Jammers:An SJ Player's Primer pt 1

I've intended for a long time to write up this SJ primer for my players
without access to the books.  Now that it's done hopefully this will be a
big help for others as well.  Even for those with the books it might be
interesting as it deals with many "house" rules/interpretations that we've
often debated on the list.  I especially reccomend looking at combat,
helms, and atmospheric movement.

Though this draws heavily upon the pulished TSR SJ materials, it should not
be taken as a substitute for those materials but rather as an introduction
for players to that setting.

Table of Contents:
Part 1:
1.The Universe
2.Gravity
3.Air
4.Wildspace ecologies
5.Spelljamming
6.Ship Design
7.Helms
8.Ship Crew
9.Long Range Movement
10.Planets and other celestial bodies
Part 2:
11.Atmospheric Movement
12.Languages
13.Religion
14.Magic
15.Economics
16.Proficiancies
17.Ship to ship combat
Notes and Bibliography

1.The Universe
        Worlds in SJ are typically planets which are part of larger systems
called a "spheres".  Sphere systems are literally surrounded by
unimaginably huge spheres made up of an unknown material which seems
indestructible (called "Cyrstal Spheres").  These spheres in turn bob about
in a substance called phlogiston, or the Flow, which is incredibly
flammable but seems to be incapable of existing within a sphere.  Otherwise
it is undectable except for the brilliant, chaotic collors it is composed
of.  It is odorless and seems to have no effect on breathing.  In the Flow
planar contact of any sort is impossible, even for the gods/powers.

2.Gravity
        Physics operate differently in the SJ universe.  Gravity is a
constant earth-normal powered force.  Every object exerts this, but the
direction alters according to shape, and only objects of a certain size
(generally about 25' long) exert enough force for a gravity plane to
develop.  Spherical objects attract objects towards their surfaces
uniformly, much as gravity works in our own universe.  Objects with a more
irregular shape develop a gravitational "plane" which extends along the
most convenient axis, generally the longest.  This plane works in both
direction so that it is possible, for instance, to walk on the bottom of a
ship.
        This gravitational plane exerts a "field" which extends to the
limit of a body's air envelope.  When two such fields come into conflict
the gravitational field of the larger body  dominates.  (ie: for those
familiar with the debate, I follow the gravity at the air envelope theory
rather then the gravity at touch school).  This makes it dangerous to be
out of pitch or alignment with a larger ship if you enter its gravitational
field/air envelope.  Specifically,  this means that when a 'jammer enters a
planetary atmosphere the planet's gravity becomes dominant.(you can walk on
the bottom of your ship in space,  but in a planet's atmosphere you would
fall off and land on your head:))
        Like all things in SJ, local conditions may vary.  On some worlds
the gravity might be more or less powerful then Earth Standard;  this is
rare however.  An active helm does tend to lessen the effects of worlds
with
extremly low or high gravity but it does not negate them.  Sages disagree
on the reasons for this.
        Also,  though gravity fields only extend to the edge of the air
envelope anything larger then 10 SJ tons in size produces a gravity "well"
which extends 5,000 yrds (at least; some planets have larger wells) out
from that body.  For those knowledgeable about these wells (and using a
proper craft) one can "sail" or "ride" these wells much like a sailing
craft uses the wind.  This movement is always tactical and thus only
practical for movement in dense astroid fields and similar locations.
        The more common manifestation of these wells is the way they pull
vessels out of spelljamming speeds when entered.  Within these wells ships
shift instantly to tactical movement.  This shift is obvious to the crew as
a lurching sensation but causes no damage.

