Ork Chunka

Nyreandal gently released the dwarf's chin, allowing his head to droop forward.  The cannulae  would finish the job of sluicing out the dwarf captain's fluids, but he had passed the point of anguished awareness of his fate, and so his eyes no longer drew the Witch Elf's interest.

She turned to survey the hold, desiring for one of the slaves to meet her eye.  She wanted to watch another's eyes as death warred with despair again.  And again.  And again.  Until there were no others but herself and her lover Khala Mensha Khaine- the bloody handed god.  Then she'd cut out her own entrails for Him.  And he'd look into her eyes.

Jaharea approached to a respectful distance.  The first mate's stayed on her dagger's hilt.  Assassination was the most honored path for advancement among the Witch Elves, and Nyreandal never lowered her guard around her sister.

“Well,” Nyreandal demanded.

“There is no sign of the Solace of Despair, Priestess.  They should have been here by now, and the Doomreavers sent, to find her have not returned.”

The Dark Elf fleet had split after the destruction of the fool dwarves.  The Black Arc Solace of Despair had gone southward with most of the Doomreavers and Death Fortresses with it.  Nyreandal's Sanguine Chalice had slowly gone northward, so long as the dwarven slaves lasted they were in no hurry for fresh meet.  

A slave crawled quickly forward on hands and knees.  He kept his face buried to the deck and he bled from abrasions where he had moved quickly across the rough floor of the hold.

“Dread mistress, a ship has been sighted.”  The slave's voice quaked.

Nyreandal cocked her head at Jaharea. “Ah there she is now.  The Solace returns even as you tell me the opposite...”

Jaharea's hand gripped her dagger slightly tighter.  As she licked her lips the slave spoke again.

“No mistress, orks-” was all the slave managed.  Nyreandal's spiked whip snaked around his throat and jerked him to standing.  Jaharea's dagger stabbed and twisted, cutting his beating heart from his chest.

“'No' is not a word for slaves to use.”  the captain turned to her first mate.  “Come let us see to these orks.”

*

From the foredeck Nyreandal's keen elven eyes could easily pick out the shapes of the ork ships.  Low slung drill laden ships looked almost shark like.  Catapult toting scows moved behind them.  But in the center was a monstrosity.  A single ship had been made by lashing together the hulls and broken pieces of dozens of smaller ships.  She could see the broken masted hull of a Bretonnian Corsair lashed to half of a High Elven dragonship.  The latter made he smile.  A turret from a dwarven ship of some kind had been crudely affixed to the side of a former Hellrammer of the decadent god.  Paddle wheels splashed, oars stuck through hulls here and there, and a dozen small sails were tied on with no apparent pattern or even usefulness.  And yet the ungainly mess came on.

“Jaharea.”

“Yes, Priestess.”

“Prepare the grapples.  We have throats to empty.”

The Witch Elf nodded and flicked away to relay the order.  There was the slightest rustling sound.  Nyreandal threw herself own against the deck as a hail of black shafted ballista bolts flew past.  At least a dozen of her crew were torn or broken by the flight.  The captain stood up.  Squinting slightly she could now make out the Reaper bolt thrower stationed placed on the bow of the former corsair.  The orks were gesturing and clumsily trying to reload the mechanism.

“Well, that accounts for the Solace of Despair.”

*

Dimmitz scratched his head, his back, and then his rear as he examined the Dark Elf grapple projector.  He wanted it for the Chunkastuff.  If he could just make it work.  

The Chunka is not so much a ship as a mass of flotsam.  It consists of the lashed together and crudely hammered together pieces of other ships.  A true Chunka will usually have most of three or more ships of the line (often each of a different race) as well as pieces from a dozen or more vessels tacked on where ever possible.  The main limit on the size of a Chunka is is seaworthiness and structural integrity.  It is common for a Chunka that gets too large to break into two or more pieces; each of which usually becomes a new Chunka under the command of the largest Ork on board, or quickly sinks.

No two Chunka's are exactly the same.  In fact even the same Chunka will usually vary from battle to battle as pieces fall off and new pieces get scavenged.  As a result fighting against a Chunka requires great care until it's capabilities are known.

The weapons on each Chunka vary significantly.  Orks have taken to fixing scavenged weapons into emplacements they call “Stickanz” (for “ware ya stickanz da gunz!”).  Orks have had the greatest luck with catapults (which has fundamentals that even the ork mind can grasp) and cannons (they can't make them but they are pretty good at using ones made by humans and dwarves).  They use elf bolt throwers when they can find them but their indelicate hands usually break them before long and so they are more rare.  Finally they sometimes manage to affix and operate some of the more exotic enemy weapons, but  this is rare.   

 
Ship stats

 1+ Chunka 
Ork Man o' War
cost 150 pts

Move: 1d6+1 inches.  Roll each turn when about to move ship.  If facing into wind moves at half speed (each inch of movement counts as 2”).  This movement is a combination of oars, paddle wheels, and sails.  The Chunka uses the standard turn template and may not turn in place although may back up at half speed (cumulative with moving into wind).

High:
3: Frunt Stickanz (2 damage).  One fore emplacement lost with each hit.  Save 4+
4: Moovy Bitz (1 damage).  Subtract 2 from move roll.  Save 5+
5: Cunnin Tow'r (1 damage).  No special effect.  Save 4+
6: Arse Stickanz (1 damage).  Rear emplacement lost.  Save 4+

Low:
2: Frunt (1 damage).  No special effect.  Save 4+
3: Moovy Bitz (1 damage).  Subtract 2 from move roll.  Save 5+
4: lefty/ritey Stickanz (2 damage).  One side emplacement lost with each hit.  Save 4+
5:Gubbinz (1 damage).  No special effect.  Save 4+
6: Moovy Bitz (1 damage).  Subtract 2 from move roll.  Save 5+

Below the Waterline: 7 damage. Save 6+

Crew: 5

Weapons-
rather than fixed compliment of weapons the Chunka's armaments are randomized before each game.  There are five emplacements, 2 to the front, two broadsides (hitting both sides as usual), and one rear mounted.  Roll of each, noting which weapon mount ends up in which place.  The fire arc for all weapons are as usual (straight ahead, straight left or right, or straight back as determined by which emplacement); the Chunka may have cannons in turrets but the turrets don't actually turn.

Roll 1d6 for each emplacement:
1-2: Catapult x1 (one catapult is in the emplacement)
3-4: Cannon(s).  Roll on the cannon table below.
5: Bolt thrower.  Roll on the Bolt thrower table below.
6: Exotic.  Roll on the exotic table below.

Cannon table (1d6):
1-4: 1 cannon in the emplacement.
5-6: 2 cannons in the emplacement (both lost if emplacement damaged).
add 1 to roll if rolling for a fore emplacement.  Subtract 1 from roll if rear emplacement.

Bolt thrower table (1d6):
1-5: High Elf Eagle Claw
6: Dark Elf Reaper
add 1 to roll if rolling for fore emplacement.

Exotic Table (1d6):
1: Ork Smash Hammers.  (exotic only because few Hulk captains will willingly part with theirs)
2: Human Hell Hammer.
3: Human Iron Fist.
4: Khornate Burning Skulls.
5: Chaos Dwarf Hull Destroyer. 
6: Skaven Warp fire Thrower.  (if the weapon explodes the emplacement it is mounted in is automatically damaged and ablaze, but the ship does not automatically sink).