Microsoft Zone Archive/Asheron's Call Handbook/The Way of Steel: Armor

Related topics: Armor

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The Way of Steel: Armor

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Excerpted from the Eagle's Road, by Ummaz ibn Baqani

As vital as your weapon is, it is not your only important choice in combat. If you want to live past your first fight, you should think carefully about armor. It is, after all, what stands between you and your foes' blades, cudgels, and fangs.

It isn't as simple as bedecking yourself in a full suit of plate mail and wading into battle, though. Each kind of armor has its own strengths and weaknesses, and choosing the wrong kind can leave you exhausted or dead.

Leather Armor

Leather Armor is made of cuir bouilli: leather hardened by boiling it in oil. It provides the least overall protection, but against some types of damage, such as fire, lightening, and frost, it superior to metal armor. It is also light and inexpensive, so it is ideal for novices and those who prefer speed to strength.

Studded Leather Armor is made of soft leather fitted with metal studs. It is a favorite of common soldiers, as it provides greater protection than leather armor, and is only slightly heavier and more expensive.

Mail Armor

Chain Mail, a flexible mesh of metal links, is one of the most popular kinds of armor, but it is not as heavy as other forms of mail. Unlike plate, scale, and yoroi, it provides fair protection against fire, frost and lightening.

Scale Mail is made of overlapping metal scales. It is the sturdiest armor crafted by the Gharu'ndim. While not as strong as Aluvian plate mail, it is lighter, exchanging protection for speed.

Yoroi is armor made of laminated metal plates worn by the most powerful Sho warriors. It is slightly heavier and more protective than scale mail, but not as strong or cumbersome as plate mail.

Plate Mail, popular among Aluvian knights, is made of metal plates over padding. It is the most protective of all non-magical armor, but is heavy, expensive, and vulnerable to fire, frost, and lightening.





Shields
Shields can be a boon in battle, but they don't come without a cost. They help you absorb attacks -- the larger the shield, the better it will protect you -- but fighting with them is fatiguing. You'll tire faster with a shield than you would with a weapon alone. Wielding a tower shield, the sturdiest of all, will soon wear out all but the most robust warriors. Also, shields protect you only from frontal attacks: if a foe gets behind you, even the largest shield will be useless.

Armor of Quality and Magic
As with weapons, magical armor and armor of quality are well worth watching for. They can provide better overall protection of higher protection against specific types of damage, and can cast spells that improve your abilities.

Notes
The most important thing to remember about armor, aside from how much protection it provides, is how cumbersome it is. Heavy armor, such as scale, yoroi, and especially plate, will hamper all but the strongest warriors -- tiring them, reducing their ability to fight, and making it hard to run and jump.

If you don't want to be constantly fatigued, don't wear so much armor that you become encumbered. There are two ways to do this. First, of course, you can wear lighter armor. Second, you can wear piecemeal armor to protect only certain parts of your body. Cover your most vulnerable parts first -- your head, chest, forearms, and lower legs -- by wearing helmets, breastplates, bracers and greaves, while leaving other parts unprotected. You can also combine these two tactics, wearing heavy armor on vulnerable points and lighter armor on the rest of your body. For instance, if plate mail sleeves are too burdensome, wear plate bracers on your forearms and studded leather pauldrons on your upper arms.