Galley

Galleys, in general, are lightly-built, long, narrow rowing vessels, and are another type of ship that has seen considerable use throughout history. However, sails are often still carried to take advantage of favourable winds when they arise. The general doctrine of galley-based combat is that of ramming and boarding, with the large number of rowers also serving as a pool of melee fighters to draw upon in close combat. As such, galleys are built for straight-line speed, to give the ram commonly mounted on the bow sufficient power to either punch through an enemy’s hull or shear off his banks of oars. In light winds or a calm, they have a great advantage in speed versus sailing ships, and their shallow draft also allows them to operate well in riverine theatres. However, all of these features which make an excellent fair-weather craft also serve to render her vulnerable in any sort of swell. The long, slender hull, low freeboard and shallow draft ensure a galley will be tossed about and ship water rapidly in any sort of swell, and it is this fact which lead to the development of more sophisticated types of sturdier sailing ship.
The most infamous users of the Galley are the Sinopans, whose vast hordes of undead are utilized as easily-replaceable, untiring rowers and boarders. This is often complemented by the magic of the Aristomancers whenever available. The strategy used by these vessels is simple; charge en masse, ram an enemy vessel, then disgorge masses of undead onto his decks. While this strategy has diminished in effectiveness against newer, heavier-built sailing ships with high sides to discourage boarding, Sinopan galleys rarely attack alone, and the single-minded determination of the undead ensures they will not stop their attempts until their ship is put out of action or they themselves are slain. Galleys are used by many other nations as well for coastal defence and patrol, riverine combat, and commerce raiders. In the distant pre-Imperial era, the shipwrights of Aparnovos experimented with larger, more fortified seagoing galleys, attempting to alleviate the type’s original shortcomings with higher sides and fortified upperworks with some success. With the development of new sailing designs such as the Caravel and Carrack however, these fell out of fashion and galleys were relegated back to their traditional niche.

Cargo & Passenger Capacity

50-250 tonnes