Sailing rules Wind Speed Wind Direction Movement Damaging Ships FIRE!!

1 Sinking Ships Repairing Ships Armor Plating Boarding an Enemy Ship Crew Level Siege Weapons Wind Speed The wind speed is randomly determined once every other hour. If the speed of the wind changes, it can only move two steps away from its current position in a single check. Therefore, a Moderate wind can only increase to Heavy or Severe, or decrease to Light or Calm. A Light wind can increase to Moderate or Heavy, or down to Calm, and so on. In the case of a battle situation that lasts long enough, the wind speed is determined every 30 minutes. d% 01 05 06 56 57 75 76 88 89 96 97 99 Wind Condition Calm (0 mph) Light (1-10 mph) Moderate (11-20 mph) Heavy (21-30 mph) Severe (31-50 mph) Windstorm (51-74 mph) Speed Multiplier x0* x1* x1.5* x2 * Can't Sail*; halves range of direct weapons (bombard, etc) As Severe; damages masts; moderate risk to crew As Severe; can break masts; high risk to crew

100 Hurricane (75-150 mph) *Boats with a Rowing Speed may row Wind Direction

The direction the wind is blowing is randomly determined by rolling a d8, with 1 meaning that the wind is blowing Directly North, 2 meaning North-East, and so on clockwise around a compass. The direction of the wind is determined every 6 hours for long voyages, and every 10 rounds (1 minute) in a battle situation. In battle, the wind may only change two increments away from its current direction. When rolled, a North wind (blowing to the North) may only change to a NE, E, NW, or W wind. The wind direction has an effect on the speed of ships with sails. Imagine a circle, with North at the top and South at the bottom. If the wind is blowing South, ships which are moving in any Southern variant (SE, SW, S)

receive a bonus to their base sailing speed of +10 ft. Sailing directly East or directly West does not affect the speed of this ship. However, traveling against the wind slows a ship's base sailing speed down by -10 ft. Under a South wind, any ship traveling a Northern variant direction (NW, NE) is penalized. A sailing ship cannot sail directly towards the direction wind is coming from (in this case, directly North). To reiterate, as the direction of the wind changes, the Wind Direction modifier changes with it. Movement Every round in combat, a ship can perform two move actions. However, unlike a Player Character, any move action can only be performed once a round. Therefore, a ship cannot move twice, and cannot turn twice, and so forth. However, it can move and then turn, or turn and then move. A sailing ship's movement speed is its base sailing speed (as listed in Ship Classes) +/ Wind Direction Bonus, multiplied by the Wind Speed multiplier in the above chart. So a ship with a move speed of 40 ft, sailing West in a South wind, would move 60 ft per round in a Moderate wind, and 80 ft a round in a Heavy wind. If it were to change direction and head directly South, that same ship would then move 50 ft in a light wind (10 + 40 = 50), and 75 ft in a moderate wind, and so forth. A row ship is not subject to the vagaries of wind direction and speed. Because of this, their speed is always the same, regardless of direction. At the captain's orders, a crew may row at twice the listed speed for a number of rounds equal to 1 + Crew Level. This is useful for attempting boarding actions, or for reaching a good speed to ram another ship. After rowing at double speed, the crew can only row at normal speed for 10 rounds after, during which time they regain their strength. In the case of ships with multiple movement types, it requires at least one full-round action to switch between the types. Only one method of movement may be used at a time. From a full stop, an order to move a ship requires a full round to fulfill. If ordered to move forward, the crew will jump to action, and the ship will begin moving at the beginning of its next round. To stop, the order is given to the crew as usual, but the ship will still coast for a number of rounds equal to its current speed divided by 10, rounded up. If a ship receives the order to stop while moving at 30ft, it will coast for three more rounds at that speed before coming to a complete stop. 20ft and 15ft will coast for 2, 10ft and 5ft for 1. Dropping an anchor is a move action. When the anchor is dropped while the ship is in motion, the ship will continue to move normally for the following round, then come to a sudden stop. Anyone who is not on or below deck (so anyone in the rigging/masts/crow's nest) must make a DC10 Balance check or fall prone in a randomlydetermined square adjacent to their current square. If this means falling from a height, it is calculated as normal. Weighing anchor is a full-round action. It takes a crew the full 6 seconds to withdraw the anchor from the sea flooran impressive achievement that still leaves the ship unable to move forward during that round. Turning the ship is a move action, so it may be done before or after the ship has moved forward in a round. Different ships have different degrees that they may turn in a given round, as determined by their ship type. While stopped by an anchor, Small ships may turn 1.5x their turn degrees; Medium ships turn as normal; Large ships turn at 0.5x their turn degrees.

