Atlantic Ocean: Training and Tacking

4) Training and Tacking
Atlantic Ocean, November 3–November 7, 1844

A single tack can take close to half an hour, or more, with all hands hard at work. And for much of that time bedlam reigns. Orders bellowed by stentorian voices are relayed from station to station. Crewmembers add their shouts, exhorting each other to greater effort. Whipped by the wind, sails crack like gunshots; pulley blocks rattle annoyingly against masts and yards; the ship creaks and groans. Often howling wind, heavy rain and darkness add to the apparent disorder.
—A Sailor on the “Sedov”

A) General Duties
The first few weeks at sea are devoted to intensive training. Mates work their crews to the bone; greenhorns are forced to learn the ropes, box the compass, and master the many duties aloft; and boat crews practice lowering the boats, harpooning floating barrels, and rowing for hours at breakneck speed. The Keeper may spotlight each player character individually, perhaps roleplaying minor character-building scenarios. This is a good time to introduce some of the shipboard routines described under “Life On a Whaling Ship,” from holystoning the deck to a musical interlude during the dogwatch. It’s also a fine time to introduce more nautical terminology, getting players to better understand the watch system, the basics of rigging, and the names of various shipboard components. Certainly Beckett or Redburn would be expected to take a trick at the wheel, and Pynchon is fond of fresh paint, varnished wood, and polished brass. This “training montage” also provides an opportunity for players to audition, review, and select NPCs they’d like to run as secondary characters. See “Managing the Campaign” for details.

B) The First Tacking Maneuver

Sometime during the first week at sea, Joab decides he’d like to test the crew’s seamanship abilities. So far the Quiddity has been “wearing” into the wind—an easy but wasteful maneuver that moves the ship forward in looping corkscrew patterns. A more efficient method of sailing into the wind is making a series of economical zig-zags called “beating.” However, this requires a maneuver called “tacking,” in which the ship’s bow is turned directly through the wind; a more difficult evolution on a square-rigged vessel, especially with an inexperienced crew.

Wearing from a larboard to starboard tack, and the resulting forward motion	Tacking from a starboard tack to a larboard tack, and beating to windward.

Joab summons his officers to deck and informs them it’s time to practice tacking. The wind is perfect for the exercise: strong enough to assist, but not powerful enough to overwhelm the greenhorns. Discussing his decision with Mr. Pynchon, word is given for both watches to assemble and assist in the maneuver, and Joab asks Mr. Coffin to take the wheel—“My compliments, Mr. Coffin, and I’d be honored to give the helm to thee.” Beckett is placed on the spanker boom, Redburn on the mainsail and headsails, and Quakaloo and Dixon on the larboard braces. If some of these player characters are not in the game, these positions may be switched, or players may run NPC sailors. Secondary characters may also be employed.

The Tacking Maneuver

The maneuver is accomplished by a series of rolls. Each successful roll adds 1 Handsomely Done! Point (HDP) to a final 9-point tally which determines the success of the maneuver. For the sake of gameplay, only player characters make these rolls, and only two rolls in the sequence may be pushed. Aside from the set consequences of failure, a failed push means that particular character is to blame for the failed operation, a fact which is evident to every man on deck!

1. Clew up the mainsail!
The maneuver begins with the wind on the starboard tack, the Quiddity sailing forward at a 65° angle, her headsails sheeted on the starboard side. It’s time to reverse direction. With a deep breath, Mr. Pynchon begins the procedure by shouting “Clew up the mainsail!” The mainsail is unsheeted and hauled up by its clewlines and buntlines until it’s flapping limply against the yard. Redburn must make a Seamanship roll. Success rewards 1 HDP, failure results in a sluggish and sloppy job, with no points earned.

2. Haul up the spanker!
Next Mr. Pynchon barks, “Helm to weather, and haul up the spanker!” Mr. Coffin steers the ship one point starboard, into the wind. By hauling on the sheet, the spanker is swung around to catch the wind. The wind pushes on the sail like an invisible hand, swinging the stern around even faster. To assess the operation, Mr. Coffin must attempt a Pilot (Boat) roll and Beckett a Seamanship roll. Two successes accomplish the maneuver neatly, earning 2 HDPs. One success and one failure accomplishes the maneuver, but sloppily, earning only 1 HDP. Two failures loses control of the Quiddity, spilling the wind and bringing the ship to a standstill. Captain Joab is furious—“Goddamn it, Mr. Coffin, thou hast placed my ship in irons!” Joab orders the maneuver to be repeated, but first the Quiddity must get moving again. A full hour is lost, and Joab punishes the crew— “Half-rations of grog for a full week, Mr. Pynchon, every man.”

