Fictional lore of cruise ships
This page documents the fictional lore of cruise ships on the MRT. Please don't edit unless needed!
The Beginning
In the beginning, the shipping industry did not contain much. Ships were rarely over 15 metres long, and were mostly used for short distance travel. Ships wanting to travel between long distances often stopped at other places along the way. Ports were small, and mostly catered to smaller personal boats. This all changed when in 1853, a Mojanger engineer known as Bruce Andrews wanted to design a new type of ship, with a stronger hull and made for long distance travel without stopping. He started out by designing an engine that would endure the long voyage needed between Deadbush and Sunshine Coast. The first ship, the SS Deadbush, entered service in 1856, and was a commercial success.
Over time, more and faster vessels were built to sustain the long journeys needed between continents. The first drydock was built in 1861 in Aquamarine Bay, where the 418 GT SS Bahian, the largest ship in the world at the time, was built, though it was mostly used to build military ships. No other passenger ship would be built at the dock for the next 120 years. The first company formed to run ships as a passenger service was the Bahia Line, in 1850, who owned both the Deadbush and the Bahian. Others soon followed, and older ones started turning to steam powered massive ships.
As the 1880s rolled by, ships began losing masts, and gaining funnels. Notable ships in this era include the SS Takachsin of the Lumeva Line and the SS January of the Geneva Steam Company. 1883 saw the founding of the Shengnan Line, who was to be an influential company in the future. New drydocks emerged in Hendon, where they were used to build ships of UNET origin. 1889 saw the building of a new harbor and drydock in Wenyanga, Nansei-Gunto, still then a relatively unknown but valuable Mojanger town. This drydock is better known today as azaleatwo, which built some of the most famous ships in history.
The Early Liners
As 1890 came, so did the new biggest ship: Geneva Steam Company's SS February, at 559 GT. However, Andrews had a new idea: a ship that could carry over 50 passengers, completely unheard of at the time. Bahia Line proceeded to build the massive 587 GT 25m long SS Suidwestern, the largest ship in the world. She had three funnels, and was seen as luxurious at the time. But now, Nansei-Gunto was quickly becoming a massive hotspot for ships, and Deadbush practically died overnight as a liner hub. Sunshine Coast, Marisol, and Titsensaki were the other popular destinations, and most liners operated one of these routes, particularly SSC-Wenyanga. The latter began building up its port, and built another drydock, bigger than the previous one. 1894 saw the first ship built in the now finished first dock: Silver Star Lines' RMS Brazil, the first of many ocean liners to be built in Wenyanga. The original dock was 30m long, easily enough to fit the 20m Brazil, though now it's almost four times that number.
Also founded in 1895 was the Gunto Line, and they launched with a bang, ordering their new ship the SS Great Wenyanga, the first ship to break 30m and 600 GRT. She was the pride of the ocean and the largest ship in the world, operating to many faraway destinations. By now, most smaller lines had been given to the larger ones, and so each area had one line, like UNET's Geneva Steam Line, Bahia Line and Lumeva Line. Other companies wanted that pride too - Lumeva had the 1897 SS Pride Lumeva at 27m, Geneva had the 1895 SS Thames at 31m, Silver had the 1899 RMS Paraguay at 25m and Bahia had the 1897 SS Noordwest at 29m.
The 1800s were closing, and giving way to the 1900s. The lines knew that by making larger ships, they could survive. And so, the company that kicked off 1900 was none other than Geneva, with the 840 GT 33m SS April. With more prominent ocean liners beginning to take the scene, companies began building larger and larger ships. Lumeva Line introduced the 852 GT SS Oak in 1903, and slowly, ships started growing longer in length. The killer came in 1907, when Bahia Line introduced the SS Suidoost. At just over 1000 GT, and 39m, she became the largest in the world. She had three decks, a first, where the second deck was for first class passengers, and contained a mini-restaurant. She was put on the Sunshine Coast to Shenghua line, and thousands greeted her when she arrived in Shenghua on 26 July 1907. Founded in 1910, the Wuhei Steam Ship Company of Shenghua was one of the newer and more influential ones, and it started when its founder saw Suidoost dock on that day. The entry of Suidoost called for drastic changes and introductions, and Geneva introduced SS May in 1909. At 982 GT, she still wasn't big enough. Not even SS Birch or RMS Costa del Sol could stand up to her. But it all changed in 1911.
