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.

Body Parts
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.

Armour Production Table

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.)

Size
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.

Text from Combat 25

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.

[1] I.e. the EML reduction is 30% for each 10% reduction in weight.