General description:
Random trading can leave many players feeling uneasy but with the proper planning, you can improve your odds.
Uses:
This is a tough unique to pull off but it will be just as tough for your opponent to pull off. The advantage is yours since you know you're playing with it and that you're crazy enough to use it.
Strategies and game play:
The best way to take advantage of Trade Route is to sink enemy ships carrying gold so that there can be some gold on both home islands in the first place. If change needs to be made and the option on how to make the change is given to you, you may then pull off this little trick. If the amount of gold to split is 9, pick five 1 gold coins and give your opponent a single 4 gold coin. Then (assuming these are the only coins on home islands) turn Trade Route face-up and trade one of your 1 gold coins for your opponent's 4 gold coin, randomness be damned! They'll be left slapping their forehead in disbelief, wondering why they gave up the right to make change! 
I did say it was a little trick.
Combos with other miniatures:
The second best way to keep higher coins of yours from being traded for lower coins of your opponent's is to build forts (Paradis de la Mer having the potential of lasting the longest). Your higher coins will be kept in these forts away from your home island leaving lower ones to be traded. You'll need to choose your gold value treasure coins carefully so do some experimenting and see which values work best for you. You might try throwing Wine into the mix to make things interesting but there's always the chance of trading away a 2 gold coin and receiving your Wine back in trade. At least you can toast your opponent's victory, nein?
Ways to counteract it:
Once you activate Trade Route, there's nothing that can stop it. Your opponent can only hope to swipe it back with a ship that can dock at your home island and load one treasure or with a ship carrying Wine.
Strengths/Pros:
Trade Route isn't a tournament winning juggernaut of a unique. It's throwing caution to the wind and one might think you'd have to be crazy to use it but sometimes crazy works. Also, since it isn't as straightforward or popular a unique as, say, Spices, you might run into someone who isn't expecting it and it could possibly net you the win or at least get you closer to it. Don't make it the cornerstone of your fleet's strategy but do try to play with it and see what you can come up with. Even I can't think of everything.
Weaknesses/Cons:
If there are no treasure coins on your opponent's home island or yours or either home island, Trade Route cannot be used. As a result of this conditional criteria, it takes up a valuable cargo space and could end up lost while you wait for the opportunity to pop it. If your opponent finds it before you do, chances are that they haven't been playing the game the way you have (with Trade Route in mind from the get-go) so if your opponent finds it first and activates it, they will be less prepared for the randomness and might trade away a higher coin OR (and this is a big "or") they may fear the randomness and not use it at all, making Trade Route a useless cargo-filler (for those who may not know, uniques which are loaded face-down do take up a cargo space) that could have been gold. And anything your opponent loads that is not worth gold, takes up a cargo space and frightens them to use spells good news for you.
However, gunships don't believe in playing these little games. Gunships only believe in one thing...
CANNON FIRE.
If you don't have a decent fleet, all the Trade Routes in the world aren't going to help you. So play with Trade Route in mind but don't forget to play with winning by the tried-and-true methods in mind as well.
Artwork and aesthetics:
The art on Trade Route is quite beautiful but as with most uniques, if you want to appreciate the artwork, you're better off looking at the full paintings found at this site or the official site, since the coin only allows a tiny portion of it to be seen.
Overall rating:
Trade Route is not a powerhouse like Spices or a deathtrap like Plague. Trade Route is a roll of the bones; a chance to see if the luck lords are smiling on you. If they do, don't forget to smile back. 
Every game needs a light hearted piece such as this to make things interesting and I'm glad to see one in Pirates. I rate Trade Route a ::rolls a d10:: 4 out of 10.
Miniature Trading
