The first Ranger to appear in Pirates was this four-masted
gunship. (The second was a gold-oriented
three-master in Pirates of the Caribbean.) She
carries four decent cannons in a good mix of short
and long ranges, along with reasonable speed and
plenty of cargo spaces for crew. She's an okay gold
ship, but too costly for what you get.
As for crew, she obviously needs a Captain. Since
the Broadside Attack ability isn't affected by other
abilities, a world-hater crew like Bruce Grey
wouldn't help there (although he'd do fine with
normal gunnery).
You might be better off with a SAT crew to give you
two chances at a Broadside each turn. Better yet,
hire the OE Crimson Angel and get both abilities.
The Ranger isn't the Pirates' best fighting ship,
but she certainly isn't the worst. She'd be a great
answer to a ship like the RV Constitution, since
Broadside ignores defensive abilities; one hit and
all five American masts go down. Keep her in the
back of your mind when you're building your next
Pirate fleet.
