Better Fantasy Armor / Easier Armor Design: Better Coverage Table

As part of some work for another project, I went back and looked at the armor coverage table from Better Fantasy Armor. And then I compared it to some other coverage tables, including the "Rule of 9s" that estimates skin surface area for medical patients: (9% in the head, 9% in each arm, 18% in each leg, and the remaining 36% in the torso). Here's what I got:

Location	Rule of 9	Low-Tech	BFA
Head	9%	11%	8%
Arms	18%	16%	20%
Hands		3%	6%
Torso	36%	33%	32%
Legs	36%	33%	24%
Feet		3%	10%

There's a couple of noticeable points here. First, there's some room for fudging in all of these tables, depending on where exactly you drawn the line: do the feet or the legs cover the ankle bones? Are the shoulders part of the arm or the torso? Second, the Low-Tech table matches the Rule of 9 fairly well if you add the extremities to the limbs and assume the Rule of 9 includes the neck in the torso but Low-Tech includes it in the head. Third, it should be immediately obvious that the amount of material required to cover a person's hands is a lot less than the amount required to cover their feet. Finally, the BFA table has way too much coverage in the arms and hands and not quite enough in the head and neck. The legs and feet are a little off, but not too bad.

With all that in mind, I'm proposing the following table for the next revision of Better Fantasy Armor and Easier Armor Design:

Location	Cost/Weight	Hit Location	Notes	Comments
Head	12%	3-5, 17-18
Skull	(6%)	3-4		Forehead and back of the head to the nape of the neck
Face	(3%)	5		Front of the face only. Sublocations are 0.5% each.
Neck	(3%)	17-18
Arms	16%	8, 12
Shoulders	(4%)	8, 12*	Roll 1d; on a 1-2 this location is hit
Upper Arms	(4%)	8, 12*	Roll 1d; on a 3 this location is hit
Elbows	(4%)	8, 12*	Roll 1d; on a 4 this location is hit
Forearms	(4%)	8, 12*	Roll 1d; on a 5-6 this location is hit
Hands	2%	15
Torso	36%	9-11	Vitals are hit on a 1 on a d6
Chest	(12%)	9	Vitals are hit on a 1 on a d6	Bottom of the neck to the end of the sternum
Abdomen	(12%)	10	Vitals are hit on a 1 on a d6	Basically the stomach, from the bottom of the chest to the waistline
Pelvis	(12%)	11	Vitals are hit on a 1 on a d6	Waistline down the top of the legs
Legs	28%	6-7. 13-14
Thighs	(12%)	6-7. 13-14*	Roll 1d; on a 1-3 this location is hit
Knees	(4%)	6-7. 13-14*	Roll 1d; on a 4 this location is hit
Sins	(4%)	6-7. 13-14*	Roll 1d; on a 5-6 this location is hit
Feet	6%	16

It's a pretty minor tweak, but it brings the coverage amounts more in line with both the rule of 9 and Low-Tech.

There are a bunch of things I like about this new table:

• Everything that has a front and back and a left side and right side is divisible by 4, so if you only want armor on your front right shin, its 1% and not some weird number like 1.125%.
• The torso divides nicely into three sections of equal size, and the % coverage for each section is divisible by 2, so it's easy to calculate armor with "weak rear". And at least to me, the coverage for each section is pretty clear.
• Hands are now reasonably small.
• Feet are also small, but reasonably larger than the hands. 

I'd a little sad that arm coverage is a little wonky, since a d6 doesn't divide evenly into quarters. That could be resolved by rolling 3d instead and if it really bothers you, you could do that or roll a d4 instead.

Unfortunately, revising the GCA files is a pain up the tail, so it's going to be a while before this table goes into the GDF files. I should probably let people comment on it, anyway.

Better Fantasy Armor: Ultimate Armors

My online group is working our way through a GURPS conversion of the Jade Regent Adventure Path. We're about halfway through, so it's time to power up, sell loot, and acquire new toys. As part of this process, we're adopting my Better Fantasy Armor rules by general acclaim. I'm touched, and we're having some interesting email discussions about how to convert our existing armors and what to buy next. As part of that, I'm coming up with some "ultimate" armors for various templates.

These are non-relic armors made of the heaviest armor by the best smiths, magically lightened to be non-encumbering despite formidable defensive properties. Reasonably, all of these would have an additional DR+1 to DR+5 from Fortify enchantments, but that's a straightforward addition that anyone can make.

