02 - Iron Kingdoms W.. - Captain Spud Is Amazing

106 Iron Kingdoms
108.1.141.197
ship, but they still take great pride in tradition, and
old fables of the Tordoran fleets and the Dirgenmast
Captains are still plentiful. Thus, the classic Immorese
longship is the superbly-decorated Tordoran galley,
also called the galleass.
the great dirgenmast Captains of olde
in the days of old tordor, from WhiCh the Country of ord is
derived, When a landgrave of the Coast—Who Was Considered
a prinCe or Chieftain—passed aWay, a great festival Was
held in his honor. this Culminated With funeral rites that
inCluded a lighted proCession to the sea an hour prior to the
setting of the sun. to the tordorans the sun Was a spiritual
symbol, and When it sank into the Western sea, they believed
it Was taking its leave of this World to the afterWorld. this
Was the landgrave’s ultimate destination. his body Was plaCed
on a ship With only his shield-bearer, a man of great honor
With Whom the landgrave Was inseparable in life, and the
tWo men—one dead and one alive—set sail into the West.
the shield-bearer Captained the vessel, and as it headed into
the blaCk—as meredius Was knoWn then—he Would sound a
mighty horn as a fareWell to the living and to announCe his
Coming to doleth. this Was the final Call of the landgrave
and his dirgenmast Captain.
as Centuries passed this Custom Was eventually abandoned,
but the deeds and exploits of the landgraves and their
dirgenmast Captains lived on in sagas passed doWn the
generations. When the tordoran armada emerged, the
Captains of the longships took on the mantle of “dirgenmast”
as an honorifiC title. they too plaCed mighty horns upon
their ships and sounded these Whenever they approaChed or
departed a friendly harbor. at the height of the armada a
thousand dirgenmast Captains sailed the seas, perhaps even
more, and When the orgoth invaded the kingdoms, the
dirgenmast fought them to the very last man.
Records prove that the Tordorans distinguished
clearly between galleys and the rounder sailing ships
such as barks and brigs, using the former for war and
the latter for cargo. The galley and its sailors have a
storied history, having fought valiantly against the
Orgoth but ultimately ending in the tragic destruction
of the Tordoran Armada. Such a dependable, wide
faring vessel did not fall into antiquity, however, for
the folk of Ord have rebuilt their navy and stocked it
with galleys aplenty.
Cygnar employed several dozen of these ships
just prior to the invention of the steam engine but
never to the extent of their Ordic cousins. In fact the
Protectorate of Menoth, having very little in the way
of naval power and eager to increase its influence on
the seas, has commandeered many of these Cygnaran
ships. They have recently outfitted them for combat
and displayed proudly the menofix on their sails and
prows, signifying their allegiance to the one true god.
It is not difficult to guess their intent.
Cryx also utilizes the galley extensively, though not
in the way that the mainlanders do. Cryxian galleys are
made entirely of blighted timber. The wood is dusky
gray and as hard as bronze, making these dark ships
incredibly durable yet light and swift. Adorned with
as many weapons as the builders can cram onto them,
with archaic ballistae and catapults just as common as
cannons and shot, the vessels are packed with undead
troops waiting to disgorge on unsuspecting shores.
When they reach those shores, long mechanical
ramps unfold from the side, allowing thralls, soldiers,
and necrotech war gear to swarm the beaches.
Cryxian soldiers are trained to deploy in this manner,
striking the mainland and quickly establishing
beachhead fortifications or temporary bases in little
to no time at all.
Terrors of the sea as well as the land, Cryxian
blackships are some of the swiftest ships on Meredius,
and sailors quail when the dark sails are spotted on the
horizon. Their tattered black sails seem to catch more
wind than the intact canvas of merchantmen, and
even when other ships hit a lull, the blackships pursuit
never flags. Whatever foul magics fill the ripped and
torn canvas to propel these galleys of death forward,
they are more than a match for anything the best
Tordoran ship’s mage has to offer.
the WidoWer
a name knoWn and dreaded by every tordoran sailor, the
WidoWer is only spoken in Whispers, for it is said that its dark
Captain Can hear ships name spoken aloud. none Would be
foolish enough to summon the attention of the most feared
satyxis pirate ever to have sailed the blaCk. for years noW,
the WidoWer has spread death and destruCtion along the
entire length of the broken Coast, and With every sea fog
that overWhelms the shore and every violent storm that
rages, strong men bar their doors and shutter their WindoWs
hoping against hope that the WidoWer Will not Come seeking
a “safeharbor” for the night.
Unlike the rounder sailing ships, the galley is a
truly long vessel and it can course almost anywhere
due to its shallow draft. It is a popular type of
merchantman as well as an able warship. They are
known for two types of artillery on board: cannons