Originally posted by TEHHEST:

indeed moder Forsaken Power grants 100% Tailwind, i found the speed of the ship was far faster when the wind hits at 45* angle Crosswind The Brightest Whitest part of the sailing compas means your getting the fastest speed, the modder tailwind is akin to a barely saling INTO the wind with the slight angle to move forward up small canals/rivers

ALso, beware of 45*angle cross winds during an a ocean Storm.... in multiplayer, that max speed weird ♥♥♥♥ can happen, along with ship damage
;)

Yes! A sailboat will move fastest on a beam reach, I believe, when the wind is going perpendicular across the ship. A broad reach is also pretty fast, when the wind is coming from behind, but from an angle (maybe 45 degrees like you mentioned!), and so the opposite of tacking (tacking is beating upwind -zig-zagging into the wind- if you didn't already know), is called "Jibing", when you stay in that broad reach zone to get the maximum amount of speed.