3.Air
        All objects drag air with them whenever they leave an air envelope,
this is a function of their gravity field.  A typical human, for example,
will drag enough fresh air with him/her to breathe for 2-20 turns.   After
that time runs out the air will turn foul for a like period of time and
then become deadly and unbreathable.
        For each SJ ton of size a ship drags enough air to support one man
sized creature for 4 months.  So, a hammership (60 tons) can support 60
crew for four months without needing to refresh the air.  If the ship had
120 crew it could only last 2 months.  When a vessel reaches its air limit
the air becomes fouled; it smells bad and is stale and humid.  All attacks
and proficiency checks in a fouled atmosphere are at a -2 penalty.  Air
remains fouled for the same amount of time it remained fresh, once that
time wears out it becomes deadly;  each turn everyone aboard must save
versus poison or pass out. If unconcious they must save versus poison or
die.
        While important air is relatively easy to replenish, entering a
larger air envelope, like that of a planet or astroid is one of the most
popular and cheapest methods.  Spells which create fog, like _Wall of Fog_
or _Obscurement_ can also replenish the atmosphere.  There are many magical
items which also affect air use.  Green plants will refresh air, some
vessels make great use of these for just this purpose.  Many astroid
colonies keep at least half their surface area reserved for plants for this
reason as well.

4.Wildspace ecologies
        While set in space,  the ecology of wildspace most resembles that
of the ocean.  Deep space, far from celestial bodies is generally devoid of
life, but planets and astroids collect an ecology all their own.  Creatures
resembling sharks,  squids, whales, and even giant plants float around
these bodies.  Most wildspace native creatures cannot survive on bodies
larger then size "B"; but this is not a hord and fast rule. Since many of
these creatures are carnivores it behooves spelljammers to keep a sharp eye
out.

5.Spelljamming
        Spelljmming is the province of the helmsman, the individual who
sits on the helm and directs the ship's general motion (sails, rigging, and
crew provide fine maneuvering).  In most cases this is a spellcaster of
sorts,  but there are a handful of helms which allow nonspellcasters to
fill this role.
        When spelljamming the helmsman in a sense merges with the ship,
he/she feels as if the are personally flying through space, and can
percieve the world around the ship as if he were standing on the aft deck.
The helmsman perceives damage to the ship as white flashes of pain, but
takes no actual, personal damage in most cases. Sometimes, however, the
pain is intense enough to cause unconciousness; this is called "spelljammer
shock" and is usually a result of a critical hit.
        In many ways, helming a vessel is instinctual,  because the
helmsman feels he/she "merges" with the vessel he/she can generally control
the vessel as easily as walking.  It's possible, with training and practice
of course to become much better (spelljamming proficiency) but any helmsman
can handle most functions. It's important to keep in mind, however, that
the only time the helmsman controls maneuver on a vessel is when the
mininmum crew is listed as 1 (there are few such vessels). Usually,  the
sailhands control all of the finer aspects of maneuveur, the more skilled
they are the better the craft handles. The helmsman controls the speed (and
whether such speed is forward or in reverse:)).
        While spelljaming the helmsman retains his/her normal senses and
can hold a conversation with those nearby.  In general,  spelljamming is no
more difficult then walking (except during combat) so that anything a
person can reasonably be expected to concentrate on while walking can be
done while 'jamming.

6.Ship Design
        Why do Spelljammers look like they do? Why sails and wings,  what
do they do?  Ship design is a complex system of sympathetic magic.  Ships
that are more maneuverable or speedy _look_ that way,  or look like
something that is that way (like a mosquito or locust). Why do sails billow
when there's no wind?  Because sails are supposed to billow when a ship is
underway,  that's the same reason crew members affect the MC of a ship by
altering the sails or wings or whatever.  It's all part of the magic of
helms.  This can produce odd situations, for instance on a galleon or other
groundling craft a crewman must man the ship's wheel and turn the rudder as
if the vessel were sailing on water when a turn requires it.  While the
rudder actually pushes on nothing,  the action is necessary for the ship to
turn in much the same way a wizard must move his hands in the somatic
components of a spell if he wishes the spell to work.
        Designing a spelljamming craft is a difficult, demanding process
that requires long training. Many spelljammer engineers are spellcasters,
though not all.  The various SJ rules provide at least two systems for
designing new ship designs, Leroy Van Camp has produced another on the web.
None of these are presented here as they are not essential for play.
Instead I am providing the standard ship statistic format with an
explanation for each entry.

