The ship is a limited physical build
A reward is not automatically useful because it is rare. Modules must fit available slots, supplies occupy limited capacity and command cards need the rest of the vessel to make them effective. A broadside plan, boarding plan or curse-driven build asks for different equipment and different crew.
Those constraints make the vessel legible. Instead of accumulating every upgrade, you decide what this particular ship is becoming and which attractive options no longer belong aboard it.
- Hull-defined slots and capacity
- Modules that support or change commands
- Repairs and supplies with opportunity costs
- Build paths shaped by the current vessel