Ships and boats that can endure Highstorms?

[Aspren]

I don't think that normal Earth ship would be capable of weathering Highstorms, and certainly not pre-industrial age ones. So most likely some ships on Roshar would be constructed in a way so as to be capable of weathering Highstorms, or at the very least able to make sure that they're never caught in one.

What modifications do you think that a ship would need in order to weather a Highstorm?

 

So far all that I've been able to think of is that they'd need:

• retractable or folding mast (otherwise the mast would be torn of during a Highstorm, or possibly capsize the ship)
• several more anchors than a normal ship (for stability and to prevent being blown too far off course)
• possibly be enclosed on top (in a manner similar to a Korean turtle ship)
• outriggers or multiple hulls (for stability)

What ideas do you have for ships to allow them to endure Highstorms?

 

Note: I'm not too ship savvy, so it's possible (or rather probable) that I'm wrong about something here. If so, please do correct me.

Edited January 19, 2014 by Aspren

[bartbug he/him]

My thoughts: It depends on how the ocean reacts to highstorms. My best bet, though: Submarines for the win. 

EDIT: Upvote for your name.

Edited January 19, 2014 by bartbug

[Moist_von_Lipwig he/him]

Submarines would indeed be the ideal solution. Why go through the storm when you can go under it. Besides the stuff you've mentioned and inventing submarines they could make the ship from stronger materials. They could soulcast ships to have metal hulls etc. That should offer a bit more protection during a highstorm.

[Aspren]

Haha, Ironclads and submarines then.   

 

Now you've got me thinking about how Roshar will be in the future...

 

I imagine, armoured trains, submarines and ironclad turtle ships.

Edited January 19, 2014 by Aspren

[Baine he/him]

When I first read the OP, I thought "Submarines would work marvelously!" But then I read the very next reply...

Dang it!

Edited January 19, 2014 by Baine

[Scriptorian he/him]

I'm pretty sure that in-world, ships just avoid being at sea during a highstorm by keeping near the cost. I believe it is mentioned several times that being at sea during a highstorm would be certain death. Assuming the tale of the Wandersail is true, even when someone tired to make a ship capable of surviving them, it still got wrecked.

 

I'm not entirely sure what you could do besides having essentially a submarine. Maybe some super-fabrial that makes an anti-storm shield.

[Aspren]

I wasn't saying that all or even many ships are made to endure Highstorms, I'm saying that surely some ships are built endure them, and that I wonder how they would do so. It's hard but hardly impossible for such a thing, after all, a small wagon managed to survive a Highstorm with relatively simple modifications (the wagon Kaladin was transported in as a slave). 

Edited January 19, 2014 by Aspren

[Tybou_14]

Without something like sonar they would have to stay near the surface and use a periscope. If this was the case then they would still get tossed around in the waves and current of the ocean (though they would avoid the high winds i guess).  So i don't know if they could use a submarine unless maybe they factor in some kind of magic unique to Roshar.

[Scriptorian he/him]

I wasn't saying that all or even many ships are made to endure Highstorms, I'm saying that surely some ships are built endure them, and that I wonder how they would do so. It's hard but hardly impossible for such a thing, after all, a small wagon managed to survive a Highstorm with relatively simple modifications (the wagon Kaladin was transported in as a slave). 

I guess you could be right, I had just received the impression from the book that any attempt to sail during a highstorm failed miserably (like the Wandersail). Also, conditions on the ocean during a highstorm would be much worse than on land, so I don't think wagons surviving is applicable.

[Aspren]

Fair enough. That is the only tale we've heard of, but that's not to say that there aren't more, or that it isn't possible. Highstorms aren't necessarily like terrestrial storms, which dissipate over land due to loss of  sufficient convection currents and moisture.

I certainly can agree that the seas in the Stormward direction would be especially un-sailable in the event of a Highstorm, being that there's nothing at all to diminish the stormfront.

[Inkthinker]

We would need WoB to confirm, but I want to say that because the continent is largely solid, sail travel is minimal compared to land travel and trade, and there really may not be any ships capable of surviving a full eastern highstorm... they've all failed, and it's considered a losing game to try and design one, it will probably get you killed. In the far west, where the storms are weak, they might make it, but I don't know if they need to modify the ships to make it possible... out there, it's just a really bad storm, and sailing ships have survived those before.

