naval combat - to stack or not to stack

[Saracen_Warrior]

Lots and lots of ships. if you have numerous 1 on 1 battles with even statted ships the comp will always win more of them no matter what you do.

[mercian billman]

Some guidelines I use are,

-Speed is important
-Always try to fight with at least a 2:1 advantage
-Naval warfare is attrition warfare, Tactical skill means nothing, If you can build ships faster than your enemy you will win.

[Deus Ex]

Thanks for all the great info - so stacking does help, that's good to know.

Related question, is a stack of 4 longboats better/stronger than a stack of 2 caravels?

thanks again for all the great answers everyone!

[macsen rufus]

I always assumed stacking helped because a high-star admiral gets to control the fleet, and gives the other ships command valour, as in land armies - but I could be wrong!

[Deus Ex]

That's an interesting thought - I'll see if I can tell (look at valour of units stacked vs unstacked)

That could be a significant advantage to stacking...

thanks!!

[mercian billman]

In my experience the quality of Naval Commanders isn't that important, thus I never stack my ships. It's a lot harder for an opponent to destroy your fleet when he has to attack single ships in 1 vs 1 battles. When attacking I like to concentrate 2-3 of my ships on 1 enemy ship. Even if the enemy has other ships in that sealane I find it's a lot easier to eliminate one ship at a time and force the AI into a war of attrition.