Damaging ships Ships are divided into 10x10x10 ft sections. Each section has a separate AC and hit points pool, but the hardness of an unmodified wooden hull section is always 10. Once a section is 75% damaged, people within and without can attack each other normally, though it still provides cover. As sections of a ship are destroyed, it becomes less stable and thus harder to control. Once of the hull sections of a ship are destroyed (excluding the rigging/masts, which are separate), its base speed is cut in half. Once of the hull sections are destroyed, its speed drops to 5 feet, regardless of bonuses provided from wind or rowing. If of the hull sections are destroyed, the ship cannot move on its own power. If the bow (front-most) section of the ship is destroyed, it looses its ability to ram other ships and survive; this means if they lose the bow and ram into another ship, it will deal damage, but leave the ramming ship in the middle of sinking. If the stern (rear-most) section of the ship is destroyed, a d% is rolled. On a result of 01 50, the ship can no longer be steered, and is locked into its current direction; 51 100 means that the ship can only turn at half its normal degrees in any given situation. Once the rigging on a ship has been reduced to 50% of its full normal hit points, consider the Wind Category one less for that ship (Heavy becomes Moderate, Light becomes Calm, so on). Essentially, damaged sails and rigging are less efficient at harnessing winds. If a crew were to intentionally damage the rigging to 50%, the wind category would still drop; they could sail during Severe winds as if they were Heavy instead, but such an action still leaves the rigging damaged until it can be repaired. Once reduced to 25%, consider the Wind Category two less for that ship. NOTE: Individual masts and sets of sails/rigging on the same ship have separate AC and HP, but for the purpose of Wind Category, add the max HP of each sail/rigging set together and use that number for the above percentage count. While these masts are separate, they perform a function together and are thus all responsible for reduction in efficiency. Completely destroying a mast also completely destroys the associated rigging/sails. Ramming another ship is often a last-ditch attempt at victory which can leave both ships in serious trouble. Each ship has a listed ram damage, like a Corvette's 1d4. Every 10 ft per round a ship moves adds 1 more die to the listed die type. So a Corvette moving 10 ft/round deals 1d4 damage. If it were moving 40 ft/round, it would deal 4d4 damage. If a Destroyer (with its base ram listed at 4d10) is moving 20 ft/round, it would deal 5d10, and at 30ft/round, it would deal 6d10. When a ship rams into something, not only does it deal the given damage, but it takes the same damage. So if a ship deals 4d6 damage when ramming another, and the roll comes up at 20 damage, both ships have 20 damage applied to the sections hit. This is subject to hardness, as usual. Once one ship rams into another, both ships are stopped, except as noted below. Anyone who is not on or below deck (so anyone in the rigging/masts/crow's nest) must make a DC15 Balance check or fall prone in a randomlydetermined square adjacent to their current square. If this means falling from a height, it is calculated as normal. If two ships are moving relatively the same direction, and one wishes to ram into the other, the speed of the defending ship is subtracted from the speed of the attacking ship to determine the number of ram dice applied in damage. Both ships lose 20 ft of base speed, but are still moving.

If two ships ram into one another front-to-front, their speeds are added together, and then both deal damage to the others at this number of ram dice. FIRE!!1 Wooden ships are not floating tinderboxes. Fires can and do destroy ships, but it usually takes more than a single flaming sphere to start an unstoppable fire. When a flammable part of a ship is exposed to an effect that can start a fire (a fire spell of the right type, alchemists fire, etc.), make a fire check. This is an unmodified d20 roll; the DC is determined as shown below. Spells that cause an instantaneous blast of fire usually dont catch inanimate objects on fire, whereas fire spells that burn for multiple rounds are more likely to start a shipboard fire. DC 5 8 15 10 + spell level Save DC Cause of Fire Struck by flaming arrows Struck by alchemists fire Struck by Firespout Attacked by ongoing fire spell or effect Attacked by monster with a fire aura, breath weapon, or similar fire ability

If the affected ship equals or betters the DC, it is not set on fire by the attack. Ships prepared for battle (sails and lines wet down, buckets of sand and water close at hand, decanter of endless water) gain a +4 bonus on this check. If the check is lower than the DC, the ship has caught on fire. When a ship catches fire, half of the squares exposed to the attack (minimum 1 square) ignite. A burning square is on fire, dealing 2d6 points of damage per round to that hull section (ignoring hardness) and dealing the same damage to any character who enters the square. Each round that the fire burns, roll d%: 0151, the fire burns as normal; 5299, the fire spreads to 1 adjacent square. Sinking ships If a ship has a section of hull destroyed (not rigging/mast), it begins to rapidly take on water. Unless the ship can be repaired quickly, or dry-docked, it will sink in a matter of minutes. Ship category Small Medium Large Minutes to Sink 10 25 40 Windstorm + 1 minute 2 minutes 5 minutes