Name:Ship's name
Type: Ship's design, ie the SILENT STAR is an eelship.
Tonnage: How man SJ tons the ship comprises. 1 SJ ton =100 cubic yds volume
Hull Points: A ship's "hit points"; usually equal to tonnage (not always)
Crew:Min/Max. Min=helmsman+sailhands, Max=# mansized creatures  for 4 months air
Maneuverability Class:A maneuverable the ship is, "A" is best.
Landing;Land:Can the ship land on the ground w/o damage
Landing;Water:Can the ship land in the water w/o sinking
AR:the ship's armor rating, how tough it is to hit and cause damage
Saves As:Material the ship saves as on the item saving throw table
Power Type:method the vessel uses to traval through space
Ship's Rating:the ship's speed. 1 SR = 1 hex = 500yds in space
Armament:what weapons the ship carries and where they can fire.
Cargo: How many "SJ" ton of cargo the ship can hold.
Keel Length:longwise length of the ship
Beam Length:crosswise length of the ship

7.Helms
        Helms are the primary method of powering spelljamming vessels.
Simply put, a helm is a magical device which channels magical energy from a
some source into motive force for the ship it's attached to.  Some helms
operate on slightly different principles but these are few and rarely seen
in the Known Spheres.
        There are several different types of helms of varying types and
abilities, below I list the types most common within the Known spheres and
the "standard cost" for such a helm in an active spelljammer port like the
Rock of Bral or Refuge.  Note that in other places the price quickly
becomes what the market will bear and thus can drop or rise considerably.
The helms are listed in roughly ascending order of power and rarity.

Minor Furnace Helm
Cost:20,000 gp (SR1) or 50,000 gp (SR4)
        Very similar to the larger Furnace helm,  this helm propels a
vessel by drawing on the power of magical items placed within it's fuel
opening.  Items placed within are burned (literally) by the fire within,
and their dweamor is sucked into the helm to give it power.  The size and
shape of the furnace is such that only items no greater than 18" on a side
can fit within. The item must fit entirely within to begin burning (a thick
leather glove is used to protect the hand while adding fuel).  Each 100 xp
of value provides 12 hours of power.  Minor Furnace Helms can helm ships of
up to 20 tons in size.  They commonly come in two varieties: lifeboat
version-SR1,  can attain spelljamming speeds,  relatively cheap.  Fighter
version-SR4 but can not attain spelljamming speeds.
These helms are used extensively within spheres (they explode in the
philogiston,  of course) to power fighters,  lifeboats,  harbor ferries,
ect.  Most are fueled by scrolls with continual light or some other common
spell inscribed upon them.  They can even be fueled for an hour or so if a
piece of wood or paper with a Magic Mouth,  Continual light,  or even
Nystul's Magic Aura spell has been cast (as oppossed to inscribed) on them.
Like a furnace helm they can be helmed by anyone and do not drain spells
from spellcasters using them.

Furnace Helm
Cost:100,000 gp
        These items function just like the Minor Furnace helm in principle.
Specifically, they provide SR 2 and can travel at spelljamming speed for
ships upto 100 SJ tons in size.  An item with an xp value of 150 provides 1
days worth of power.  If two items are sacrificed at the same time SR is
boosted to 3 but the helm might explode (25%).  Some goblinoids are
rumoured to power their furnaces with an incendiary, magical fuel. Some
think this fuel might be related to smokepowder in some way but reliable
reports are rare.

Minor Helm
Cost:2,000 gp per SJ ton
        These are the most common helms in space, drawing their power from
the spell energy of their helmsman (draining all memorized spells at a
touch).  These helms provide an SR of 1 for every 3 levels of the helmsman,
rounding down so that at levels 1-5 SR is 1, and then so on.  Minor helms
can move vessels at spelljamming speeds.  These helms are created most
commonly by the priesthoods of Ptah and Celestian or by the elven
priesthoods.  Of course, most elven created helms are employed by the
Imperial Elven fleet and they jealously recover those lost when possible.
Minor helms are rated according to the size vessel they can power, which
typically varies from 18-40 tons, with the lower sizes being by far the
most common.  Many of these helms are constructed from fine woods.

