Highland: The Ocean

  1. Human Languages
  2. Highland

The ocean is a mass of roiling waters and dark skies. The eastern sea is the end of the world. No vessels capable of safely traversing the ocean exist. The constant storms on the deep ocean make travel beyond the sight of shore deadly. There are legends of strange boats arriving from beyond the storms, battered and torn. Most people, however, believe the world is flat, and that the tumult on the sea is the water running over the side.

Ships are made in Watertown. Forests in the northwest are cut, and the logs come down the river to the shipyards of Watertown.

Pirates will steal merchantmen and outfit them with weaponry, including low level sorcerors, archers, and crossbows. Very rarely, a prophet of the night gods will sign on as a pirate to further some nefarious purpose.

Ship Information

Highland and Bend merchants use curragh, cog, and coaster-style vessels to transport goods and people. Cogs and coasters are preferred for goods for their tonnage and speed. Sailed curraghs carry people and are slower, but are much cheaper.

Further north, some of the barbarian tribes use drakkar and knarr to travel along the coast in raids and trading missions. To the average coastal highlander, barbarians and pirates are the same thing, with different ships.

Ship Length Cargo Cost Officers Crew Passengers
Cog 30 yards 150 tons 3 18
Coaster 20 yards 100 tons 3 20
Curragh 18 yards 40 tons 2 12
Curragh, rowed 18 yards 80 tons 3 30
Drakkar 35 yards 20 tons 2 60 10
Knarr 25 yards 25 tons 1 16 30

Ship Information: Cog

For its size and its cargo capacity, the cog is most suited for carrying goods from Highland to South Bend. It sports three sails. The cog is the most commonly used ship in Highland.

Ship Information: Coaster

The coaster gets its name from its mode of travel: it never sails out of sight of land. In Highland, of course, no one sails out of site of land, but the coaster was the first sailing ship used for trade in civilized Highland. It is commonly used for trade between two nearby ports. It is commonly used, now, in South Bend, where there are many more ports than in Highland. In Highland, coasters, will travel from Watertown to Crosspoint, or from Crosspoint to High Town.

Coasters sport two sails.

Ship Information: Curragh

The curragh in Highland is quite a bit larger than the curragh we’re familiar with, but is still the smallest of the merchant ships used in East Highland. The curragh may be either sailed or rowed. It boasts two sails and is also designed for rowing. The curragh is often used for passenger transport between nearby ports.

Drakkar and Knarr

These ships are rarely seen in civilized Highland, but they ply the sea around Pirates’ Cove and have been known to travel as far south as the Tower of Ages. They are used by the Norse and the Jutes for trade and for raiding.

The Knarr run about fifty feet long and are used mostly for trading. The Drakkar are about seventy-five feet long, and can hold 80 fully-armed raiders. These ships are able to handle storms well. They also have a low draft, which lets them land directly on a beach, rather than requiring deeper-water harbors. They’re light enough to be carried across land. Many of these boats have sails, though they are primarily designed to be rowed. The Norse sit on chests containing their personal possessions when they row.

Highland to Bend Sea Travel

All of these costs and times are measured from Crosspoint. Costs from Watertown are 10% higher and another half day.

Costs may be bargained down significantly if the customer is charismatic and not tied to a specific time or captain. Winter travel is more dangerous, and costs rise 50% from December to March.

Travel Times

High Town Newhome Newhaven Bend Great Bend Dubar
Cog 2 days 21 days 30 days 32 days 34 days 36 days
Coaster 2 days 21 days 30 days 32 days 34 days 36 days
Curragh 3 days 30 days 45 days 48 days 52 days 58 days
Curragh, rowed 2 days 21 days 30 days 32 days 34 days 36 days

Travel times can vary considerably depending on weather, especially for sailing ships.

Shipping Costs

High Town Newhome Newhaven Bend Great Bend Dubar
Cog 3s 8p 8s 4p 9s 10s 10s 8p 11s 4p
Coaster 3s 7s 8p 8s 8s 4p 8s 8p 9s 4p
Curragh 2s 6s 6p 6s 8p 7s 4p 7s 8p 8s 4p
Curragh, rowed 3s 4p 8s 8s 4p 9s 9s 8p 10s 4p

There will be a discount of 1% for every three tons on a coaster or cog. Costs are in Crosspoint shillings and pennies, and are per ton.

Travel Costs

High Town Newhome Newhaven Bend Great Bend Dubar
Cog 6s 16s 20s 24s 28s 16s
Coaster 4s 10s 12s 14s 16s 18s
Curragh 2s 4p 7s 4p 8s 9s 4p 10s 11s
Curragh, rowed 3s 8p 9s 8p 10s 12s 4p 12s 8p 13s 8p

These costs are per person, and include basic food and lodging. Costs are in Crosspoint shillings and pennies.

Charter Costs

Initial Payment Cost Per Day
Cog 80s 60s
Coaster 60s 40s
Curragh 2s 1s 4p
Curragh, rowed 4s 2s

Chartering a boat can be time-consuming and requires planning in advance. A boat is rarely available for charter in less than a week. The initial payment must be paid to reserve the ship, and the costs per day must be paid on taking the ship. Costs are in Crosspoint shillings and pennies.

Charter costs include a basic crew. Tipping is generally accepted and the expectation of tipping will usually produce better service.

  1. Human Languages
  2. Highland