The number of minutes a ship stays afloat once a section has been totally destroyed is determined by its size category, as seen in the table above. This time is reduced by 5 minutes once a second section is destroyed, and is further reduced by 5 for every destroyed section thereafter. This penalty stacks: therefore, if a small ship has been sinking for 2 minutes (of 10), and then a second section is destroyed on it, the time reduction is removed from the time remaining (10 2 = 8; then, 8 5 = 3). However, all ships will always remain afloat for at least 30 seconds (5 rounds), regardless of destroyed sections. A damaged ship caught in Windstorm or worse weather sinks much quicker than in calmer seas.

Repairing ships If a damaged ship can make it (or be transported by any means) to a port, drydock, or any other haven where repairs can be carried out, the following rules dictate the time and cost of the repairs. Damaged sections can be fully repaired at a rate of 1-per-day in a normal port, or 4-per-day in a drydock or similar superior facility. The cost of repairing each damaged section is 1/8th the full cost of the ship (including the price of plating per section, as below), divided by the total number of sections (and rounded up to the nearest gp). Thus, if there are 4 sections in a ship that originally cost 8,000 gp, then the cost to repair each damaged section would be 250 gp. This number represents the cost of raw materials and wages required to repair the section. Destroyed sections can be fully repaired at a rate of 1-per-2 days in a normal port, or 2-per-day in a drydock or similar superior facility. The cost of repairing each damaged section is 1/3th the full cost of the ship (including the price of plating per section, as below), divided by the total number of sections (and rounded up to the nearest gp). Using the example above, the cost to repair each destroyed section would be 667 gp. This number represents the cost of the raw materials and wages required to repair the section. Armor Plating A ship can be equipped with different materials as plating on each 10-foot section (except rigging) to increase these sections' Hit Points and Hardness. A ship may only have one type of plating applied to it. The hardness is added to the inherent 10/- hardness that ship hulls have, and the HP added is added to each individual section. Note that the price per section must be included in the overall base price for the purposes of repairing a damaged or destroyed section. This price increase may be left off, but the ship's section stats will revert to default and new plating will have to be purchased and applied later. Material Adamantine Mithral Darkwood Iron HP added 30 20 10 20 Hardness added Price* 15 10 7 7 5000 gp 3500 gp 2000 gp 1000 gp Weight* 5k lbs 2k lbs 250 lbs 4k lbs

Wood** 10 3 200 gp 500 lbs *Per sections of ship **Many ships keep pre-made 10x10 sections of wood stacked in the hull in case of emergencies. If a hull section is destroyed, a wooden replacement can be erected within approximately 5 minutes if at least 4 crew members are available. This replacement section is weak and easily destroyed, but it will keep the ship from sinking before it can reach port. Ships generally keep enough sections to replace 25% of their hull. Boarding an Enemy Ship Sometimes sinking a ship is not the ultimate goal. In many cases, capturing a ship is a more profitable endeavor;

or you may simply wish to fight hand-to-hand with hostile crews to even the odds. Whatever the reason, boarding an enemy ship (or being boarded) may happen whenever ships are within 50ft of one another. The attacking ship must cast lines at the defender. The crew rolls 1d20 + any Crew-Level modifier, vs DC10 + 2 per 10 ft apart the ships are. If this attack roll fails, the crew spends the rest of the round retrieving the ropes and must wait for the following round to try again. If this attack roll succeeds, enough hooked lines have reached the target to make grappling viable. If the attack roll is successful, both ships make a grapple check. This grapple is not the same as a character grapple. Rather, it is 1d20 + the number of crewmen available* + any Crew-Level modifier. If the defender's check is higher, the grapple fails and the whole process must begin again. However, if the attacker's check is higher, the two ships move closer to one another by 10 ft. Therefore, if the grapple started while the ships were 50 ft away, a successful attack brings them to 40 ft away. The grapple check is repeated each round until either the defender wins a round, or the ships are close enough for one to board the other (generally, a crew will refuse to board until the ships are touching, but some daring crews have been known to attempt crossing between ships much earlier by whatever means they have). If a captain is confident that he can repel the invaders, he can elect to allow a boarding attempt to succeed automatically. It will still require one round per 10 ft for the attacker to reel closer. Once a ship has been boarded, combat continues as normal. *The number of crewmen available is the base number of crew, minus any losses they have taken, divided by the number of boarding attempts currently in place. If a ship is currently beset by 2 boarders when a third attacks, only 1/3 of the crew is going to be available to repel them. Crew Level As a crew experiences more combat together, they begin to excel at it. Terrifying moments of combat and victory have hardened them into a more able and competent group than a fresh crew straight out of port. When a ship and her crew survive a conflict, they gain valuable experience, which eventually leads to increased abilities such as a quicker ship speed, better aim for weaponry, and greater success at boarding attempts. Crew Level 1 2 3 4 5 XP needed 1000 3000 6000 10000 15000 General Bonus +1 +2 +3 +4 +5 Special Bonus Quick Training +5 base speed Quick Reload +10 base speed Frightful Boarding

