1. Try to avoid getting hit by the cannons, zig-and-zag works best.
2. Find or earn enough coins to get a bigger ship. Save about 3,000 coins to get a real ship if you are still using the raft.
3. If you use a loan, gather salvage and pay it off as soon as you can.
TACTICAL SUGGESTIONS
Go the the reefs above or left of Golden Harbor. Let the bigger ship chase you, and manuever around the rocks, then Dodge their shots until they hit the reefs and sink. Even a raft can sink powerful ships this way.
Once you have a ship with at least 2 cannons, go hunting Sea Monsters near Dragon Cove. They do not shoot back, you have two places to dock, and if pirate ships come after you, the monsters may sink them as well.
When you have enough doubloons, from salvage or trade, you can buy a larger ship at the Shipbuilder on Dragon Cove.
Once you have collected enough doubloons, you can buy a larger ship at Dragon Cove. The larger ships have increasing numbers of cannons as well as cargo space.
You can trade your ship in when you buy a larger one.
As you salvage, trade, or borrow on the five islands, you will eventually have enough doubloons to buy a larger ship (the Jimmy Rigger) for 3000 doubloons. Ships are bought at the Ship Shape shipbuilders on Dracon Cove island.
The only ship you go on is your own. You begin with the raft and you buy larger ships as you can afford them.
You buy larger ships when you have enough doubloons. The first one, The Jimmy Rigger, is 3000 doubloons. The ships have a slight trade-in value. To see all the ships and their costs, go to the Shipwright at Dragon Cove.
You can get a larger ship when you can afford one, at the Shipbuilder in Dragon Cove. The smaller ships have a small trade-in value (25% of their cost).
You buy all of the larger ships, including the Warbird, at the Shipbuilders on Dragon Cove. You will want to buy other ships as you can afford them, to get doubloons faster. Larger ships mean larger salvage and more cargo space.
When you buy new ships at Dragon Cove, they come with unlimited ammunition. Each larger class of ship is faster, stronger, and (usually) has more cannon.
You get a larger ship by having a lot of doubloons and then go to dragon cove and buy and new ship. Hint the cheapest ship is 3000 doubloons and the most expensive is more than 30000 doubloons.
You buy larger ships as you can afford them. Larger ships have more cannons, and can carry more salvage and cargo. You actually only need half of the 1,000,000 doubloons, because the Gorden Harbor bank will loan you the rest.
"Cash" on Skullduggery Island is your doubloon count. You earn doubloons by salvage or by trading, and you can borrow some from the Golden Harbor bank. When you buy cargo, you spend your cash, and when you sell it, you make a profit. If your ship is sunk, you lose aprt of your doubloons and part of your cargo. You need doubloons to buy larger ships and hire skilled crewmen. (see related question)