-Nate
Interlude 27: The
Hazards
Many are the
dangers that a ship's crew members face, what with storms, pirates,
sea monsters and the like. There are other perils, however, that,
while less spectacular, can be just as harmful to a vessel. Detailed
here are some of these potential threats—or, in the hands of a
skilled sailor, perhaps even tools of the trade.
In many ways
these hazards function just like traps in the dungeon setting. Each
has a DC for Spot or Search checks to notice it, along with DC's for
other skill checks to avoid it. Success in one or the other means
that the party can avoid it, while failure in both forces characters
to suffer the consequences.
Coral Reefs
These clumps of
coral are probably the greatest danger to vessels, if they go
unnoticed. They are very sharp and quite solid, acting like a spear
to be driven through the hull of a ship. The difficulty for seeing
them, along with the damage that they can do, depends on the size of
the reef in question.
Huge—DC 26 to
notice—DC 20 to avoid—Damage 4d8
Gargantuan—DC 23
to notice—DC 23 to avoid—Damage 6d8
Colossal—DC 20
to notice—DC 26 to avoid—Damage 8d8
Furthermore, a
vessel that suffers more than 50% of its hull points in damage from a
collision is stopped dead in the water. In order to free it, the crew
of the ship must succeed at a DC 24 Profession: sailor check, a
process that last one hour. The DC of this check is reduced by two
for every step that the tide rises, representing the fact that rising
water can simply float a ship free (see below for more details). This
means that ships which hit an obstacle during high tide are in big
trouble. At the GM's discretion, each time the tide falls by a step,
the obstacle does one quarter the original damage again to a trapped
ship; this represents new stresses on the hull due to the falling
water level. Woe to those poor ships that should be trapped in such a
way if a storm arises.
Sandbars
While not as big a
danger as reefs, given the fact that they're neither solid nor
pointy, sandbars can still be dangerous if they bring a ship to a
halt during a dangerous situation.
Huge—DC 26 to
notice—DC 20 to avoid—Damage 2d8
Gargantuan—DC 23
to notice—DC 23 to avoid—Damage 3d8
Colossal—DC 20
to notice—DC 26 to avoid—Damage 4d8
Just as with
reefs, mentioned above, sandbars can also stop a vessel dead in the
water. In this case, the collision only needs to cause 25% of a
ship's hull points in damage. What is more, the DC for a Profession:
sailor check to free a vessel is only 20, and still decreases by two
for each step by which the tide rises.
Tides
While
these fluctuations in the depths of the world's seas are not in and
of themselves dangerous, it can be important to have information
about them if a ship is trapped on a sandbar or a reef. When that
happens, roll 1d8, with the following results: 1—High tide;
2—Ebbing from high; 3—Middle tide; 4—Ebbing from middle; 5—Low
tide; 6—Rising from low; 7—Middle tide; 8—Rising from middle.
It takes about fifty minutes to move from one stage to the next, or
just over twelve hours to move from one high tide to the next. (This
is based on an average of tidal fluctuation; it does not apply
exactly to all places in the world.)
Contrary Winds
The direction of
the wind can become important when a party is facing obstacles such
as these. To do so, roll 1d8, with the following results: 1—North;
2—Northeast; 3—East; 4—Southeast; 5—South; 6—Southwest;
7—West; 8—Northwest. Ships sailing into the wind suffer a -2
circumstance penalty to Profession: sailor checks, while those with
it at their backs receive a +2 bonus. Those with the wind off to one
side or the other have neither a bonus nor a penalty.
The Ship's
Draft
The rules
mentioned above assume that the obstacles are shallow enough to
endanger a ship, while not being so shallow that they can plainly be
seen. At times it could become necessary for a vessel to seek out
dangerous waters, so as to escape from pursuit by a larger ship. For
example, a Bermuda sloop could sail over a reef that doesn't threaten
it, while a pursuing Spanish galleon faces grave danger. To represent
this, the obstacle should be given a depth ranging from zero to five
fathoms. Ships that sit higher in the water are not threatened by
these obstacles. Indeed, the location of such hazards can become an
important trade secret for pirates and smugglers, providing them with
a weapon to wield against enemies.