Arcane Minor Helm
Cost:100,000 gp
        Sold only by the Arcane, these helms conform to the specifications
for Minor helms listed above except they are all rated for vessels upto 50
tons in size and are all constrcuted of metal.

Major Helm
Cost:4,000 gp per SJ ton
        These function just like minor helms but provide an SR equal to the
users level divided by 2 and rounded down. A 3rd level helmsman would have
SR1, for instance, and one of 5th level SR 2.  These helms typically have
power ratings of 42-60 tons, though some have been able to power much
larger vessels, even as high as 100 tons in size.  These helms are much
less common then minor helms,  they are rarely for sale.  The only known,
"common" manufacturer of such helms are the elven high wizards and their
helms are usually used to power elven man-o-wars.  All major helms are
constructed of metal.

Arcane Major Helm
Cost:250,000 gp
        Sold only by the Arcane, these helms conform to the specifications
for Major helms listed above except they are all rated for vessels upto 100
tons in size.  These helms are actually more common then thier non-Arcane
counterparts among most human spacefaring communities because they Arcane
can provide them reasonably regularly.  Finding an high powered mage
willing to create one , let alone several, is difficult indeed.

        Many other types of helms exist, some feed off life, while others
use psionic capability as the power source.  Others are even more bizarre.
This list is just a starting point for "standard" spelljamming cultures,
and as always in SJ expect the unexpected.
        In my campaigns helms are much more fragile then in the std
universe.  They make all saves versus magical assaults on a 2,   but
against purly physical attacks they save according to the material they are
constructed of.  This means all major helms,  for instance,  are not
created equal.  A metal helm is worth more then one made of wood,  because
of its greater durability.  Wooden helms
are by far the most common. Helms are also more difficult to fit,  to be
removed without incident the work crew must be supervised by someone with
the shipwright proficiency.  This is automatic in a ship yard where all the
proper tools are available and plenty of time can be taken,  in space (or
when in a hurry) it requires a proficiency check.  If the check fails,  or
if the helm is removed by
someone without the proper proficiency, then the helm must make a save versus
crushing blow.  Helms are artifacts and contain very powerful magical
forces.  If one is destroyed it immediately becomes the center of 1d6 wild
magic surges.
        One last point,  in my game the Arcane are the most predominent
(and respected) helm merchants but not the only such suppliers.  Helms are
sold by many different people,  virtually any SJ shipyard will have a few
available.  Because of the highly magical nature of helms,  however, many
used helms have acquired curses and side effects similar to those of other
artifacts.  This might be a simple as a harmless phantom who haunts the
helm and appears occasionally,  or as deadly as a phantasmal killer which
the chair releases to hunt crew members during the night.  The Arcane do a
brisk buisiness "purging" used helms of these curses,  though it's not a
hidden art-many high level mages and priests do so as well.  Let the buyer
beware!

8.Ship Crew
        Ship's crews are rated according to their relative experience:
Green, Average, Trained, and crack.  For PCs, the crews "rating" is
determined by the number of folks handling the rigging who have the
appropriate proficiencies.  Green:the majority have no rigging experience
at all.  Average:the majority have at least terrestial seamanship,
Trained:the majority have the spacemanship proficiency, crack:all have
spacemanship and have sailed together aboard the same vessel for at least 3
months.  Green crews penalize the initiative roll by 1,  trained provide a
+1 bonus, and crack provide a +2 bonus.

