Einhander: Hard Mode

Okay, to earn the last ship, I need to beat Hard Mode using only 2 Continues. However, I can’t make it much farther than Stage 2. Does anyone here have any recommendations on ship and weapon combos? I need a good setup aside from the one I’m using.

I’m currently using the Astrea (steam powered ship with 2 gunpods) equipped with a Juno (extra-powerful gatling gun) and a Flash (extremely powerful cannon with limited ammo).

Thank you.