You can blame Porky for this.
His comment on my second round of nautical queries (yes, we like it naughty here, Kent) earlier appealed to my democratic side (read “lazy”): “Re: ship design I'd suggest floating mortars, gondolas mounted on the backs of sea monsters, rotting hulks and paddle wheels, and maybe balloons or caravans of the air on flying creatures. You know, another way to go with this would be setting us a challenge as with the game naming. We can fill up the comments with all kinds of ideas and you can sift out the good stuff.”
Fair enough, my porcine friend.
Here's this week contest:
- Name and describe one fantastic nautical vessel. The weirder and more wonderful the better.
- Name and describe an exotic port of call or locale.
- Name and describe a maritime culture/or race.
You can enter in any or all of the categories. Winners to be announced this coming weekend—provided my deserted island refuge is rigged out with a source to the ether. Bonus points for statting out an entry for classic D&D editions.
Prizes to be announced then, but most likely your choice of an appropriate nautically-themed book from my ever-expanding collection.
But wait you say, what about that Domain Game naming contest?
By executive fiat, I have decided to postpone the results until Wednesday July 20th. If you want to get your own entry—and make your mark on the project—mosey over to this post and make an entry.
That's even better! Do you want them fully in the comments here or will links to blog pages do?
ReplyDeleteBe careful of what you wish for. Either is fine, link to a post or reply here.
ReplyDeleteI've just been watching "Human Planet: Oceans" and I've got all kinds of crazy nautical ideas rolling around in my head. I'm entering this one for sure.
ReplyDeleteThe Cygnus Argentum
ReplyDeleteCreated by a wizard for his personal explorations of the oceans, the Cygnus Argentum is a beautiful vessel. Appearing as a giant swan with wings folded, it is propelled by the two feet moving by magical forces.
(AD&D 1E DMG stats):
Hull value: 25
Length: 30' Width: 15'
Crew: 1 (can carry up to 20 people, 100 or so in crowded conditions)
Speed: 7 mph (takes 3 rounds to go from standing start to normal speed)
Burning time: 2-8 turns
Cargo Capacity: (similar to small merchant)
Interesting idea. I'll see if I can come up with something.
ReplyDeleteJust to clarify, when's the absolute deadline for the nautical contest? I've got some details down, but I have to leave for work in a few minutes.
ReplyDeleteMoon’s Rake
ReplyDeleteOf course, the Selenites are long dead and the lunar oceans they once sailed are dust, but ghosts of these mariners sail forth on the moonlight, down to the seas of Earth. The ghost seamen and their vessel appear only as shadows to the naked eye, but in the moonlight reflected on the water they appear as they were in life--delicate-limbed, large-eyed beings (at once reminiscent of elves and insects) in the Moon’s Rake--a vessel like a sleek catamaran as big as a sloop-of-war with eccentricities of design as fanciful as any royal pleasure barge. Sometimes they come to trade, exchanging strange tear-shaped emeralds (which fade to naught with the coming dawn) for trinkets that strike their fancy. Other times they engage in piracy. Their silvery cutlasses draw no blood but cause pain and opium-nightmares.
Reading all your entries as I trail a lazy leg through the Caribbean, excellent.
ReplyDeleteMy entry was a bit long, so I posted it here.
ReplyDeleteI realize now that it might be slightly outside the parameters, and also features a catamaran (like Trey's entry). Still, I hope you enjoy it.
A large, spherical, urchinlike vessel. Made of armored plates with thick green glass windows. Small fins stick out in every direction. Filled with just enough water to stay half-submerged. Held in the center of the sphere by struts is a cage, likewise spherical. Inside the sphere there are giant rats or large boars.
ReplyDeleteThe inhabitants hold a carrot in front of the animal, it runs toward it, spinning the cage (and thus the entire sphere), propelling the sphere in the direction the animal runs.
The inhabitants stay upright by floating in the water inside the sphere.
They are primarily used by water-breathing races to attack the surface.
Not an entry, but an excellent dimension-traveling fantasy ship story you may wish to read: Spinning Out by Jaime Barras.
ReplyDeleteCool names to rip off too.
The link I posted earlier is broken. Sorry about that. This one should work fine.
ReplyDeleteI have something for the ship and the locale, and a little for the culture too. It's all bound up together here.
ReplyDeleteOkay, we finished the illustration, but will ahve to stat-up The Slub-Boats of the Bitter Sea on Monday. It is part of an adventure that we've been prepping for the Sea of O'sr project. Just ran out of time--have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteMy entry http://swordsandstitchery.blogspot.com/2011/07/hull-value-35-length-390-ft-varies-with.html
ReplyDeleteWell one of them tomorrow a location!