That being said, I wonder what they do to protect ships in port during a highstorm... as a resident of Florida, I've seen what happens to boats in the harbor when a hurricane rolls through, and just being locked down and shipping the mast and sails won't help, the next morning there's always some footage of a sailboat smashed through someone's garage after being docked a quarter-mile away. I'd think the ports must have some considerable coverage, or dry-dock abilities, or I don't know what... probably many different things, from naturally guarded coves like Kharbranth to harbors with huge covered docks, and other stuff yet to be imagined.

Of course, there's nothing to stop us trying to imagine a prototype. It might come up in some later book, or be useful if and when Stormlight is ever licensed as a game, especially a tabletop RPG.

Edited January 19, 2014 by Inkthinker

[Natans he/him]

If this model here http://www.17thshard.com/forum/topic/5099-a-highstorm-model/ that was created  Satsuoni, are correct, what I kind believe, I think that no ship are able to endure a storm.

 

So the only viable option is to know where you can anchor you ship to let Roshar natural formation break the storm.

 

To me  the best equipament that a ship could have are a very good map a with safe locations on the coast and a stormwarden list of future storms to prevent be catch in one.

Second best

 

 

 

=)

 

 

 

Edited January 19, 2014 by Natans

[Aspren]

I guess you could be right, I had just received the impression from the book that any attempt to sail during a highstorm failed miserably (like the Wandersail). Also, conditions on the ocean during a highstorm would be much worse than on land, so I don't think wagons surviving is applicable.

 

I guess I'll have to retract have to retract my previous statements. After doing a little research on the subject it seems that even with today's technology ships capable of withstanding hurricane level conditions are rare, and even then not capable of enduring those conditions with any certainty.

 

The only way that I can think that it might be possible is if a massive soulcast ship was made, according to the specifications I gave in the OP as well as having some fabrial enhancements. The cost of such a ship would be astronomical, and it's hard to think of a reason anyone would have to build one in the first place (If there was another continent to sail to then maybe...).

 

We can still conceptualize how we think it could work though.

[Guest Alaxel]

....upvote for your name.  Genius.

[Chlehrma]

From what I can tell, highstorm winds are so powerful, no ship could survive--though the wander sail did survive in Hoid's story if only barely.

Submarines also would be a poor choice since there are likely territorial sea creatures (great shells) in the deep oceans that would attack a submarine in much the same way a chasmfiend will attack a chull.

The best bet for highstorm survival would be a rubber life raft that had a sealable canopy to keep water out and maintain bouyancy even if capsized. The problem is of course that you can not stock such a raft with enough supplies to survive a trip around the world. Additionally encountering a sharp piece of debris or a reef pretty much ends the trip.

[Inkthinker]

I'm not even sure a submarine would work... I'm not an underwater engineer, but I imagine a powerful storm on the surface creates all sorts of pressure shifts and currents and forces under the water, at least near the surface when the waves are all Perfect Storm huge and vertical. Whales and such dive deeper, and I bet submarines would have too as well, but we're talking about a world where the submarine hasn't necessarily even been invented.

 

In our own world it took several attempts and a lot of dead men just to get one that sorta works near the surface with the air being pumped in and out through bellows. A proper diving submersible might be more of a leap than we should expect from the inventors of Roshar. Especially if we follow the theory that naval technology is only important to a fraction of the world's populace, namely those on the coasts.

Before we see submarines, I reckon we'll see Radiants using their powers to survive underwater, and maybe even to keep a ship of people alive underwater, but I bet it won't just be fabrial technology.

Edited January 20, 2014 by Inkthinker

[TheShogun he/him]

This one might survive.

[Satsuoni he/him]

You need a shard ship Or a Shardsub, I guess, with reinforced Shardplate for hull, soulcasting for air (water to air?) , self-moving oars/propeller, some way to actually recharge during storm, or maybe even with the ability to "dive" into Spiritual like oversized Shardblade, taking people with it

IIRC Wandersail went away from Origin, and was partially carried by storm until it broke on the island. The storms are weaker on that side, too Also, as Kelsier and Shai know well, Hoid's info is not to be trusted.