Clockwork Cog

A clockwork cog is a sailing vessel that includes one or more paddlewheels driven by a clockwork mechanism. Clockwork cogs are larger and more heavily-built than regular sailing cogs and are most oven used in heavy cargo hauling, including as the motive force for trains of barrelhomes or smaller towable vessels.

Propulsion

Clockwork cogs feature large paddlewheel assemblies either mounted centrally in the vessel's hull or as a pair running along either side of the hull. It should be noted that a clockwork cog, for all its advancement over previous designs, still sports a mast and the ability to mount a sail, albeit an oversized one to compensate for the added weight of the clockwork drive systems. The clockwork drive system is best used for times where speed is of the essence or, alternatively, when conditions are not right for the use of sails (i.e. becalmings). The engineer who operates and maintains the clockwork drive system is also known as a cogswain.
The drive system of a clockwork cog has a number of important subsystems:

• Paddlewheels: These large wheels tread the water to provide thrust for the vessel. State-of-the-art paddlewheels feature pivoting scoops rather than simple flat flukes so that, when actuated by a system of radial levers or ropes, they can provide forward or reverse thrust at the bidding of the cogswain.


• Springs: Batteries of large coil springs are linked to the wheels via gearboxes (see below) to spin the wheels if sufficiently charged before hand. This allows the clockwork cog to press forward for a time independent of the crew's own efforts. The main springs of a vessel are typically located within the paddlewheels proper as additional insurance against injuries as a result of springs snapping under load.
  A red, orange, or green arcana focus may be mounted to the center spar of a drive spring to cause it to wind itself in response to magical energy, but the spring is most often wound by the exertions of onboard cranking crews (see below), by longshoremen, or devices aboard special Winder's Guild affiliated tender vessels.


• Drive Cranks: One or more drive cranks allow the wheels to either be driven directly or the main spring wound by the efforts of the cog's crew. If more than one crank is present aboard a vessel, as might be found on an extra-large cog, then differentials are used to allow all cranks to contribute.
  Some ships employ a 'cogswain's mate' with the ability to use summoning arcana. This person calls forth automata to handle crank duty. Naval vessels especially like to employ cogswain's mates in this manner, as ticking anglermaids make worthy and expendable marines.


• Transmission: A transmission, or 'gearbox,' is used both to moderate the speeds and forces involved with the clockwork drive system and to allow multiple modes of operation. By 'shifting' - using lever-driven forks to slide cog wheels along a transmission shaft - the cogswain can cause the cogs to spin one way or the other, vary the amount of thrust provided by one or more paddlewheels, determine whether the springs or the crew are driving the wheels, or allow the cranks to start rewinding the main springs. Because clockwork cogs often have multiple main springs, the gearbox also allows the engineer to select which of these springs are tapped for energy at a given time.
  During normal operations, the cogswain at the transmission controls works in close coordination with the helmsman to ensure the ship is going in the right direction at the right speed.

Related Technologies

• Clockwork