Here is my evaluation of all major warships in EVO (purchasable ones):
UE Destroyer: Rather good, but weak and only lightly armed for such a vessel.
UE Carrier: Slow, bad turn, only slightly better shielding than a UE Destroyer, it stinks. It's only really good thing is its 5 UE Fighters.
UE Cruiser: Good ship, and tons of room for expansion. However, compared to an Igazra, it isn't as well shielded. My third favorite ship.
Voinian Frigate: Good ship, room for expansion, but its standard weapons stink. Against the UE or Emalgha, it isn't that great. In the Crescent, its much better, but still not the best ship you want to get. In my opinion, not THAT great a ship.
Voinian Cruiser: Excellent ship, excellent armor, and excellent guns. It also is the only purchasable ship in EVO that can carry 6 turrets, unlike the UE Cruiser and Igazra. In the crescent, it is unstoppable. My favorite ship.
Lazira: Relatively good ship, but weak shields and not tons of room for expansion. I've actually never flown one, except for once, but that was only to make a cargo delivery.
Crescent Warship: Good ship for starters, but you really should move on to better things. Although it has lots of room, not extremely powerful, and the UE Cruiser, Voinian Cruiser, and Igazra are much better.
Arada: Good ship for early people, but definitely move on. Although it has good shields, tons and tons of room for expansion, and good armament, you should sitll move on. Thing that people in Aradas usually buy next: Lazira, or go straight to the Crescent Warship.
Igazra: Nice ship, easy to capture, excellent armament, and relatively good room for expansion. Overral, one of the better ships in EVO. Second only to the Voinian Cruiser. My second favorite ship.
But as for the main question; Is the CW better than the rest? My answer is no. Although it is nice, you should really move on to bigger ships.
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To Escape Velocity: Nova and Beyond!
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Millennium. Its coming, prepare for it.
Coming to the (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiaSW.com/games/ev/chronicles.html")EV Chronicles(/url).