To Start Off: Studded armor is not a thing. That's a mistaken concept taken from the prevalence of brigandine because it was, well, pretty dang popular. So much so that people began to wear clothing that looked like brigandine just for the fashion, because people are impressionable and generally the rich wore it. Its an understandable mistake to make, considering that a good chunk of what historians have to go on in this time period is paintings, which would show people in combat (battle field or fencing) with what looked like cloth or leather with studs in it.
Leather: Clothing does indeed offer no protection, but if we're being obtuse and realistic, most leathers don't either. The only leather that would give you honestly any sort of protection would be very thick (raw hide/buff leather) or boiled (cuir builli, made of raw hide). Even then, its only good in the since that it's better than nothing really. Its protection is more of the sense that you hope the blow coming at you isn't dead on, otherwise it won't help you much. For the most part, it was a backing. If you were only wearing this, chances are you couldn't get anything better.
[Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUPIUHpkK88 Scholagladitoria]
Padding/Quilted/Textile: Similar in function to leather, very tightly woven thick (and I do mean thick, think heavy sweater. No, heavier that) cloth, fiber, hair, almost anything really. It, similar to leather, won't stop a sword in its tracks but would do well to slow down or perhaps lighten the penetration to turn a deep wound into a lesser one. Of important note though, these armors are usually work with other, sturdier armor, either beneath or over as an aketon (beneath) or a gambeson (over). Its main protection mostly comes from augmenting already existing armor, and cushioning blows from impact. Another thing to note, they were pretty dang thick, as said before. However, when plate became more popular, they decreased in thickness due to the lack of need in their ability to cushion bludgeoning blows because of the rigidity of plate.
[Source:
http://www.myarmoury.com/feature_spot_quilted.html]
Chain/Ring: There isn't really to terribly much of a distinction (if at all, most consider ring a fake type of armor and wouldn't be too wrong), mostly made in games to represent different patterns (regular or double (imagine chain made really thick), banded (chain backed with rawhide inside of it to give it a stronger foundation) is popular too) used to weld the links together or as a sort of vague way to separate a hauberk (ranges anywhere from a full sleeved tunic to basically a mini-robe with a skirt that comes to about the lower part of your thighs) from a haubergeon (typically a short sleeved tunic). Usually, its worn under one (or a combination) of the above two. If you wore chain, you were rich. Reason why? Shit was expensive and time consuming to make, but it worked. If we're talking reality here, you don't get through it with a sword. At least, not easily as it is pretty dang hard to cut through a rather flexible metal. If you were only wearing this, you would chafe badly. Seriously though, you would be well off.
Mail isn't actually that susceptible to arrows. Its actually a rather common misconception, but with mail as it was always worn (with a padded/leather backing) proved to be proofed against Mary Rose Longbows, although bolts still struck true (crossbows were outlawed for a reason, after all). Many historical accounts actually attest to the strength of proper chain, and do note that I say proper. The reason for the misconception is often because tests were done on shoddy reconstructions that weren't true to accurate construction: shoddy metal, butted links, enlarged links, and lack of proper padding, or padding at all.
Simply put, if you want to get through mail easily, you go for something not covered in mail or you carry something blunt and hefty. Failing either of the two, aim for spots where the force of the blow would do some damage.
[Source:
http://www.myarmoury.com/feature_mail.html]
Side Track on Metal Armor:
Of course, generally speaking, if your enemy was wearing good metal armor (or god forbid, a full plate ensemble), you're going to have a rough time of it with a sword or spear or really anything you were hoping to split flesh with. This is the reason why Mordhau (using the sword as a bludgeon by taking advantage of the majority of the weight being centered in the hilt), Half-Swording (using the sword in a fashion more akin to spears to allow for greater finesse and power with the point in hopes of finding a weak spot or an opening), and Wrestling (often with vicious little daggers like
Misericorde/Rondel, which is meant to be shoved into an opening (usually known for being through the helmet's openings or by forcing it off/open but any gap will do) when you got your opponent on the ground) were rather popular around the time metal armor became more frequent.
