot chase other ships except into the wind, and boarding is tricky.

What defines a frigate is a warship that prioritises speed over combat ability. They can be defined by the saying "they outgun what they can't outrun, and can outrun what they can't outgun". They are truly multirole and will find a lot of service in the game. The Race Built Galleon falls into this category based on attributes however it is an obsolete design that does not benefit from technological developments - dangerous early in the game when most nations can only produce 6th Rates.

• 6th Rate
  
• 5th Rate (and Admiral)
  
• Razee / 24-pounder Frigate
  
• Race Built Galleon

Frigates are handy sailers, some of the best ships to handle. They are comfortably faster than ships of the line and trade ships. All bar the Race Built Galleon are able to obtain Top Gallants.

These ships have decent hull strength, but still noticeably less than ships of the line. It is enough to let them shrug of auxiliaries and tradeships though. Magazines are decently protected so there should be fewer explosions in combat. There are noticeable hull strength jumps from 6th Rate to 5th Rate to Razee, as each type exists to best the one before it. Razees have a very similar hull strength to a 3rd Rate.

Accurate shooters with fast reloading, these ships all have range 500. Generally much less powerful than ships of the line. Again, there are noticeable jumps from 6th Rate to 5th Rate to Razee which is only slightly less powerful than a 4th Rate.

• Commerce raiding: on lucrative routes, strong enough to defend themselves (5th rates and above may not be cost effective but can block enemy revenue)
  
• Blockading ports: generally a poor use given their cost
  
• Transporting armies: good escort where men of war are not a threat
  
• Destroying fleets: excellent hunting commerce raiders, tradeships and auxiliary fleets; in large battle fleets they play several roles; good protection for tradeships in trade regions.

The context of the battle makes a big difference to how they should be employed. They can be used relatively aggressively against lesser ships, especially the 5th Rate and Razee: pummel the enemy ships with roundshot until they rout or are sunk. The extra range and high rate of fire is very effective. They also have good crews to board and capture tradeships for prize money.

In larger fleet battles, they play a supporting role to the ships of the line. They can use their range and speed advantage to slow the enemy ships by taking out sails and masts. If the enemy has artillery ships, frigates are there to get past the line and take them out. Finally, they are there to prevent the enemies frigates from doing either of those things.

Admiral's 5th Rates inspire nearby ships so can be used either as Frigate leaders to keep morale up or a fast flagship of a fleet of ships of the line that can rapidly boost morale where needed.

Ships of the line are much hardier and more powerful than Frigates. One on one, a 4th Rate will handily beat a 5th Rate despite relatively similar costs. The loss of good Frigates can be a strategic setback, so guard them carefully.

Two fast frigate like vessels are armed with Carronades, very powerful but short ranged weapons. The strength and weakness of this armament shapes their role differently to other Frigates. Recruiting Steam Ships earns prestige.

• Carronade Frigate
  
• Steam Ship

Both ships are quite fast, the Carronade Frigate being similar to a 6th Rate while the Steam Ship has propulsion independent of the wind. Carronade Frigates are able to obtain Top Gallants.

Both ships are about as hardy as a 5th Rate, and have moderately tough magazines. The Steam Ship does have an elevated likelihood of catching fire.

Accurate shooters with fast reloading, these ships all have range 300. Very powerful gunnery, almost to the level of ships of the line. Steam Ships have bow and stern chasers so are good chase ships.

• Destroying fleets: hunting other frigates, finishing off wounded ships of the line.

These ships seem to be the naval equivalent of shotguns. The vessels are fast and manoeuvrable enough to get into advantageous positions to unleash their powerful broadsides. Ideally they obtain a position ahead or astern of the enemy and give a broadside up the line. Against other frigates, they may struggle to get into range, but if they do they will devastate the enemy.

They will struggle against frigates without support. These ships should be used sparingly as complementary ships not as the core of a fleets. The cost and short range weaponry make these ships poor choices for traditional Frigate roles like commerce raiding and blockades - as solo operators they're out-ranged by everything, so a sizeable fleet of trading ships can inflict a lot of damage.

Ships of the line are vessels optimised for slugging matches with enemy fleets. They exist to exert dominance in regions, and to protect important home ports. Designed for fleet battles these are precious vessels where number count. The Galleon and Fluyt are line of battle ships from the previous centuries, employed in trade roles however retaining significant firepower. These vessels are slow, expensive and time consuming to replace so should not be risked in solo missions or far from friendly ports. 1st Rate and Heavy 1st Rate ships earn prestige.

