Rheitgeistiden (singular: Rheitgeistide), also called flying posts, were an enchanted means of aerial transportation which featured prominently during Soldiers Live. Originally used exclusively by the Voroshk family, at least seven of the conveyances were made available to the Black Company after some Voroshk were forced to ally with them. Unlike the similarly priceless but unrelated flying carpets, the flying posts could be operated by non-sorcerers, whereas the carpets could only be flown by the finest sorcerers after extensive training.
Rheitgeistiden were log-like in shape and had pedals for steering; when not in use, the Voroshk stood them upright on end. Along with the protective body covering called shefsepoken, the rheitgeistiden were viewed as the most privileged status symbol in the Voroshk world.
The Black Company used Voroshk flying posts extensively throughout their campaign against Soulcatcher and Mogaba in the homeworld. They appeared in noteworthy roles during the Battle of the Middle Ground and later in the Siege of Taglios (during which 2 of them were blown up). Croaker also put them to use in his confrontation with Kina below the fortress with no name and during the rescue of Arkana from Rhuknavr in the Voroshk world.
All rheitgeistiden contained within them a volatile kind of sorcery which, if triggered appropriately, would result in a devastating explosion. The two kinds of triggers are combat and ritual incantation:
- Examples of rheitgeistiden exploding in combat: at least one post exploded during the ambush of Lisa Daele Bowalk. And later, early in the Siege of Taglios, 2 of the Company's 7 rheitgeistiden (flown by General Chu and Mihlos Sedona) were detonated by fireball projector crossfire coming from Mogaba's soldiers. The resulting double explosion flattened about an acre of the sprawling Palace of Taglios.
- Ritual incantation: to keep power restricted to their family and prevent theft, the Voroshk built all the rheitgeistiden such that the simple recitation of a particular magic verse would cause the sorcery inside a specific post to explode with a massive concussive blast. Croaker used this functionality twice to his advantage. First, he tricked the chief Voroshk elders into detonating a post which was hidden near their shadowgate, which allowed virtually all the shadows of the glittering plain to invade the Voroshk world and wipe out countless people and animals. Second, Croaker detonated the rheitgeistide which Goblin was riding the moment he pierced Kina's brain with One-Eye's spear.