Airships

Subject: Airships 10/6/2007, 3:09 pm

Airships were originally developed in the technological centers of Tealas with the discovery of how to effectively process an extremely light gas from water that was very flammable referred to as E-1. The Fire Guard, or the engineers of the army, were most responsible for the ability to create it. Now they can produce this gas with relative ease, however the increased demand by the Air Guard for the use of these fleets is taxing on the supply of the precious gas.

The airships of Tealas do not have "engines". Instead they rely on wind power like the sailing ships do. Most ships typically look like giant sausages before they deploy their sails. With sails deployed they can either look like giant flowers or god-like birds of prey.

The skins of the military airships are lined with a special threading and extremely fine chain mail that is meant to bow, but never break, and rarely tear even under arrow fire. This does not mean however they are impervious to arrow fire, it only means that the designers have taken into consideration this danger and have compensated for it rather effectively.

Inside the airships, the gas is stored in massive bags. Fire Guard troops, even in Air Guard ships, are typically responsible for the managing of the gas. The E-1 itself can be let out as necessary as the weight of the ship decreases, or to land the vessel. All airship ports in Tealas are required to have enough E-1 readily available to supply an entire twelve ship fleet.

Most military airships can hold about 50-250 men at a time. All are commanded by the Air Guard, and the troops are typically archers or special forces. Civilian airships instead of relying on E-1 rely on another heavier, but safer gas referred to as E-2 because the military demands the vast majority of E-1 in the country for their purposes. The airships that use E-2 cannot hold near as much, but are more widely in use and much safer. The civilian airships typically outnumber military ones three to one in Tealas and either haul passengers or cargo.

Airship command is a tricky business and only those highly skilled may command one, but serving on one has become a job for many of the lower classes looking to get a dangerous, but well paying job. No normal person has even close to the capital required to buy or build an airship worth anything. But many entrepreneurs take out business loans to compensate for this. Even though it typically takes a successful pilot half their life to pay for one, this has not deterred them from journeying into the skies.

Country Founder Age : 25 Joined : 05 Oct 2007 Posts : 14

Aer airships come in various sizes, the grand air cruisers being the largest, and the one person flitter being the smallest. All airships are custom built, and no two are exactly the same. Despite this, all of them do share the same basic elements.

The airship’s hull is constructed from solid metal, all but the poorest (and oldest) being made of the new metal called steel. First a frame is made, sometimes of wood, sometimes of metal, and metal plates are placed along the frame. Since this is how naval vessels are constructed, Aer airships have a boat-like shape to them.

Each airship carries several energy crystals, one for each of its propellers. Most have a large propeller for lift. It stands straight up like a mast and has large blades that spin horizontally, and it the largest of all the propellers. The cruisers sport two of these propellers. For forward movement, two smaller propellers extend out of the aft of the airship, each running separately from the others. Turning is accomplished by spinning one propeller faster than the other.

At the airship’s heart is the steam engine. The main engine is attached to the main propeller, and two smaller ones power the aft propellers. The crystals heat the water in the engine’s tank, turning it into steam. The steam pushes the turbine that spins the propeller. Then the steam condenses back into water, falling back into the tank to be heated again.

The Aer equip their airships with black powder cannons for defense. The large cruisers carry the largest found in the air, and carry many of smaller sizes. The average sized airships only carry one or two medium cannons with a mixture of small ones. Flitters only carry one small cannon. These cannons coupled with the solid metal skin makes Aer airships formidable opponents in a battle.

While the majority of the airships are used for peaceful purposes (exploration and trade), military vessels are in existence, though they only fly when needed. Despite this though, Aer Outcasts have been known to steal energy crystals to construct their own airships for piracy and other nefarious deeds.