pavaasha
if rivers are the arteries of Austur, then pavaasha are it's lifeblood
The pavaasha is the most common type of river barge in Austur. It is also the largest and most common boat on the River Rothum.
General Use
At 40 to 45 meters long and 12 to 15 meters wide, these massive, flat bottomed vessels can each carry hundreds of tonnes and thousands of cubic meters of cargo up and down the Rothum. Though the huge barges can obviously not get above The Cascades and would be unable to navigate the mountain rivers west of there, they can, if needs be, get through the braidlands and as far east as Heind and the mouth of Caalesh Sound. This can be treacherous however, and most will go no further than the great shipyards at Port Hope. Pavaasha, like other barges, are very often used as incidental passenger transport by the Mageguard. Since the average Austurian citizen is not permitted inter-provincial travel except on specific guild business, passenger transport is rarely needed. The Mageguard however need to move their guardsmen around with relative frequency. Though Tessars and some Commanders may have their own private transport, the Guard have their own large scale transport ships that can move an entire battalion at once, it is fairly common for a single unit, or even a couple of individuals to need to transfer between provinces or carry messages too sensitive for the liyum network. In these cases, the Mageguard will simply arrange for passage on a barge.Design
The design of the barge, the various reins and tackle needed to harness and uryaa, and even the name itself, were all copied from the lashaan before the Sunder. There have been some minor alterations to accommodate human crews instead of lashaan, and minor improvements to the uryaa tackle, but the boat is incredibly efficient and effective and has hardly changed in eight hundred years. Even with time taken to rest and feed the uryaa, a fully loaded pavaasha can get from Catric to Landen and Port Hope in just under a month, and it takes only a couple more days to go back the other way against the currents. The pavaasha is essentially a massive warehouse floor with a curved point at the front. There is are two small structures at either end of that flat surface: a small 'tac house' just behind the bow for the storage, maintenance, and management of the elaborate ropes and pullies used to harness the uryaa to the boat, and a larger crew cabin at the stern to house the wildlings that crew the boat. The Wildling guilds are more family oriented than any other Book, and despite the laws, very few wildlings even petition other Wildling guilds, let alone a guild under The Book of the Town, Craft or Farm, and almost never the Guard. Any given pavaasha, though technically owned and operated by the Bargeman's Guild, is considered to belong in practice to a particular family. This results in each barge being uniquely painted and decorated over time by the family that operates it. Though such decorations are rarely garish or elaborate, the crew cabin is often painted in broad geometric patterns and even simple murals depicting the crew or stylized nature scenes. Some minor changes have been made to the pavaasha design since Unification to provide minor accommodation to potential Mageguard passengers. Though the average guardsman or junior officer would be expected to camp, eat, and sleep on the open deck as if they were on the march, officers too junior to have their own transport but too senior to be expected to sleep on top of a stack of bailed hemp. To accommodate them, the crew quarters of Pavaasha often have a small shed built onto the side of the main cabin. It is large enough for a single cot, shelf, chamber pot, and typically a rudimentary armour stand. Crucially however, it is equipped with a roof and a door, allowing a senior officer some separation from their subordinates and shelter from the elements.Propulsion
Apart from it's great size, the pavaasha is distinguished from other barges by it's means of propulsion. Too big to reliably be driven by magic, needing to be too versatile and to use sails, and with not enough crew for oars, the great barges is instead pulled along by a massive shelled uryaa at the bottom of the river.
Atop the tac house at the bow of a pavaasha, is a small covered and partially enclosed seat called the roost. This spot is the highest point on a barge and allows the uryaa driver to see clearly all around the boat, and most importantly, into the water in front of it to monitor and control the uryaa. When seated, the partially closed back and sides allows the wildling driver to perform what spells they need to without forcing anyone from another Book to witness them doing Wild magic. They can quickly stand however and check around the perimeter of the barge for obstructions collisions when needs be.
Complex as the rope system connecting barge to uryaa is, the whole arrangement comes down to two simple cranks in front of the driver. The first controls the length of the reins, and the other the angle. The uryaa can be kept only a meter or so directly below the bow in shallow port waters, or a dozen meters in front and the same below for faster but less manoeuvrable movement over the open river.
The pavaasha itself is not actually steerable. Much like a churl and wagon, the driver simply directs the uryaa and the barge is pulled along behind.
There are four great oars stowed along the sides of the boat in the case of an extreme emergency, but they are almost never used, and an experienced pavaasha boatswain will consider it a point of pride if they have never "had to have the oars out".
Communication Tools & Systems
At the very tip of the bow of any river barge, including the pavaasha, is small platform with a leaning bench called the whistler's stand, or simply "stand". When a barge is nearing it's destination, or leaving it's departure port, the ship's whistler will "take the stand" to play the barge in or out. They do this by playing particular notes and tempos on their quaynya, the long wildling flute, amplified by a particular spell. The destination or departure port will have whistlers of their own on stands elevated over each major quay. These quay whistlers, under direction of the dockmaster, will respond to the ships whistler, directing them when to wait, approach, and to which dock or quay they can tie off at.
Whistlers will also occasionally play to other passing barges to relay important local or topical information, like a bad storm approaching, a busy port, or another barge run aground or in trouble.
With the aid of the amplifying magic, a whistlers play can be carried for two or three kilometres without being uncomfortably loud to those immediately around them.
"It is a melancholy wonder to me, that the deck of the barge that took me back to the city of my birth, should feel more of a home than the old brick house and soft bed I lay in now."
- Leftan Commander Harlen, Patrol Corp, Third Legion (803AS)
Nickname
barge, a full flat
Manufacturer
Owning Organization
Current location
Rarity
common
Beam
12 to 15 meters
Length
40 to 45 meters
Speed
5 to 10 km/h
Cargo & Passenger Capacity
500 to 600 tonnes
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