Custom Armor
Copied from Combat 24 AND 25, HM1 with Permission of CGI
The following rules allow for the custom design of almost any piece of armour, of any size, from any materials. Only common sense restricts the options. …. In general, characters may order, and weaponcrafters can make higher quality armour, increased thickness of any material, unusual combinations of materials, and so on.
The following table shows the surface area of human body parts as a percentage of the whole; (Rest of original text omitted.)
Skull |
4% |
Thorax |
12% |
Face/eyes |
3% |
Abdomen |
12% |
Neck |
2% |
Both Hips |
9% |
Both Shoulders |
3% |
Groin |
1% |
Both Upper Arms |
6% |
Both Thighs |
14% |
Both Elbows |
2% |
Both Knees |
3% |
Both Forearms |
5% |
Both Calves |
12% |
Both Hands |
5% |
Both Feet |
7% |
A weaponcrafter designing a garment must calculate the percentage of the body that it will cover. All factors of cost, weight, etc. are derived from this. A vest, for example, covers the Shoulders (3%), Thorax (12%), and Abdomen (12%); this means that it covers 27% of the whole body.
Each material is rated for relative weight, cost of materials, time to make (hours), and retail price:
|
Material |
Weight |
Cost Material |
Make |
Retail Cost |
|
Cloth |
0.05 |
0.4d |
1
hr |
1d |
|
Leather |
0.15 |
0.7d |
2 hrs |
2d |
|
Quilt |
0.20 |
1.2d |
4 hrs |
4d |
|
Kurbul |
0.18 |
1.0d |
5 hrs |
5d |
|
Ring |
0.35 |
1.1d |
9 hrs |
7d |
|
Scale |
0.60 |
1.6d |
13 hrs |
13d |
|
Mail |
0.50 |
0.8d |
20 hrs |
15d |
|
Plate |
0.75 |
1.5d |
30hrs |
25d |
WEIGHT
The weight (in pounds) of any piece of armour may be calculated by multiplying weight factor of its material by the percentage of the body if covers. (jswatson note convert the percentage to a whole number before multiplying!). (Rest of original text omitted.)
MAKE
The cost (in pence) of average quality materials and the time (hours) to make a piece of armour is calculated by multiplying the percentage of the body (see above) it covers by the factors given above (Rest of original text omitted.)
COST
The basic selling price (pence) of a piece of average quality armour is found by multiplying the cost factor by the percentage of the body it covers. (Rest of original text omitted.)
All clothing and all characters have size. A character’s Size is derived from his Weight according to the Size Table. Armor/clothing may be made in any size desired by the maker. Armour Size affects the production date: Multiply Weight, Make, and Cost factors by the multiple under “Factor”:
|
Weight |
Size |
Factor |
Random |
|
61-65 |
1 |
0.50 |
01-02 |
|
66-75 |
2 |
0.60 |
03-05 |
|
76-90 |
3 |
0.70 |
06-10 |
|
91-110 |
4 |
0.80 |
11-22 |
|
111-135 |
5 |
0.90 |
23-37 |
|
136-165 |
6 |
1.00 |
38-63 |
|
166-200 |
7 |
1.10 |
64-78 |
|
201-240 |
8 |
1.20 |
79-90 |
|
241-285 |
9 |
1.30 |
91-97 |
|
286-335 |
10 |
1.40 |
98-00 |
FOUND ARMOUR
When a piece of armour is found …, its size may be randomly generated by rolling 1d100 and consulting the ranges under “Random”. Note that the roll/result may be adjusted according to where the piece is found; (Rest of original text omitted.)
SIZE ENCUMBRANCE
Many PCs will have difficulty obtaining decent armour, and will be forced to acquire bits and pieces as treasure/booty. However, a large character could not squeeze into a small habergeon, and small character would be somewhat encumbered in a large hauberk. A one size difference in flexible body armour MAY be overcome by lacing the garment more or less tightly and may be ignored. Armour pieces beyond this range may be impossible to wear, or the GM may assess a special penalty at his discretion. Any penalty should take into account the type of armour involved; a helmet may be less encumbering then a hauberk.
Armor Quality (AQ)
See HMC rules.
LIGHTER ARMOUR
Weaponcrafters often attempt to make lighter armour (to reduce encumbrance). In general, only metallic armour (plate, mail, scale) may be reduced in weight. This involves using slightly less/lighter material(s), but toughening them to a greater degree. The Sindarin and Khuzdul are particularly good at such techniques.
A weaponcrafter may attempt weight reduction up to 30% of the normal weight. This does not affect the cost of materials, but increases the time to produce by the same percentage (i.e. up to 30%). The final weight of the armour is always successfully reduced, but AQ may suffer: reduce EML by three times the (percentage) weight reduction.[1]
THICKER ARMOUR
Any armour may be made up to 50% thicker/heavier in an attempt to increase its protective value. The weaponcrafter decides the amount of weight to add; the Cost of materials and time to make are increased proportionately. EML is increased by one half the percentage increase; that is, if the armour is made 20% heavier, EML is increased by 10. SI is unaffected.