Wind Wagons powered by Air Elementals

My wind wagons powered by Air Elementals are based on 19^th century United States wind wagons.  After all, fiction based upon fact is often the most entertaining fiction.

 

For my player characters, Air Elemental Wind Wagons, these small yet swift wagons become very useful in situations where it would be unsafe for draft animals.  When far from civilized areas, draft animals are in danger from being eaten by wild animals or monsters.  They are in danger of being stolen by thieves or commandeered by soldiers during wartime.  Also, by being powered by an Air Elemental, a D&D Wind Wagon could be much larger, carrying more people and freight than a real Wind Wagon.

 

The Kansas Historical Society has an article about Wind Wagons.

 

https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/wind-wagons/12239#:~:text=They%20were%20similar%20to%20an,center%20of%20the%20front%20axle

The text reads:  “Along the westward-moving frontier, innovation and invention were requirements for survival and the early American settler was indeed a resourceful individual. It is not surprising that in the latter half of the 19th century ways were sought and found to utilize the energy provided by that great natural resource of the prairie—the wind.

“A novel device of the Kansas territorial period was the wind wagon, sometimes called a sailing wagon. Several were built and in 1860 the press gave them considerable attention. They were similar to an ordinary light wagon; weighed about 350 pounds; had a bed about three feet wide, eight feet long, and six inches deep; and were propelled by a sail or sails raised over the center of the front axle. When the breezes blew in the right direction the wagons were reported to skim over the prairies at about 15 miles per hour, with speeds at up to 40 miles per hour. At least one wagon was reported to have traveled from Kansas City to Denver in a little more than 20 days. Upon the arrival of a wind wagon from Westport, Missouri, a Council Grove newspaper asked its readers: "Who says now that the Santa Fe Trail is not a navigable stream." The few wind wagons that were built undoubtedly traveled further in the press than they did on the prairie and horses and oxen remained the basic mode of power for a good many years.

“One of the more interesting sagas of Kansas wind wagoning came in 1860. Samuel Peppard, who owned a sawmill on the Grasshopper River near Oskaloosa completed his contraption. Built with assistance from John Hinton, it was dubbed by his neighbors, "Peppard's Folly." Later it was suggested that because 1860 was a year of extensive drought and business was slack, Peppard built his frigate as a means of whittling away idle time. Peppard, undoubtedly, had a more ulterior motive in mind as on completion of the craft, he and his companions set out immediately for the Colorado goldfields.

“A fairly detailed and entertaining account of Peppard's journey over the prairie sea can be found at the Kansas Historical Society. Although not identified by name Peppard received some national notoriety when a correspondent of Leslie's Illustrated Magazine reported the arrival of the wind-schooner at Fort Kearney. In the grand literary style of the day, the correspondent wrote:

“The ship (appeared) in sight about 8 o'clock in the morning with a fresh breeze from east, northeast. It was running down in a westerly direction for the fort, under full sail, across the green prairie. The guard, astonished at such a sight, reported the matter to the officer on duty, and we all turned out to view the phenomenon. Gallantly she sailed, and at a distance ...not unlike a ship at sea.  In front is & large coach lamp to travel by night when the wind is favorable ... A crank and band wheels allow it to be propelled by hand when wind and tide are against them.

“For some strange reason, no mention was made of the wind wagon episode in Peppard's obituary. While alive, however, he took pride in relating his experiences with the wind-wagon.

“Peppard's wind wagon was neither the first nor the last to traverse the Kansas prairie. From time to time there were other reports of wagons equipped to utilize the state's greatest natural resource as a propellant. In 1877 the Kansas Pacific used sails on handcars. As late as 1887 John B. Wornall of Westport carried a small group to a camp meeting. In 1910 it was reported that a sailing schooner had been invented in Louisville, Kentucky.”

 

Note:  There are other ways PCs and NPCs could use elementals as a source of clean energy.  A Wind Elemental forcing air into a Fire Elemental could create an effective blast furnace - smelting ores such as copper or iron.  This would reduce the cost of that metal per ton.  In turn, that would make the PCs that own an elemental powered blast furnace much money.

Here is an image of Jim Johnson’s percentile dice of failure.

About 30 years ago, my UMD Duluth gaming group was playing a tabletop role-playing game.  (I forgot the name of the game).  We were in the basement level of A. B. Anderson Hall (ABAH).  A wide part of the hall has chairs, couches, and a table big enough to play our game upon.

 

The rules are based on percentile dice where 01 (one) is a critical success and 00 (one hundred) is a critical failure.  Mr. Johnson, an outgoing guy, was attempting to solve a mechanical puzzle that had stopped our player characters from moving forward.

 

The problem was to start a magical powered engine on a one hundred foot long riverboat.  The riverboat was bought by our party to travel upstream so we could find and capture a midlevel evil general for questioning.

