Oared Galleys

Some countries use galleys as a form of penal servitude, others use captives and slaves, and others (e.g. corsair types) habitually use oared vessels. There are also various hybrids that combine both sail and sweeps. These are typically used in earlier times and in waters without particularly high seas, but do have some pyrate credibility in that Captain Kidd favoured an oar/sail hybrid, and many buccaneering sloops are depicted as oar sail hybrids. If your ship has both sails and oars, you must decide whether it is an Oared Galley, or a Sailing Ship with sweeps.

Sailing
They don’t sail quite as well as dedicated sailing vessels so MA unit scales when sailing, (with the oars shipped), are as follows. Large ships use the Middling ship scale and Middling and Small ships use the Small ship scale. An Oared Galley cannot be a Fast sailor. If using sails, galleys require a minimum sailing crew as per sailing ships. (They will always require a dedicated helmsman).

Sail Bonus
A galley that is being rowed can use sails to gain a bonus in much the same way that a sailing vessel can use sweeps to gain an advantage. This is 3MA for a small ship, 4MA for a middling and 6MA for a large ship, provided that there are dedicated sailors, and that the ship is not head to wind.

Shooting
Galleys are definitely designed with both cannon and oar in mind, so have no trouble firing when oars are out.

Rowing
If rowed, galleys require a minimum of a pair of rowers per three inches, (or part thereof), of length, E.g. an eleven inch galley would require at least eight dedicated rowers to get it moving.

Each pair of rowers can give 2MA, up to 12MA for a Small ship, 14MA for a Middling ship and 16MA for a large ship. Note that it's 2MA for a pair, not 1MA each, odd rowers don't count. So a fully crewed Small Galley with 12 rowers could move with a maximum speed of 12MA + any bonus if the sails are up.

Apart from a 2MA penalty when rowing directly into the wind, ships under oars ignore the wind and are never caught in irons. They also lose 2MA for rowing upstream or against a current. It is assumed that Galleys can backwater to effectively hold themselves at a standstill if they want.

Steering
Rowed ships, particularly the smaller ones, can be much more manoeuvrable, practically able to turn about in their own length – backing one side of oars against the other, so to reflect this an oar-propelled ship can steer through one point in 4 units or can steer through two points in 4 units if small, 6 units if middling and 8 units if large if they spend four, six or eight MA respectively. They cannot be Caught In Irons.

Fatigue
While the rowing might seem to bring considerable advantages, and combination oared/sailed vessels are capable of fearsome bursts of speed, and can practically turn on the spot, one major drawback is fatigue.

Galleys can cruise along at 3MA under their maximum rate indefinitely, (in the time frame of a game anyway), but for each consecutive turn that a rowed galley tries to exceed this, (not including sail bonus), it must roll a d6. Remember that they can squeeze an extra 1MA by employing a Slave Driver.

For example, if a ship can make as much as 12MA by rowing, then it can move at 9MA indefinitely, (or 10MA with a slave driver), but if it has been propelled above this cruising speed then roll a d6 for each consecutive turn it does so, before moving, and fail to score a one on any of the dice. If a one is rolled on one of the dice then the the slaves are faltering and may only make half their maximum rate (6MA) by rowing this turn. If more than one 1 is rolled then they will need two or three etc. turns of respite.

E.g. a middling rowed galley in hot pursuit, with no sail bonus and 14 rowers, has moved at 14MA ramming speed for the last two turns, but as Capitano Alphonso the Cruel orders the drummer to keep up the pace and the bosun to dish out some whip, he shakes double one on two of the three d6, (this is the third turn). The slaves are knackered, and the ship not only is the ship capped at 7MA this turn, but Alphonso must now rest the oars on 7MA for another turn, and the English dogs will undoubtedly escape his clutches…

Backwatering and Pulling Away
Rowed galleys can backwater at half-speed, (2MA/Unit), as it's easier for them to go backwards than it is for sailing ships. Galleys backwatering, at anchor, at standstill etc. move at half-speed the turn they start to make headway.

Shipping/Unshipping Oars
A Galley can ship oars as an Turn Action, if they have not moved, but unless they have backwatered to a standstill (i.e. declared no MA this turn), have Momentum movement in the It Just Happens phase. It takes a turn to unship the oars, if they are shipped, during which turn the galley can move under sail, or drift. Once the oars are unshipped then the galley is considered to be primarily a rowed vessel and the sails give an additional bonus to the MA. Galleys are susceptible to sideswipes, (see below) unless the oars are shipped.

Rowers
There may be no need to provide actual figures for rowers, if they're below decks, though if liberated by boarders then figures may be needed. Grateful, raggedly dressed, bearded types, (at least the men), with chains and manacles, (Close weapons), would be appropriate. An oared galley that takes casualties can distribute them amongst the rowers, but loses rate accordingly. A quarter of the original rowers will always be deemed lost when a galley has lost half its ship points and another quarter when a galley is reduced to a quarter of its ship points.

© Baggins Wood Ltd. 2009