Blood In the Water (54 page)

Akagi
Class CVs (Aircraft Carriers)
—800
′
x 100
′
, 12,000 tons. Twin screw, double-expansion steam, max speed 14 knots. Crew: 1,100. Armament: 10 x 3
″
AA mortars, 10 x Type 89 MG (copies) 7.7 x 58 mm SR cal.* 40-60 aircraft.

Azuma
Class CAs (ironclad cruisers)
—300
′
x 37
′
, about 3,800 tons. Twin screw, double-expansion steam, sail auxiliary, max speed 12 knots. Crew: 320 Armament: 20 x 40 or 14 x 100 pdrs. 4 x firebomb catapults.

Heavy “Indiaman” Class
—multipurpose transport/warships. Three masts, square rig, sail only. 180
′
x 38
′
, about 1,100 tons (tonnage varies depending largely on armament, which also varies from 0 to 40 guns of various weights and bore diameters). The somewhat crude standard for Grik artillery is 2, 4, 9, 16, 40, 60, and now up to 100 pdrs, although the largest “Indiaman” guns are 40s. These ships have been seen to achieve about 14 knots in favorable winds. Light “Indiamen” (about 900 tons) are apparently no longer made.

Tatsuta
—Kurokawa's double-ended paddle/steam yacht. It is also the pattern for all Grik tugs and light transports.

Aircraft
—Hydrogen-filled rigid dirigibles or zeppelins. 300
′
x 48
′
, 5 x 2 cyl 80-hp engines, max speed 60 mph. Useful lift 3,600 lbs. Crew: 16. Armament: 6 x 2 pdr swivel guns, bombs.

AJ1M1c (“M” for “Muriname”) Fighter
—9 cyl 380 hp radial. Max speed 260 mph, max weight 1,980 lbs. Crew: 1. Armament: 2 x Type 89 MG (copies) 7.7 x 58 mm SR cal.*

DP1M1 Torpedo Bombe
r—2 x 9 cyl 380 hp radials. Max speed 180 mph, max weight 3,600 lbs. Crew: 3. Armament: 1 x Type 89 MG (copy) 7.7 x 58 mm SR cal.* I torpedo or 1,000-lb. bombs.

*Note: No MG of any type is available to any Grik other than those under the command of Hisashi Kurokawa on his ships, or the island of Zanzibar.

Field Artillery
—The standard Grik field piece is a 9 pdr, but 4s and 16s are also used, with effective ranges of 1,200, 800, and 1,600 yds, respectively. Powder is satisfactory, but windage is often excessive, resulting in poor accuracy. Grik “field” firebomb throwers fling 10- and 25-lb. bombs, depending on the size, for a range of 200 and 325 yds, respectively.

Primary Small Arms
—Teeth, claws, swords, spears, Japanese-style matchlock (
tanegashima
) muskets (roughly .80 cal).

Savoie
—548
′
x 88
′
, 26,000 tons. 4 screws, 20 knots. 1,050 officers and enlisted. Armament: 8 x 340 mm, 14 x 138.6 mm, 8 x 75 mm.

Leopardo
—Leone (Exploratori) Class destroyer. 372
′
x 34
′
, 2,600 tons. Twin screw, 30 knots. Armament: 8 x 120 mm, 6 x 20 mm, 4 x 21
″
torpedo tubes. 210 officers and enlisted.

Like Imperial vessels, Dominion warships fall in a number of categories that are difficult to describe as classes, but again, can be grouped by size and capability. Despite their generally more primitive design, Dom warships run larger and are more heavily armed than their Imperial counterparts.

Ships of the Line
—About 200
′
x 60
′
, 3,400–3,800 tons. 64–98 x 24 pdrs, 16 pdrs, 9 pdrs. Speed, about 7–10 knots, 470–525 officers and enlisted.

Heavy Frigates (Cruisers)
—About 170
′
x 50
′
, 1,400–1,600 tons. 34–50 x 24 pdrs, 9 pdrs. Speed, about 14 knots, 290–370 officers and enlisted.

Aircraft
—The Doms have no aircraft yet, but employ “dragons,” or “Grikbirds,” for aerial attack.

Field Artillery
—9 pdrs on split-trail carriages—effective to about 1,500 yds, or 600 yds with grapeshot.

Primary Small Arms
—Sword, pike, plug bayonet, flintlock (patilla-style) musket (.69 cal). Only officers and cavalry use pistols, which are often quite ornate and of various
calibers.

Photo by Jim Goodrich

Taylor Anderson
is the
New York Times
bestselling author of the Destroyermen series, including
Straits of Hell
,
Deadly Shores
, and
Storm Surge
. A gunmaker and forensic ballistic archaeologist, Taylor has been a technical and dialogue consultant for movies and documentaries and is an award-winning member of the United States Field Artillery Association and of the National Historical Honor Society. He has a master's degree in history and has taught that subject at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. He lives in nearby Granbury with his family.

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