DM Tips:Crafts

[top]Trapping

Rabbits, hares and other small burrowing creatures can be caught by placing nets over the entrance holes to their burrows and sending a terrier down another burrow hole, the rabbit flees out and is caught in the net. An alternative is to place nets over holes in fences or walls where the fleeing animal has only a small number of flight options.

[top]Bug

The Khinasi keep the scourge of mosquitoes and other flying insects away using extremely fine nets which allow in the breeze and soften sunlight without creating shadow and are thus preferabe in Avani's eyes to walls which block her gaze. All the tribes of man use some degree of netting in bee-keeping to protect the bee-keeper from the stinging insects.

[top]Fishing

Fishing nets are used by all people living by the sea, a river, or some other body of water - which means almost all the people of Cerilia.
Gill nets aka tangle nets float freely or are attached to a drifter, they catch fish that swim near the surface by trapping the gills of the fish.
Stake nets are tied firmly to stakes on opposite side of a river and catch fish swimming up or down stream. They can also be used in tidal areas to catch sea fish.
Trawl nets have weights on one end and thus hang downwards in the water. Trawl nets are towed behind a fishing ship and they allow fish to be scooped up, often from great depths. Trawl nets are shaped like an open bag and kept open by floats or otter boards (effectively an under-water kite) at the top end.
Seine nets One end of a long net is fixed to the bank, the other end is attached to a boat which sails out and then arcs back in to the shore. People on the shore then drag the net in at both ends, the net is held open by floats and weights and so any fish in the area encircled are likely to be caught.
A variant on seine nets for use at sea is where one end of the net is left attached to a floating buoy and the ship then sails in a complete circle. Ropes threaded along the entire length of the net are then pulled in, drawing the net into a bag shape which is then hauled onto the ship.
A lift net is left at the bottom of an area of water and then lifted after a time when fish have swum in, these are commonly use in tidal areas, or where areas can be flooded and then evacuated.

[top]Carrying

Nets can be used as a means of transporting goods as an alternative to a sack or cloth bag. A net used in the fashion has the advantage of being lighter and less bulky than a sack when notin use.

[top]Hammocks

A hammock is a net 7 - 8 feet long and 3 to 4 feet wide that is strung between two pillars (commonly trees or hooks on a ship) and then used instead of a bed. Hammocks are cooler than beds, swing freely on a ship making for a more restful slumber, and store away far more easily than a bed.

[top]Hunting

In some places nets are used in hunting, the hunter throws the net (which generally has a circular shape, small weights at the edges to make it unfurl when spun and a draw cord along the outside which can be pulled to make a bag from the net) over their prey and the net then immoblises the target (hopefully). Some Vos slavers use nets lined with thorns or hooks so that their victims do not struggle against the net.