The design question asks how Royal Navy construction might change if a 96-gun second rate carried its battery on two decks. A typical three-decker might arrange 32-, 18-, and 12-pounders across its gun decks, while a longer two-decker could carry 18- and 24-pounders higher in the ship. Better length-to-beam proportions could make the two-decker faster and more agile. It would also avoid some structural weight and metacentric-height problems imposed by a third gun deck. The tradeoff was the elevated battery's ability to sweep an opponent's upper deck, hamper ship control, and support boarding. Larger two-decked second rates might also force changes in first-rate size and in whether third rates remained 64s or 74s or moved toward 80 guns.
Notable Point · 33:53-36:32
What two-decked second rates might change
The design question weighs faster, more heavily armed two-deckers against the deck-clearing height of the Royal Navy's three-decked second rates.