The Roroa Maru is the first hovercraft in Landia and is named after its sponsor Roroa Amidonia. Its innovation is the ability to traverse water or land with ease and is an essential vehicle for transport over the frozen and snowy terrain of the Republic of Turgis.
History[]
During the negotiations for the Tripartite Medical Alliance between the Republic of Turgis, the Gran Chaos Empire, and the Kingdom of Friedonia, Gouran Taisei, the head of state for Turgis; pointed out that the harsh winter of his nation, blocked off the land and water routes for most of the year. There needed to be a way to traverse the snowy plains and frozen lakes and rivers in order to establish viable trade routes during the long winter season.
Kazuya Souma became inspired to re-create a vehicle from Earth that could overcome those harsh conditions and landscape. Thus he commissioned the genius Genia Maxwell, with backing from the Silver Deer Company, to build an amphibious ship using the hovercraft principal of Kazuya's world. This vehicle impressed Maria Euphoria so much, that she offered to buy the prototype for a large sum. Kazuya politely declined as he wanted to protect the ship's technology.
Design[]
The Roroa Maru is described to be the size of an elementary school gymnasium and is composed of two sections. The upper section is orange-colored and houses the main drive cockpit and the cargo hold, while the lower section is composed of a huge, rubberized section that creates an air cushion for the ship to ride on.
The principle to the hovercraft is simple. Using a Little Susumu device pointed downwards toward the ground, air fills up the rubber skirt and lifts the ship off the ground. Forward propulsion is most likely done by diverting some of the airflow toward the rear of the ship. Since the ship is riding on a cushion of air, uneven terrain of snow, mud, rock or even water is no consequence and can be glided over. Its top speed is said to be slightly higher than a charging rhinosaurus.
The ship is also equipped with a self-destruct device in order to avoid capture and to protect its secrets should it be seized by another nation.
Limitations[]
Since it requires a constant airflow to keep the ship running, the Roroa Maru needs to have a group of magic casters feed a large amount of magic into the Little Susumu device. As stated by Kazuya, the ship has a terrible cost to performance ratio. However, since it is only meant to be used during the winter months, this ratio is offset by the potential trade income.