Ship

"Wood doesn't eat."

— Common Valen saying.

Since time immemorial, water has been the first condition necessary for any kind of civilization. Water is needed to drink and wash, and access to a body of water enables trade. Many great civilizations have flourished from maritime trade, and the building of bigger and better ships has made the peoples of the world more and more capable of traversing the oceans and reaching ever further shores.

The first ships were mere rafts, lashed together from whole trees or pieces of wood and generally only fit to traverse shores or placid rivers. Nevertheless, such contraptions were often much more effective for transport than any beast or caravan. The first barges would've been driven by poles, but specialized oars and eventually sails would soon appear. Still, for a long time the open ocean was beyond the shipcraft of most peoples, and ships were mostly used to transport goods along rivers and coastlines, and across lakes.

Modern ships have shed off many of these limitations. In particular the works of Runberi shipwrights have been said to be able to sail half the world, and to brave any storm. Sails today are often composed of complex rigs and multiple sails, designed to catch wind in almost any direction and be able to sail almost into the wind. Today's massive sailing ships can transport hundreds of tons of cargo, and perform extended voyages halfway across the world.

Nevertheless, most naval transport is still along shores and rivers, often using barges that have not changed much for hundreds of years. It is still recognized that a decent barge will transport much more than a horse caravan, and for cheaper too.

Shipborne war has also become more and more prominent, from using the ever larger vessels to transport armies to loading ships with cannons and reinforced hulls to deny the waters to the enemy and bombard their coastal settlements.

Propulsion

Ships move by either oar or sail. Larger ships and oceangoing vessels are almost always sailed, while riverboats sometimes rely on the natural course of the river or bargepoles to move along. Many sailing ships still have some rowing capability for emergencies.