Welcome to Gaia! ::

Your Captain: Sinbad the Sailor
Your First Mate: Idé

Rumors on the High Sea-

August 7th, 2012- Nothing, this crew was just created!

Ranks

Captain

It has often been said that pirates were one of the first true democracies, in that they elected their captains, and often other officers as well. It must be stated that though there are several examples of pirates being voted into and out of power this was not always the case by any means.

Whether he commanded by election or imposition the pirate captain was the supreme commander aboard his ship. The men sailed where he told them to, fought when and whom he told them to and on the whole were ruled by him. For the elected captain his position was a precarious one, his men would obey him as long as he kept making sensible orders and brought them success, if he failed they would vote him out of office and elect another in his place. For the captain who ruled by force the position was equally precarious, if he failed to lead them successfully he faced mutiny and murder.



First Mate

The First Mate is the officer who ranks just below the Captain of the ship and takes over in the event that the Captain can no longer perform his duties. The duties of the First Mate are more or less to act as the captain's deputy. He commands in the captain's absence. He is the second-in-command.



Boatswain


The boatswain (or bosun) was one of the most important men aboard any sailing vessel. He was responsible for "...all the ropes in general belonging to the ship: with all her cables, anchors, and sails; her flags, colours and pendants...". He was also responsible for making sure every man was correctly on watch and at his station. During battle it was a small group of the best seamen under the command of the boatswain and his mates (if he had any) who saw to the sailing of the ship while most of the crew worked the cannons. On many ships the boatswain was also responsible for discipline. In some ships the boatswain also took on the duties of master gunner.


Carpenter

A ship's carpenter was the man who kept the ship afloat, making necessary repairs, filling holes if need be, and so on. Carpentry was an extremely useful skill onboard ship and good carpenters were highly valued.

Gunner

Gunners were skilled men who aimed the guns on a ship. In some instances a master gunner would give orders to other gunners on how to set their guns during a broadside. It took years of practice to become a good gunner.


More Ranks Coming~