I am curious as to why the naval academy is limited to not letting a character improve their NA above 3 and with the exception of getting a superior battle result to your immediate commander there is no way you can improve by experience either and I believe that only applies if your in charge of a ship yourself.
This means that the best a man can make himself is average during many long years serving in the navy. To be better then that depends upon him having been lucky during creation. When you consider that when you first command a ship it's a sloop and the modifiers that come with it if all you have is NA 3 you are really gambling with your survival and that of your men! But the only way to improve that is to continue that gamble!

Is there something I have missed or is there some other reasoning for this that I don't know about? If not can we consider another way to improve your NA through experience?

Andy Scott

It's not explicit in the rules, but I make a personal battle result roll for each character - so experience is not just gained by commanders. If they get a better result than their captain, they are +1 NA and -1 for MiD and Promotion.

In landlubber En Garde, Battalion/Squadron commanders and above get the chance to improve MA. This would be equivalent to Lieutenants in Briny, but I think it more fun to give everyone the chance to improve NA.

This way of awarding experience does favour those who already have a high NA, and means that you get more experience under bad officers than you do under good.

Commanders with a low NA can improve their chances through having good subordinates - the Ship's Adjutant and Marine Commander can modify NA, and good superiors will also improve the battle result.

It is a fact of life that not everyone is a highflyer - most of us just do the best we can.

It is also possible to raise your NA by serving with the EIC. Each six month voyage adds +1 to NA if five or under