I have returned... with a couple of arguments in favor of the airship:
1) The biggest one: just imagine it, parked outside of Pan's tree-house, tied up next to the giant tree. Just imagine that scene, with Mat's airship moored under the branches of the Great Tree. Does it not appeal?
...but if we have to be boring, and practical, well... the Badlands get flooded by the green tide once a generation. Even the dwarven supported lands (Greta) from Barak Varr have an "we shall run and meet them on the walls" strategy for dealing with those Warrghs. You know what Azul and K8Ps still have? A single wet river/land bound connection to the rest of the civilized words. During any such Waargh, I'll bet you a flying ship could carry a lot more necessary essentials/reinforcements/supplies/trade/fancy dwarven beer over the Badlands (and the orks heads) than any dwarven bombers.
After all, it would be an entire flying ship. This should be extra true if we make it to be cargo and combat, not full on speed. (we have acess to gyrocopters for that). That way it can still serve as expedition base, FOB for any wars/reconquests and so on, while looking really cute parked outside of Pan's door. And if we ever need to move something big again (like many boxes, Waystones, Dragonstones, a bunch of cannon, dwarves or knights on expedition, etc, etc.) we'd have our own way of traveling by air in both relative comfort (which might matter for any spoiled elven/noble passingers) and with at least a squad of support to back Mat up, whereever she is going.
(This would also be a permanent commercial/marketing to the dwarves on the wonders of magic... that can be rented. At least by Dwarven Kings.)
Besides... don't you want to be an air pirate, matey? (I mean, privateer, but it's the same thing)
Also, in the worst case scenario, it can serve as an evac vessel for VIPs if someplace is failing/falling/losing a siege. Or what a flying ship with cannon does to walls, in a siege scenario. The words "absolute range advantage" come to mind.
Mind you, a lot of nasty stuff has access to some kind of long range anti air attack, or some kind of flier of their own, but that's this wacky world for you. I still think our own cannon in the air should be better than most mundane options, and Mat can contest the magic ones.
... we may need to invent some kind of magical way to not die from falling, if it doesn't already exsist.
(Just imagine it: the ship can be Mat's home away from home. And then, when she comes home to K8Ps, she can moor her mobile home next to Pan's new home and say "Hi neighbour!")
Like... Dwaven Karak in need of reqonquest? Let me just get there in my flying ship armed with cannon and well supplied with dwarven beer and fresh slayers!
Black Fire pass is being assaulted by a milion greenskins? Let me just add some flying artilery to that! Mundane and. And. Magic...
I'm sorry. I really am. My stupid brain had an idea. It always does this.
Is there any reason why Mat... couldn't cast Burning Shadows from the bow of an airship high in the sky? Or its figurehead?
Why an airship couldn't be... let's say... desinged to optimise the application of that stupidly broken thing?
I mean, I know, we wouldn't be able to move the sun... but that's still a nasty suprise to be able to spring on any army in the open.
"Oh, if the Sun is out, and we can get east or west of you during Morning or Evening and the ground is mostly flat, you get to dispel my "Burn this Army" spell. Or die.
(Well, lose most of the non-elite units, but that's still a crippled army in the end.)
Someone correct me. Someone tell me I'm mad. That there's a reason why this should not, could not, would not work. There has to be one. Like Mat's shadow being insignificant from such a distance, without a tower/citadel to reinforce/enlarge the shadow cast.
Yeah. Actually, that would make sense. Even if the whole boat was part made/built/enchanted to enable that nonsense, its range, reach and scope would only be as big as the shadow of the ship.
Which would be sharply limited.
...
...during the day.
At night, with a potent incandecent light source on the ship itself?
Well. Shit.
I may have actually seriously talked myself into the airship option. Bloody Burning Shadows. No range or scope limits, just "shadow or shadows cast" by light "as bright as a torch or brighter" . Fix your broken shit, Games Workshop. Surely, Chaos, Gork and Mork will not let us keep getting away with this?
Or are we starting the Naggaroth v Ulthuan Airship Burning Shadow wars? (Wouldn't Naggaroth use dragons for this? Ulthuan too, now that I think of it. Shouldn't they already have been doing this for a while, if it was possible? I have so many questions.)