All of these are full suits, covering all locations with a uniform DR coverage. For people using the optional Joints and Heavy armor rule, assume they're using big gaps (so +2 to hit armor chinks) and lining the vulnerable bits with DR5 Very Fine, Hardened, Elven, Mithril Mail voiders (+$6375, +0.8 lbs).

Ultimate Undersuits

Any of these suits can be worn any of the other suits, depending on the wearer's preference for additional DR versus cost and weight concerns. They're sized for SM0 delvers unless otherwise stated.
Cloth Undersuit: Suitable for any delver that wants a little extra protection. DR1 Very Fine, Athletic, Thieves, Giant Spider Silk Cloth Suit with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Can be worn under any other armor without increasing bulk or giving layering penalties and adds DR1* (-1 vs pi/imp, +1 vs cut). $16552, 2.2 lbs.
Mail Undersuit: Suitable for delvers that can handle a little extra weight and a lot of extra cost for a some extra protection. Not good for delvers who have vows against wearing metal armor. DR3 Very Fine, Elven, Mithril Mail Suit with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Can be worn under any other armor without increasing bulk or giving layering penalties and adds DR3*. $90325, 4.75 lbs.
Oversized Dragonhide Undersuit: Suitable for barbarians who want a little extra armor and protection against environmental attacks. SM+1 DR2 Very Fine, Ancient Dragonhide Suit with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Can be worn under any other armor by SM+1 delvers without increasing bulk or giving layering penalties and adds DR2* (DR6 versus fire/heat). $43500, 6.5 lbs.

Penultimate Suits

These suits are as good as they get for the materials used, but legendary or mythic delvers can probably get access to better materials (ie, mithril mail or ancient dragon scale).
Druid Ironwood Armor: A good upgrade for a rich but not filthy rich druid or faerie who can handle somewhat heavy armor but has to use organic materials or at least can't touch iron or steel. DR7 Very Fine Ironwood Suit with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Gives DR7. $20585, 21.6 lbs. For even cheaper armor, dropping the Lighten to 25% makes this a very affordable $10635 and 32.4 lbs.
Light Dragonhide: A good upgrade for a weak or mobile delver who wants something better than leather but can't afford orichalcum or mithril. DR5 Very Fine, Athletic, Thieves', Ancient Dragonhide with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Gives DR5* and the weight does not count for encumbrance for Fencing weapons, Stealth, Acrobatics, Climbing, etc. $35830, 7.2 lbs or $25880, 10.8 lbs with Lighten 25%.

Ultimate Suits

The suits are amazingly expensive, but are about the best armor available.
Martial Artist's Robes: In some ways, this is closer to penultimate armor in protectiveness, but this is the best armor that provides the Meditative quality bonus to Chi Talent. DR5 Very Fine, Athletic, Meditative, Thieves, Giant Spider Silk Cloth Suit with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Gives DR5* (-1 vs pi/imp, +1 vs cut), +1 to Chi Talent, and the weight does not count for encumbrance for Fencing weapons, Stealth, Acrobatics, Climbing, etc. $44650, 11 lbs.
Lightweight Orichalcum Harness: Lightweight armor for weak people who don't expect to be the focus of attacks but still need protection against explosions, shrapnel, and surprise attacks. DR7 Very Fine, Fluted, Hardened, Orichalcum Segmented Plate with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Gives DR7 and is provides ~75 FP as a power item. $276511, 11 lbs.
Oversized Dragonscale Harness: Serious armor for a large delver who disdains civilization and likes wearing the body of his foes as armor. If the environmental protection is for cold and the armor is worn with a fire protecting dragonhide undersuit, the combined protection makes the wearer nearly invulnerable to elemental damage. SM+1 DR11 Very Fine, Ancient Dragonhide Suit with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Gives DR11 (33 versus fire/heat). $308365, 36.4 lbs.
Mobile Warrior Armor: Powerful armor for somewhat strong delvers who fence or sneak but still want to be very protected. DR12 Very Fine, Athletic, Thieves, Elven, Hardened, Mithril Mail Suit with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Gives DR12* and and the weight does not count for encumbrance for Fencing weapons, Stealth, Acrobatics, Climbing, etc. $350200, 19 lbs.
Fae Harness: An upgrade of the lightweight orichalcum harness for warriors who can't wear steel or holy items. DR13 Very Fine, Fluted, Hardened, Orichalcum Segmented Plate with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Gives DR13 and is provides ~80 FP as a power item. $504950, 20 lbs.
Magehunter Harness: Armor for a strong warrior who wants to avoid magic spells affecting himself or his armor. DR13 Very Fine, Dwarven, Fluted, Hardened Plate Suit with Reinforced Vitals. Gives DR13 (Cosmic: Impenetrable versus magic) and cannot be directly affected by magic. $410865, 56.9 lbs.
Celestial Steel: Probably the ultimate armor for anyone who can afford the cost and the encumbrance. DR15 Very Fine, Dwarven, Fluted, Hardened, Celestial Steel Suit with Reinforced Vitals and Lighten 50%. Gives DR15 (Cosmic: Impenetrable by undead, demonic, or unholy powers) and glows as a daylight Continual Light spell. $594325, 32.8 lbs.