But, of course, the problem with most metal armor is this: its really bloody expensive. Both the cost of the metal, the expertise needed to make a good suit of the stuff, and the general time it took to craft made it something that would often drain a man's coffers severely. The only real inexpensive metal armor was probably either Brigandine or Lamellar, simply because metal is used to a minimal there and often mixed with other armor to provide suitable defense. You could call Lamellar the poor man's chain and be correct for the most part, as its effectivity is often heavily debated to be either similar or slightly above that of chain. Brigandine, however, is simply strips or plates of metal sewn on the inside of a padded doublet/aketon/buff coat/gambeson. Cheaper than a good suit of plate or chain by a fair margin, but metal is metal, same with Lamellar.
Plate: Now onto plate. As we know, plate is expensive, rigid, metal, has a bunch of funny names for every piece that gets strapped onto you (couters, poleyns, vambracers sabatons, spaulders, cuirass, besagews, you get the idea). A good, full set of plate would cost a man a fortune, and I do mean a fortune. Another thing to note is that plate isn't actually that heavy, not to say that it isn't heavy, but rather that when wearing it, the main notice wouldn't be the weight of it but rather the restricted movement and heat from wearing it and all that it entails. Yes, it did restrict your movement, but not to where you did the robot getting everywhere. You probably couldn't lift your elbows to head level easily, bending over is a pain as the cuirass often gets in the way of how one would normally bend down, and don't expect to be able to twist around easily. It was also rather hard to get up or swim in, considering the amount of people in plate who fell in water and drowned, enough that it actually bear mention.
For all its faults though, there's a reason the few who could afford it did get it. It was protective. Very protective, the best one could get bar none. Entire schools, combat styles, and weapons have been developed with the idea purely in mind of getting past its defense. After all, full plate can't cover everywhere, and there's always weak points, such as where the armor is tied together and fitted. Fighting a man in full plate was a pain in the ass because if you can't get him on the ground, overwhelmed, and/or a good lucky shot, best of luck doing much. Name of the game when fighting a man in plate is to go for the joints, often with a bludgeon or a fine point that can be roughly thrust towards it. If you can get him pinned or held off long enough to get a fine point through his helmet or joint, that usually did the trick.
Of course, once again, plate was rare due to its expense. Wearing it made you a target, as you were obviously someone with wealth or prestige to afford (or have someone afford for you) the suit. Plate was also very personalized, due to the expense and that a good set isn't made to rough average but instead specifically tailored for the person who ordered it. As time went along and powder was invented, plate was still worn and hardened/enhanced as it had a contender for its defensive ability. You'd often find shops that display a breastplate with a musket ball lodged into it, not penetrating, boasting of their "bullet proofed" plate. It largely didn't fall out of favor until the rifles and guns of the time had improved enough that it simply wasn't worth the cost.
[Sources: Bits and pieces of the above sources (notably quilted armor and chain, rondel too possibly), otherwise conjecture.]
"Mixed Plate": I'm going to use this to be a general splint, banded, or otherwise whatever sort of armor that is usually bits of plate mixed with other armor. This was often common on the field due to the expense of actual plate, but still wanting some of its measure of protection. Bits of plate mixed with chain, mixed with a good doublet often did wonders, after all. Most of what I've covered about the effectiveness of rigid metal armor can be seen in the above plate or metal armor aside, but to note that plate is usually a step up both material and make wise.
Lamellar/Scale: Ah, these two. The poor man's chainmail, as its often called, and more often debated as to which is better. The usual opinion appears to be that they both have advantages and disadvantages, with lamellar/scale being cheaper while chain is more expensive, and both offering slightly differing amounts of protection. The main difference in these two is how the scales/plates are arranged, each in a different style.
