A junk was a type of sailing ship found mainly in Kara-Tur.[2]
Description[]
A large sailing vessel, a junk had a flat bottom with a high keel and no stern. They had two masts supporting sails that were fully battened, that is, reinforced with bamboo ribs. The hull would be partitioned into several small compartments; watertight, these made a junk exceptionally seaworthy.[2]
Junks came in various sizes and for different purposes, with small junks, large junks, and war junks all known.[1] A T'u Lung war junk might have a length of 60 feet (18.3 meters) and in ideal conditions sail at a speed of up to 80 miles (129 kilometers) per day, with a crew of only five.[3] A typical large junk could have a length of up to 80 feet (24 meters), a beam width of 20 feet (6.1 meters), a height of 10 feet (3 meters) above the waterline and a draft of 10 feet (3 meters) below it. It sailed at 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) per hour.[2]
A small junk could carry 17 passengers while a large junk could carry 25 passengers; a horse or similar beast took up the space of four people.[4] A typical large junk could carry up to fifty people, requiring seven crew on watch. It could carry a cargo of up to 160 tons (145 metric tons).[2]
A war junk could be armed with a ship ram.[2]
Costs[]
A small junk typically cost 300 ch'ien, a large junk 500 ch'ien, and a war junk 800 chi'ein.[1] A typical large junk could cost 15,000 gold pieces and took 3 months to construct.[2]
The wu jen spell vessel could conjure a seaworthy junk from a single piece of origami-folded paper that could sail itself by magic. However, it only lasted a worryingly short time.[4] Magical paper of forms could do the same.[5]
In Kara-Tur[]
Junks were commonly used in the seas of Kara-Tur in the 14th century DR. For example, junks were used in Kozakura. The Imperial Navy had some twenty large war junks among lesser vessels.[6]
Junks were also sailed around Koryo.[7]
Junks were used in T'u Lung, both by agents of the realm[8] and by the navy, but these could be pretty shabby.[3]
Merchant junks regularly sailed between Shou Lung and Wa[9] and from T'u Lung.[10]
The notorious wako pirates that plagued the seas regularly made use of junks.[11][8] Usually disguised as traders, they often preyed on Shou Lung shipping to Wa.[9][10]
History[]
Around the year 1200 by Koryoan reckoning, in Koryo, a great many refugees fled the city of Karak by junks, journeying down the coast to Tu Pe. They moored their ships at the Long Pier, creating a neverending traffic jam that trapped still more vessels and steadily grew and evolved into a veritable "floating city".[7]
Notable Junks[]
- Golden Lily
Appendix[]
External Links[]
Junk (ship) article at Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Gary Gygax, David Cook, and François Marcela-Froideval (1985). Oriental Adventures. (TSR, Inc), p. 40. ISBN 0-8803-8099-3.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Richard Baker, Joseph D. Carriker, Jr., Jennifer Clarke Wilkes (August 2005). Stormwrack. Edited by John D. Rateliff, John Thompson. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 85, 97, 100. ISBN 0-7869-3689-4.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Jeff Grubb (1988). Mad Monkey vs the Dragon Claw. (TSR, Inc), p. 30. ISBN 0-88038-624-X.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Gary Gygax, David Cook, and François Marcela-Froideval (1985). Oriental Adventures. (TSR, Inc), p. 92. ISBN 0-8803-8099-3.
- ↑ Gary Gygax, David Cook, and François Marcela-Froideval (1985). Oriental Adventures. (TSR, Inc), p. 135. ISBN 0-8803-8099-3.
- ↑ Mike Pondsmith, Jay Batista, Rick Swan, John Nephew, Deborah Christian (1988). Kara-Tur: The Eastern Realms (Volume II). (TSR, Inc), pp. 131, 149. ISBN 0-88038-608-8.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Mike Pondsmith, Jay Batista, Rick Swan, John Nephew, Deborah Christian (1988). Kara-Tur: The Eastern Realms (Volume II). (TSR, Inc), pp. 118, 119. ISBN 0-88038-608-8.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Jeff Grubb (1987). Ochimo: The Spirit Warrior. (TSR, Inc), p. 13. ISBN 0-88038-393-3.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 David "Zeb" Cook (1987). Blood of the Yakuza. (TSR, Inc), p. 24. ISBN 0-88038-401-8.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Jeff Grubb (1988). Mad Monkey vs the Dragon Claw. (TSR, Inc), p. 16. ISBN 0-88038-624-X.
- ↑ Mike Pondsmith, Jay Batista, Rick Swan, John Nephew, Deborah Christian (1988). Kara-Tur: The Eastern Realms (Volume II). (TSR, Inc), pp. 129, 147, 154. ISBN 0-88038-608-8.