Assuming that the GM doesn't allow Fortify spells to stack, the absolute best DR possible is Celestial Steel harness with a Mail undersuit and the mithril mail voiders with a Fortify +5 enchantment somewhere: DR20+3*, $851025, 38.4 lbs. Quite an improvement from an experienced delver's heavy plate harness (DR7 plate with weak limbs, weak back, reinforced vitals, Fortify +1, Lighten 25% for DR8 at $8745, 31.6 lbs) but at 100x the cost you'd expect it to be better.

Better Fantasy Armor: Voiders

Voiders are small pieces of flexible armor worn beneath the joints of rigid armor. They're intended to prevent damage from attacks to the chinks of the rigid armor.

The locations that can be protected by voiders are the shoulders, elbows, abdomen, and knees. A voider costs and weighs 1/5th of the cost and weight

of a piece of armor of equivalent DR at that location. Because voiders have to be at the inside of the joint, they are effectively bulkier than their small size and nominal bulk would suggest. Increase the effective bulk of the armor by one step for every bulk category of the voider less one.

Example: A knight in head to toe DR7 medium plate wants to add voiders to his armor. He can wear up to heavy armor without taking a DX penalty. Adding DR3 thin mail voiders would not increase the bulk at all, while adding DR5 light mail voiders would increase it by one step to heavy. If he wore DR7 medium mail voiders under his medium plate, the bulk would increase two steps to jousting and he'd have a -1 penalty to DX.

Example 2: A SM-6 pixie in DR5 light orichalcum plate counts as wearing thin armor, which does provide a DX penalty. Adding DR3 thin mail voiders would not increase the armor bulk, but adding DR5 light mail voiders would. Any pixie rich enough to afford light orichalcum plate can probably afford DR5 light mithril mail voiders, which are effectively thin for bulk purposes and can be safely worn under the orichalcum plate.

Voiders are normally attached to clothing, such as an arming doublet or gambeson, that is worn under the rigid armor. However, voiders can just as easily be attached to the rigid armor itself. Voiders can also be worn under flexible armor, though there is normally little point since flexible armor doesn't have chinks.

For easy reference, voiders for all the joints cost and weigh 5% of a suit of armor of equivalent DR.

Sample Voiders

Leather reinforcement: Leather strips intended to be worn beneath scale armor. DR2 leather elbow and shoulder voiders that increase armor bulk by one step. Costs and weighs 2% of the base armor (DR2 Leather is $120 and 26 lbs) for $2.2 and 0.5 lbs.

Arming Doublet: Shirt and hose reinforced with mail at the joints. Full coverage DR3 mail voiders that do not increase armor bulk. Costs and weighs 5% of the the base armor (DR3 mail is $1500 and 18 lbs) for $75 and 1 lb.
Heroic Arming Double: Shirt and hose reinforced with strong mithril mail at the joints. Full coverage DR5 very fine, mithril mail voiders that do not increase armor bulk. Costs and weighs 5% of the the base armor (DR5 very fine mithril mail is $110000 and 15 lbs) for $5500 and 0.75 lbs.

Better Fantasy Armor: GCA File

I worked on a GCA file for the Better Fantasy Armor rules. It's up on the Motoslave GCA Repository at this link.

I had to ditch the idea of using the Fluting and Hardened modifiers with Dragonbone, Dragonhide, and Dragonscale - GCA simply doesn't support having modifiers select modifiers in way that I liked. Instead, I created four modifiers for each type of dragon part: young dragon*, dragon*, elder dragon*, and ancient dragon*, with each increasing age category reducing the weight of the armor by another 10%.

There's probably some conflicts with Low-Tech in it and I may update the file to get rid of them. If anyone has other issues or suggestions for improvements, they can be emailed to me or added to the comments below.

