Airships [Archive] - Wizards Community - Pages Merged by Solauren

Airships [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
ThePassiveArmada
10-14-07, 05:49 PM I've done a lot of studying on airships and want to incorporate them nto this world I'm making, but I need to know something: How fast does the average ship go? I know that in FFXII, they can go like 120 mph, but they are enclosed. I want mine to be more like a classic naval ship, but in the air. I'm afraid that if it went that fast, the crew would fly off the deck! I was thinking 40 mph, and that rather than having an 8 hour traveling day, as is said in Ch. 9: Adventuring in the PHBv3.5, it'd be able to travel for all 24 hours, like a normal boat, as ling as the winds remain constant.
Escef
10-14-07, 06:19 PM According to the SRD, the fastest navel vessel is a galley, at a blazing 4 miles per hour. Which can be outrun by horses. However, due to the constant motion of a ship, it greatly outdistances the ground based creatures.

However, I'd recommend Maybe 10 mph for a fast airship, while the more sluggish ones in the 6-8 vicinity.
Lord_Cronos
10-14-07, 10:56 PM By my calculations an air ship travels at about 11mph which is fast when you think about no terrain to overcome.
Soups
10-14-07, 11:59 PM As mentioned by Lord_Cronos, 4-5 pmh on a ship is blazing compared to land travel. The point is an airship can do what no other land travel can realisticaly do, a straight line. If you do have your own maps, make sure to keep in mind that land terrian is usually very zigzagy.

As a side thought, It is probably eaiser for smaller airships to go faster than the big ones. So the mammoths can probably be topped out at 5-6, while schooner sized can go 10-15.
Label
10-15-07, 12:07 AM Eberron's airships travel at 20mph.
Aryxbez
10-15-07, 12:10 AM I agree with Soups here, airships speeds like that should be reasonable. I would like to see one being made, I would assume it is a form of template applied to certain ships. Ships I have mind something like the Longship or Warship.

I also like the idea that is fueled perhaps by some fiction non-magical source. As then a enemy wizard could dispel the ship........

Need I say more
Soups
10-15-07, 12:16 AM I also like the idea that is fueled perhaps by some fiction non-magical source. As then a enemy wizard could dispel the ship........

I suggest sunrocks. You know, those floating rocks from Ecaflowne. Just build a ship around one. If its exposed to light , it rises higher. I know some D&D book uses loadstones (giant magnetic rocks), or maybe im thinking of Gulliver's Travels.
Aryxbez
10-15-07, 12:25 AM I suggest sunrocks. You know, those floating rocks from Ecaflowne. Just build a ship around one. If its exposed to light , it rises higher. I know some D&D book uses loadstones (giant magnetic rocks), or maybe im thinking of Gulliver's Travels.

I'm going to dissapoint you here, I don't know what sunrocks are, nor do I know what ecaflowne is. I am assuming it is something from Eberron? I never played Eberron by the way.
Soups
10-15-07, 12:35 AM It's not a big deal that you don't know. It is either a good, or bad anime, depending on which version you watch.( the U.S. version used dubbed in starwars sound effects. No one knows why. Fox is crazy like that.) I saw the lame version. Sunrocks were from the anime too. Sunrocks are HUGE floating stones. They rise and fall with the availiable sunlight and temp.

edit:Curse my crappy typing. Its Escaflowne.
Escaflowne in all it's wikipedia glory (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escaflowne), or summin'
Crimsondagger
10-15-07, 01:04 AM Ok Stormwrack to the rescue The fastest ship is the book speed is wind times 40 feet size colossal Behicle complement of 30 crew members five per watch. cost 40,000 gp Seaworthinese +4 shiphandling+4 overal AX -3 Hull sections 12 Sink 3 Sections Section HP 150 section Hardness 6 Section AC 3 Rigging HP 80 Hardness 0 AC1 weapons 1 Ram 4d6 damage piercing 2 light and 1 heavy Weapon You might also look in the arms and equipment guide I believe they have something that might help you stay in the air.

