Spelljammers

Spelljamming helms are throne-like mechana that once installed on a ship, grant it the ability to move through the air, sea, and even outer space. A ship with such a helm is called a spelljamming ship or, more simply, a spelljammer. Unlike skyships, spelljammers have no need for sky keels or propulsion devises; the helm provides the necessary lift and thrust. In the air, spelljammers are noticeably slower than skyships equipped with impulse skysails. However, once a spelljammer exits a planet’s atmosphere and enters outer space, and provided no object weighing 1 ton or more is within 1 mile of the vessel, the spelljammer can reach what is called spelljamming speed. This is equal to a little over 4.1 million mph. This means that spelljammers are essentially starships. In order to function, a spelljamming helm requires a magician with at least one spell slot remaining. The magician must be attuned to the helm and sitting on it. The magician also needs to be concentrating on using the helm (as if concentrating on a spell). Otherwise the helm is completely inert and the ship loses its special properties. A typical spelljammer has no form of life support as it’s generally intended to be used within wildspace and the astral sea. As such, without additional magical protection, it’s not adequate to traverse the hostile environment of normal outer space. Spelljammers are by far the most common type of interstellar (and interplanar) vessel, used in many systems within wildspace regions. However, on Erdos they are (currently) practically non-existent due to practical considerations. That’s not to say this has always been—or will continue to be—the case

Spelljammers on Erdos

The Pillar of Heaven, the colossal tower-shaped edifice that brought the stregoni on Erdos, was a massive spelljammer, though its helm was destroyed when the ship arrived on the planet. Sometime later, during the early phase of the Age of the Varn, when the desire to create flying ships was made manifest, the Varn spoke of spelljammers as they knew of their existence. Conferring with the stregoni, the Varn confirmed the knowledge they possessed: that at the time, spelljamming helms were extremely rare and the only ones who could make and sell them, were an alien race called mercanes, a type of giant-kin. Varia, Liria, and Ovi Varn left Erdos using their powers, in an effort to reach the mercantile giants. They returned a year later, but with no helm in hand. The mercanes offered spelljamming helms at an extremely low price, but in exchange they wanted to set up an enclave on Erdos and the opportunity to mine and export magicant (the existence and nature of which they discovered when they sold spelljamming helms to the Hedemese ancestors of the stregoni). The Varn, fearing the ramifications of allowing the greedy giants such a foothold over the world, politely refused, and thus no deal was made. Consequently, research and development in Akualinor lead to the invention of the sky keel and the production of skyships. Ovi Varn, however, had used his supernatural abilities to ‘steal’ certain technical elements of spelljamming helm creation. Not enough to create ones, not without considerable extended research. This research had been undergoing by Varnian Mechanics—with varying degrees of intensity—throughout the Age of the Varn. When the Varn spearheaded the Erdosian space program, this research went into high gear, though it had still not led to the creation of a viable helm by the time the Stargazer station was put in orbit. And then the war broke out, and the Varnian Mechanics facility that researched spelljammers was destroyed. Ovi Varn however had kept a copy of their research which he handed to Blackblade Armaments. This led to the creation of the Fatebreaker Class Starships. Today, spelljammers in the physical universe are not nearly as rare as they were during the Age of the Varn, nor are mercanes the only ones who make and sell them. However, Erdosians have not bothered to acquire them. Having said that, the recent actions performed by the ships Fatebreaker and Ravenspear, have demonstrated their usefulness, and there is renewed talk of perhaps resuming the ancient Varnian space program. If that happens, Erdosians are sure to seek spelljamming helms to integrate with their skyship technology on a large scale.

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