Crayers

Crayers are the best ships of the game. The name was derived from krieger, meaning a warship. They are much faster than the snaikka or the holk, and can sail circles around the cogs.

The beginning size is 28 lasts, and they sail with a crew of 8 minimum. The maximum complement of sailors for the basic model is 28. The first shipyard upgrade will take them to a capacity of 31 lasts, and to 31 maximum crew; the next upgrade to 34 (and as with all larger ships, there is one sailor per last capacity), and the final upgrade of the shipyard is at 35 lasts.

Two extensions are possible. To achieve the status of convoy leader, necessary for the Mediterranean trips or discovery of America, the ship must undergo extension. The first extension places two slots on deck, which allows for two small weapons per side. The second extension puts in three additional slots, allowing for five small weapons (small catapults, small ballistas, or cannons) or one large and three small per side, or two large and one small per side. Only with 4 cannon can a first extension ship be made a convoy leader. A second extension, 8 small or 4 large weapons is sufficient.

For Mediterranean voyages, unextended crayers can be attached to a convoy leader. They will sail 25% faster than the other ships, and since quicker returns mean quicker profits, are the premier trading vessels. In the shipyard, the damage is higher upon return with an unextended crayer, but the repair costs and repair time are equal across the board. The doubly extended crayer cost is identical to the first extension ship, and to the unextended ship, and each requires the same number of days to repair. Only the damage percentage is different. Since crew and captain salaries as well as repair costs figure in, the best trading configuration is a 35 last ship with one extension and four cannon, a crew of twenty, with unextended 35 last ships with crews of 8 attached. This will maximize the cargo carried, and the profits per crewman and per ship. Cannon may be transferred to shore for further cargo space as the ship sails, but by the time you are building 35 last ships, you have probably hit the maximum a Med port can sell to you.

More information on trading is available on a later writing.

For Hanseatic trading, at the beginning of the game, a 28 last crayer is fast and reasonably efficient. Time is critical to high profits, and the faster you move from port to port delivering goods in shortage, the faster you accumulate money. Later in the game, the 28 last crayers can be upgraded to be convoy leaders, outriggers, or simply auctioned off in favor of the larger sized models.