Cargo 30 tons which means a dragons hoard fits on the ship YEAY!
ThePassiveArmada
10-16-07, 05:56 PM Yes, rather than relying on some phony crystal, I want this to be a little realistic. It would have sails, but they'd jut out to the sides, and a little propellor would e behind each one, to change acceleration. The sails and propellor share an axis. where the sails can be turned up to 180 degrees. It's a little hard to envision but it'll occur to you if you don't see it already. The main mast will be a giant propellor, and on the sides of the ship will be parachute releases, to slow the ship if it is falling. Something of a garage lies on the port side, by the stern, where little enclosed ships that resemble the mother ship can be released as an escape boat, a scout, or a combatant.
I find a lot of my inspiration from Miyazaki's films such as Castle in the Sky and Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind. I also like to add a FFIV element to it, though I will admit I didn't get far into that before it was stolen or lost.
The point is, I want it to be the most efficient transportation and it to be generally fast. So I might go with the 20mph for the big one, and maybe 50mph for the little ones because they are enclosed, capable of seating 2 maybe, with room for a few more in the back.
Yes, my ships will have firearms, but not with gupowder, just ballistae, unless I find something I like better.
And can anyone explain why I had to change my name? And feel free to bounce ideas, because I haven't found the source that fuels the propellors yet. Thank you.
Escef
10-17-07, 02:55 AM Yes, rather than relying on some phony crystal, I want this to be a little realistic.

Lemme see if I understand this. You want realism in a game where uttering nonsense, waving your arms around, and playing with bat poop conjures forth 40 foot wide bursts of flame?
McPoyo
10-17-07, 12:45 PM The Arms and Equipment guide has an entire section on transportation, including several different airships, in a zeppelin type styled getup.

Other than that, I'd recommend Eberron for it's airships.
Fatalis_902
10-17-07, 02:58 PM Ok Stormwrack to the rescue The fastest ship is the book speed is wind times 40 feet size colossal Behicle complement of 30 crew members five per watch. cost 40,000 gp Seaworthinese +4 shiphandling+4 overal AX -3 Hull sections 12 Sink 3 Sections Section HP 150 section Hardness 6 Section AC 3 Rigging HP 80 Hardness 0 AC1 weapons 1 Ram 4d6 damage piercing 2 light and 1 heavy Weapon You might also look in the arms and equipment guide I believe they have something that might help you stay in the air.

Cargo 30 tons which means a dragons hoard fits on the ship YEAY!

Oh, Ye Gods Mine Own Eyes, MY EYES!!! That really hurt, and I couldn't glean anything remotely useful from it. Try using punctuation next time, buddy, maybe some periods and sentence breaks...
Grod_The_Giant
10-17-07, 03:06 PM Oh, Ye Gods Mine Own Eyes, MY EYES!!! That really hurt, and I couldn't glean anything remotely useful from it. Try using punctuation next time, buddy, maybe some periods and sentence breaks...

unfortunately, that IS how the ships are described in Stormwreck.

You can probably take the standard water ship stats, boost the speed a bit to reflect the lack of drag from the water, and use that as an airship.
ThePassiveArmada
10-18-07, 05:11 PM Lemme see if I understand this. You want realism in a game where uttering nonsense, waving your arms around, and playing with bat poop conjures forth 40 foot wide bursts of flame?

Haha. No. I mean, I don't like this:
"You see a ship, floating through the sky, and you recall the stories your Pa told you when..."
"Wait, it's flying?!"
"Yep."
"How?"
"Um... a crystal: a magic crystal."

I'd rather say, "a complex series of propellors and sails to increase or decrease acceleration."
FrostWolf
10-18-07, 05:27 PM Arms and Equipment guide has what you seek. Look there for awnsers.
Fatalis_902
10-18-07, 07:35 PM unfortunately, that IS how the ships are described in Stormwreck.

You can probably take the standard water ship stats, boost the speed a bit to reflect the lack of drag from the water, and use that as an airship.

