Gnomish Airship Navigator
The navigator manages the incredibly complex job of determining where the ship is and where they need to go. To do this, they must be well informed of the weather, highly mathimatically minded, and have a great memory.
Gnomish Airships use a lodestone compass, coupled with an astrolabe or sextant to determine their position. This gives them their location to within a few miles anywhere on earth. In addition, the hub airships have large clocks that keep perfect time, allowing for even more refinement down to within a mile. However, these methods require a head for mathematics and access to a book produced by the Airship guild. As such, a navigator must be well studied.
Gnomish airships carry maps of the land they are likely to travel accross onboard. These take the form of a large stack of maps in frames. The airship has onboard a magical map that depicts the surrounding mile and the airship within it, perfect for cross referencing.
The navigator has a seperate communication system. At 6 AM Hub time, the Hub broadcasts a message indicating the weather for most regions of the world. These are in a predefined pattern, so the navigator only has to listen for certain sections, but it is good practice to listen to all of them. This system is one way, but it provides excellent dissemination of information.
Gnomish Airships use a lodestone compass, coupled with an astrolabe or sextant to determine their position. This gives them their location to within a few miles anywhere on earth. In addition, the hub airships have large clocks that keep perfect time, allowing for even more refinement down to within a mile. However, these methods require a head for mathematics and access to a book produced by the Airship guild. As such, a navigator must be well studied.
Gnomish airships carry maps of the land they are likely to travel accross onboard. These take the form of a large stack of maps in frames. The airship has onboard a magical map that depicts the surrounding mile and the airship within it, perfect for cross referencing.
The navigator has a seperate communication system. At 6 AM Hub time, the Hub broadcasts a message indicating the weather for most regions of the world. These are in a predefined pattern, so the navigator only has to listen for certain sections, but it is good practice to listen to all of them. This system is one way, but it provides excellent dissemination of information.
Career
Qualifications
Navigators must have spent 10 years as an assistant pilot in the guild, so at least 30 years in the guild. Thye must have a head for numbers, have a good memory, and be loyal. Having a Spark helps, but is not nescessary.
Career Progression
Similar to Gnomish Airship captain, but typically will not move to over ocean routes for slightly longer. Navigators tend to retire later than captains, as their job is not as physical.
Payment & Reimbursement
150 gp per year, plus food and board. 20 days off per year. The navigator gets the top bunk in the common room, but they typically also have a hammock strung up right under the observation dome.
Other Benefits
Like a captain, a navigator can easily find passage on a ship after retiring. They are ranked only after captains, and will be an active part of the crew while aboard, helping the navigator. 2 heads are always better than one.
If the navigator served well, they may be provided a warren gratis, though it will be in some random part of the world. They will be given a sending stone and a magical weather predictor for the next day. They report the weather to the The Airship Guild Hub every morning, and for this are provided with 5 sp per day. They will also be protected by the guild for this service, which is handy. If they are sent somewhere far out of the way, they will be resupplied by the guild and be rotated out every year.
If the navigator served well, they may be provided a warren gratis, though it will be in some random part of the world. They will be given a sending stone and a magical weather predictor for the next day. They report the weather to the The Airship Guild Hub every morning, and for this are provided with 5 sp per day. They will also be protected by the guild for this service, which is handy. If they are sent somewhere far out of the way, they will be resupplied by the guild and be rotated out every year.
Perception
Purpose
To make sure the airship goes where it needs to go and knows where it is.
Social Status
Within the guild. a good navigator is worth their weight in gold. Their position and job is shrouded with a bit of mystery for outsiders, and they are not as glamorous as captains.
Demographics
There are around 2000 navigators, with an additional 400 providing weather data all around the world.
Operations
Tools
A magestone/lodestone navigator gives an angle which specifies the location onto one of several lines.
With an astrolabe, or for more modern gnomes, a sextant, the latitude is easily determinable (with a book of numbers), which narrows the position down to 2ish areas, which are distinguishable with common sense.
While over land, maps of route areas give position, which can be viewed through a window in the cockpit.
The central area map gives a map at the same scale as the nav maps for the area within a mile.
A globe sits in the cockpit, which gives easy reference for great circle mapping, as well as a general terrain overview.
With an astrolabe, or for more modern gnomes, a sextant, the latitude is easily determinable (with a book of numbers), which narrows the position down to 2ish areas, which are distinguishable with common sense.
While over land, maps of route areas give position, which can be viewed through a window in the cockpit.
The central area map gives a map at the same scale as the nav maps for the area within a mile.
A globe sits in the cockpit, which gives easy reference for great circle mapping, as well as a general terrain overview.
Workplace
THe navigator can either be found in the cockpit, the observatory or the common room. The cockpit has the map of the surrounding area, the book of numbers used for magestone/lodestone navigation, the magestone/lodestone navigator, the maps of the route, the globe, the weather stone, and the window to the ground.
The observatory has a rough book of numbers for magestone navigation, as well as a clear area to see the stars. It is also far quieter, as noone but the navigator typically goes there. A spare magestone navigator is found here, as is the sextant and an astrolabe. There is a small alcove below the actual observatory where all these things are stored. The navigator typically sets up a hammock here. The alcove exists because the observatory is open to the air, and can get quite cold. The largest ships have small bubbles of a seethrough insulating material that lessens this effect.
The common area has a large table. This is where the route is planned out each day with the captain and assistant pilot.
The observatory has a rough book of numbers for magestone navigation, as well as a clear area to see the stars. It is also far quieter, as noone but the navigator typically goes there. A spare magestone navigator is found here, as is the sextant and an astrolabe. There is a small alcove below the actual observatory where all these things are stored. The navigator typically sets up a hammock here. The alcove exists because the observatory is open to the air, and can get quite cold. The largest ships have small bubbles of a seethrough insulating material that lessens this effect.
The common area has a large table. This is where the route is planned out each day with the captain and assistant pilot.
Dangers & Hazards
Not many aside from the standard ones of working on an airship.
Comments