Xu Fu

Laurel O’Halloran wrote:

Xu Fu

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Appearance

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Ship Name: Xu Fu
Ship Class: Bǎochuán
Ship Crew: Apollo’s Pompokolin

Ship Description:
The Xu Fu was constructed in Water 7 with the end goal of becoming a seafaring “Hall of Records.” With enormous measurements at her waterline, she reaches 180 m (591 ft) in length and 84 m (276 ft) at the beam, with a 72 m (236 ft)-high freeboard, disregarding the three large deckhouses spanning across the stern. Stability is achieved by her V-shaped hull, long keel, and heavy ballast, and in stormy weather, holes in her prow will partially fill with water when the ship pitches forward to reduce the violent turbulence caused by waves. She is also propelled by steam engines rather than sails, meaning masts are absent, and more space is permitted throughout her decks to store cargo.

Decks:

Deckhouses: The deckhouses are incredibly ornate, to the point they closer resemble small shrines or temples than they do simple cabins. They are interconnected by small skyways in order to permit quick passage through each of them. They are listed starting from amidships to the stern:

Bridge: The bridge consists of three levels, the lowest, though technically not part of the bridge proper, is a sort of guest lobby with stairs leading both upward and below deck; the second level is where most command activity takes place; the top is an open-weather flying bridge. Whenever a voyage is underway, the Captain, Helmsman, Navigator, and occasionally the First Mate (alongside apprentices assigned to them all) are expected to be present here, sometimes throughout the entire day, and as such, it was built to keep all hands comfortable yet alert. A quarterdeck, resembling a theatre stage complete with curtains, protrudes from the second level. The bridge is sometimes called the Den Den Mushi Den, due to the small nexus of said creatures within, mainly Baby Den Den Mushi for communications within the ship, of course, as well as Surveillance Den Den Mushi to aid the Helmsman and Navigator by circumventing the visual obstructions of Xu Fu’s other deckhouses. The Jolly Roger is emblazoned directly above the quarterdeck.Crow’s Nest: The tallest of the deckhouses, the crow’s nest is almost an extension of the bridge, with rope nets connecting it to the flying bridge for the Navigator and lookout. Aside from height, the main difference between the flying bridge and the crow’s nest is in both shelter and equipment: the crow’s nest contains telescopes, binoculars, a binnacle to hold the log pose, all contained within the particularly weatherproof “observatory.” There is also, usually, one Baby Den Den Mushi that can communicate with those of the Helmsman and Captain. Directly below the crow’s nest is the upper gun deck.Cabins: These are the main living quarters for the bulk of the crew, with most “designated” crewmates having their own individual cabins. All of these rooms are connected by a single large, two-level wardroom. As long voyages are par for the course, to offset cabin fever or stir craziness, each of these rooms is reasonably spacious, with about 30 cubic meters assigned to each individual room, and equipped with a bare minimum of a bed, a desk, and door leading to the quarter gallery, and free reign to each occupant on how to design their space. The Captain’s Cabin is quite a bit larger, about 40 cubic meters, with more lavish furnishings including a bookshelf, lounge chairs and a table, and a partitioned office space and personal bathroom and toilet. It can be immediately distinguished from the outside by the larger door, as well as the elevated walkway in front of them that leads to the crow’s nest without obstacle. Hands ranking beneath the Helmsman or boatswain, like apprentices or cabin boys, share semi-private berths partitioned into “couchettes” usually organized as a group of three double-bunks which rest below deck, connecting directly to the mess hall.

Main Deck & Hold: The main deck is evenly leveled; hatches and cranes are distributed across the bow, growing in size the closer amidships they are placed, leading directly to the cargo hold below the orlop deck - the resulting space resembling a capital “L” lying on its side. The hold itself has two levels: the lower of the two is placed at the center, spanning both ends amidships beneath the largest hatches. The upper half, meanwhile, is smaller and built around the previous level, with gangways at the port and starboard sides to serve as observation platforms. As the Xu Fu was built as a treasure ship, this is, of course, the largest-spanning part of the ship, and it is organized meticulously through compartments to separate cargo by type, as well as the highest density of watertight subdivisions.

Level 1: Mess & Lower Gun Deck: As previously mentioned, these are the main living quarters for the lower-ranking crewmates. The mess deck is a long-spanning hall with tables for dining and recreation, and a smaller partitioned dining hall and bar for guests or those looking to eat in peace. Surrounding the halls are the broadside compartments where the lower cannons are mounted.

Level 2: Library, Kitchen, and Sick Bay: Having been soundproofed for comfort and placed the closest to Xu Fu’s center of mass, while still being high enough above the waterline to allow ventilation, this deck level is widely considered by the crew to be the most comfortable. The three sections are all connected by a single circular hallway, with staircases leading to the levels above and below. The library, as to be expected, is like a small labyrinth of bookshelves and study desks and lounge chairs, with texts containing a myriad of subjects, both stolen and written by the Pompoko Pirates. Flammable light sources like candles  are strictly prohibited in the library, in anticipation of what the Klabautermann might do with them; instead, bioluminescent anemone are collected and put into clear containers to act as lamps, and the small, 0.5 meter-diameter circular windows also act as a source of natural light during the day. (And, while drinks are typically disallowed as well, there is a partitioned room in the far corner for brewing tea and coffee.) The sick bay, in addition to carrying all the ship’s medical supplies within a “walk-in” medicine cabinet, it has six consistently-clean beds, as well as a desk for the ship doctor. Lastly is the kitchen, a spacious area with a despotic, yet professional, quality containing a respectable variety of cookware, appliances, and cutlery, a large pantry for food waiting to be prepared, and even a refrigerated meat locker and small butchery, both in their own separate compartments. There is also a staircase leading directly back into the mess deck upstairs to allow the quick delivery of food. A Baby Den Den Mushi was also placed in the kitchen connected with another in the boiler room downstairs, but following their continual deaths from being overworked to death by their respective, bickering users, this was discontinued.

Level 3: Engine & Boiler Rooms: Regarding Xu Fu’s steam engines, rather than coal, her fuel consists of rice – the shipwrights responsible for her construction were gifted engineers, but thoroughly and perpetually wasted – and her engines happen to have the side effect of fermenting the rice, making the engine rooms closer in nature to a brewery. As an advantage, anyone skilled at brewing their own alcohol can safely operate Xu Fu’s boilers, and the leftover bran has some culinary use, helping the fuel pay for itself by selling it to interested parties. The downside is her “alcohol” is rarely edible. If one is sailing the seas and catches a whiff of sake in the air, there’s a chance the Xu Fu is somewhere upwind.

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Combat Capabilities

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Tier: 3
Hull: 360
Sails: 300
Cannons: 240

Mods: Your first ship starts without any mods.

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