Don't most major book-producing entities have editors? For that matter, don't most publishers? How did Stormwrack get through with descriptions like that? It actually caused me physical pain, which doesn't often result from reading things.
ShadowX222
10-18-07, 08:23 PM I find a lot of my inspiration from Miyazaki's films such as Castle in the Sky and Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind. I also like to add a FFIV element to it, though I will admit I didn't get far into that before it was stolen or lost.

Yay! Another Final Fantasy and Miyazaki fan my fav's Howls Moving Castle, but lets get on topic I pictured a combination of magic and technology and going from 5-15 mph and becuase it's in air and can go striaght it all of which gets it there faster.
Passivearmada
10-20-07, 09:04 AM Yay! Another Final Fantasy and Miyazaki fan my fav's Howls Moving Castle, but lets get on topic I pictured a combination of magic and technology and going from 5-15 mph and becuase it's in air and can go striaght it all of which gets it there faster.

Yes, I love Miyazaki. But Howl's Moving Castle wasn't all his, it was a book first. But I love it nonetheless.

Sorry, folks- I just migrated my original account (I didn't know that you could, so I just created a new one). There might be a double because I'm almost certain I responded again after ShadowX222, but it isn't here, so I guess there was a glitch or something.

Does anyone have any better suggestions on slightly realistic aerodynamics? I'm thinking about just re-doing the entire structure, and in there somewhere, decrease the mass while increasing volume. A lightweight wood?
Escef
10-20-07, 09:17 AM "Um... a crystal: a magic crystal."

I'd rather say, "a complex series of propellors and sails to increase or decrease acceleration."

Yes, because turning a boat into a cuisineart is what makes it fly.

It's all in your head, and neither is any more or less realistic than the other. Just call it your prefered window dressing and leave this nonsense talk of realism elsewhere. :)
CryoSilver
10-20-07, 12:47 PM It's as simple as getting a magic fan that can produce a Gust of Wind to propel the ship: point it in the opposite direction want to go, and voila, you go that way.
Passivearmada
10-20-07, 02:46 PM Yes, because turning a boat into a cuisineart is what makes it fly.

It's all in your head, and neither is any more or less realistic than the other. Just call it your prefered window dressing and leave this nonsense talk of realism elsewhere. :)

Agreed, I guess I just have a mysterious hate for crystals.
randomimages
10-20-07, 03:23 PM I always liked this design that was of the first final fantasy airship in an issue of nintendo power. I guess I am just a sucker for the propeller thing, but it has elements of a wooden ship.

http://www.squareuniverse.net/ff1/images/airship.jpeg
1 ton ghost
10-20-07, 03:29 PM i am totally surprised no one dug up the Halruuan Skyships from Forgotten Realms.
your mother and i are disappointed in you...

peruse Shining South, it has most of the answers needed.
think they're estimated around 400K gp and it's kind of a state secret given the immense power and mobility it gives a military.
know they require dragon turtle shells for one.
the illustration is sound from an engineering perspective. regular galleon, full sails and/or battle sails, but imagine oversized oars jutting out starboard and port respectively w/ square rigged sails to augment main masts, etc. since they are not on fixed points, they can be retracted (for water landing or defense) or adjusted w/ full range of motion to capture more wind.

dispelling isn't always an option i think. why sink in an entire duchy's GNP on a risky venture w/out a little forethought?
no elementals need apply...
FrostWolf
10-27-07, 06:51 AM Again, Arms and Equipment has what you want.

Airship creation
Magical Items for vehicles
Zepplins.
Rules for making them all go.
Gliders
Ornothopters
Vehicle to vehicle combat

Trust me, If I could build a tank with that book, you can make an airship with it.
Firevalkyrie
10-27-07, 08:27 AM Of course, you could always look at Skies of Arcadia...
FrostWolf
10-27-07, 08:31 AM Of course, you could always look at Skies of Arcadia...

Flying battleships are hot!
Firevalkyrie
10-27-07, 10:26 AM Flying battleships are hot!
Of course! Battleship sailors do it with 16 inches.
savant_warlord13
10-27-07, 11:26 AM Eberron's airships travel at 20mph.

They are powered by elementals
Passivearmada
10-27-07, 11:32 AM Yeah, there's a problem. I don't have the Arms and Equipment guide and I can't find it at my local Borders. Are there any online sources?

