Has anyone thought about naval battles yet? This is one of the weakest aspects of and one that could defenatily be improved. If you need any ideas I have "General's Compedium" which has the rules for naval battles, and I could copy some here.

Good idea. Anyone owning Man o' War btw. The Warhammer Navygame? That would add a good flavor to this. I found a forum related to that:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/2516

never hear of Man'o War before.