Masts: 2
Cargo: 3
Moves: L
Guns : 2S,2S
Hit %: 133 (S), 0 (L)
Ability: The first successful shot each turn against
a sea creature removes two segments instead of one.
Here comes another red, white and blue American
ship; this one even has the Stars and Stripes on her
hull. Is she a credit to her country?
Her cannons are just fine, and her cargo is okay for
a two-master. Her ability is all about catching sea
creatures on the surface and blasting them, which is
usually a hazardous hobby for a small ship. Sea
monsters like Calim and Champ, which can remove two
masts in a single ram/board combo, would eat this
ship for lunch; most others will think twice before
tangling with the Hancock, which could easily take
out three arms or body segments in one shoot action
(four, if you add a Musketeer to the Captain and
Helmsman she has to have). Another option would be
to put Shinji Smith on her, so she can plaster those
sharks and krakens even while they're hiding
underwater.
Aside from the sea-creature ability, this is a
decent secondary fighter, but somewhat overpriced.
If you're expecting a sea dragon, titan, or other
sea creature to put in an appearance, using this
ship might be good. But for 3 points more, you could
get the Congress, with twice the cannons, and a
boarding bonus besides. If you just want a secondary
fighter, the USA has some good ones for 8-9 points.
Sorry, Hancock, you're too much of a one-trick pony
for my style.
If I recall correctly, this one was of the boats
showcased in the Rise of the Fiends previews. It has
an interesting ability (first hit on a sea monster
removes two segments) that would’ve been better on a
bigger boat. A two-mast boat like the Hancock
shouldn’t be tangling with anything bigger than it,
which most monsters are, without backup. It’s got
three cargo spaces and it costs 11 points, so you
could put some good crew on if you had to. It only
moves L, which is comparable to just under half the
monsters out there. The cannons are its best
features and even those aren’t as good as you’d need
to hunt monsters with: two 2S cannons.
This ship would make a good sidekick for the
Congress or any other good fighter you’ve got. The
monster-hunting ability is less valuable if you only
play with the Rise of the Fiends set since, as far
as I know at this time, there’s only one monster in
this set and it was just recently released.
