I registered just to leave this comment for you. Nice game, I like it. It reminds me of the "Sea Dogs" game series :)
I think the balance is perfectly challenging. I prefer to use the first light ship or the second one - the "brigantine" with extra guns and a captain specialised in guns/speed. It's a kind of "glass cannon". The big ships are really slow, and I find that a bit annoying, but maybe I'm missing something.
The storm and wave mechanics (when it covers your or enemy ship) are really cool and make the fights more unpredictable and fun!
I think currently, there isn't enough content for the mid-late game. After your first successful contract and catching some cargo, you can buy almost everything in the shop, and after that, hunting for more gold and cargo becomes pointless. Maybe expanding this part of the game and adding some global goals could fix this?
Thank you!