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Seacart

The Seacart is a type of Orcish seafaring vessel, uncommon and yet fearsome. It most closely resembles ancient longships left over from the Giant Kingdom.  

Not Quite a Boat

The Seacart is, from a distance, nearly indistinguishable from a boat. It has a sail, oars, and a wooden hull. However, upon closer inspection, one can see how it is far from a traditional ship.   Rather than being made of planks, Orcs take large, dead trees from the Udaian forests and carve them out, welding them together into large trunks that can fit large amounts of Orcs. The branches of these trees, large and sturdy as they are, become oars, and smaller trunks are hung up as masts for sails to be hung.   The sails are cloths, just as with other ships, however they are often made from the rags worn by those that perished at the hands of the Orcish clan who created the Seacart.  
Amukk by Jarhed

History

Long before the current humanoid species walked Totania, the world was ruled by Gods and Giants. To travel around, Giants had large longships which could seat very few Giants, and was powered by their rowing. It was said even the slightest row could cause a tsunami on every nearby coast.   Selene's Fury tore down the Giant Kingdom, and most Giants died out or fled into hiding. Their longships were mostly destroyed or abandoned in the flood. All that remained when Orcs arrived to discover them were decayed ruins, signs to fear the sea.   Most Orcs never went near the ocean. They were afraid of what the sea could do to them, and so they remained on land, stuck on the continent of Udai. The world thanked the Gods for this, as those in Elone and beyond feared the might of the Orcs.   Some Orcs dared to defy this fear, breaking out and making attempts at boats. The Orcs, who knew little of the sea, had no concept of a ship, and so not only did they not have the word for it, but they modeled it off of the Giant longships, the only boat they'd have been familiar with, as many were off the coast of Udai. If they could survive, even as ruins, so far into the future, they must have done something right.   Since they did not have a word for boat, but did know carts from the trader caravans they'd pillage from the Korvians and Mammen, they believed these vehicles to be carts for the seas, thus the name "seacart."   These seafaring Orcish adventures never worked well, until Amukk united the clans of Orcs into the Grand Clan, where all tribes were under his banner. He, however, did not wish to only unite the Orcs, but the entire world under his United Holy Front, to help him become a God.  
Gok the Archmage by Jarhed
Amukk decided to place Orcish culture at the center of his army, as he was an Orc, and thus he had Seacarts mass produced to transport his army. He had to do a lot of convincing to bring his army out to sea, but eventually he was able to do it, using them to convince others to support him and, eventually, to find the way to Heaven and kill the Nameless God.   Before they gained mass support, the Orcs on their ships lashed out, acting against Amukk and raiding coastal settlements. As news spread of the Orcs on seacarts, the world gathered all of its might to try and stop them, and great changes were made to diplomatic relations all over the world as people prepared for an Orcish onslaught.   Instead, Amukk and his allies stopped their Orcish army and used the fear to instead garner support for their cause. They proved themselves heros, and showed the might of the Orcs, Amukk, and seacarts.   Much of this was thanks to the counsel of the famed mage and advisor Gok the Archmage, who said Seacarts were the only way and said it was necessary to help the Orcs overcome their fear of the sea.   However, when Amukk ascended and Gok disappeared, there were no more outspoken advocates for the seacarts anymore, and the survivors returned knowing that crossing the sea got many of them killed. Due to this, seacarts were used less and less until finally they were phased out. But for a small portion of time, they caused fear around the world, shaking the foundations of Totania as people feared Orcs invading them from land and sea alike.


Cover image: by jplenio

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