Running the Ship

Pilots
A ship requires two things to keep it moving—a pilot and a means of propulsion. A pilot is a creature with an Intelligence score of 3 or higher who is physically able to use the ship’s control device. The pilot uses the control device and either her Vehicle tool or her Wisdom to control the ship. Without a pilot, a ship will not move or will continue moving in an uncontrolled manner, depending on the ship’s state when it becomes pilotless.

Crews
Most ships require a crew. A ship without a full crew complement, but with at least half its crew, has disadvantage on all pilot checks. A ship needs at least half its crew complement in order to be piloted at all. If more than half of a ship’s crew is killed, dazed, stunned, or rendered unconscious, the ship can only take the “uncontrolled” action. Crew members can take no action while the ship is in motion except to aid in that ship’s movement. Any crew required to operate siege engines are in addition to those crew needed to operate the ship.

In Addition, Crew member are sometimes required for naval officers to perform officer actions from putting out fires, and repairing the ship. If the ship is below the required crew complement these actions are done at a disadvantage and if below that then they can be done at all.

For Crew members in detail see Ship Crew

Facing and Movement
Ships do not move like creatures, even when they use creatures for propulsion. They tend to move in the direction of their forward facing, and do so quickly.

Facing: Unlike creatures, ships have a forward facing. Facing represents the effect of inertia on vehicles. Ships move best when moving in the direction of their forward facing, and it takes time and skill to move them in other directions. When piloted correctly, ships can move straight ahead, diagonally, or a mix of both within the same movement. Skilled pilots can make a ship zigzag in a forward direction with ease.

Movement: Ships have a maximum speed and an acceleration listing. The maximum speed is the fastest rate the ship can travel per round (though a wind propelled ship sailing in the direction of the wind can double this speed). A ship cannot usually start at its maximum speed. Each round, the pilot, and other officers can attempt to accelerate the ship or decelerate it by a rate equal to its acceleration (see the Movement section in Ships in Combat under Officer Actions). The rate at which a ship is currently moving is called its current speed.

Navigation
Naviagting along a coast is not so difficult. Navigating the open waters is another larger challenge. Having someone with proficiency with Navigator’s Tools allows a proper heading and and naviagation through open waters.

Navigating with a navigator: Pick a Destination and you will arrive safely barring special circumstances.

Navigating without a navigator: Pick a destination and the dm will determine how far off course you drift accorrding to a series of weather checks, 1 for every 3 hexes.

Waterborne Travel: Travel over long distances across seas or oceans uses waterborne movement, measured in miles per hour or day or knots. For muscle-propelled ships, a day represents 10 hours of rowing. For a wind propelled sailing ship, it represents 24 hours of operation at varying work levels.

Pilot Checks
To control a ship in combat, a pilot must make a Water Vehicle tool check to determine the maneuverability and speed of the ship that round. The ship’s propulsion determines what skill is used for the check. If a ship is using two means of propulsion at the same time, such as wind and muscle, the pilot chooses which skill to use, and takes a –3 penalty on all pilot checks. A pilot can always make a Wisdom check in place of a check. Outside of combat, the base DC for all checks is DC 5. In combat, the base DC for all checks is DC 10.

Help: Special Abilities allow one to use the help action on pilot checks such as captains. This represents an extra pair of eyes observing the enemy, giving orders to the crew, or simply helpful advice. A character that does not have an ability to use the help action may make a suggestion on how they are helping to give the bonus up to DM discretion. Only one character can use the help action to help a pilot on a single check.

Controlling: a Ship Outside of Combat: Pilot checks to control ships outside of combat are not normally needed. Almost every character can do it with relative with a DC of 5; the DCs are given only to adjudicate special situations that may come up in your game.

Controlling a Ship without the Proper Skill: If a pilot lacks the proper skill to control a ship, the pilot can always make a Wisdom ability check instead of the appropriate pilot check. If the character has the corresponding naval officer rank then the check can be done as if they had the proper skill proficiency as the rank implies the learning on the skill on the job.

Broken Control Device: When a control device gains the broken condition, all pilot checks are at disadvantage.

In general though:

Pilot Check: d20 + ability modifier + proficiency bonus (if proficient with the tool/errr boat)

Control Devices
Every vehicle has a control device for steering. A control device is typically an object with object immunities and resistances and with its own statistics. The following are some of the typical control devices for ships, plus their usual Armor Class, hit points, and hardness. When a control device is destroyed, a ship cannot be piloted until the control device is repaired.

The following are some of the various means of propulsion for ships, plus their base Armor Class, hit points, and damage thresholds. To calculate the actual AC of a ship’s propulsion, add the current pilot’s vehicle tool modifier (or Wisdom modifier, if she is using that ability to drive the ship) to the base AC. When a means of propulsion gains the broken condition, the ship’s maximum speed is halved, and the ship can no longer gain the upper hand (see Officer abilities) until the propulsion is repaired or replaced. If the ship is in motion, and is traveling faster than its new maximum speed, it automatically decelerates to its new maximum speed.