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
ThePassiveArmada 10-14-07, 05:49 PM	I've done a lot of studying on airships and want to incorporate them nto this world I'm making, but I need to know something: How fast does the average ship go? I know that in FFXII, they can go like 120 mph, but they are enclosed. I want mine to be more like a classic naval ship, but in the air. I'm afraid that if it went that fast, the crew would fly off the deck! I was thinking 40 mph, and that rather than having an 8 hour traveling day, as is said in Ch. 9: Adventuring in the PHBv3.5, it'd be able to travel for all 24 hours, like a normal boat, as ling as the winds remain constant.
Escef 10-14-07, 06:19 PM	According to the SRD, the fastest navel vessel is a galley, at a blazing 4 miles per hour. Which can be outrun by horses. However, due to the constant motion of a ship, it greatly outdistances the ground based creatures. However, I'd recommend Maybe 10 mph for a fast airship, while the more sluggish ones in the 6-8 vicinity.
Lord_Cronos 10-14-07, 10:56 PM	By my calculations an air ship travels at about 11mph which is fast when you think about no terrain to overcome.
Soups 10-14-07, 11:59 PM	As mentioned by Lord_Cronos, 4-5 pmh on a ship is blazing compared to land travel. The point is an airship can do what no other land travel can realisticaly do, a straight line. If you do have your own maps, make sure to keep in mind that land terrian is usually very zigzagy. As a side thought, It is probably eaiser for smaller airships to go faster than the big ones. So the mammoths can probably be topped out at 5-6, while schooner sized can go 10-15.
Label 10-15-07, 12:07 AM	Eberron's airships travel at 20mph.
Aryxbez 10-15-07, 12:10 AM	I agree with Soups here, airships speeds like that should be reasonable. I would like to see one being made, I would assume it is a form of template applied to certain ships. Ships I have mind something like the Longship or Warship. I also like the idea that is fueled perhaps by some fiction non-magical source. As then a enemy wizard could dispel the ship........ Need I say more
Soups 10-15-07, 12:16 AM	I also like the idea that is fueled perhaps by some fiction non-magical source. As then a enemy wizard could dispel the ship........ I suggest sunrocks. You know, those floating rocks from Ecaflowne. Just build a ship around one. If its exposed to light , it rises higher. I know some D&D book uses loadstones (giant magnetic rocks), or maybe im thinking of Gulliver's Travels.
Aryxbez 10-15-07, 12:25 AM	I suggest sunrocks. You know, those floating rocks from Ecaflowne. Just build a ship around one. If its exposed to light , it rises higher. I know some D&D book uses loadstones (giant magnetic rocks), or maybe im thinking of Gulliver's Travels. I'm going to dissapoint you here, I don't know what sunrocks are, nor do I know what ecaflowne is. I am assuming it is something from Eberron? I never played Eberron by the way.
Soups 10-15-07, 12:35 AM	It's not a big deal that you don't know. It is either a good, or bad anime, depending on which version you watch.( the U.S. version used dubbed in starwars sound effects. No one knows why. Fox is crazy like that.) I saw the lame version. Sunrocks were from the anime too. Sunrocks are HUGE floating stones. They rise and fall with the availiable sunlight and temp. edit:Curse my crappy typing. Its Escaflowne. Escaflowne in all it's wikipedia glory (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escaflowne), or summin'
Crimsondagger 10-15-07, 01:04 AM	Ok Stormwrack to the rescue The fastest ship is the book speed is wind times 40 feet size colossal Behicle complement of 30 crew members five per watch. cost 40,000 gp Seaworthinese +4 shiphandling+4 overal AX -3 Hull sections 12 Sink 3 Sections Section HP 150 section Hardness 6 Section AC 3 Rigging HP 80 Hardness 0 AC1 weapons 1 Ram 4d6 damage piercing 2 light and 1 heavy Weapon You might also look in the arms and equipment guide I believe they have something that might help you stay in the air. Cargo 30 tons which means a dragons hoard fits on the ship YEAY!
