Armor In Bohavia
The
standard AD&D core rules cover a period from the stone age right
through until the early renaissance period, and covers a variety of
cultures from European through Middle Eastern, Indian and Asian. As a
result, not all armor types are available in the World of Bohavia ,
but there are some more advanced types of armor that appear in the
Strategy & Tactics supplement.
The
armor types available are given in the table below. The first column
lists the name of the different types of armor in increasing order of
protection, with the armor class given in the second column. The
third column gives the cost of the armor in gold pieces and the
fourth the weight of the armor. The final column gives the number of
days needed in order to create a set of the armor to order:
|
Armor
Type
|
AC
|
Cost
|
Weight
|
Time
|
|
Buff Coat
|
9
|
2
|
5
|
1
|
|
Leather
|
8
|
4
|
5
|
1
|
|
Padded
|
8
|
5
|
8
|
1
|
|
Studded Leather
|
7
|
20
|
13
|
1
|
|
Brigandine
|
6
|
120
|
15
|
3
|
|
Back-and-Breast
|
6
|
80
|
25
|
3
|
|
Chain Mail
|
5
|
150
|
20
|
5
|
|
Mail And Plate
|
4
|
200
|
45
|
7
|
|
Half Plate
|
4
|
300
|
40
|
14
|
|
Three-Quarter Plate
|
3
|
800
|
45
|
21
|
|
Field Plate
|
2
|
2000
|
60
|
30
|
|
Full Plate
|
1
|
6000
|
70
|
90
|
Descriptions
Buff Coat
The
buff coat is a standard item of clothing in Bohavia, particularly
amongst farmers and villagers and is standard wear for winter. From a
military perspective, the buff coat is only slightly better than
having no armor at all. Due to the fact that it is owned by a large
percentage of Bohavians, however, it is the standard form of armor
for militiamen and other irregular units.
The
buff coat is made of supple leather as opposed to the hardened
leather of leather of studded leather armor. It covers the torso,
shoulders, and often has long flaps or tails protecting the thighs.
While of no protection against a well aimed missile or blade, it is
sufficient to stop an arrow at long range or to turn aside a clumsy
sword slash.
Head
Protection: None
Padded
Similar to the buff coat, padded armor
is another civilian item of clothing that offers some form of
protection. As opposed to the buff coat, which is more usually worn
by outdoors types, the padded jacket is more often seen upon city
dwellers and is often richly decorated with embroidery. It is less
often seen in the villages, as it tends to wear out very quickly.
From a military perspective, padded armor is not often seen in
combat, except for some lightly armored town militia. It is often
worn, however, as a ceremonial dress by squires and nobles when they
are not expecting any form of trouble.
Padded armor, also referred to as
quilted armor, is the simplest form of manmade armor. It consists of
two or more layers of spun cloth stuffed with thick batting and
quilted together. Padded armor typically covers the chest and
shoulders, but full-length suits are sometimes seen.
Head
Protection: None
Leather
As
opposed to the buff coat and padded armor, leather armor is worn only
for protection purpose and thus is not seen on the civilian
population. Due to the fact that it does not restrict movement, it is
the armor of choice for many lightly armed troops such as scouts or
bowmen who rarely get in to hand-to-hand combat.
Leather armor is actually strong and
stiff, having been hardened in boiling oil and then stretched over a
wooden or stone model of a man's or woman's chest. The resulting
breastplate and shoulder guards are combined with a tunic or kirtle
and leggings of wool or soft leather.
Head
Protection: Leather Cap
Studded
Leather
Not
a very commonly seen type of armor, the standard military units to
use studded leather are light cavalry.
Studded leather armor has little in
common with normal leather armor. While leather armor is a hardened
shell, studded leather armor is soft and supple with hundreds of
metal rivets affixed. The rivets are so close together that they form
a flexible coating of hard metal that turns aside slashing and
cutting attacks. The soft leather backing is little more than a means
of securing the rivets in place.
Head
Protection: Leather Cap
Brigandine
Due
to Brigandine’s relatively high cost and its low level of protection,
Brigandine armor is rarely seen on the battlefield. Its main users
are wealthy merchants who need a reasonable level of unobtrusive
protection or brigands who are looking for the same
attributes.
A
development of both scale mail and studded leather, brigandine armor
is composed of a layer of small metal plates riveted to an undercoat
of soft leather, thick cloth, or coarse canvas. A further overcoat of
cloth is applied to the exterior of the suit, making for a layered
protection that is lighter than scale mail. An alternative
configuration is for the plates to be sandwiched between two layers
of soft leather.
Head
Protection: Leather Cap
Back-and-Breast
A recent introduction to the
battlefield, back-and-breast is probably the most likely type of
armor to be found in military service today. Offering relatively good
protection at a relatively low cost, the majority of well-equipped
infantry can be found wearing this type of armor today.
This
armor is simply a steel breastplate and back piece, worn like a
shirt. It protects the wearer’s vital organs but provides no
protection for the limbs, which is why a buff coat is usually worn
underneath, as it offers a little protection for the limbs. The
back-and-breast is uncomfortable and clumsy to wear, but can be put
on in less than a minute. As a result, it is only ever worn when the
wearer is expecting imminent action.