Targeting a control Device: Targeting the control device of a ship is like targeting the ship but the base ac and damage thresholds are different. Targeting a control device on the other side of the surfaces of the water (like a Tiller) is done at disadvantage.

Oars:Oars are often weaker than the vessels they propel, and are difficult to replace. Destroying a ship’s oars is a good way to capture a vessel. Oars gain the broken condition if at least half the oars on a ship are destroyed restricting the ship to half the muscle speed. If all of a ship’s oars are destroyed, the ship can no longer use muscle propulsion and must rely on current and/or wind propulsion only.

Tiller:The Tiller controls the the vessels through the waves. Oar driven ships are immune to this. Targeting the Tiller is difficult and only may be done if the attacker is behind the ship. Destroying the reduces the speed of vessel by half as they have top improvise with their other means of propulsion.

Sails and Rigging: Sails (including the rigging that controls them) are often weaker than the vessels they propel, though they are relatively easy to repair. Destroying a ship’s sails is a good way to capture a vessel. Sails are vulnerable to acid and fire damage. Sails gain the broken condition if at least half the squares of sails on a ship are destroyed. If all of a ship’s sails are destroyed, the ship can no longer use wind propulsion and must rely on current or muscle propulsion only. Sails and rigging only take half damage unless the appropriate ammunition is used.

* Oars gain the broken condition if at least half the oars on a ship are destroyed.

(Z Note): Increase Tiller Stats?

In General Though

AC=  Base Control device AC + proficiency bonus/(or WIS if not proficient)

Propulsion
Every vehicle has a means of propulsion. Boats and ships are propelled by currents, muscle, wind, or all three forces. The method of propulsion typically affects the speed and maneuverability of a ship, but more importantly, determines the required skill needed to control the ship. Controlling a ship takes common sense, awareness, intuition, and often some amount of skill in the ship’s means of propulsion. In the case of wind or current propulsion, it is about using the current and tools like sails, oars, or a rudder to move the ship. In the case of muscle propulsion, it is about guiding creatures to move the ship. The following are the general methods of ship propulsion, along with the skills typically needed to pilot ships propelled by the specified means.

Current: All boats and ships can use water currents for propulsion, but ships that only rely on currents for propulsion are somewhat limited. These vehicles can only move in the direction and at the speed of a current unless they also employ some other means of propulsion or manipulation, and thus often have an additional form of propulsion, such as muscle in the case of a rowboat, or wind in the case of a sailing ship. A current-propelled ship requires a pilot check. A current-propelled ship’s maximum speed depends on the speed of the current (often as high as 120 feet). The acceleration of a current-propelled ship is 30 feet if it is adjecent to the shore line though there is flexibility here as deemed by the situation.

Muscle: Muscle-propelled ships use oars and rowers to push the ship forward. Sailing skills for muscle-propelled ships tend to be Persuasion, Intimidate, or Animal Handling, depending on the intelligence and attitude of the creatures supplying the muscle for the propulsion.

Creatures: For inteligent creatures who use their muscle power, use Persuasion if the creatures providing the propulsion have an attitude of indifferent, friendly, or helpful. If the creatures providing the propulsion are friendly or helpful, Persuasion checks are made with advantage. As part of the crew; if it is an average crew is considered indifferent, though a particularly loyal crew might be considered friendly. Intimidate is used for intelligent creatures with an attitude of unfriendly or hostile, such as captive rowers on a slave galley. Animal Handling is used if the creatures providing the propulsion are not intelligent.

The maximum speed and acceleration of a muscle propelled ship depends on the number of creatures providing the propulsion, but most muscle-propelled ship have a maximum speed of 30 feet and an acceleration of 30 feet. Larger muscle-propelled ships with many rowers have a maximum speed of 60 feet and an acceleration of 30 feet.

Oars: Oars may be required for a muscle-propelled ship to accelerate. require the use of oars. Oars have their own statistics in the control device section..

Wind: Wind-propelled ships use sails to harness the power of the wind for propulsion. A wind-propelled ship requires a pilot check. Small wind-propelled ships can move at a maximum speed of 30 feet. Larger ships that are also muscle propelled often have a maximum speed of 60 feet when using only wind propulsion. Large ships with multiple masts and many sails can have maximum speeds of up to 90 feet. The acceleration of a wind-propelled ship is 30 feet.

All wind-propelled ships can move twice their normal maximum speed when moving in the direction of the wind. A ship using wind propulsion cannot move in the opposite direction from the wind normally.