 

What happened next is unbelievable.  I and my fellow gamers saw Mr. Johnson roll three 100’s in a row.  Our game master did the math and then told us that it was a one in one million event.  (Our game master also told Mr. Johnson that his character broke the engine.  Also, the engine needed expensive rebuilding by a team of expert engine mechanics.)

 

Jim Johnson became so angry (at rolling three critical failures in a row) that he threw these percentile dice at a nearby cinder block wall.  Knowing that these special dice might be valuable someday, I bought these dice from Mr. Johnson for one dollar.  I have kept these two dice in my dice bag that I keep on top of my bedroom dresser.

 

Are these dice loaded? Are they blessed or cursed to roll high numbers by the God or Goddess of percentile dice?  I saw this event happen before my eyes.  Yet, I still have trouble comprehending how anyone could roll three 100’s in a row.

Useful advice to be an entertaining tabletop role-playing game referee

1.  No more than six players per referee.  If you have more than six players, have two or more referees.  The reason is to give each player a better chance to have their moments to shine their skill or ability during each game session.

 

2.  While players should give game related advice, and sometimes be awarded experience points for contributing good ideas, to make their jointly created campaigns more entertaining; as a game referee, you are the final arbiter on what takes place within your fictional game universe.  Don’t allow a disruptive and obnoxious player to force you into making detrimental decisions that harms the enjoyment of your campaign for yourself and for other players.

 

3.  Do not allow any extraneous, irrelevant, or unrelated conversations while your campaign should be played.  You and your players only have a short amount of time to play each week or each month.  Thus, every minute of game time needs to be used for playing your campaign.

 

4.  Whenever I start a new D&D campaign, I always have a session zero for my players.  That way, all my future players know what to expect from our campaign.  My tone is drama, with some mild, safe for work comedy.  My PCs are recruited and then assigned their first assignments by a Lawful Good temple, respected noble, or trade guild.

 

For example, the Furriers' Guild has lost communication with their trappers, furriers, and fur transport voyageurs in a distant forest that’s full of money making, fur-bearing animals.  They have also lost contact with their two fur trading posts.  The guild hires the PCs to find out what has happened to them.  The PCs are hired to deal with any problems themselves or ask for aid from the guild.

 

The actual game play starts in the next scheduled session.  That gives my players time to think about what roles they want and what roles their team needs. 

 

5.  Questions that I ask my players:

Why do you play D&D?  How can I give you the experiences that draw you to D&D campaigns?  Some players love combat, others love finding and exploring forgotten ruins and overland trade routes.  Other players love the role-playing of improvisational theater, while others love making plans and then turning those plans into action.

What are the abilities each player brings to our group and how can I assist to bring that out?  If a player has a non-combat skill of cooking, they can be in charge of the party’s chuck wagon, a type of field kitchen covered wagon.

 

6.  Take the time to create brief character backstories for each player character.  That will assist the player to think of their characters as persons, instead of disposable, hand puppets.

Player’s character:  An experienced fighter named Leif Erikson.  His wife’s name is Batilde Erikson who is a retired female warrior.  Leif’s fourteen year old daughter is Saga Erikson.  A few weeks ago, Saga started her basic ranger training.  This short description of Leif’s family, as a permanent part of the character’s written records, reinforces the idea that Leif has a family worth fighting for and something to look forward to returning to.

A touching scene of farewell

Lastly, please read other online articles that have addressed this topic better than I have here.  The more work you put into your campaign before it starts, the more entertaining your campaign will become.

The time I became someone’s hero at Jamar Scout Camp!

I attended a weeklong Boy Scout adventure, while earning my merit badges and skill awards at Jamar Scout Camp.  One evening, I saw an adult woman being physically intimidated by about six, rowdy boy scouts.  That woman, not much bigger than the young boys around her, was in obvious, emotional anguish.  Next to the boys, three men who were scout leaders watched this incident without taking any action to stop that harassment.

Knowing that something even worse might happen, I stepped between the woman and the boys.  I then took her by the hand, and then we both walked about fifty feet away from the boys.  Letting go of her hand, that woman then thanked me for “saving her”.  She then got into her car, drove off, and I never saw her again.  I consider the time I became someone’s hero from those rowdy boys to be one of my best achievements.

You don’t need Thor’s Hammer, Captain America’s Shield, or Iron Man’s Armor to be a hero.  All you need is the willpower to do the right thing for someone else, without expecting a reward.

“Is it really that time again?” Ending speech – The G-man, Half-Life 2

I’m planning to attend the 2023 Duluth Superior Film Festival – starting Thursday, Oct 5, 2023 – ending Sunday, Oct 8, 2023.

I found more Twisted Tea flavors

My friends and I love drinking these Twisted Tea flavors.  My friend Bard told me that after she drank one can of this, she slept without pain for two hours.

Another foggy morning in Duluth, Minnesota

Tomorrow is forecast to bring warmth and sunshine that will bring a smile to my face.