Better Fantasy Armor: Armor Examples

A selection of sample armors to show how my Fantasy Armor rules would work.

I had a couple of goals for these rules:

1. It should be easy to create a new suit of armor. Optimizing armor may take a spreadsheet, but creating armor with a clear concept in mind should take a few minutes and a calculator.
2. There shouldn't be many trap options. It's acceptable for higher TL armor to better than lower, but the rules in Low-Tech such that reinforcing heavier leather makes it weigh more for less benefit or some cheap metal armor is heavier and most costly than cloth needs to go.
3. Delvers should be able to afford a lot of DR, both in terms of dollars and weight. The Low-Tech system in which delvers spend $2500+ to get DR5 at 60+ lbs doesn't work that well in a game were starting wealth is $1000 and starting monster do 3d+3 or more damage.
4. There has to be some kind of upgrade path for all armor types. The lightly armored delver in robes needs an option to stay in robes but get better DR and more cool stuff. Everyone converging on plate isn't fun.

I think I accomplished these goals, but people's attitudes may vary.

Hand and Foot Gear

Wooden Shoes: DR1 Wood Feet. Costs and weighs 10% of the base armor (DR1 Wood is $60 and 14 lbs), for $6 and 1.4 lbs.
Leather Sandals: DR1 Leather Feet. Costs and weighs 10% of the base armor (DR1 Leather is $60 and 13 lbs), for $6 and 1.3 lbs.
Knee-High Boots: DR2 Leather Feet and Shins with the Fine modifier. Costs and weighs 18% of the base
armor (DR2 Leather is $120 and 26 lbs) for $22 and 4.7 lbs, adjusted by Fine to $88 and 3.7 lbs.
Sharkskin Over-the-Knee Boots: DR2 Leather Feet, Knees, and Shins with the Quality leather modifier. Costs and weighs 22% of the base armor (DR2 Leather is $120 and 26 lbs) for $26 and 5.7 lbs, adjusted by Quality to $78 and 4 lbs.
Thigh High Boots: DR2 Leather Feet, DR1 Leather Legs; both with Fine and Quality leather modifier. Costs and weighs 10% of the base armor (DR2 Leather is $120 and 26 lbs) and 24% of the base armor (DR1 Leather is $60 and 13 lbs) for $26 and 5.7 lbs, modified by fine and quality to $156 and 2.9 lbs.
Leather gloves: DR1 Leather Hands with the Fine Modifier. Costs and weighs 6% of the base armor (DR1 Leather is $60 and 13 lbs) for $3.6 and 0.8 lbs, adjusted by Fine to $14 and 0.6 lbs.
Heavy Leather Gauntlets: DR2 Leather Hands and Forearms with the Fine modifier. Costs and weighs 12% of the base armor (DR2 Leather is $120 and 26 lbs) for $14 and 3.1 lbs, adjusted by Fine to $56 and 2.5 lbs.
Historical Plate Gloves: DR4 Plate Hands. Costs and weighs 6% of the base armor (DR4 plate is $2800 and 28 lbs) for $168 and 1.7 lbs.
Historical Plate Sollerets: DR4 Plate Feet. Costs and weighs 10% of the base armor (DR4 plate is $2800 and 28 lbs) for $280 and 3 lbs.

Head Gear

Primitive Helmet: DR4 Horn Face and Skull. Costs and weighs 6% of the base armor (DR4 Bone is $240 and 56 lbs), for $14 and 3.4 lbs, modified by Horn to $21 and 2.7 lbs.
Corinthian Helmet: DR8 Plate Head with Segmented Plate and Bronze modifiers. Costs and weighs 8% of the base armor (DR8 Plate is $5600 and 56 lbs) for $448 and 4.5 lbs. Modified by Bronze and Segmented, it goes to $1702 and 5.2 lbs.
Samurai Helmet: DR8 Scale Face and Skull. Costs and weighs 6% of the base armor (DR8 Scale is $2000 and 80 lbs), for $120 and 4.8 lbs.
Historical Plate Fullhelm: DR9 Face and Skull. Costs and weighs 6% of the base armor (DR9 plate is $6300 and 63 lbs) for $378 and 3.8 lbs.
Historical Plate Gorget: DR4 Plate Neck. Costs and weighs 2% of the base armor (DR4 plate is $2800 and 28 lbs) for $56 and 0.5 lbs.

