I love this game! And since it was released back in 2009 I was surprised to notice recently that it still attracts new players. I am not as surprised that not a few of them struggle with the naval battles. I struggled in the beginning as well so I read a lot of guides and watched a lot of videos. One video had a major positive impact on my naval battles and I wish I could find it so I could recommend it. It showed a Dutch fleet fighting a Spanish fleet. The player controlled the Dutch fleet and had it deployed in a double line.

I admit that I am building on his foundation. His video was not specfically a guide for playing as the United Provinces. I have chosen Great Britain as the faction for my guide but only because they offer an opportunity for a quick and simple naval battle on turn one. Anybody who wants to can try the same battle after reading my guide by starting a campaign as Great Britain. It will only take a few minutes.

I start by choosing Great Britain as my faction.
And then move to the North American Theatre around the Bahamas.

Here we have two British fleets one near Charleston and another near Nassau. There is a Pirate fleet north of Port-de-Paix.
Before any battle I would consider two things: Is this battle winnable? And is this battle neccessary? At this time in history fleets were compared by the total number of men and guns. Let's do that here.

Pirates: Fluyt 142 men 41 guns, Brig 78 men 25 guns, Sloop 62 men 18 guns.

British: Admiral's Flagship 5th Rate 130 men 47 guns, 6th rate 92 men 32 guns, Brig 78 men 25 guns, Sloop 62 men 18 guns, Sloop 62 men 18 guns.

Fleet Totals: Pirates 282 men 84 guns British 424 men 140 guns

This battle is winnable.
I am already at war with the Pirates. If I were intending to continue a campaign as Britain I would have to capture Pirate regions. My enemy has left a small force in a position where it can be destroyed. This battle is neccessary.
In the future, counting the men won't be neccessary. ETW uses a scaled-down crew size and it works out to roughly three men per gun. The ships that vary tend to be the less standard types.

I merge the two fleets North of the Pirate Fleet just outside of the red zone. I am careful not to enter the red zone lest part of my fleet be intercepted by the entire Pirate Fleet. Then I right click on the Pirate Fleet to begin the battle.

I select the Fifth Rate, the Sixth Rate, and the Brig then click the group units button. Next I click the formations button and click the line ahead button. I repeat the same process with the two sloops. The wind is blowing generally from right ot left so I place the line with the three large ships just to the right of the center of the deployment area. I then place the line of the two small ships to the right of the large ships.[/screenshot][/screenshot] I move the line of large ships straight ahead, staying to the windward of the Pirate ships. I move the fast ships parellel to the large ship group. All ships are set on fire at will.The fast ships naturally begin to move ahead of the large ships.A gap developes in the enemy formation. I send my large ships through the gap. The single Pirate ship between my lines could be in trouble.My two sloops are in position to turn left and cross the T behind the enemy Fluyt. It will give a favorable firing angle to at least one of my ships no matter how it turns.My two lines manuever to keep aiming at the enemy. All my ships are set on fire at will so I can just focus on moving them.One of the small enemy ships routes. I take my two sloops off of group and have one right click (simple attack order) on the fleeing ship.My other four ships continue to sail in a circle around the two remaining enemy ships.When the Fluyt and the ship next to it route I take the large ship line off of group. I right click my Fifth and Sixth Rates on the Fluyt and the Brig and one Sloop on the smaller ship.The Pirate fleet is destroyed. My fleet has some damage but no ships were lost. I order the fleet to Port Royal for repairs.

I have tried auto-resolving this battle a few times. Frequently one British Sloop is lost and one of the smaller Pirate Ships escapes. What I have shown here are some simple tactics that will at least work better for a new player than just auto-resolving. I kept it simple so it would be easy to remember and use for any faction with a navy. But I encourage anybody who wants to try this battle because it is easy to access. If you are new to Empire Total War there's still a lot to learn. Read some more guides, watch some videos, but above all play the game. The good news is that there are many ways to win this game. What I like best about it are the opportunities to develope my own playing style in this and all other facets of the game.

The AI does not repair damaged ships on a regular basis. If you do then you may have gained one small advantage. If you don't have a region with a port near a fleet try to capture one if you can. Remember that a local fishery is as good as a steam drydock for ship repairs.

If you are attacked by a fleet that totally outclasses yours run away. But not on the campaign map; do it on the battle map. Deploy as far away from where you think the enemy will be and then sail in a circle around the edges of the battle map. If your ships are smaller they won't get caught. I use this tactic to keep unescorted Indiamen alive in the Atlantic on their way to a trade theatre. It also works to escape Galleons.

On the subject of Galleons: Some players can take them out with brigs or sloops but I'm not one of them. I usually need a superior fleet of Fourth and Fifth Rates to beat them. Once I have Third Rates Galleons are no longer a problem. But who wants to wait that long? I have already mentioned that they are slow. If you are defending and they can't catch you that's a victory according to ETW. Their other weakness is that they cost 300 upkeep. A Galleon on a trade node needs to haul something worth 15 gold to break even. It's even worse if the Galleons are stacked. Raid their trade routes and they may start to operate at a loss.

If you need a ship just to ferry a few land units in a safe area consider building an Indiaman. When you no longer need it for that purpose send it off to a trade node.

If you are new to Empire Total War I hope I have made your learning experience a little quicker and a little less painful. I am just one of many experienced players with this goal. Please read some more guides and remember to save your campaign before every battle. I appreciate any comments or suggestions as long as they are civil.