Boatbuilding (sage ability)

Boatbuilding is an authority-status sage ability in the sage study of Shipbuilding, as well as an expert-status in the study of Beachcomber. The ability allows the character to design and construct single-masted vessels, shaping hulls, crafting masts and rigging, and fitting out a boat for fishing, trade, exploration or warfare. A character with this skill can source materials, balance weight distribution, and rig sails for efficiency. They understand how to make a vessel durable and seaworthy within its intended limits. While their boats can handle rough weather with skilled seamanship, they are not built for prolonged ocean-going navigation.

Defined for the purpose of this ability, a boat is a single-masted vessel with a keel depth of less than 6 feet (1.8 meters) and a maximum length of 60 feet. If it has a deeper keel, a length beyond 60 feet, or is built for sustained ocean travel rather than short-range navigation, it is no longer a boat — it is a ship. To separate the vessels spoken of here from skiffs, boats are at least 18 feet long.

Workgangs

When a gang is building a ship, not all members need to be fully trained boatbuilders. Skilled leadership and organization allow unskilled or semi-skilled laborers to contribute meaningfully to the process. In addition to the boatbuilder, any and all helpers must be of at least amateur-status as a beachcomber or a shipbuilder.

Construction

Notwithstanding the endless vagaries that arise when discussing maritime nomenclature as it relates to vessels and vessel types, for the purpose of game mechanics, the following terms shall be used to describe boats ranging progressively in size from 20 to 50 feet: sloop, shallop, hoy and buss. These general terms can then be used to describe the length of time needed as well as other factors, without our being bound by unwanted specifics. A "sloop" could, by these rules, be larger than 20 ft. long, but if it is, the time, labour and arrangements needed should be those conforming to a shallop or a hoy, rather than the details of a sloop being expanded for its larger version.

Sloop

This vessel can be built without a dedicated yard. A sloop can be built in a simple workspace, such as a cleared beach where logs can be dragged and shaped, a riverbank or lakeshore with enough space for assembly, or even a small workshop or village pier where basic supports and tools are available. However, building a sloop without a yard is an inefficient process. The absence of proper scaffolding and hoists means that the hull must be lifted and turned manually, requiring extra labor and increasing the time needed for construction.