General Sea Strategies

Control the sea. In most sea levels, he who controls the seas, controls the game. If your opponent cannot get to other islands and other gold mines, he has no chance of winning. This is especially true on large maps, where there are lots of mines and few players. If you get 4 mines and they get 1, there is no way you should lose.

Oil Tankers Be careful how many oil tankers you have at an oil patch. If your shipyard is built close, and you have too many tankers, they will become congested, especially when new ships are built. I never have more than 4 or 5 together. Send them out to other patches.

Ships As in land games, control your ships during combat. This is vital. Since it only takes two shots (from a jug) to destroy most ships, every shot is vital. Have your ships go straight towards their ship. If they shoot first while you are still moving, they will miss. Then you get a free shot. Keep doing this and you will win, possibly with very little damage.

Transports Protect your transports with your life. Once they are gone, and so is your shipyard, you must sit and wait while your opponent builds up. If you can save just one, it will be worth it to attack or start up new towns.

Never build a destroyer first thing out of your shipyard on low resources. Once you do this, if they kill off your ships, you cannot advance to a castle, ending any hopes of getting back in the game. I have played quite a few games where someone did this and couldn't get a castle. It makes it all the more easy for your opponent to cruch you.

What do I do if I lose the sea?
Once you have lost the sea, you must build up quickly. Get a few mages - the more the better - and use blizzards to keep away enemy ships. By doing this you can get back on the sea, and hopefully mount an offense.