The Marisol Tragedy
In 1911, Bahia beat their own record with the 1080 GT, 40m SS Noordoost. She was a slightly longer copy of her sister, and operated out of a new port in Mojangsburg, to Wenyanga. The very next year, Gunto Line did what the others couldn't, and put into service the 40m 1104 GT SS Shenghua. Incredulously, she had taken the record. Shenghua operated to Sunshine Coast, and enjoyed her record for the time being. But another company had a trick up their sleeve.
In 1914, Silver Star Lines put into service the RMS Jeomto. Also at 40m, she was weighed at 1123 GT, making her the new largest ship. Jeomto set a new speed record too, and set new standards of luxury never seen before. Tourist Class saw less beds and more amenities, and First Class got a library. Gunto Line was stumped. They had been beaten! And what's more, a sister ship was in the works too. On 2 April 1915, the brand new 42m long 1159 GT RMS Marisol sailed out of the drydock in Wenyanga so her sister RMS Totem Beach could start construction, and started the long trudge to her namesake city of Marisol. She arrived on April 10, and prepared for the next 30-40 years of service with her new owners Silver Star Lines. On 13 April, to fanfare and applause all around, the world's largest ship set sail for Shenghua. She never made it to her destination.
As she was heading south of Bahia on the night of 14 April, she passed through an ice field on her way. Thick midnight fog prevailed, and visibility was reduced to almost zero. Suddenly, without warning, the lookout shouted out "Berg dead starboard!" The first mate replied with "Full port", and attempted to swerve the ship out of the way. Unfortunately, she hit the iceberg straight on her starboard side, and immediately began taking water. Unaware of the situation, passengers kept drinking and partying. It was 45 minutes before the order to abandon ship was made, and even then, some passengers were reluctant to leave their stuff, and warmth, behind. By the early hours of 15 April, RMS Marisol had sank beneath the waves, and 58 of the 72 on board were killed in the worst maritime disaster of the 20th century.
The Deadbush-Formosa War
The disaster rocked the maritime industry, and it was brought to a virtual standstill due to the loss of Marisol. However, within a few months, it had somewhat got back up and running again. Silver Star Lines had to use another smaller ship, the RMS Ciampino, as the running mate for Jeomto, who now didn't have one. While the reputation of Silver Star Lines wasn't exactly tarnished, seeing as the ship's fate was unavoidable, the company had been keeping some parts of the story from the public to prevent discord. However, with the Deadbush-Formosa War raging in all its entirety in 1916, ships were requisitioned as troop, supply, and hospital ships, including Jeomto, May, Birch, Shenghua, Noordoost, and the new Jeomto sister RMS Totem Beach, who played a role as a hospital ship. However, this war saw great casualties - on 9 May 1917, Suidoost was torpedoed off of Arcadia killing all 67 on board of which 55 were Bahian citizens, prompting Bahia's entry into the war as an ally of Deadbush, and on 23 June 1919, Totem Beach was blown up by a landmine just north of Peacopolis, killing 5.
All the way back in 1915, Shengnan had started their mark on ocean liners, with the RMS Lumeva I launching in 1917 to compete with the Great Wenyanga. The war did not treat her well, and she met an early end when she blew up while in Foresne in 1919. Also on the scene in 1919, was the RMS Aquatic of WSSC, which, thankfully enough, didn't meet her end during the war, instead sinking off Akiko Bay in 1927 after hitting rocks in bad weather.
On 14 October 1920, Formosa agreed to sign a treaty with Deadbush, ending the gruelling war. It had been over 4 years, and a total of 8 liners were lost, the largest being Totem Beach. This included four Silver Stars: Brazil, Uruguay, Salvador and Totem Beach. With the terms of the treaty, Formosa's ally UNET - and by extension Geneva Steam Company - had to give up their two newest ships. The first was SS June, at 42m. She ended up as Bahia Line's Noordester. SS July, her identical twin, went to Lumeva Line as RMS Mahogany. Now that the war was over, the lines could get back to normal operations - or so it seemed. The market crash of 1921 saw many beloved ocean lines sell out - Geneva went out first, being sold to Bahia Line. It, in a turn of events, was merged with Gunto Line, who absorbed Lumeva Line in the process. The amalgamation was renamed the Southern Ocean Line, and had a fleet of many ships, some older ones (like Great Wenyanga, Pride Lumeva, Thames, and Noordwes) were forced to leave the fleet for scrapping. In their place, Southern planned vast new ships, the likes of which had never been seen before.
