Hunter

HMS Hunter - 28-gun pursuit frigate, Athena-class
Captain: Lewis McLain

Commissioned: Nov. 3rd, 1720

Stationed: Port Royal, unofficially assigned to The Redtails for tackling duty.

A no-nonsense, no-frills design, the Athena-class is built for one thing: pursuit. Lacking the armor or firepower to go broadside to broadside even with other sixth-rate frigates, an Athena has the speed to outrun or run down nearly any other ship. The Hunter has been stripped down further, and fitted with improved rigging and a race-built hull. Even her guns are specially cast to be lighter than usual. This makes the Hunter woefully inadequate as a warship on her own, but that's not what she's intended for. As part of a hunting fleet, she can run ahead and chase down the enemy and keep them engaged until bigger ships with bigger guns can catch up. The Hunter has proven capable in this role in repeated actions.

Major Actions:
Action - 1720 - November 9 - The Surprise off Irish Point - McLain and several other captains reinforced a British Patrolling fleet under attack by a notorious French commander.

Action - 1720 - November - 22 - Stalking the Florida Strait - In a series of victories, the Hunter proved invaluable as a pursuit vessel.

Action - 1720 - December 9th - Ambushed by PARTY TIME off Jamaica - This fight was lost to an infamous pirate in a stolen naval frigate the Hunter could neither outrun nor outgun.

Action - 1720 - December 15 - A Failed Attempt to Arrest a Pirate off Irish Point - The Hunter and two screening cutters proved to be an insufficient force to stop a pirate in a 48-gun frigate.

Picture Gallery
The Hunter runs dark

Fighting pirates at night



Modern Namesake
All of Captain McLain's commands are named in part after modern combat aircraft.

The Hunter was one of the first jet fighters to enter service with the RAF, and one the most successful of the those early generations of jets. The Hunter flew with the RAF from 1954 to 1971, first as an interceptor and later as a close-air-support fighter. An early-production test aircraft briefly held the world airspeed record for three weeks in 1953. Although its performance was limiting toward the end of its career, it remains one of the best-looking aircraft ever produced.