JamesL85 said:
but exactly how many inches thick is the hull of a ship? And I realize that the normal attack of a Kraken would probably go a MUCH longer way towards sinking a boat than a single attack by a Merman with a trident.....
Any help would be appreciated.....
James
You've gotten several references to rules, here's a "common sense" offering...
A Merman with a trident could attack the ship all day long without endangering it significantly. Trying to whittle through a ship's hull with a glorified pitchfork would be an exercise in futility.
A wooden ship's hull is built primarily of planking laid over stout beams formed to the shape desired. The planking itself would likely only be a couple of inches thick (though in later ships the hull was sometimes built in layers of planks), but it would generally be very strong wood (often oak). Also keep in mind that it'll be watersoaked and resilient (unless of course it's old and rotten, but that changes all the rules). Blunt weapon blows will generally just bouce off. Even cannon balls would sometimes rebound if they didn't strike squarely. So even a strong man with an axe isn't going to hack through it with a single blow. (If you've ever tried to chop seasoned hardwood, you'll know it's a bit of work).
Another thing to consider, even if you manage to cause damage, is how much damage it's going to take to really affect the ship. Ships were expected to take on water and had provisions for pumping it out. Being built of wood, the vessels were flexible. In rough seas, the planking would often flex, letting water in which would simply be pumped back out. It was a normal circumstance. So chopping a small hole in the side of a ship with your axe is going to be nothing more than a nuisance. It will have virtually no effect in the short term and in the long term, all they need to do is nail a patch over the hole, pump out the water and go on as usual.
A sustained attack by a Kraken would obviously be more effective, but still you have to remember that these ships were built to withstand the fury of an ocean storm. They're tough, the timber frame being a virtual web of beams and crossbracing. An attack from a Kraken might do severe damage to a ship, splitting planks and cracking timbers, but it may very well still be able to limp into a port for repairs. I suppose it'll depend on how tough your kraken is, but a wooden ship would take quite a beating. Having it crush like a soda can in the grip of a tentacle would be stretching the suspension of disbelief unless you want a kraken to be a rare and god-like creature. If there were beings that powerful commonly found in the seas, it is unlikely that seafaring would have gained much popularity and trade in that world would probably be more restricted to land, so large sailing ships would probably not exist in the first place (or they would be built even stronger and you'd be back to a ship that wouldn't fold up easily).
The secret to sinking a ship is to do a truly catastrophic amount of damage in a short enough time that it can't be repaired before it fills with water. A single blow, or even series of blows is unlikely to sink a ship. There's a reason a galleon fitted for war carried upwards of forty cannon.
Just some things to think about as you look over the options for rules.