Newer and Better
By 1922, there were four main lines. Silver Star Lines, Southern Ocean Line, Wuhei Steam Ship Company, and Shengnan Line. They each wanted newer and better ships. Wuhei was gathering money so it could order the Draconic trio in 1924, Shengnan was still producing the Lumeva class, with RMS Empress of Hendon being the latest addition. Silver was building RMS Grandiosa, which was due to enter service in 1923, and Southern had ordered the Southern class of ships while maintaining its disorganized, new fleet. The first to release was Empress of Hendon, but she was small, at 982 GT. Next up was Grandiosa, and at 1231 GT, she took the title of largest ship in the world, as well as fastest. True to her name, she was the most luxurious ship on the seas, having a first class restaurant, a lounge, a smoking room, and more. Next in 1925 was Southern Star, Southern's first built liner, who was at 1182 GT and couldn't take the pride of the largest. 1926 saw the release of SS Empress of Foresne (1010 GT) and RMS Draconic (1112 GT), 1927 saw Draconic's sister RMS Falconic (1128 GT) and Southern's Southern Cross (1240 GT, largest ship in the world), while 1928 saw RMS Lujosa (1256 GT, largest ship in the world) and Shengnan's new class SS Emperor of Shenghua (1146 GT). It seemed that the liner world was getting back on its feet.
All four lines ran between roughly the same area, between Bahia and Nansei-Gunto. Both Shengnan and Wuhei based out of Shenghua, but Shengnan served Sunshine Coast while Wuhei served Pretoria. Silver Star Lines did Marisol to Wenyanga and Kazeshima, and Southern operated to Nansei-Gunto's four main cities out of Sunshine Coast, with more ships heading to Wenyanga. However, it was time for things to change. All the lines ordered brand new ships, with new designs, sizes, and amenities never seen before. It was time for the next decade.
The Early Thirties
Every line knew that the others were scheming to make newer and better ships than them, and they would just have to make them better than the others. The best would take the money, and the first would get the media. And first on the scene was just a lengthened Draconic - RMS Macronic, at 1140 GT, wasn't exactly anything to write home about. Second was SS Emperor of Autunno, and she wasn't anything to write home about either, at 1147 GT, one more than her sister. Who would introduce something new to the block? The answer would come in 1931, when Silver Star Lines launched the smaller 1122 GT RMS Modernus I. She wasn't as big as the other ships, but she was popular simply due to her new design. She had a much smoother and newer look, making her sleeker, plus she was used as a cruise ship in UNET during the Southern winter, making her the world's first cruise ship. While she wasn't as big as her counterparts 30 years later, it was a start, and she was still a good moneymaker. But who would come next, and be bigger? Southern came to the rescue with its 1320 GT Southern Pilot in 1933. It was the new largest ship, and also boasted the new design of Modernus. And so, it became the popular one, and made lots and lots of money. Also in 1933 was the 1174 GT RMS Sao Paulo, the sister of Modernus. But everyone else was not very busy. At least, it didn't seem like it. Southern was sorting out their ships, and Silver was working on RMS Rio de Janeiro, their next ship.
But two companies, as well as one man, were working as hard as they could, so that they could change history come 1934.
All the way back in 1931, the City of Shenghua decided to choose one of the two Nanseisian ocean lines to be the official line of Nansei-Gunto. Both Shengnan Line and Wuhei really wanted the coveted title, and so both tried as hard as they could to obtain government support - pleading, advertising, and even bribing (the government politely turned the offers down, something that would be seen as at least illegal today) to get their way. However, Shenghua had a plan. In 1932, both owners met with the government to discuss the possibility of a merge. This was initially rejected by both parties, who both offered suggestions in order to make it more fair for themselves and the other. Eventually, a deal was reached in 1933, and it was decided to merge both companies. On 29 May 1934, Shengnan Line Inc. and Wuhei Steam Ship Company merged to form Aqua Star Line. Both companies' ships were integrated into the new company, and Aqua became the official line of Shenghua.