The crew and the captain are connected by a bond of trust. Part of what enables a crew to excel is their trust in the captain and adherence to his orders. When the captain of a ship is incapacitated, a crew's level is temporarily reduced by 1 until he returns to command. If the captain is killed, or permanently surrenders command for any reason, the reduction in level is permanent.

Once a new captain assumes command, the crew may begin gaining XP again. For one month after command is changed, or until a new level is achieved, the crew gains only XP. It takes time for a crew and a captain to get a rhythm. However, during this time they are also immune to both temporary and permanent level loss; they have no bond with the captain, and thus cannot suffer from losing him. The General Bonus applies anytime the crew must roll a die (such as attack and damage rolls, or grapple attempts), and also to a number of other ship systems: crew AC, double rowing rounds, balance checks, siege weapon rolls, and so on. Quick Training means that any new crew members added to a leveled crew are quickly brought up into the brotherhood. Within a week on board the ship, new crew match the same level as their fellow sailors. The base speed increases do not stack, they overlap. Therefore, a level 4 crew moves +10 ft, not +15. This base speed increase applies to all methods of movement, sail, oar, or mechanical, and it is included before any other relevant modifiers; in essence, an experienced crew can get more out of a ship. When they have enough experience with siege weaponry, a crew becomes familiar with using them swiftly. A crew who has earned the Quick Reload may reload siege weapons with fewer rounds between shots. They may reduced the required full-round reload actions by a number equal to their crew level (up to 5 rounds less however, one full round is required to reload any siege weapon). In essence, they can cut corners to get results. However, doing so introduces the chance of catastrophic failure. Each round they reduce the reload by adds a 15% chance of jamming or otherwise damaging the siege weapon. Therefore, if they reduce it by one round, they roll a d%. If the result is less than 15, the siege weapon is jammed or damaged, and cannot be used again until fixed. If they reduce it by three rounds, they must roll a result lower than 45, and so on. Note: this is a roll that does not receive the Crew Level general modifier. When jammed or damaged in this manner, it requires 2 minutes to repair or clean it sufficiently for use again. Also note: they cannot reduce the time required to aim or fire a siege weapon. Frightful boarding at level 5 is a simple but powerful bonus. Whenever the ship is engaged in a boarding action, either as attacker or defender, frightful boarding means that the crew number is doubled for the rolls. They have become an almost legendary crew, and are thus more capable at overwhelming other ships.

Siege Weapons Item Catapult, medium Catapult, small Ballista Cannon, large Cannon, medium Cannon, small Firespout Ram

