Slave Galley [12x27] (Patreon)

This is our biggest project until now. It required tons of research and hard work but it all resulted in an amazing battlemap with a pretty cool story. Hope you enjoy!

Slave Galley of the Talamite

Galleys are long, streamlined ships capable of traveling at high speeds. These vessels have large sails that can be used in favorable conditions, although they are mainly propelled by oars, which allows them to sail no matter the winds and currents they face.

These types of ships are very versatile and are used in all kinds of activities such as trade, exploration and even combat. But there is a group of people that have found the perfect use for these Galleys.

They are the Talamite, a remorseless organization dedicated to the trade of slaves of all races, age or origin. Although slavery is illegal in most territories, it is still a common practice in the more authoritarian empires and in some barbaric lands.

Talamite crews always find ways to avoid direct combat, some times even throwing slaves and other cargo overboard to reduce weight and sidetrack their pursuers.

Their Galleys are specially prepared for slave trading, they modify the vessels to make them more aerodynamic and get rid of all non-essential ship components to save weight and increase their speed, which allows them to be specially slippery even in open seas. They keep only two pieces of armament: a ballista on the deck that is used to anchor the ship to other vessels to board them more easily, and one or two rostrum spikes below the waterline to pierce and sink other ships.

The Talamite also have a trick up their sleeve, Galeots. Gals, as they are commonly known, are incredibly strong, intelligent creatures that the Talamite capture and enslave to row their ships. Their origin is unknown, they have only been seen in the Talamite Slave Galleys. Once captured, strong chains are embedded in their flesh and bones to anchor the Galeot to the very structure of the ship, making them part of the Galley itself. All the oars are tied to a fixed structure that moves them as if they were a single piece, so instead of tens of slaves, only two or three Gals are needed to propel the entire ship, which saves weight and lots of resources. Gals work as oarsmen until they die of exhaustion or until the boat sinks, drowning with it. Thanks to their natural endurance, they are able to withstand low food intake, continuous whipping and injuries caused by physical stress and salt water.

The use of Gals is exclusive to the Talamite, and even their clients think it’s somehow unethical. But business is business and using Gals for navigation is a cheap and tremendously efficient resource that allows a Galley to sail with only around 10 crew members, so for the time being the Talamite will continue to get rich at the expense of the suffering of innocent creatures.

Based on true events: Galeots are inspired by “Galeotes” (also known as “Talamites”) which is the Spanish name for galley slaves back in medieval times, which were convicted criminals or prisoners of war sentenced to work at the oar. Even though criminals could earn their freedom by becoming a galley slave (if they survived), it was considered the worst life sentence. In Italian, the word “Galera” (Galley) is still in use for “jail”.

This Map features the "Levels" and "Better Roofs" modules by theripper93. For more information visit https://theripper93.com/

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