Name:    El Neptuno (Spain)

Card:    CC #048 (Rare)

Points:  12

Masts: 5

Cargo: 5

Moves: S+S

Guns : 4L, 4L, 4L, 4L, 4L

Hit %: 167 (S), 167 (L)

Ability: You may double the range of this ship's cannons each turn, but you must roll a 6 to hit.

This ship is an oddity. Most five-masters are built for battle, but El Neptuno's cannons aren't fit for swatting flies. She's a bit faster than the usual L speed for five-masters, though, and her cost is low. What is she good for?

You could give her the MI Luis Zuan for a move/shoot and world-hater, to bring her guns up to the "average" category. But if you want a shooter, you could get La Tartessos with Captain and Helmsman for the same price as the Neptuno with Zuan, and have better speed and much better cannons.

She could serve as a gold runner, going into contested places where a small ship wouldn't last a turn before all her masts were blown off.

With Dominic Freda (RF Common) and a Helmsman,  she could pay for herself in gold, something most big ships can't do and weren't meant to do.

Or you can give her a Captain and use her as a "stand-off bomber,"

shelling the enemy from L+L range with her ability. Okay, so she has to roll a 6 to hit; she has five chances to do it each turn. With a little luck, you could lay some hurt on the enemy before he even got close enough to return fire. And her cost is low enough that you can still afford another good fighting ship (like La Tartessos) to finish the job.

El Neptuno can find a niche in a Spanish fleet, but not as your primary gunship. Decide what her role ought to be, crew her accordingly, and see what she can do.

Goldship rating: 4.0 / 5

Gun Ship rating: 3.4 / 5

Boarding rating: 3.6 / 5

Value for points: 2.9 / 5

Today we review one of the most underlooked ships in the whole entire game.

El Neptuno, 12 points, Spanish

Masts: 5

Cargo: 5

Speed: S+S

Cannons: 4L 4L 4L 4L 4L

Abilities: You may double the range of this ship's cannons each turn, but you must roll a 6 to hit.

Flavor Text: The flagship of El Duque Rafael de Moreno y Rivera, El Neptuno is a tightly run ship. But out of their master's sight, the devout Catholic crew readily petitions the sea god to guide their cannonballs to the target.

I know, I know. Doesn't look like much, does it? People have called it the worst 5 mast ship ever, and have even called it a gold runner.

Well, it's certainly not the worst 5 mast ship ever, and though it might be a good gold runner, Spain has stuff like La Joya de Sol and La Monarca, so relegating this ship to gold running duties would be stupid.

First of all, put two L cards together, and draw a radius around this ship with them. That's a pretty long distance, isn't it? Yes, it is.

Now, imagine firing 10 shots, with a 50% chance of hitting, all at L+L range. I know what you're thinking, "Sign me up!"

With a captain and helmsman, this ship has the same range of San

Cristobal: S+S+S+L+L. Also, besides the Deliverances and the Swallow, this is the only 5 mast ship that could support the Cristobal.

In fact, I made a build for this ship, which I use very often.

El Neptuno, 12 (24)

Luis Zuan, 2

Helmsman, 2

BC Almirante Devante del Nero, 4

Chain Shot, 1

Capitan Alarico Castro, 3

The cool thing that I like doing is firing and hitting with the Chain Shot, so that the enemy can't move, and then I continue to snipe at it.

For the rest of a 40 point fleet, add in this:

Favor of the Gods, 2

La Rosario, 6

Roberto Santana, 6

Contessa Anita Amore, -5

Diablo, 7 (towed by the Rosario)

Then, I can give the Neptuno another +1 to her rolls, so I hit at L+L at a rate of 50%, and I have a deadly Flotilla.

Yeah, this ship isn't so pathetic anymore, is it?

El Neptuno receives a 4/5 from me.

Oh, and for you Yanks who think the USS Atlanta is better, you're DEAD WRONG. America has terrible crew, and can't make its guns as good as the Neptuno's. And it's slower. And has worse factional support.