The Lazy Queen

The Last Monarch of the Kasai River

History

The Lazy Queen was hastily and haphazardly constructed in the late 1800s when Observation Station Okta-Seko was discovered, putting a new point of expedition interest on the map. As the Station was not easily reachable by sea, and most horses spooked before stepping more than a few meters into the The Forest of Metal , the Lazy Queen was constructed to ferry expedition crews up and down the river to the Station.
The Queen herself was nearly abandoned during the Night of Falling Crowns, and all expeditions came to a halt as explorers and scientists returned to their own countries. The captain, however, remained loyal to his ship, and put her to work ferrying refugees to St. Fiule from the smaller towns along the river. Eventually a few nations recovered enough to send scientific expeditions out once more, and the Lazy Queen continued her route to Observation Station Okta-Seko once more.

Construction

The Lazy Queen is a modified Steamboat from St. Fiule, adapted to the rather unique needs of both the Expedition crews of Okta-Seko and the Forest of Metal itself. The nice staterooms used to ferry passengers were ripped out and turned into eating halls and scientific laboratories on water. An Ekyltric pulse generator was added to the bow of the ship after Ekyls were discovered, to chase the little water-creatures away from the ship so they did not try to nest in its paddles. Various forms of entertainment, however, remained onboard, including a record player; the current was eerily smooth within the Forest of Metal, allowing it to play with little issue. Pontoons were added to the sides of the ship to help with stability in the Dawson rapids, just north of the forest of Metal. The Pontoons also have small Skippers attached, allowing crew members to journey to shore or to other ships with great speed.

Power Generation

The Lazy Queen is powered by a combination of memoria centrifuge and an Ekyl tank. Rather than use wild and territorial Ekyls, tamed ones are imported from the Crossroads and kept in a small pond in the compound. The power from the Ekyl feeds into the Centrifuge, which in turn spins the wheel on the back of the Lazy Queen and drives the skimmer up the river.

Propulsion

the centrifuge that drives the Lazy Queen turns a waterwheel, propelling the boat up and down the river between St. Fiule and Okta-Seko. While a traditional wood-burning furnace exists onboard in the event of mechanical failure, Ekyl death, or sudden winter, the lack of organic material in the Forest of Metal means it sees relatively little use.

Weapons & Armament

The Lazy Queen isn't equipped with a large armament; There are almost no threats in the Forest of Metal save for loss of sanity. There are a few weapons stashed onboard for the times the Queen escapes the shadow of the Forest of Metal and travels up the river into the Unclaimed Lands, where bandit raids have become all too common.

Communication Tools & Systems

There are flares stashed just below the helm should the Lazy Queen encounter trouble on its expeditions to and from the Forest of Metal. Attempts were made to attatch radios to the vessel, but all they picked up aside from static were stomach churning-squeals and a KREEEEEEEEEE that shook the operator to his bones. No one has been brave enough to turn it on since.

Hangars & docked vessels

The Lazy Queen has small bays along both of its flotillas that hold small, single-man boats for short forays to shore. Each skipper is powered by the same centrifuge that powers the Lazy Queen, but the power is contained in an internal metal box for a short amount of time. Bored expeditioners, in an effort to relieve the tedium and mild horror of sailing through a silent and lifeless forest, have tried racing the skippers up and down the river. While amusing for a short while, the inability of the skippers to hold a charge for longer than a few hours prevents more than short races to the next bend in the river.

Class

River Skimmer

Nickname

Queen

Creation Date

Haphazardly constructed in 1892

Current location

The Forest of Metal

Rarity

One of a Kind-Literally

Beam

32 ft

Length

92 ft

Height

2 decks

Cargo & Passenger Capacity

Cargo and Expedition crews