Colossus I Offshore Production Platform
Only thing more unsettling than the open waters of that damn lake is that infernal blinking light on the rig! Just out there in the middle of the lake, drinking up the lifeblood of the land... If that ain't reason enough for the gods to stay silent, then I don't know what is.Colossus I is a large structure deployed by Rylan and leased to Ghal Pelor near the center of Lake Tairos. Its purpose is to drill into the lake bed using advanced Rylander Steamtech and siphon up oil for Ghal Pelor's energy needs. Colossus I has been in operation for a little over two years now, but it took Ghal Pelor's government almost four years to secure the funding, negotiate the leasing agreement, aid in constructing the platform, and build out a small settlement on nearby Turtle Rock Island. Once all the pieces were in place, the Raos Mining Corporation (RMC) of Rylan began staffing the facility alongside workers from Ghal Pelor. RMC, one of the governing corporations of Rylan, began drilling into the lakebed and extracting oil for use by Ghal Pelor. Advocates from other companies in Rylan quickly followed in the wake of the platform's success, offering Steamtech replacements for many of the city's vital infrastructure pieces that currently require manacite. Adoption is slow in the best of cases and deeply opposed in others, but some of the city's systems are changing over, such as the water pumps that help keep the city from flooding. The platform is fixed atop a hollow-hulled spar that reaches almost the bottom of the lake bed and is affixed with durable cables. Heavy ballasts are fixed at the bottom of the hull to help balance the structure against the waves and the powerful vortex motion created by the extraction process. The drilling equipment and extraction systems are all housed within the hollow hull of the spar. The extracted oil is then pumped into containers and loaded onto smaller ships, which carry the raw crude to Turtle Rock Island for processing and refinement by the facilities there. Like many of Rylan's most advanced steamtech creations, Colossus I operates mainly off automation. Automation in the form of systems that take instruction from sets of punch-card like objects that dictate the processes to be carried out. A central system monitors and reports on all the other linked systems. This allows the platform to operate with a much smaller crew than expected, in this case, only about twenty or so - maintenance workers, officers, laborers, and drilling specialists. There is almost always a Raos Mining Corp representative present as well; their office is located on Turtle Rock Island. Additionally, they will have a separate office on the platform for monitoring output on-site. This platform is the newest oil platform Rylan and the RMC have deployed, but it is by no means their only one. In fact, the Colossus pattern platform is just the most recent of a series of drilling platforms in operation. Lake Rylan has several in place already, and agents from the RMC are actively courting Kreastos officials in Frial seeking partnerships that would allow similar platforms in Lake Bask. Such advances have been rebuked thus far, as Frial, unlike Ghal Pelor, has a much lower overall level of technological advancement, and the need for fuel is much lower. Frial also deeply distrusts Rylan's expansionist attitudes and cold, methodical practices.
Purpose / Function
Siphioning crude from rockbed in Lake Tairos
Architecture
This structure was built in Rylan to their specifications, and as such, it features their preferred architectural style. This means expansive interiors, industrial aesthetics, low light, and a visible reverence for the mechanical wonder of their steamtech.
Defenses
Crews will have some weapons present. River Halflings have always been opposed to Rylan's operations within the waterways of Lake Tairos
Tourism
The platform is certainly a spectle for those traveling the lake. Its beacon light can be seen from miles away as well. Tourism to the site or to Turtle Rock is largely off limits but the machine certainly earns its fair share of gawking stares by passers-by
Founding Date
Two Years Ago
Type
Mine
Parent Location
Contested By
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