Name:    Gator (USA)

Card:    OE #217 (Limited Edition)

Points:  7

Masts: 1

Cargo: 3

Moves: L

Guns : 4L

Hit %: 33 (S), 33 (L)

Ability: Turtle Ship. L-range cannons cannot hit this ship.

The fluff text makes no attempt to explain how a Korean-designed turtle ship wound up in the US Navy. I bet it would be an interesting story.

Any time the Americans get a ship with a single-digit price tag, you want to take a good close look at her. The Gator has so-so speed, reasonable cargo, a cannon that misses more often than it hits, and two fine defensive abilities. You could give her a Helmsman and use her to steal gold from wild islands that your enemy wants; she'd be hard to hit and even harder to sink.

Add a Captain and you can call her a tough secondary fighter, but her poor cannon argues against that. She can ram and board, but how often does a one-masted ship win a boarding action? No, stick to gold with this Gator.

The USA has a shortage of low-priced ships, and the few that they do possess are barely average in their usefulness. The Gator continues this trend. She isn't anywhere near as good as some other turtle ships, or as similar-priced ships in other navies. But she isn't useless, and she isn't overpriced. If you're anticipating a game where the enemy will aggressively go after your gold ships, the Gator might be a worthwhile investment.

Goldship rating: 2.9 / 5

Gun Ship rating: 2.4 / 5

Boarding rating: 2.1 / 5

Value for points: 3.1 / 5