Ironcrag - Military

Ironcrag's military is mighty, but mostly protectionist. They will defend their nation and it's assets ferociously, but can rarely be bothered to mount offensive actions. Their warriors are amongst the most renowned melee fighters in The Shattered Veil, and are often buffed by some of the most uniquely exquisite weapons and armor in the world. Their Navy is armored and bristling with weapons, but slower since they usually act as escort for their barges.

Ground Forces: 20,000 active, with another 30,000 reserve forces that can be activated from amongst their population. Plate Armor, Shields, and Axes/Hammers are the most common. Ranged fighters tend to wield heavy or repeater crossbows, or hurl artificer-made concoctions or bombs.

Air Forces: None. Air travel is seen as dangerous, unreliable, and an unreasonable choice to transport heavy goods like stone and iron.

Navy: 60 Small, 60 Medium, 30 Large Vessels. Ironcrag vessels are all built around the idea of defense. Their defensive fleet complement usually includes two small and two medium ships for every one Large vessel. Fleets are almost always assigned transport protection duty for civilian trade vessels, or port protection duties.

Small Vessel (8-12 Crew) – Cragskiff Class Cutter - A squat, iron-plated cutter with a single reinforced mast. Built for escorting merchant convoys through treacherous seas, it deploys harpooners to reel in monster threats or enemy ships, while dwarven engineers trigger volcanic-smoke screens from hull vents to blind attackers.

Medium Vessel (30-40 Crew) – Deepforge Class Caravel - A broad-beamed caravel (30-40 crew) sheathed in overlapping basalt plates and fitted with retractable iron rams, crewed by marines and ballista teams. Its primary role is forming defensive cordons around trade fleets, using interlocking shield walls and chained anchors to create floating barricades that protect civilian hulls from pirate boarding or sea monster grapples.

Large Vessel (140-180 Crew) – Bastion Class Galleon - A mast-less towering galleon (140-180 crew) with triple-layered adamantine hull plating, raised forecastle battlements, and a central forge-tower powers steam engines and is used for on-the-fly repairs. Commanded by the High Forgemaster’s chosen captains, it anchors port blockades or convoy hearts, while its deck-mounted siege catapults hurl explosive pots to deter entire raiding fleets.