Rincewind
Magister
now that thx to certain song i know id be buying it at some point and red properly into review I have some questions around ship:
is it linear progression where there is clear bigger = better? Or can I be like han solo or in star traders where small ship can be hard but still viable.
Likewise am I forced into big ship and big cargo space or can I focus on other activities than mercantile
No, bigger ship is no always better. There are ships that trade military capabilities for swiftness and maneuverability. You don't always have to buy man-o-war to finish the game. Besides, for the final mission you receive a proper warship anyway.
However, you need to leave your schooner behind as soon as possible - it's fast and agile and you'll be able to outrun anyone with it, but it's impossible to capture ships or engage flotillas with it. It simply has too few cannons and too few men.
so there is no super expensive small ship that you can use to quickly engage in melee without any cannons?
The problem is (from the manual): "You cannot attempt to board a ship until there is only one enemy vessel in the vicinity remaining."
Also: "Note: You may only board ships that are smaller than or about the same size as your own ship. A schooner cannot board a Man of War, for example."
Usually the ships you want to board are not alone.