Actually it is. You turn the fastest with all sails at 100% and in the red, handling sail's only advantage is that it is faster at a very specific angle, and it opens and turns very quickly. It doesn't affect turning speed at all.
You have a point with the battle manuevering though - in some situations it is useful, even more so if you don't have anyone else at the lieutenant's podium. The only thing is that (at least from my experience) most of the fights involve chasing in one way or another, and in that case, speed sails are superior, and you can achieve the same turning rate by moving sails into the red (which you should do anyway to avoid cannonballs)
Do you have a source for that? We are definitely noticing a difference in blueprint speeds, but that could of course be just a placebo effect.
Actually it is. You turn the fastest with all sails at 100% and in the red, handling sail's only advantage is that it is faster at a very specific angle, and it opens and turns very quickly. It doesn't affect turning speed at all. You have a point with the battle manuevering though - in some situations it is useful, even more so if you don't have anyone else at the lieutenant's podium. The only thing is that (at least from my experience) most of the fights involve chasing in one way or another, and in that case, speed sails are superior, and you can achieve the same turning rate by moving sails into the red (which you should do anyway to avoid cannonballs) Do you have a source for that? We are definitely noticing a difference in blueprint speeds, but that could of course be just a placebo effect.