3. Slack off headsail sheets!
Providing the turning maneuver was successful, the main royal and topgallant sails soon become parallel with the wind and start “luffing,” their fluttering heard across the ship. Pynchon orders the men pay off the wind on the bow with the command, “Slack off headsail sheets!” The jib sails and the foremast staysail are quickly loosened; they begin flapping even more loudly than the upper sails. This requires a Seamanship roll from Redburn. Success rewards 1 HDP, failure results in a sluggish and sloppy job, with no points earned.

4. Aft, let go!
As the ship continues to turn into the wind, Pynchon gives the most crucial command of the maneuver: “Aft, let go!” The men on the starboard side allow the braces to run out on the mainmast yards. No longer restrained by the ropes, the yards and sails cannot resist the wind. With the spars groaning in protest, the trio of yards swivel around the mainmast like a swinging door. The mainmast yards and foremast yards are now nearly 90° from each other, forming a giant “greater than” sign when viewed from above: “>.” As the wind backs the sails against the masts, the wood creaks ominously. Isaac Townshend begins fretting—“I heard about a ship that had its mast torn right off doing this—” but he’s quickly silenced by Peter Veidt, “This wind ain’t that strong, pollywog. The skipper knows what he’s doing.”

As the momentum of the turn carries the bow through the wind, the headsails are quickly sheeted home on the larboard side, which requires another Seamanship roll from Redburn. A success earns 1 HDP and allows the ship to move to Step 5. A failure results in “Counter rudder!”

Counter rudder!
For a few startling seconds, the wind pushes the Quiddity backwards, forcing Coffin to “counter-rudder” and halt the movement. This requires a Pilot (Boat) roll. A failure results in the loss of 1 HDP and 1D6 HP of structural damage. See “Quiddity Damage Tables” for details. No matter the result of the roll, Step 5 is next.

5. Brace ‘round Forward!
As the foretopsails push the bow increasingly starboard, the wind fills the headsails. With the jibs and spanker now catching the wind, the ship is rotated into the desired position, placing the wind on the larboard side. Once the wind is coming in at 60-70°, the sails on the mainmast begin to fill. It’s time to bring the foremast yards into alignment with the mainmast yards, placing everything on a larboard tack. Pynchon calls out, “Brace round forward!”

Unlike running out the starboard braces on the mainmast yards, the sailors are now fighting the wind, and the operation requires some hard pulling. Both Dixon and Quakaloo must make Strength rolls. Two successes accomplish the maneuver handsomely, earning 2 HDP. One success and one failure accomplishes the maneuver, but sloppily, earning only 1 HDP. Two failures loses control of the yards, and the windlass must be brought into play. Both Dixon and Quakaloo must now make Seamanship rolls. Two successes completes the operation, earning 1 HDP. One success and one failure completes the operation, but no points are earned. Two failures loses control of the ship. It requires another half-hour of work to reclaim the tack, and the entire crew is punished by reduced grog rations for a week. (If they have already been punished, it’s no grog at all!) No matter what happens, it’s onto Step 6.

6. Ease out the spanker!
Now that the square sails are pulling together on the larboard tack, the Quiddy starts moving forward again. Pynchon concludes the maneuver with “Ease out the spanker and set the mainsail!” The spanker is brought back to its aft position and the mainsail is set. Both Beckett and Redburn make final Seamanship rolls, each success contributing 1 HDP. Failures result in evident sloppiness, but no additional penalties.

Success
The degree of success is established by tallying up the points:

Failures
If the maneuver fails as described in Step 2 and Step 5, Joab orders the maneuver to be repeated until it’s successful. The Keeper is welcome to go through the process a second (or third) time, or she may ask for a Seamanship roll from each player until someone is successful. A second failure reduces every player character’s Seamanship skill by –1D3 points. A third failure triggers a 0/1 Sanity roll. A fourth failure brings a 1/1D3 Sanity roll. After that, the Keeper—or Joab—is permitted to give up in disgust.

White Leviathan, Chapter 2—Atlantic Ocean
[Back to Encounter 3, Joab’s Binding Oath | White Leviathan TOC | Forward to Encounter 5, The Hen Frigate]

Author: A. Buell Ruch
Last Modified: 18 August 2023
Email: quail (at) shipwrecklibrary (dot) com
White Leviathan PDF: [TBD]