Sailing warships armed en flûte carried fewer guns so that they could transport more soldiers. Before an engagement, the crew could shift every available cannon to the side facing the enemy. An observer would see every visible gunport firing without knowing that the opposite broadside was empty. At the point of contact, a one-sided battery could therefore look like the full armament of a conventional warship.
Notable Point · 19:04-19:51
An en flûte transport can display one full broadside
A troop-carrying sailing ship could shift its reduced battery to the visible side and conceal that the opposite broadside was empty.