[Discusion] The Medonian Airboat

[Sitar]

I've been thinking about this for a bit, and I think I have decided that I want to implament this into the city. The few people that I have talked to seemed to like the Idea, so now I open it to the general public! So please give me feedback and discuss.

The Medonian Airboat is simply that, a Boat that is meant to sail through the air, that is made in Medonia. The basic design and Idea already exists in the game, as I am told by the Lovely Gossamer. But that design is, well simply put, a Blimp attached to a ship. It is created with the colaboration of skilled shipwrites, and Master Elementalists and take nearly a month and a half to create. While low-tech in the hardware, the airship is relativly intracate to make.

So, my take on this on how it is created is a standard light weight boat, take a HUGE ballon, fill it with hot air, which is heated and cooled via an Elementalist. The heating and cooling is used to control virtical movement (up and down), and the sails are moved to the hulls of the ship, which gives it propulsion via the wind. A rutter is of cource installed larger then normal, built out of the same sail like matterial to help catch wind more effectively and not aid too much weight.

In place of actual Elementalists, stones or gems could be enchanted with a spell, project element, so that one could produce heat, and the other create cold air. This would eliminate the need for an Elementalist on each and every ship.

So, what do you think? This is obviously a very basic idea at this point.

[Eyvind Redbeard]

I think the best advisers you could find to help you with this project are Erenthril and the missing Z'kron since they created a super airship with more less the mechanisms you mentioned.

Another thing you could do is increase the connections with Taralon in order to create a non-arcanic airship by using steam engines and other machines to propel the airship. I'd be very interested in this last part since I think I can represent the faction of the players that don't intend on depending of arcana forever. It would also be a step forward to the world of Telath, allowing for a new point of view and expansion of sciences not yet explored IC.

[Sitar]

I like were your going with this Red. I hadent thought of that. And I think its funny that you mention that, as last night I watched the anime Steamboy by the same person as Akira, it's a decent movie, a bit slow, but good story. if your into that sort of thing.

[Eyvind Redbeard]

Well, I am not much into anime but I enjoy watching from time to time.

If you need help to develop the mechanisms that help the boat to fly just say cus I have to admite that aside of a regular longboat I'd like to give Eyv an airboat :P

[Sitar]

Sure, I'd love your input.

The issue i see with making these run on Steam power is that we havent really developed that method too strongly. Let alone enough to give flight to a boat . But hey, we're allowed to take creative liberties, especialy as a GM, lol.

[Eyvind Redbeard]

I just came up with an idea for the fuel for the steam engine. Something entirely natural and yet entirely fantastic. I didn't come up with a name to it yet but it could be something like "Heatstone" or "Burningstone". It would consist in a kind of stone found in volcanic regions that either had the property to produce heat or, to retain great amount of it during a long period of time. This would save space in the airboat, reducing its size as there would be no need to carry coal or wood or any other kind of fuel.

An airboat would probably need only one of these to be able to fly. The stone would be placed in special compartment under the ballon and then placed (with the use of a special claw) inside a water tank. It would heat the water to a point that it would evaporate and create steam that would put the helix of the propeller moving. Being under the ballon it would cause the air inside it to get warmer and warmer and thus making it lighter than the surrounding air.

You can also have two Heatstones in a more advanced airboat, allowing a separate control of height and speed.

All this mechanisms are quite easy to make I think that even a L1 gadgeteer would easily plan them. The only difference thing big here, is the size of the airboat and the ballon itself, forcing the water tank and the propeller to be bigger. But size isn't the same as difficulty so, these are the basics

[Sitar]

I like the idea. One of the issues with a steam engine is it's weight, and it's consumption of fuel, both for burning, and for water. Most engines loose the steam when it cools, venting it out into the surrounding air. However, i think that the steam would actually vent into the balloon, giving it it's lift. When the steam cools down and condenses in the balloon, it would come down and gather in the bottom of the balloon that would be able to filter back into the boiler, this makes it a circular retention process which would help in efficiency. And, to turn the propeller the raising steam would turn the turbine of the engine, which after a few gearing changes can be made to spin much faster.


I just had a thought, fever steel, the stuff they use to make golems come to life, is kind of radioactive, it could be assumed that it produces heat. I'll do some looking into on this. The issue I have with making up a stone like that, is that we are talking about some serious heat retention. Brightenings, on the extreme end, and so lets try to go with something already in the game.

If anyone knows anything about golem crafting and the fever steel they use, drop us some facts!

[Sitar]

that was faster then I expected;

Feversteel:
This rare metal is normally found deep in mines, usually in combination with iron ore, but there are records of it being found elsewhere in minor quantities. Miners will generally prefer not to have it in their mines if they can and will often toss it into disused shafts if they are unaware of its true worth. Those who know the metal’s worth will often go so far as to ask ten times the price of steel for it.

One of the reasons why Feversteel is so disliked by miners is the side effects that can come from proximity from it. Prolonged exposure to the orange metal can bring about such side effects as making someone severely ill, making their hair, fur or scales fall out and give them a sense of vertigo. Handling the material is also not recommended as it is hot enough to burn someone when touching it. Heavy leather gloves are recommended when handling it.

Most Crafters will want to store their Feversteel in vaults or strongboxes, if nothing else then due to its value. Some believe that such precautions limit the side effects of Feversteel, others say that this is nonsense and that exposure to Feversteel is merely an occupational hazard.

The metal has a low melting point, which makes it easy to fashion into the appropriate sizes and for Golem hearts. Feversteel weighs approximately twice of what the same amount of lead would weigh.

that is from here: http://www.playbypost.com/forums/trades...-crafting.html

So I would say that it definitly is hot enough for this ^.^

[Erenthril Mael'tharias]

This design hasn't been announced publically in the Herald yet.

I'd ask that you please give Milo some time to RP drafting up the Herald article before you do this, please, out of respect to the 4-5 months IRL both of us have been waiting between Directorate approval, Z'kron's dissapearance, and Alexis to post.

EDIT: I'll PM him immediately to see if I can't speed it up for you.

[Sitar]

Yep, no worries man, you'll get yours afloat first. You had the idea in the works before I did, so it's only right!

[Alexis Sapientia]

Mea culpa! I'll get right on it, straightaway!

I've always been a fan of Montgolfier stuff, but Alexis is such a wuss when it comes to flying. I just found out he's got airsickness!

[Eyvind Redbeard]

I guess we could make one thing so both types of airship don't enter in direct competition. Let's say, mechanized airships have a maximum size limit forcing people who want larger airships to follow the arcanic way.

It's only an idea but I think it would balance the existance of both in the future.

I've always been a fan of Montgolfier stuff, but Alexis is such a wuss when it comes to flying. I just found out he's got airsickness!

As long as he doesn't have seasickness :P cus that would be hilarious to say the least hehe

[Sitar]

Actually, We are going to use the existence of the arcanic boats to drive the creation of the mechanic boats. However, we could perhaps make personal one person ships as well as the arcanic ones, to get a bit of an edge on it

I'm starting to work on a write up for the airboat, and my origonal intention that this would be kind of released to the world via Medonia and my GMing powers. lol However, if you want as PC's want to make this happen via Role Playing it, I have no problem with that. I'd just appreciate it if it happens in Medonia

[Sitar]

http://www.playbypost.com/forums/herald...-take-air.html

[Erenthril Mael'tharias]

lmao...what happened to PCs doing it?