Partial Suits

Heavy Layered Cloth Collared Jack and Leggings: DR4 Layered Cloth Arms, Legs, Torso, Neck with a Weak Back and Reinforced Vitals. Costs and weighs 76% of the base armor (DR4 cloth is $400 and 48 lbs) for $304 and 36.5 lbs.
Quality Light Robe: DR2 Cloth Arms, Thighs, Knees, Torso, Neck, and Skull with the Silk and Fine modifiers. Costs and weighs 73% of the base armor (DR2 cloth is $200 and 24 lbs) for $146 and 18.2 lbs, modified by Fine and Silk for $1168 and 12.8 lbs.
Light Mail Hooded Hauberk: DR5 Mail Arms, Thighs, Torso, Neck, and Skull with Cheap modifier. Costs and weighs 66% of base armor (DR5 mail is $2500 and 30 lbs) for $1675 and 20 lbs, adjusted by Cheap to $1005 and 25 lbs.
Heavy Lamellar Corselet, Thigh Guards, and Arm Guards: DR8 Scale Shoulders, Upper Arms, Elbows, Thighs, Knees, Torso, and Neck with Weak Back and Weak Limbs. Costs and weighs 48.5% of base armor (DR8 scale is $2000 and 80 lbs) for $970 and 38.8 lbs.
Heavy Linen Skirt: DR4 Abdomen and Thighs. Costs 24% of the base armor (DR4 cloth is $400 and 48 lbs) for $96 and 11.5 lbs.
Bronze Cuirass, Front Greaves, and Arm Guards: DR8 Plate Chest, Front Fore Arms, Front Upper Arms, Shoulders, Shins Knees with the Bronze and Segmented Plate modifiers. Costs and weighs 43% of base armor (DR8 Plate is $5600 and 56 lbs) for $2408 and 24.1 lbs. Adjusted by Segmented Plate and Bronze to $9150 and 27.7 lbs.
Historical Plate Cuirass, Vambraces, and Greaves: DR9 Plate Arms, Legs, and Torso, with Weak Back, Weak Limbs, and Front Vitals Reinforcement. Costs and weighs 60% of base armor (DR9 plate is $6300 and 63 lbs) for $3780 and 37.8 lbs.
Skimpy Dress: DR1 Giant Spider Silk Groin and front Chest. Costs and weighs 12% of base armor (DR1 cloth is $100 and 13 lbs), for $12 and 1.56 lbs, modified by Giant Spider Silk to $360 and 0.8 lbs. Can be worn under other armor at no penalty by SM0+ wearers.