9.Long Range Movement
        Spelljammers have two main speeds;  "Spelljamming Speed" is very
fast,  100 million miles per day.  Think of it like lightspeed or
warpdrive,  you can only attain this speed when you are at least 5000 yards
from any object of 10 SJ tons or more in size.  Conversely,  coming within
5000 yards of any object 10 SJ tons or more in size will immediately and
uncontrolably slow you to SJ speed.  With very rare exceptions all SJ helms
move at this speed when "spelljamming".
        "Tactical speed" is much,  much slower.  17 mph or 500 yards per
round _per ship's rating_.  Ship's rating is determined by the helm,  and
the level of
the helmsman. Higher level,  higher SR. Some spells,  proficiencies and
magic items can increase it as well. On the _Flowfish_ all the PC helmsman
had an SR of 1 using that ship's Minor Helm.
        Ship's travaling at spelljamming speed are immune to collisions
with small objects.  When a ship travelling at SJ speed encounters an
object of volume less than required to drop it to tactical, that item is
"picked up" by the ship's envelope.  That object then bounces up and down
in the gravity plane until it stabilizes. Once it's resting on the plane,
it starts to drift outward towards the edge.  When it reaches the edge, it
is "let go", and is left behind in the ship's wake.
        This protection doesn't work at tactical speed, objects enter the
air envelope with their velocity intact.  This permits ship to ship combat
at this speed (otherwise bolts and catapult shot would be useless) and also
makes traval through certain astroid fields and crowded shipping lanes
hazardous.
        Within most crystal spheres navigation is not difficult,  just a
more complicated version of terrestial navigation by the stars utilizing
three diminsional instruments.
        Philogiston Navigation is much more difficult,  there are precious
few landmarks or navigation aids in the flow.  So how does one get from
place to place?  The easiest method is to follow a flow river,  and that is
done by determining the predominate colors of the areas flow.  There are
many major flow rivers through the philogiston,  and each has a distinctive
color scheme that
makes it distinct from the others.  Since most crystal spheres remain in
relatively stable positions within the flow one can navigate by counting
the spheres passed as one follows the river.  River intersections provide
another means for determing location,  as the colors do not intermix (Sages
still debate the reasons for this). Traval to sphere's outside a major flow
is much more time consuming and difficult:  the navigator must first
determine his/her exact position within the sphere to be departed,  then
he/she must determine at what angle from the sphere the destination sphere
lies and plot a direct course to it.  Obviously this method is very risky,
though some navigators are so good they hit everytime.

10.Planets and other celestial bodies
        Planets and other celestial bodies are quite varied within
spelljammer. Planets can be round, flat, disc shaped, cube shaped, or even
stranger.  Astroids, stars, nebula and other oddness rounds this out.  A
quick rating system for various celestial bodies has become standard
through out known space.  It's origins are much debated but unimportant for
our purposes.
        Celestial bodies in this system are described by size, shape, and
type.  These ratings are standard on most charts, planetary almanacs like
the legendary Geonomicon, include  a substantial discussion on the planets
ecology, inhabitents, and weather conditions making them valuable
commodities.
There are ten size catagories as follows:
A= less then 10 miles across
B= from 10-100 miles across
C= from 100- 1000 miles across
D= from 1000- 4000 miles across
E= from 4000- 10000 miles across (Earth, Toril, ect)
F= from 10000- 40000 miles across
G= from 40000- 100000 miles across
H= from 100000- 1000000 miles across
I= from 1000000- 10000000 miles across
J= from 10000000+ miles across
Shape catagories are easier as they are descriptive:
Amorphous, belt, cluster, spherical, cubic, flatworld, and elliptical are
often used though descriptions like "tetrahedon" are used when appropriate.
Finally, a planet is described by type:Fire, earth, air, water.  The planet
is named after the most predominate feature, though this is subjective.
Earth is an earth type planet even though 70% of it is covered with water,
for instance.  Some cartographers include a fifth type, "Live" which
indicates worlds join by giant plants.

"Human life without knowledge of history is nothing other than a perpetual
childhood, nay, a permanent obscurity and darkness." Philip Melanchthon
westermeyer.3@???.edu
Paul Westermeyer
Phd Candidate, History, Ohio State University
Adjunct Faculty, Humanities Department, Columbus State Community College