But they weren't the first new line of 1934. Back in 1932, Pieter van Bruin, a Wenyangan entrepreneur, saw an opportunity to perhaps get the city back into the glory of operating a shipping line again. It was still a prestigious and important port in Nansei-Gunto, it just needed its own company with it, and van Bruin saw exactly what he needed to do. On 15 April 1934, a full month and a half before Aqua Star Line, van Bruin founded Nansei Shipping Lines. It was to provide passengers with cheaper fares and more availability to passengers, and allow everyone to travel. It was a huge success, and NSL found itself ordering three more ships atop the original one ship, to make four.
1935 saw the introduction of two new ships. The first was RMS Rio de Janeiro, of Silver Star Lines, the last of the Modernus class. The second was the tiny 783 GT SS Gaia, the very first NCL ship. While her style was reminiscent of the late 1800s ships, she was much cheaper than her rivals, and as such, despite the cramped environment, she became extremely popular. So popular, in fact, that a sister was ordered. And another one, and another one. SS Terra and SS Nova, both at 819 GT, entered service in 1936 as copies of Gaia, and SS Gladia, the largest yet, at 850 GT, entered service in 1937. While 1937 also saw Southern Viking of Southern Ocean Line, it also saw something much more horrific, and much more impacting on the shipping industry than ever before.
Nansei Civil War
Back then, Nansei-Gunto was a territory of the Epsilonian Empire. Even then, it was disputed who even owned it. Many saw Queen Vulpicula I, the queen at the time, as its owner, though in actuality Nansei-Gunto was simply a subject of the Queen. While Shenghua was seen as the capital, it was really just a puppet capital of the region - it was Kazeshima that held all the power, and soon this would be trouble to the other cities. Kazeshima owned a territory called Northern Shahai. This was given to them in 1888 by the island of Shahai as a price for losing the Second Shahai War of 1882. The people were treated as slaves here, and the other cities couldn't do anything about it. Finally, Kazeshima had claimed several islands, building military bases. Tensions had formed, and Wenyanga had warned Kazeshima that any attempt of hostility would result in war between it and the rest of the nation. Kazeshima responded to this with the equivalent of "so what, I'll wipe you out anyway". And so, keeping true to their promise, on 9 July 1937, when Kazeshima invaded the region of Nueva Seriade, committing several war atrocities, Wenyanga declared war. This was followed by Shenghua and Shahai, who formed the Allied Powers. Because of this, all of ASL's and NCL's ships were converted into troopships. This included Silver Stars as well, as Suncheon and New Kaloro played a small part in the war.
Because Nansei-Gunto was the important other destination of all the ocean lines, the shipping industry began losing money. Surprisingly, the war saw three losses of ocean liners. The first was RMS Empress of Hendon of Aqua Star Line. On the night of 30 August 1939, while performing a standard trip to Sunshine Coast to pick up supplies with navigation lights off, it was struck by a submarine on the port side off the city of New Genisys, sinking the ship within five hours and killing 4. The wreckage was later raised and sold for scrap in 1949, ten years after the sinking. The second was her sister, RMS Empress of Willow. While carrying troops between Shenghua and New Singapore (then just a fishing town) on 21 April 1940, she was spotted by a Kazeshiman L-2B bomber, whose pilot quickly nosedived into the ship he identified as belonging to the Allies. The ship caught alight, and 11 people including the pilot were killed out of the 32 on board. The attack and kamikaze happened in broad daylight, just 40 minutes out of Shenghua, providing a blow to the Allies. This was a very striking moment for Aqua, as they had lost two ships within the span of less than a year.
The third was the most famous of the incidents, as it provided world attention to what was happening. On 15 January 1945, SS Gladia of NSL left Shahai for a routine trip to Wenyanga to reposition troops and gather supplies. 20 kilometres north, she unknowingly entered the sight of the Kazeshiman battleship KZH Sapporo. Three torpedoes were fired, all which hit the ship straight on. Within five minutes she had sunk to the bottom of the ocean, killing 17 of the 20 on board. Her wreckage, discovered in 1992, can still be seen today.