ThePassiveArmada 10-16-07, 05:56 PM	Yes, rather than relying on some phony crystal, I want this to be a little realistic. It would have sails, but they'd jut out to the sides, and a little propellor would e behind each one, to change acceleration. The sails and propellor share an axis. where the sails can be turned up to 180 degrees. It's a little hard to envision but it'll occur to you if you don't see it already. The main mast will be a giant propellor, and on the sides of the ship will be parachute releases, to slow the ship if it is falling. Something of a garage lies on the port side, by the stern, where little enclosed ships that resemble the mother ship can be released as an escape boat, a scout, or a combatant. I find a lot of my inspiration from Miyazaki's films such as Castle in the Sky and Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind. I also like to add a FFIV element to it, though I will admit I didn't get far into that before it was stolen or lost. The point is, I want it to be the most efficient transportation and it to be generally fast. So I might go with the 20mph for the big one, and maybe 50mph for the little ones because they are enclosed, capable of seating 2 maybe, with room for a few more in the back. Yes, my ships will have firearms, but not with gupowder, just ballistae, unless I find something I like better. And can anyone explain why I had to change my name? And feel free to bounce ideas, because I haven't found the source that fuels the propellors yet. Thank you.
Escef 10-17-07, 02:55 AM	Yes, rather than relying on some phony crystal, I want this to be a little realistic. Lemme see if I understand this. You want realism in a game where uttering nonsense, waving your arms around, and playing with bat poop conjures forth 40 foot wide bursts of flame?
McPoyo 10-17-07, 12:45 PM	The Arms and Equipment guide has an entire section on transportation, including several different airships, in a zeppelin type styled getup. Other than that, I'd recommend Eberron for it's airships.
Fatalis_902 10-17-07, 02:58 PM	Ok Stormwrack to the rescue The fastest ship is the book speed is wind times 40 feet size colossal Behicle complement of 30 crew members five per watch. cost 40,000 gp Seaworthinese +4 shiphandling+4 overal AX -3 Hull sections 12 Sink 3 Sections Section HP 150 section Hardness 6 Section AC 3 Rigging HP 80 Hardness 0 AC1 weapons 1 Ram 4d6 damage piercing 2 light and 1 heavy Weapon You might also look in the arms and equipment guide I believe they have something that might help you stay in the air. Cargo 30 tons which means a dragons hoard fits on the ship YEAY! Oh, Ye Gods Mine Own Eyes, MY EYES!!! That really hurt, and I couldn't glean anything remotely useful from it. Try using punctuation next time, buddy, maybe some periods and sentence breaks...
Grod_The_Giant 10-17-07, 03:06 PM	Oh, Ye Gods Mine Own Eyes, MY EYES!!! That really hurt, and I couldn't glean anything remotely useful from it. Try using punctuation next time, buddy, maybe some periods and sentence breaks... unfortunately, that IS how the ships are described in Stormwreck. You can probably take the standard water ship stats, boost the speed a bit to reflect the lack of drag from the water, and use that as an airship.
ThePassiveArmada 10-18-07, 05:11 PM	Lemme see if I understand this. You want realism in a game where uttering nonsense, waving your arms around, and playing with bat poop conjures forth 40 foot wide bursts of flame? Haha. No. I mean, I don't like this: "You see a ship, floating through the sky, and you recall the stories your Pa told you when..." "Wait, it's flying?!" "Yep." "How?" "Um... a crystal: a magic crystal." I'd rather say, "a complex series of propellors and sails to increase or decrease acceleration."
FrostWolf 10-18-07, 05:27 PM	Arms and Equipment guide has what you seek. Look there for awnsers.
Fatalis_902 10-18-07, 07:35 PM	unfortunately, that IS how the ships are described in Stormwreck. You can probably take the standard water ship stats, boost the speed a bit to reflect the lack of drag from the water, and use that as an airship. Don't most major book-producing entities have editors? For that matter, don't most publishers? How did Stormwrack get through with descriptions like that? It actually caused me physical pain, which doesn't often result from reading things.
