Stormboat

The stormboat was for many years the vehicle of choice for the Stormborn of the north coast of Marivar. Typically carrying a crew of 30 to 60 they could descend almost without warning at any point of the coast or rivers more than chest deep. One could spell doom for a farmstead or hamlet and flotillas such as those led by Njoragh Stormbringer would trouble even the ports and cities of the Marivan Empire. Oar power and shallow draft made them easy to manage in confined coastal and river situations and the boat's design allowed it to be reversed simply by the oarsmen turning round and the helmsman moving the steering oar to the other end - moving the sail took longer but was seldom necessary to get out of trouble.
Many were multi-purpose, used for fishing, whaling and trading as well as for waging war. The more war orientated examples tended to be longer and narrower for a given displacement in order to maximise the number of oars and the vessels speed whilst the more trade orientated were broader in the beam and more reliant on sails for propulsion, though still able to make way under the oars of their crews.
The great expense of construction meant that even the most trade orientated boats could find themselves put to warlike use, and when raiding for booty a wise leader would use a mixed flotilla as hostages and plunder were more easily managed on the broader and less congested trade and whaling boats.

Propulsion

The storm boat was powered by a hybrid system of sail and oars. Some say that Njoragh Stormbringer’s boat was on occasion pulled by the whale Hurroth, but the doers of great deeds attract strange and unsupportable tales which should always be looked on with caution.

Weapons & Armament

The primary armament was the crew - though armed primarily for land fighting with sword and spear they could be formidable when close engaged though often their best defence to missile fire was their maneuvrability and speed.

Armor and defense

Stormboats seldom fought in ship to ship combat and so the vessel itself was not armoured, though the crew’s shields could be used as extra protection for the crew or vulnerable areas of the hull. If speed and manoeuvrability looked unlikely to succeed then the Sorrmborn took the view that attach was the best form of defence and would seek to board their enemies and engage in hand to hand fighting. It would be a courageous raider who would board a fully manned stormboat to fight its crew.

Communication Tools & Systems

Stormboats operating together would communicate by voice at oarslength and flag signals over longer distances.

Construction

The Stormboat was made with a light weight frame and two layers of planking set at 90 degrees to each other and 45 degrees to the level. The two layers were pegged together and the seams between the planks caulked with Dromhair to create a near perfect seal in a hull that was strong and yet had enough flex that it could survive a grounding better than many boats. The single mast was stepped in the centre of the vessel and mounted directly onto the keel, with stays fore, aft and to the beam to support it. The rowers' benches sit on the frame running across the width of the boat in the case of the narrower war boats or with a clear passageway between them in the case of the trade built vessels. In either case, a floor is laid across the bottom of the hull to secure a ballast of beach shingle (which may be replaced with dense cargo such as metal ingots to increase the cargo capacity).
Prow and stern rise sharply and typically are carved into a representation of a whale's head and tail respectively.

Nickname

Wave-eaters (to the Stormborn), Sackers (to the Empire)

Speed

Solely under oar power a war orientated storm boat could cover 24 leagues in a day and faster speeds for shorter periods. With the right wind conditions this could be doubled. More trade orientated vessels, or those not fully crewed were slower.

Complement / Crew

Typically between 30 and 60 though examples are known that were crewed by as many as 100. Note that for war boats the crew doubled as the fighting force; typically a quarter of them would be left to guard the boat at its landing.

Cargo & Passenger Capacity

With a full fighting crew there was little room for passengers or cargo, once food, water and personal gear were accounted for. Quarter crewed a 30 man boat could carry 10 tons of cargo.

The Lay of the Stormboats

Lo we have heard | of the tales of the Stormborn
Valliant Warriors | searching out glory
Whale headed ships | that eat the waves
Many their exploits | that make a fine story.

Here let us sing of | the best of the Stormboats
Retell to new ears of | Wave Rider and Blaze
Pride of their People | their gleaming gilding
Glinting and burning | in the sun's bright gaze.

Wave rider the rarest | of ships in high seas
By oar and sail | smoothing the way
That ship of the Lady | Stalwart of the Stormborn
Carried her carefully | for many a day

etc.

Note: The Bold syllables are stressed and the | marks a brief pause.