As the title states, my players want a land boat. They want to buy a keelboat and put wheels on it. Looking for any aid and/or guidance on mechanics for this.
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"As a blacksmith uses heat to temper steel, so should a trial by fire strengthen one's mettle."
A keelboat is 20ft wide and 60ft long. For a wagon, most folks I know treat that as 10 foot wide by 15 to 20 feet long. So, A keelboat would be two wagons wide and between three to four wagons long. That’s twice as wide as a modern-day train car and the same length.
(US railroad tracks are set at the same width as wagons, so the train is set to be as wide as two horses’ asses side-by-side. 😂 The space shuttle parts are shipped by rail, so they’re designed to fit on trains. That means all the measurements for the space program are based on the width of two horses’ asses! 🤣😂🤣)
A keelboat is 20ft wide and 60ft long. For a wagon, most folks I know treat that as 10 foot wide by 15 to 20 feet long. So, A keelboat would be two wagons wide and between three to four wagons long. That’s twice as wide as a modern-day train car and the same length.
(US railroad tracks are set at the same width as wagons, so the train is set to be as wide as two horses’ asses side-by-side. 😂 The space shuttle parts are shipped by rail, so they’re designed to fit on trains. That means all the measurements for the space program are based on the width of two horses’ asses! 🤣😂🤣)
That's hilarious. I didnt know that.
Yeah, as I'm trying to figuring this thing out, I've got it on 6 wheels but it's still sail driven, and a helm pulley system for steering. I'm trying to determine speed and DC checks for braking as well as DC checks for the brakes and wheels maintaining through braking.
Or maybe I'm overthinking it and should just make the "ship" two or four strung together wagons and make them use horses.
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"As a blacksmith uses heat to temper steel, so should a trial by fire strengthen one's mettle."
I hope the land they're on is fairly flat! That's not going to be a lot of fun to haul over hills, and will be very dangerous to roll down them!
Their best bet would be to "hear of a legend of a ship that could sail on land", and then go on a quest to find a magical ship which can be sailed through the ground, in the same way as a Xorn can move through the earth without disturbing it. Non-natural structures would not be move-throughable, and it might prove problematic if the wind is going the wrong way - they might need some horses or aurochs to pull them along when the sails won't do, as oars would be a bit unnecessary!
6 wheels?!? By my estimation you would need closer to 8–12 (or more).
And forget “fairly flat,” that sucker would only run on tracks or the Salt Flats!!
Honestly, I would use my IRL knowledge of vehicles that do not exist in D&D. A “Longboat” or some other type of Ships Boat is probably most suitable. You know the big rowboats that hang off the sides of ships for ship-to-shore runs and as lifeboats? Those are Ship’s Boats. (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship's_boat) Historically it was not uncommon to outfit one with a mast and sail. Nor unheard of to mount smaller weapons onto the gunnels. (Like blunderbusses, etc.)
What D&D calls a “Rowboat” is more like a Dingy (or maybe even a canoe), but the picture they use is actually more appropriate for a Ship’s Boat. Figure 12(ish) ft wide and 40-50(ish) feet long. So you could go somewhere between 10x40 to 15x50. That would easily seat 20-30 crew and passengers, but could be run by a single proficient person (when necessary) if equipped with a sail. And at around 10’x40’(ish), that’s a footprint of 400 sq ft. Which is already waayyy bigger than a stretch limousine. (Average stretch limo is about 7ish feet wide by 20-30(ish) feet long, or a footprint of approximately 175 sq ft (130–210 sq ft) Heck, the average midsize SUV is only around 5’x15’ and seats 6-8 and an engine, fuel tank, etc., etc.
Or instead of wheels you could let it hover a few feet off the ground. This would reduce the weight and could still be pulled by horse in tight spaces cause it could easily crash into trees or buildings.
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As the title states, my players want a land boat. They want to buy a keelboat and put wheels on it. Looking for any aid and/or guidance on mechanics for this.
"As a blacksmith uses heat to temper steel, so should a trial by fire strengthen one's mettle."
A keelboat is 20ft wide and 60ft long. For a wagon, most folks I know treat that as 10 foot wide by 15 to 20 feet long. So, A keelboat would be two wagons wide and between three to four wagons long. That’s twice as wide as a modern-day train car and the same length.
(US railroad tracks are set at the same width as wagons, so the train is set to be as wide as two horses’ asses side-by-side. 😂 The space shuttle parts are shipped by rail, so they’re designed to fit on trains. That means all the measurements for the space program are based on the width of two horses’ asses! 🤣😂🤣)
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That's hilarious. I didnt know that.
Yeah, as I'm trying to figuring this thing out, I've got it on 6 wheels but it's still sail driven, and a helm pulley system for steering. I'm trying to determine speed and DC checks for braking as well as DC checks for the brakes and wheels maintaining through braking.
Or maybe I'm overthinking it and should just make the "ship" two or four strung together wagons and make them use horses.
"As a blacksmith uses heat to temper steel, so should a trial by fire strengthen one's mettle."
I hope the land they're on is fairly flat! That's not going to be a lot of fun to haul over hills, and will be very dangerous to roll down them!
Their best bet would be to "hear of a legend of a ship that could sail on land", and then go on a quest to find a magical ship which can be sailed through the ground, in the same way as a Xorn can move through the earth without disturbing it. Non-natural structures would not be move-throughable, and it might prove problematic if the wind is going the wrong way - they might need some horses or aurochs to pull them along when the sails won't do, as oars would be a bit unnecessary!
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6 wheels?!? By my estimation you would need closer to 8–12 (or more).
And forget “fairly flat,” that sucker would only run on tracks or the Salt Flats!!
Honestly, I would use my IRL knowledge of vehicles that do not exist in D&D. A “Longboat” or some other type of Ships Boat is probably most suitable. You know the big rowboats that hang off the sides of ships for ship-to-shore runs and as lifeboats? Those are Ship’s Boats. (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship's_boat) Historically it was not uncommon to outfit one with a mast and sail. Nor unheard of to mount smaller weapons onto the gunnels. (Like blunderbusses, etc.)
What D&D calls a “Rowboat” is more like a Dingy (or maybe even a canoe), but the picture they use is actually more appropriate for a Ship’s Boat. Figure 12(ish) ft wide and 40-50(ish) feet long. So you could go somewhere between 10x40 to 15x50. That would easily seat 20-30 crew and passengers, but could be run by a single proficient person (when necessary) if equipped with a sail. And at around 10’x40’(ish), that’s a footprint of 400 sq ft. Which is already waayyy bigger than a stretch limousine. (Average stretch limo is about 7ish feet wide by 20-30(ish) feet long, or a footprint of approximately 175 sq ft (130–210 sq ft) Heck, the average midsize SUV is only around 5’x15’ and seats 6-8 and an engine, fuel tank, etc., etc.
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Or instead of wheels you could let it hover a few feet off the ground. This would reduce the weight and could still be pulled by horse in tight spaces cause it could easily crash into trees or buildings.