ShadowX222 10-18-07, 08:23 PM	I find a lot of my inspiration from Miyazaki's films such as Castle in the Sky and Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind. I also like to add a FFIV element to it, though I will admit I didn't get far into that before it was stolen or lost. Yay! Another Final Fantasy and Miyazaki fan my fav's Howls Moving Castle, but lets get on topic I pictured a combination of magic and technology and going from 5-15 mph and becuase it's in air and can go striaght it all of which gets it there faster.
Passivearmada 10-20-07, 09:04 AM	Yay! Another Final Fantasy and Miyazaki fan my fav's Howls Moving Castle, but lets get on topic I pictured a combination of magic and technology and going from 5-15 mph and becuase it's in air and can go striaght it all of which gets it there faster. Yes, I love Miyazaki. But Howl's Moving Castle wasn't all his, it was a book first. But I love it nonetheless. Sorry, folks- I just migrated my original account (I didn't know that you could, so I just created a new one). There might be a double because I'm almost certain I responded again after ShadowX222, but it isn't here, so I guess there was a glitch or something. Does anyone have any better suggestions on slightly realistic aerodynamics? I'm thinking about just re-doing the entire structure, and in there somewhere, decrease the mass while increasing volume. A lightweight wood?
Escef 10-20-07, 09:17 AM	"Um... a crystal: a magic crystal." I'd rather say, "a complex series of propellors and sails to increase or decrease acceleration." Yes, because turning a boat into a cuisineart is what makes it fly. It's all in your head, and neither is any more or less realistic than the other. Just call it your prefered window dressing and leave this nonsense talk of realism elsewhere. :)
CryoSilver 10-20-07, 12:47 PM	It's as simple as getting a magic fan that can produce a Gust of Wind to propel the ship: point it in the opposite direction want to go, and voila, you go that way.
Passivearmada 10-20-07, 02:46 PM	Yes, because turning a boat into a cuisineart is what makes it fly. It's all in your head, and neither is any more or less realistic than the other. Just call it your prefered window dressing and leave this nonsense talk of realism elsewhere. :) Agreed, I guess I just have a mysterious hate for crystals.
randomimages 10-20-07, 03:23 PM	I always liked this design that was of the first final fantasy airship in an issue of nintendo power. I guess I am just a sucker for the propeller thing, but it has elements of a wooden ship. http://www.squareuniverse.net/ff1/images/airship.jpeg
1 ton ghost 10-20-07, 03:29 PM	i am totally surprised no one dug up the Halruuan Skyships from Forgotten Realms. your mother and i are disappointed in you... peruse Shining South, it has most of the answers needed. think they're estimated around 400K gp and it's kind of a state secret given the immense power and mobility it gives a military. know they require dragon turtle shells for one. the illustration is sound from an engineering perspective. regular galleon, full sails and/or battle sails, but imagine oversized oars jutting out starboard and port respectively w/ square rigged sails to augment main masts, etc. since they are not on fixed points, they can be retracted (for water landing or defense) or adjusted w/ full range of motion to capture more wind. dispelling isn't always an option i think. why sink in an entire duchy's GNP on a risky venture w/out a little forethought? no elementals need apply...
FrostWolf 10-27-07, 06:51 AM	Again, Arms and Equipment has what you want. Airship creation Magical Items for vehicles Zepplins. Rules for making them all go. Gliders Ornothopters Vehicle to vehicle combat Trust me, If I could build a tank with that book, you can make an airship with it.
Firevalkyrie 10-27-07, 08:27 AM	Of course, you could always look at Skies of Arcadia...
FrostWolf 10-27-07, 08:31 AM	Of course, you could always look at Skies of Arcadia... Flying battleships are hot!
Firevalkyrie 10-27-07, 10:26 AM	Flying battleships are hot! Of course! Battleship sailors do it with 16 inches.
savant_warlord13 10-27-07, 11:26 AM	Eberron's airships travel at 20mph. They are powered by elementals
Passivearmada 10-27-07, 11:32 AM	Yeah, there's a problem. I don't have the Arms and Equipment guide and I can't find it at my local Borders. Are there any online sources?