Merchant Ship Stats

[mmathews]

In our game last night we had a British convoy being assailed by an Italian squadron. I was shocked to find the values for a standard merchantman. I hadn't used any before and can't understand a merchie being harder to sink than a heavy cruiser. Wouldn't the lack of compartmentalization mean that any fire or flood would easily spread? If you took on a list isn't there a distinct possibility of cargo shifting? Yes, easy to hit and little AV but still.... I'd be very interested in the design thoughts for those. I can't get past the image of a U-Boat putting half a dozen shots into a merchantman and watching it settle.

Thanks in advance.

[mmathews]

Oh BTW, the Italians were victorious last night.