Cost 800 gp 550 gp 500 gp

Damage 6d6 4d6 3d8

Critical 19-20

Range 250 ft (100 ft min) 150 ft (50 ft min) 120 ft 200 150 100 30

Crew 4 2 1 8 4 2 5

Type Indirect Indirect Direct Direct Direct Direct Direct

Mount Medium Small Small Large Medium Small Small

8,000 gp 3d10+25 4,500 gp 2d10+20 2,000 gp 1d10+15 4,000 gp See text 5d6 fire

Ballista: as listed in the DMG pg 99, ballista is a Huge heavy crossbow fixed in place. The ballista is a directfire weapon; due to its size a Medium creature takes a 4 penalty on attack rolls when firing a ballista, and a Small creature takes a 6 penalty. The ballista takes up a space 5 feet across and weighs 400 pounds. Reload: It takes a typical crew two full rounds to load or reload a ballista, a full round to aim and a full round to fire it. Normal rate of fire is one shot per 4 rounds. Catapult, medium: A heavy catapult is a massive engine capable of throwing rocks or heavy objects with great force. Because the catapult throws its payload in a high arc, it can hit squares out of its line of sight. To fire a medium catapult, the crew chief makes a special check against the target ship's Touch AC, using only his base attack bonus, Intelligence modifier, range increment penalty, and the appropriate modifiers from the Table below. If the check succeeds, the catapult stone hist the square the catapult was aimed at, dealing the indicated damage to any object or character in the square. Characters who succeed on a DC 15 Reflex save take half damage. Once a catapult stone hits a square, subsequent shots hit the same square unless the catapult is reaimed or moved, or the target moves. Because the catapult throws its stone in a high arc, it cannot strike a target within 100 feetthe range is simply too close. The medium catapult takes up a space 15 feet across and weights 1,800 pounds. Reload: It takes a typical crew three full rounds to reload the medium catapult, and two to aim. One to fire. Normal rate of fire is one shot per six rounds. Catapult, small: This is the light catapult described in the Dungeon Masters Guide. A catapult is an indirectfire weapon that uses a tension device to throw a heavy stone hundreds of feet. It functions the same as the medium catapult above. Because the catapult throws its stone in a high arc, it cannot strike a target within 100 feetthe range is simply too close. The catapult takes up a space 10 feet across and weighs 1,000 pounds. Reload: It takes a typical crew two full rounds to reload the small catapult, and one to aim. One to fire. Normal rate of fire is one shot per four rounds. Indirect-fire Modifiers CONDITION Wind changes directions between shots Attacking ship is moving Defending ship is moving

MODIFIER -5 -1 per 10ft of speed -1 per 10 ft of speed

Cannon, large: The large cannon is a long, thin metal barrel designed to fire round stone cannonballs with a modest charge of powder. It is a direct-fire weapon; due to its size, a Medium creature takes a -8 penalty on attack rolls when firing a large cannon, and a small creature takes a -10 penalty. It takes up a 10x5 foot space and weighs 2,000 pounds. Reload: It takes a typical crew eight full rounds to clean and reload a large cannon. Then one round to aim, and one more to fire. Normal rate of fire is one shot per ten rounds (1 minute). Cannon, medium: The medium cannon is a long, thin metal barrel designed to fire round stone cannonballs with a modest charge of powder. It is a direct-fire weapon; due to its size, a Medium creature takes a -6 penalty on attack rolls when firing a large cannon, and a small creature takes a -8 penalty. It takes up a 10x5 foot space and weighs 1,000 pounds.

Reload: It takes a typical crew five full rounds to clean and reload a medium cannon. Then one round to aim, and one more to fire. Normal rate of fire is one shot per seven rounds. Cannon, small: The small cannon is a long, thin metal barrel designed to fire round stone cannonballs with small charges of powder. It is a direct-fire weapon; due to its size, a Medium creature takes a -4 penalty on attack rolls when firing a large cannon, and a small creature takes a -6 penalty. It takes up a 5x5 foot space and weighs 500 pounds. Reload: It takes a typical crew three full rounds to clean and reload a large cannon. Then one round to aim, and one more to fire. Normal rate of fire is one shot per five rounds. Firespout: The firespout is a device that spews a great gout of alchemists fire on a nearby enemy ship. It consists of a long copper tube mounted in a turret, with a large bellows and a reservoir for its highly flammable fuel. When you fire the firespout, you create a 30-foot-long line of alchemists fire in a line towards your target. To use a firespout, you must bring your ship within 30 feet of the enemy. If you succeed on the attack roll, you strike the enemy ship with your alchemists fire; on a failure, you miss. The alchemists fire deals 5d6 points of fire damage in a 30-foot line; DC 15 Reflex save for half. On the round following, all targets within the radius take 3d6 points of fire damage; DC 15 Reflex save negates. A ship (or similar wooden structure) struck by a firespout might catch on fire. Creatures who fail their Reflex saves against a firespout catch fire; see Catching on Fire on page 303 of the Dungeon Masters Guide. A firespout takes up a space 10 feet across and weighs 1,500 pounds. A firespout is fueled by a special metal canister which costs 700 gp; one canister allows a single firespout to fire twice before reloading. Reload: Each shot from a firespout is a full round action; afterwords, it takes a typical crew eight full rounds to swap canisters. Ram: A ram is a long metal sheathe fitted over the stern of a ship to protect it from damage when the ship collides with a target in a ramming action. It does not provide a damage bonus, but it does halve the damage normally taken from the action. Otherwise, it provides no benefits. Cost is determined by the size of the ship the ram is designed for. A small ship ram costs 775 gp, a medium ship ram costs 1500 gp, and a large ship ram costs 3750 gp.