Masts: 2 (rating: 2 / 5)
Cargo: 4 (rating: 3 / 5)
Moves: L (rating: 2 / 5)
Guns : 3L x2, 3L x2 (rating: 3 / 5)
Hit %: 200 (S), 200 (L)
Keyword: Longship.
Ability: If a sea monster begins its move within L
of this ship, it gets +L to its base move.
As time passes, I'm softening my stance against
longships. Yes, they're slow, but so is everything
else lately. Yes, they're overpriced, but that's
also becoming a trend. And they do have their good
points. So let's look at this two-masted reptile.
L is the new standard for movement; it's too slow
for most purposes, but a Helmsman can fix that, and
the Serpent's Fang has plenty of room for one. Four
3L cannons isn't world-class, but it's plenty to
blast a gold ship or a secondary fighter. 13 points
is about as low as you'll find for a 2-masted
longship.
There are at least three crew who give sea monsters
an extra move; this seems to be the only ship to do
so. To get full use out of it, you'd have to follow
the sea monster around, which means the Serpent's
Fang can't do anything else useful. Or you can speed
your beastie into battle, and then turn it loose to
do its own thing while your ship goes off to board,
shoot, or explore. This gets better value from the
ship as a whole, but less from its ability.
The Serpent's Fang is a fairly average ship. It can
take on any role except that of heavy-hitting
gunship, but it doesn't excel at anything. The
speed-sea-monster ability is something you'll use
when you can, which may not be often. This is one of
those ships that you'll probably try using once, but
not a second time.