Lamellar is aligned side by side, with several hooking points to connect it. This lead to a semi-flexible surface with few bumps, usually made of either strengthened leather or metal. The problem, of course, with a semi-flexible surface is the fact that it doesn't do much to deflect a blow, which is what most armors (besides flexible ones such as chain) try to do (you'll never see box armor in this age, its better to have a sword slide off you than take the hit full on after all, plate was designed around this idea). Arrows won't find much purchase, but bludgeons, ballistics, or really anything swung or stabbed would. Of course, it thankfully doesn't have much to catch on at least. The strength of lamellar depended largely on what it's placed on, ranging from quilted to leather to chain, with its strength and effectiveness raising as they go. Leather lamellar set in quilted armor, for instance, won't help much against a full on hit. Metal lamellar set in chain would be akin to double chain or mixed-plate in effectiveness. Due to the fact that lamellar tends to take blows head on, its usually used with a thick aketon, similar to chain in that regard.
Of course, with all armor, varieties exist. One can find smaller plated lamellar that would be more flexible, and I don't doubt one can find larger plated lamellar that would be more rigid at the expense of movement and cost. Some people have even developed curved scales and plates to help with the rigidity and mobility.
Scale differ in that its overlapping, and tied on more securely at the top than in several places as lamellar is, as it just needs to rest instead of move. It varies in make similar to lamellar in that it can be made of leather or metal, and set in either quilted armor, leather armor, or chain armor. Its a more rigid surface that lamellar, but overall similar in make and function. As such, you can't move as well in it, its a touch heavier, but blows glance off better than on lamellar or chain. Assuming its a downward strike, as an upward one has the chance of catching. The gaps between the scales are typically kept to a minimal to avoid such issues though. All in all, its pretty similar to lamellar, with some slight differences.
Similar to lamellar, as said before, the size of the scales (generally) dictate how flexible it can be. Thinner, smaller scales lead to more mobile scale armor. Larger, thicker scales lead to more rigid and protective armor. Various improvements to the design have been found in time and armor.
[Source: Mixture of Conjecture, Touch of This:
http://www.myarmoury.com/feature_jpn_armour.html, and the Above Sources]
Generally put, you'll find more often than not that armor tend to be closer in effectivity than they are further apart when their materials are of the same make. Good crafted plate tend to head the pack, but munition style plate can be generally considered akin to lamellar/scale/mixed plate/double-chain in terms of protectiveness. Leather and quilted "armor" is more backing and padding than actual armor, usually with a chain/lamellar/scale/plate accompaniment. If you're a guy with an arming sword, you're gonna have a tough time cutting someone in chain or its derivatives, and an almost impossible time cutting a guy in full plate outside of gaps in armor.
I can't really recommend proper values due to lack of knowledge in how damage is factored, but as a general rule of thumb, plate is going to block most-to-all of the cutting force in a blade and turn it into impact force. Points and the like probably aren't going to puncture it unless it was poorly made or in a gap/other weak area. Bludgeons and ballistics would be the way to go, with the more advanced the gun the better and the stronger the hit on an extremity (one would avoid smashing the cuirass head on, that would do less than spectacular results, if anything at all) the better in slowing down your plated opponent so you can measure out a finishing blow.
You aren't really going to cut/stab people through metal armor unless you get lucky/hit a weak spot/hit a gap/it was poorly made/Newton's Law was in your favor.
If I were to stat something, I'd take the average mundane soldier and make it to where he can scratch someone in plate if he swung at him with an unfavorable weapon, and go from there with effects dropping dramatically when you get to purely leather and the like. Slashing would be the most resisted type of attack, with piercing following, bludgeoning below that, and ballistic being the least. Bulletproof Plate would be wise to carry if one planned on assaulting someone with a gun, but even then it might not help if they hit it right.
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Topic: Adventuring Party OOC Thread - Adventures in Hiatus (Read 272522 times)