Pewternaut
| Pewternaut | |
|---|---|
| |
| Type | Warship |
| World of Origin | Scadrial |
| Universe | Cosmere |
“Why do we need warships? The Basin is alone on land and on seas. From whom do we need protection? ”
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The Pewternaut is a class of steel-hulled warships from Scadrial. They were developed by Lord Mayor Bastien Severington of Bilming along with Dr. Florin Malin around 342 PC.[1]
They are heavily armored warships with reinforced hulls, electrical rangefinders, and a total armament of sixteen 12-inch naval artillery guns, with a range of 16 miles. They are capable of reaching a top speed of 24 miles an hour. The Pewternaut represented a significant technological advancement compared to the clipper ships typically in use around the Basin.[1]
Senator Inis Julien and other members of a delegation from Elendel that were invited to the unveiling of the ships publicly mocked them as unnecessary.[1] This likely contributed to growing anti-Elendel sentiment in other cities, some of it incited by Lord Severington.[2]
History
Under the covert direction of Telsin and the Set, Bilming continued building up its fleet and developing its weaponry in the following years, supposedly under Elendel's control, but in actuality clearly for its own purposes.[3]
In 348 PC, Telsin used the Pewternaut A16 as a backup method of bringing a powerful bomb from Bilming to Elendel after the original rocket-based system failed to work.[4] Using the Pewternaut meant that the bomb could not be blocked by train or road closures, the boat was also set on a straight course to Elendel, and set up so that if brought off course, the bomb would detonate. Despite this, Wax and Wayne were able to prevent the bomb from properly detonating, at the cost of Wayne's life. This also destroyed the ship.[5][6]
Trivia
- The Pewternaut is described as something analogous in nearly every way to the real-life ship sub-class of battleship starting with their namesake, HMS Dreadnought, which possessed 5 twin 12-inch naval artillery guns at the exact same speed. Given the increased weight in naval guns at the same speed, it can be speculated that the first Pewternaut(s) were built with less protection. Additionally, the most likely layout of the main battery is 2 super-firing turrets forward, 2 aft (rear), and 2 turrets on either side allowing for a hefty broadside of 12 of their 16 guns.[7]