Variable Wind Bonus: The Orientation the Ship has with the Wind can confer a bonus to the maximum speed offered by the wind. At the beginning of the ships turn, if the ship is orientated with the direction of the wind by running along it the ships maximum speed (not its current speed) is increased by x2 Facing the Wind spills your sails for a bonus of x 0. If a bonus is not neatly around 30ft round down or you game mat equivalent round down.

A ship going into the wind has a min maximum speed of 30ft to prevent accidental TPKs. (Instead of being in Irons you will be “Close Hauling” the sails).

Sails and Rigging: All wind-propelled ships require the use of sails and rigging. To move at full speed, a ship requires 10 5-foot squares of sails per mast per 30 feet of the ship. For example, a 90x5-square ship with three masts requires 90 squares of sails. This a general rule so there are exceptions, for example single mast ships might have bigger sails.

Mixed Means of Propulsion: Some ships use multiple forms of propulsion. Multiple methods of propulsion add flexibility and can work in concert to create faster movement. If a ship has two means of propulsion, such as wind and muscle, it generally adds its two maximum speeds together to determine its maximum speed. Acceleration remains the same. Nothing is added for a third form of propulsion, except for the flexibility of having a backup form of propulsion. A ship with multiple methods of propulsion often requires a large crew to get it going and keep it moving.

Evasion and Pursuit
On the wide, open sea, one ship can spot another from miles away, making it virtually impossible to surprise another ship. If both ships want to engage in combat, the ships close with one another and begin ship-to-ship combat normally. If one ship wants to avoid combat, however, a chase ensues. At the GM’s discretion, a faster ship can always catch a slower ship, but even slow ships can take advantage of favorable winds, currents, or coastal terrain to make good their escape.

When two ships first encounter one another, the pilots of the two ships must make opposed pilot checks. The pilots make five checks with a best of five format. If the pursuing ship wins, it catches up to the fleeing ship and ship-to-ship combat begins. If the fleeing ship wins, it escapes. If the result is a tie, the pilots should begin a new series of three opposed checks.

Such chases can take days, as one ship struggles to outmaneuver the other. At the GM’s discretion, roll 1d4 to determine the number of days a chase lasts. Withdrawing: Once in ship-to-ship combat, a ship can withdraw from combat by simply moving off the edge of the battle mat, ending ship-to-ship combat immediately. At the GM’s discretion, the ship has either escaped completely, or the two ships can go back to the evasion and pursuit rules above.

Repairing a Ship
Mending is not powerful enough to meaningfully affect an object as large as a ship with the material lost in combat. Mundane methods can be used to repair ships; depending on the nature of the damage, skills such as Carpenter’s Tools or Weaver’s Tools, or other various tools can be used to repair ships with the GM’s approval. In general, a day’s worth of work by a single person using the appropriate tool to repair a ship requires 20 gp of raw materials and a DC 14 skill check, and repairs 20 points of damage or the materials are wasted on a failure. Fabricate can also be used to create the raw material needed for repairs. New oars can be purchased for 2 gp each.

Repairs to a damaged ship can be purchased as well. Repairing 20 hit points of damage requires 1 day and costs 40 gp for materials and labor.

Repairs must be done while anchored unless the ship has the appropriate tools on board.

Repaing from broken: Ships in the broken condition have their Max health set to 75% of their typical health and must be repaired at a proper port or dry-dock for extensive repairs.

Taking Control of a Ship
If a ship has no pilot, another creature can take control of the ship as long as the creature is adjacent to the ship’s control device and makes a pilot check as a free action. The ship’s pilot can always give over control to another adjacent creature as a free action. If a creature wants to take control of a ship from another forcefully, it must kill the pilot or otherwise remove the pilot from the control device. When a new creature becomes the pilot, the ship moves on the new pilot’s turn, but not on the new pilot’s first turn after taking control of the ship.

Magic
Creatures can attack ships with spells. Ships are objects, so spells that can only target creatures have no effect on ships. However, because a ship is actively crewed and piloted, it can make saving throws against spell effects. Ships are immune to most spells that require an Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma saving throw. A ship without a crew is considered an unattended object and cannot make saving throws.

The effects of most spells on ships can be determined normally. However, certain spells have different effects in naval combat. The effects of these spells are detailed on the following page. GMs can use these examples as guidelines for determining how other spells not listed here affect ships. For the most part, these effects only apply during ship-to-ship combat, not during normal combat aboard a ship, though some effects (such as starting fires), could still apply, at the GM’s discretion.

Saving throws
A ship is immune to most effects that require a Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma saving throw (though pilots, crew members, and passengers typically are not). A ship may be resistant to strength and dexterity saving throws on a case by case basis. For Strength and Dexterity saving throws have the pilot make a pilot check (d20+vehicle proficiency+dex or str) at disadvantage.