How To Build: Ship

## Introduction

Ships are floating Minecraft Vehicles, typically they can built from 150 blocks to 50,000 blocks using navycraft spigot.

## Basic Info About Ships

These vehicles are typically used as combat vehicles or be used as methods to deliver cargo, including smaller vehicles.

* **Weight** : Blocks used to construct these vehicles have weight. Its important to remember that typical single block is 1 ton, while special blocks such as Obsidian are 20 tons. Weight if balanced right, can cause ship to go very slow or even sink.

* **Typical Uses of a Ship** : Navycraft usually is geared towards combat, modern combat with Engine signs acting as representing vehicle's power plant. While other features, such as Vehicle Control Sign used to steer and controls speed.

* **Air Block in Ship**s : Ships need air pockets (void spaces) in it's hull, especially if they are larger than Ship1. While you can't see them, there are air blocks. If there isn't enough empty areas inside a ship, the ship will likely sink.

* **Shaping of Vehicles Rule**: Naval Battlezone players are required to shape their vehicles to resemble a vehicle, typically a ship, however there is room for creativity.

* **Arm the Ship** : There is array of weapons you can put on your ship. This article Guide to: Vehicle Weapons, will aid you to what weapons are available for you to make your ship effective in combat.

* **Other Versions of the Ship**: This article will describe the basics of building a regular ship. There other sub-types of ships such as; Carrier and the Submarine.

* **Ship Sizes**: Ships (using shipyard system) have fixed sizes, from Ship1 (smallest) to Ship5 and rare ShipX (Large Faction only Ship).

* **Construction of Ships in Survival**: Vehicles using Navycraft spigot are usually constructed in Shipyard world. However, vehicles can be made in the Survival mode, but not easily. Not replaced easily, without extensive rebuilding.

See notes about construction in survival below, the following will describe how building can be done in the Shipyard, which allows for limited creative mode use.

### Planning

You want know what you want to build, which this can be somewhat time consuming.
Its assumed you will try construct a combat ship. There are range of weapons to choose from from basic gun boat to large Battleship to Guided Missile Ships. This example below will cover how to build a basic Navycraft ship.

### Basic Items

* Construction Materials: Blocks : You need Blocks, typically you want Minecraft blocks that are strong. Such as Iron, Cobblestone, other variants of basic stone type blocks. Others can be used, but combat can cause weaker blocks such as wood, terracotta/glazed clay to break when tnt repetitively fired at it.

* Construction Materials: Signs : You need certain vehicle oriented signs. Main ones will be a Ship sign and Engine Signs. Other signs are used for important but not vital systems, such as Radar, Sonar Sign for detection, Nav Sign for finding your way around the world, and others which will be noted below.

* Weapons : These are main anti-vehicle weaponry as well. See individual articles to see how assembling these weapons are done.

### Steps to Building

In a plot, you are going want take a picture of a ship you want make. You can maybe from website or old plans you find online.

* Plot - Remember, in a Ship plot (no matter what size) back of the ship is ALWAYS where the Plot signs are. Front the ship will always point away from them.

* Outline the Hull - Lay out a pattern (shape) of the ship you want. Sort stick figure of a ship. Using this as outline of the ship you want. From above, you see how it will look, while shape the hull way you want. Then you can move to the next setup.

* Add Blocks to Hull - The hull is the part of the ship that floats in water. Starting at the bottom, you want make it look like V shape if you were facing from front of the ship, aka the bow. Then you want put in walls inside part of the ship. You need air pockets (called void spaces) in the lower parts with NOTHING in them. Air blocks (you don't see those) keep your ship a float. The walls will also keep water flooding the ship, sinking it. You can add Doors or Signs to keep water flooding but still letting you walk through the ship. You need doors more lower parts of the ship.

* *Add Decks* : Decks are essentially floors of a building in ships. Depending on how big your ship is, you want have couple so you can keep your weapons and protected part of the ship from being destroyed. You add up to main floor of the ship, called Main Deck. Which is where your majority gun turrets, missiles (if you have them) AA-Guns and other weapons and of course superstructure will be mounted.

* *Superstructure* : This is the place your controls (if you want them there) and elevated weapons above cannons found on the main deck. This let's your gunners not end up accidentally shooting own ship and add more firepower towards your opponent. One of the most important parts of the superstructure is the Bridge, which is like tower on a ship, where you will want add a Ship sign to (or Helm sign to drive the ship and see where your going.

* *Add Weapons* : This is example assumes your going have ship mounting cannons and possibly machine guns on it. See Cannons for more info, but depending on how big your ship, you can have fully armored turrets protecting your guns or other protective weapons.

* *Add Engines and Other signs* : Signs are essentially added features to a ship. Aside from the Ship sign, you need enough Engine Signs which will move your ship. There are variety of Engines signs used in Navycraft. These Engine signs have unique names and stats, which move your ship or any vehicle used. This is where you need be careful Depending how big and how many blocks your vehicle has, you need to overcome the weight of the vehicle. So you need to make sure you add enough engines to move the ship. See the Engine Sign article more details. You also want to add Radar (find enemy), Nav (Sign) (find where you are), buoyancy sign see how heavy you are.

* *Detail your ship* - After you got the fundamentals of your ship done, you can then add comedic stuff to it. This is to make it fun and unique from other player's ships.

* *Testing Vehicle* - This is where you find out if what you came up WORKS. Buoyancy sign is free sign, it will be important so you can tell if your ship too heavy.

### Ship Construction Gallery

Step 1 - Make the Outline of the Ship. Looking down from above!Step 2 : Laying down the Keel (backbone) of the ship. Filling out the frame (ribs) of the ship.Step 3: Adding Engines and other things inside the hull before covering hull up.Step 4 : Finish the lower hull, know where your air pockets (void spaces), engines, and Ammunition reload the cannons, and other items.Step 5: Add main weapons (Guns, Missiles, Torpedoes) and superstructure where vehicle control sign goes.Step 6: Add extra items and details. Additional weapons, equipment signs (like Radar, Sonar, and Nav)Step 7: Trial Cruise. Spawn the ship, testing the ship if it floats, see if weapons are layed out the right way.
## Trouble Shooting

Why My Ship disappearing?
As per to the How To Build Vehicles, there are items that don't work on vehicles including ships. Illegal Blocks are primary thing that causes it. They are blocks cause vehicle to disappear, cease working and turned to a building and other glitches. Remember Natural blocks (Dirt (all types), grass, water, air blocks), Bedrock, non-solid blocks (Water, Sand, Powdered Cement) among others will cause glitches ore simply not WORK on a vehicle.
Why is my SHIP & SUBMARINE sinking to bottom of the ocean?
As mentioned in the How To: Build Vehicles, all blocks are assigned weight. These blocks add up. If you don't have something countering the weight, such as air pocket (void space) inside your vehicle somewhere, there good chance it will slowly sink as you drive it. Also too many blocks per size of the vehicle will cause it to sink no matter what you do.  Buoyancy sign will help you figure out how much weight you need to gain/loss.  As too much airpockets in a Submarine will make it unable to sink.
## Gallery

Example of a Ship1, Light Destroyer USS Splendid.Example of a ship 2 size ship, a Submarine. Which can also be used launch smaller vehicles.Example of a Ship3 size ship, USS New Orleans.Example of a Ship4 size ship, Aircraft Carrier Courageous.The Battleship, HMS King George V. An example of a Ship5 size ship.