• Heavy 1st Rate
  
• 1st Rate (and Admiral)
  
• 2nd Rate
  
• 3rd Rate (and Admiral)
  
• 4th Rate
  
• Galleon
  
• Fluyt

These are all slow and cumbersome ships. All of these vessels can obtain Top Gallants.

All of these vessels are very tough, the toughest in the game. Their magazines are the most protected so explosions should be rare.

All of these vessels have range 400. Many have stern and bow chasers. Broadside damage output is very high. Galleons and Fluyts have the least, around on par with a 5th Rate.

• Blockading ports: overpowering enemy home port defenders and blockading the main trade revenue
  
• Transporting armies: for high value armies
  
• Destroying fleets: the primary purpose of these ships is the destruction of enemy fleets

The only weakness of these vessels is their speed, so keep them in formation and not isolated by faster, longer range vessels. Line astern is the only formation that should be used and generally keep to simple manoeuvres. Align with the enemy as much as possible and try to get double ups (2 vs 1) on their line. If the fleet is large consider splitting it into two groups (in line astern) for flexibility.

Primarily these ships need to be moving, so avoid complicated manoeuvres that tangle the line as they are very slow to correct themselves, leaving them vulnerable to stern or bow shots. Also, they are at risk from artillery ship rockets or mortars so ensure there are some faster ships around to take out such threats.

There are two units which fulfil a niche role in fleets carrying long range artillery, the Bomb Ketch and the Rocket Ship. Prestige is earned by recruiting Rocket Ships.

Both ships are quite slow and poor handlers, although they can outrun ships of the line.

Both ships are weak with extremely vulnerable magazines. Keep them out of harms way or they will quite likely explode.

Gunnery skill is less important for these two ships as their primary, forward mounted weapons are explosive. They have range 750 and fire in an arc which means they can fire over friendly vessels.

• Destroying fleets: in large fleet battles these ships can do a lot of damage to grouped enemies

These ships play a role sitting behind your primary line of ships, and fire at large vessels or groups of ships. Don't expect them to take ships out in one volley, but they will often set vessels alight.

Avoid them being shot by any vessel, they are very fragile. Protect them from opposing light ships, for example it would be worth sacrificing a Brig or Sloop on a one way mission if it took out one or two of these ships.

One important statistic that is not readily available in the game is the total damage output of each ship's broadside. The unit cards show the total number of guns, it does not relate what size of gun nor which are fore, aft or broadside. As a result, the difference between the firepower of a say a 4th Rate and a 5th Rate doesn't look like much. It is also worth noting that typically the heavier guns are on the lowest deck, and as you go up the decks the guns get lighter.

To get the real picture, the data files were processed and each ships roundshot damage was collated. The chart below shows the main vessels plotted against the total broadside damage output (x-axis) and hull strength (y-axis). Broadside damage is calculated as the sum of roundshot damage for all guns on one side. There are some key contrasts that show up when viewed in this way.

• Galleons and Fluyts over power early vessels (6th Rate down) and match up well to 5th Rates
  
• The 5th Rate and 4th Rates depict a clear Frigate/SOL performance gap
  
• 3rd Rates and up are significant performance level above Frigates and 4th Rates
  
• Carronades bring a lot of firepower to smaller vessels

There are a few different sail types across the vessels in the game, and this impact how efficiently they use the wind. The chart below shows the efficiency at different angles to the wind. Generally, the square-rigged vessels, which are the majority of vessels (rated vessels and brigs) are the least efficient, while those with lateen sails catch the wind better across the angles. It also shows that Galleys and Steam Ships suffer some slowing when facing into the wind.

In Empire Total War, it is not unreasonable for a faction to completely neglect naval technology in favour of army advances, based on their strategic position. As a result, technological differences can have a significant impact on battles. This section covers those technologies that impact naval combat but are poorly explained in the game.

Reload time is a fixed time that can be reduced by the following techs:

• Flintlock Cannon: -5%
  
• Sheet Lead Cartridges: -5%

Rifled cannons increases the accuracy of roundshot by 50% which is quite significant

The Improved Grape Shot technology doubles the number of projectiles in this firing mode from 5 to 10 per cannon.

Coppering related technologies improve vessel speed and are additive.

• Copper Bottoms: +10%
  
• Improved Coppering: +10%
  
• Top Gallants: +30%

Preserved foods increases vessel morale by 2