Lightning Rail

METAGAMING

I stole this from Eberron: Rising From the Last War. Just changed some of the flavor. Also, it's just a magic mag-lev train. Honestly, how many different ways could there possibly be to describe a magic train? I'm not going to be reinventing the wheel here.

The lightning rail is an interprovincial train line operated by the Imperial Conductor's League that connects many of the major cities throughout The Chatia Empire. The rail is powered by a bound air elemental, which propels goods and passengers along a track of conductor stones at high speeds.

Operation

Stations

Lightning rail stations are generally located along the conductor stone track near or within major cities and trade posts along their route. Most lightning rail stations have a standardized appearance, and unload passengers from one side and cargo from the other.

Crew

A Lightning Rail employee with a Class L Imperial Vehicle License generally operates the crew cart, using the helm to control the elemental's speed and choosing the path when the track splits. Other crew on a lightning rail include stewards to oversee passenger needs and secure cargo, overseen by a chief steward.

Passengers

Passengers on the lightning rail can choose between first class, standard, or steerage accommodations. Steerage is the cheapest, but provides the least amenities, while standard provides a bunk for overnight travel, more comfortable seating, and a meal. First class tickets get the best seating, beds, and meals, but are the most expensive tickets.

Components

Conductor Stones

Developed by the Glemvale College of Gnomish Artificers, conductor stones are magical stones that repel each other. When one set of conductor stones is laid down to form a track and another set is embedded underneath a cart or vehicle, the repulsion between the stones causes the cart or vehicle to float, allowing for frictionless movement.

Carts

Most lightning rails have about 10 carts, the maximum an elemental can propel without becoming strained. The typical configuration is two crew carts at the front and back of the train, four passenger carts, two lounge carts, and two cargo carts.

Crew Cart

The lightning rail's propulsion is provided by an elemental bound to a vehicle known as a crew cart. The elemental propels the crew cart and other carts in a train behind the crew cart along the conductor stones, usually at around 50 mph. When underway, the elemental causes lightning to encircle the crew cart as a side effect of the propulsion, and the lightning also arcs between the conductor stones.

Discovery

The lightning rail originated in the 1500s AK, when a master artificer in Glemvale challenged his students to construct a means of safe, rapid transit across the province. A young gnome by the name of Meevyt Epneevi worked with a pair of twin air genasi elemental binders, Stratos and Vox, from the neighboring druid college to bind elementals to carts, which could then be used to propel passengers and cargo along a line of Conductor Stones. These Conductor Stones were designed and manufactured (at first in small numbers, but later in vast quantities once the process could be mechanized) by a dragonborn whose name has been lost to history. The name "lightning rail" comes from the line of sparks created by the train's passage along the stones.The first lightning rail was constructed in 1621 AK, connecting the cities of Glemvale and Glassforge. A second line was run from Glassforge to Flamecrest in 1773 AK. Further lines were proposed, but the expense and vulnerability of the lightning rail construction process proved prohibitive. The majority of lightning rail lines in the Imperium were built between 890 and 970 IA, under a public works program by Emperors Trisnall and Iveani Vakian. The lightning rail now connects most major cities in the Imperium, even crossing the oceans between continents in a few places!