Aerial Kraken Defense Thread:

[von Corax]

Makes sense — an air gun for air kraken, and a naval gun for marine kraken.

[Caledonian]

I always assumed that harpoons were the weapon of choice against air krakens, reel them in and make skycalimari.

I also heard that certain sounds can ward them off...that might just have been said by someone who really didn't like the onboard piper

[Felscor]

I am in agreement with Caledonian's harpoons. I would imagine mounting them onto an airship, and propell ballista sized harpoons from an air powered gun. If such a vessel were to use helium instead of hydrogen, flamethrowers would be a must should an aerial Kraken managed to reach melee range.

This with understanding of no one vessel verse such a beast. A minimum of twelve to one ratio of airships to aerial Krakens. A formation to easily flank, decoy, and switch with another vessel is paramount.

The vessels need not be a class greater than a patrol, but should have ample ability to carry the oversized harpoons, flamethrowers, and the hull modified to be spiked in case of kraken entanglement.

The harpoons themselves should be 4 meters in length, including the head, and about 100mm thickness in diameter. Poisoning, explosives, or barbed will be unnecessary cost, as the harpoon head will be sufficient.

[J. Wilhelm]

But what you're all failing to address is what to do with the giant ink clouds released by the kraken when attacked!  Visibility goes to zero.

[Sir Henry]

But what you're all failing to address is what to do with the giant ink clouds released by the kraken when attacked!  Visibility goes to zero.

My dear sir, those clouds are really not much of a problem as they consist of a vapourised oily substance which, upon application of an open flame, combusts explosively. As long as your craft is sufficiently distant, all you need worry about is the pressure wave such an explosion causes.
Passing your airship through such clouds can have beneficial effects as the oils both lubricate mechanical moving parts and help preserve the wooden parts. This should be doneonly once you are certain that the air kraken has retreated or been neutralised.

Some of the cannier air krakens are now using their ink clouds as a close quarters weapon but an expeditious withdrawal and judicious deployment of H.J.Postlethwaite and Sons' patented Postlethwatic Incendiary Harpoon® will prove effective every time.
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[J. Wilhelm]

But what you're all failing to address is what to do with the giant ink clouds released by the kraken when attacked!  Visibility goes to zero.

My dear sir, those clouds are really not much of a problem

SNIP

n.b. This post may contain paid advertising content.

That would be practical, Sir Henry, if we didn't carry delicate atmospheric measurement equipment aboard.  Many such devices don't react well to oily substances.  And while the patina of Kraken ink might have preservative attributes, it does require an entire squad of luftschiffengel to clean a blackened deck after going through one of these clouds, as we have to restore the hull to USAC 234 Battle Grey standards!

There have been some experiments to pulverize Kraken oil by dissolving and evaporating the natural oils with mineral spirits, as a very deep shade of black pigment can be derived from Kraken ink.  That would be useful for stealth purposes, but the process is expensive and it's impractical to try to domesticate the krakens for farming purposes.

[Sir Henry]

That would be practical, Sir Henry, if we didn't carry delicate atmospheric measurement equipment aboard.  Many such devices don't react well to oily substances.  And while the patina of Kraken ink might have preservative attributes, it does require an entire squad of luftschiffengel to clean a blackened deck after going through one of these clouds, as we have to restore the hull to USAC 234 Battle Grey standards!

Ah yes, and presumably the pressure wave would be less than beneficial for any atmospheric equipment as well.
And presumably ropes and harnesses would be needed for the deck hands* cleaning the Slick Deck afterwards as a slip at seven thousand feet could easily be your last.

I may not have put enough thought into this. So far.


* Originally typed as 'deck hans'. I propose that any of the lower airship orders be known as Deck Hans from now onwards.

[J. Wilhelm]

* Originally typed as 'deck hans'. I propose that any of the lower airship orders be known as Deck Hans from now onwards.

Well, it just happens that we have a crew member by the name of Hans Dietrich "Deck" Fuller (which is somehow a very appropriate name for an airship envelope repairman), so that could create some confusion.  We wouldn't know if we were summoning the crew or the man.

PS

I just remembered something else related to harpoons.  There was a theory advanced by a professor at Brown University, regarding the possibility of harnessing krakens by way of tactical harpooning.  The theory involved simultaneously firing harpoons at two kraken without killing them and then harnessing the creatures ' propulsion, like a Roman chariot of sorts. The speeds that an airship could achieve by way of such a method of locomotion could only be guessed at.

But most of the military community was highly skeptical of such an outlandish proposal, as most kraken behavior under duress is unpredictable, notwithstanding said clouds of kraken ink.  The violent nature of an adult kraken implies that any ship tugging such a creature would be ripped apart in seconds.

Other people suggested the "Roman Kraken Chariot" could be accomplished by way of harnessing kraken younglings instead of adults, but the idea is highly impractical since adult krakens are highly protective toward their young.

[Dragon Scientist]

If it is black and oily, it might contain tar, which is not only a horribly sticky mess that is near impossible to remove, but it may also add extra weight to your dirigible and in the worst case throw it off balance. Always keep a safe distance!

[Felscor]

You make a distinctive point, melee contact with the aerial Krakens is sure death! Ditch the flamethrowers and spikes, unnecessary weight, and increase the harpoon cannon barrel length. Maybe if we could attach a rocket to the back of the harpoons... Hmmm