Daily Doodle 831

Revised design for the standard 14m Torvan longboat, a standard member of every Torvan warship's skyboat outfit.  For fun I'm redesigning all of these skyboats based only on what I remember of the old designs, but without looking at any of them.  Since I have no visual recall, it should be interesting to look at the original designs once I'm done with the revisions.

This is the most recent Mk. III model, issued in 1778.  Capable of about 60 knots lightly loaded and with a ceiling of 5,500m, these skyboats are the standard 'eyes of the fleet,' giving valuable service in the roles of scout and artillery spotter.  When not employed in this role, they serve to ferry crew and light cargo from ship to land.  Since quayside space is always in short supply, skyships, especially military skyships, tend to spend most of their non-flying time moored out in the anchorage, just like their seagoing brethren.  Skyships also tend to carry an outfit of conventional surface boats for use while on the surface; I tend not to draw these as they're usually stowed away whilst in flight to reduce topside clutter.

The pilot is seated centrally, with an excellent field of view forward and topside.  A navigator and observer complete the flight deck crew; a second observer is stationed low in the nose (windows not visible in this view).  In the aft compartment are stationed the flight engineer, looking after the tandem airscrews and the boilers, as well as as one or two observers.  Folding seats provide accomodation in the central cargo hold, allowing the (rather cramped) shipping of around two dozen Marines; these longboats are generally assigned directly to the Marine complement stationed aboard every major Torvan warship.  The Mk. III has been given limited armament; a fixed short 80mm cannon forward, loaded by the navigator and observer, and another mounted aft with some traverse and elevation (hidden here by the larboard rudder).  Provisions for signalling include multiple flare launchers and a small folding signal mast, which can also be rigged for sail should the boat be disabled on the surface.  I haven't designed this yet, but probably a simple sliding gunter and jib with a small mizzen, though the windage of the rudders and airscrew may make one unnecessary.  It's not a situation likely to arise, anyway.

The Silverfish usually carries two of these, one stationed on the aft external boat deck on standby, ready for immediate use, and the other secured in the internal hangar.


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Clip Studio Paint, Cintiq 22HD. © Avatar Z Brown.
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