Head
Protection: Steel Cap
Chain Mail
Although chain mail was been
superseded on the battlefield by the arrival of plate mail, its
relative cheapness and the fact that they do not have to be sized for
each individual means that chain mail is probably the most commonly
seen type of armor in Bohavia. Another factor for its common usage is
the fact that it is the heaviest type of armor that can be used on a
regular basis, although it becomes very tiring to wear it for a
period of more than 8-10 hours at a time. Another advantage of chain
mail is that it is relatively easy to get into and out of it. These
facts mean that it is the standard type of armor for the Nyemetz. It
is also the common choice of medium cavalry, giving them a good
degree of protection while still allowing a high level of
mobility.
Chain mail is made of interlocking
metal rings. It is always worn over a layer of padded fabric or soft
leather to prevent chafing and lessen the impact of blows.
Head
Protection: Coif
Mail and Plate
Two
hundred years ago, before full plate became common, mail and plate
was the best form of armor available. Today, it is becoming more and
more rare, as half and three-quarters plate becomes the norm. It is
still seen in some irregular units as it does provide a high level of
protection at a relatively low cost.
Mail
and plate is simply a suit of chain mail with back-and-breast worn
over the top, which is why it is relatively heavy armor to wear. It
is most often used by mercenary units which will wear just the
chainmail most of the time, applying the back-and-breast only when
actual combat is anticipated.
Head
Protection: Open-Face Helmet
Half Plate
Half
and three-quarter plate are both fairly recent introductions to
Bohavia. As the use of firearms became more prevalent, the usefulness
of field plate armor rapidly declined. The trend towards more
complete coverage reversed and soldiers began to discard all but the
most critical pieces of armor. After all, there is little point in
carrying around 70 pounds of armor when it won’t stop a bullet or a
heavy crossbow bolt. All professional heavy infantry today use half
plate.
As a
result, half and three-quarter plate are the most common form of
heavy armor worn in battle today. Half plate consist of a breastplate
and tassets, or hip armor, but the lower legs are left unarmored, as
are the inside of the arms.
Head
Protection: Open-Face Helmet
Three-Quarter Plate
Very
similar to half plate, three-quarter plate is the standard armor for
heavy cavalry today.
Three-quarter plate includes all of
the plate contained in a suit of half plate, but provides complete
protection for the arms as well as upper thighs, but still does not
include protection for the lower legs and inner part of the thighs,
which are normally protected by the horse.
Half
plate can be upgraded to three-quarter plate. In this case, half of
the cost of the original cost of the half-plate can be deducted from
the cost of the three-quarter plate and the time taken to create the
three-quarter plate is halved.
Head
Protection: Closed-Face Helmet
Field Plate
Although providing a great deal of
protection and more than either half or three-quarter plate, field
plate was the first type of plate armor developed and totally encases
the wearer’s body in articulated metal plates. Following the
introduction of firearms and heavy crossbows onto the battlefield in
numbers, less plate mail was produced as they were unable to provide
full protection against these weapons. However, as many of these
suits were produced prior to the introduction of these weapons, they
are still a common site on the battlefield, and most nobles would
enter combat in a suit of field plate, usually handed down from
generation to generation.
Field plate consists of shaped and
fitted metal plates riveted and interlocked to cover the entire body.
A set of field plate usually includes gauntlets, boots, and a visored
helmet. A thick layer of padding must be worn under the armor. The
considerable weight of this armor is distributed over the wearer’s
body, and a trained knight can lie down, stand up, or vault into a
saddle while wearing this armor.
Three-quarter plate can be upgraded to
field plate. In this case, half of the cost of the original cost of
the three-quarter plate can be deducted from the cost of the field
plate and the time taken to create the field plate is halved.
Head
Protection: Great Helm
Full Plate
The
most recent introduction of the armorer’s craft, full plate was
introduced following the widespread introduction of firearms at the
desire of the most wealthy nobles who were looking for protection
against these weapons, whatever cost. Due to the incredible
complexity of this armor, there are only a handful of armorers in
Bohavia with the skill needed to create them. This fact is known to
the Nyemetz and they are contracted to work only for them. Even so,
the incredible expense of this armor means that very few examples
exist and only Lord Protektors will wear full plate in battle. It is
illegal for anyone other than a Lord Protektor, or the personal
retinue of the OverLord, to be allowed to commission the manufacture
of such an item. As a result, there are less than 50 pieces of this
armor in existence in the whole of Bohavia.
Full
plate armor is the best armor a warrior can obtain, both in
appearance and protection. The perfectly-fitted interlocking plates
are specially angled to deflect arrows, blows and even bullets at
long range, providing that the bullet doesn’t strike square on
target. Underneath the plates, the wearer is protected by another
suit of chain mail and underneath that is padding. The entire suit is
carefully adorned with rich engraving and embossed detail.
For
anyone but a Lord, surrounded by retainers, full plate is totally
impractical, as it is impossible to piece the armor together without
outside assistance. Even with assistance, it takes more than 30
minutes to fully don a suit. Once inside the suit, it is impossible
for even the strongest knight to walk more than a few steps unaided.
Mounting a horse is impossible without being winched onto the horse.
Should a knight in full plate fall from his horse, then it is
impossible for him to stand without the assistance of others and he
is thus very vulnerable in a melee.
Head
Protection: Great Helm
Shields
All
rules for shields in the core rules are valid in these revised
rules.
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