Panolopy

Primitive Armor: Reasonable armor for TL0 primitives or poor levies. Heavy Layered Cloth Collared Jack and Leggings ($304, 36.5 lbs), Primitive Helmet ($21, 2.7 lbs), Knee High Boots ($88, 3.7 lbs), and Heavy Leather Gauntlets ($56, 2.5 lbs). Gives DR4* to the head (including neck), front torso, arms, and legs, except the shins and forearms have DR6*. The back torso, hands, and feet have DR2*. Front vitals have DR8*, and back vitals have DR6*. $469, 45.4 lbs.
Beginning Wizard/Martial Artist Armor: Affordable armor for starting delvers who value speed over DR. Quality Light Robe ($1168, 12.8 lbs), Knee High Boots ($88, 3.7 lbs), and Leather Gloves ($14, 0.6 lbs). Gives DR2* all over except for the face (no DR) and the hands (DR1*). $1270, 17.1 lbs.
Beginning Delver Medium Armor: Suitable armor for a secondary combatant such as a cleric. Light Mail Hooded Hauberk ($1005, 25 lbs), Sharkskin Over-the-Knee Boots ($78, 4 lbs), and Leather Gloves ($14, 0.6 lbs). Gives DR5* to the arms, thighs, torso, and head except the face. Gives DR2* to the feet, and DR1* to the hands. $1097, 29.6 lbs.
Beginning Delver Heavy Armor: Basic armor for a mystic knight, knight, or holy warrior. Heavy Lamellar Corselet et al ($970, 38.8 lbs), Samurai Helmet ($120, 4.8 lbs), Knee High Boots ($88, 3.7 lbs), and Heavy Leather Gauntlets ($56, 2.5 lbs). Gives DR8 to the neck, face, skull, front of the torso, front of the arms to the elbows, and front legs to the knees. Gives DR4 to the back of the torso, back of the arms to the elbows, and back of the legs to the knees. Gives DR2 (flexible) on the forearms, hands, shins, and feet. $1234, 49.8 lbs.
Historical Hoplite Armor: Greek Hoplites would have worn something approaching this in 3rd to 4th century BC, along with a large aspis shield. Bronze Cuirass et all ($9150, 27.7 lbs), Heavy Linen Skirt ($96, 11.5 lbs), Corinthian Helmet ($1702, 5.2 lbs), Leather Sandals ($6, 1.3 lbs). Gives DR8 on the head, chest, shoulders, knees, and shins, as well as the front of the forearms and upper arms. Gives DR4 on the abdomen and thighs, and DR1 on the feet. $10954, 45.7 lbs.
Historical White Plate Harness: This represents gothic or maximillan full plate armor. Historical Plate Cuirass, Vambraces, Greaves ($3780, 37.8 lbs), gorget ($56, 0.5 lbs), fullhelm ($378, 3.8 lbs), gloves ($168, 1.7 lbs), and sollerets ($280, 3 lbs). Gives DR18 to the front vitals; DR9 to the face, skull, and front of the arms, legs, and torso, face, and skull; and DR4 to the hands, feet, neck, and back of the torso and limbs. $4662, 46.2 lbs.
Pixie Ultimate Plate Harness: Starting armor for a pixie delver who is well aware of her vulnerability to explosions. DR5 Plate with Hardened, Fluted, Segmented Plate, and Oricalchum modifiers, sized for SM-6. Costs and weighs 100% of the base armor (DR5 plate is $3500 and 35 lbs), modified by a net +36.8 CF, -40% to weight, and then reduced to 1/100th of cost and weight for size modifiers. Provides DR5 all of the body and counts as thin armor so a pixie can wear it without a DX penalty. $1323, 0.2 lbs. (The same suit would cost $132,300 and weigh 21 lbs if sized for a human.)
Sorceress Outfit: The standard get-up for a female evil spellcaster, with modest protection in the face of danger but plenty of exposed skin. Skimpy Dress ($360, 0.8 lbs), Thigh High Boots ($156, 2.9 lbs), and Heavy Leather Gauntlets ($56, 2.5 lbs). Provides DR2* to the hands, forearms, and feet, and DR1* to the groin, front chest, and legs. $572, 6.2 lbs.

Better Fantasy Armor: Armor Modifiers

As I mentioned in my first article on better fantasy armor, the system I'm setting up depends on having a set of modifiers that can turn the standard armor types listed below into the wider variety described in GURPS Low-Tech. So here are most of those additional modifiers. They're available in a GCA file for people who use GCA4.

First, a quick review of the base armor types.

Armor Material	Type	Notes	$/DR	Lbs/DR
Layered Cloth	Textile	-2 DR vs imp/pi; Flexible	100	12
Leather	Hide	-2 DR vs imp/pi; Flexible	60	13
Bone	Bone	Semi-Ablative	60	14
Wood	Plant	Combustible	60	14
Scale	Scale	-1 DR vs cr	250	10
Mail	Mail	-2 DR vs cr; Flexible	500	6
Plate	Plate		700	7

Armor Modifiers

Armor modifiers can define the armor's workmanship, base material, or some other characteristic of the armor. All workmanship modifiers are mutually exclusive with each other, and all base material modifiers are also mutually exclusive with each other. All other modifiers can be combined with each other except as specifically noted.

Generic

Fine: Fine armor is well-made and only fits the wearer. There is an additional -1 penalty to target armor gaps. Workmanship modifier. +3 CF, -20% to weight.
Very Fine: Very Fine armor is made by master smiths and only fits the wearer. There is an additional -1 penalty to target armor gaps. Workmanship modifier. +14 CF, -30% to weight.
Cheap: Cheap armor is either mass-produced or made by inferior craftsman or from inferior materials. There is a +2 bonus to target armor gaps. Workmanship modifier. -0.4 CF, +25% to weight.

Textile

Silk: Armor made from silk is lighter and more resistance to piercing, impaling, and cutting damage. Gives +1 DR vs cu, imp, and pi damage (though textile armor starts with -2 DR vs imp and pi). Material Modifier. +4 CF, -10% to weight.
Spider Silk: Spidersilk is stronger than normal silk, but harder to farm. Gives +1 DR vs cu, imp, and pi damage (though textile armor starts with -2 DR vs imp and pi). Material Modifier. +9 CF, -30% to weight.
Giant Spider Silk: The silk made from the webs of giant spiders is stronger than steel, though still flexible. Gives +1 DR vs cu, imp, and pi damage (though textile armor starts with -2 DR vs imp and pi) and reduce armor thickness by one category. Material Modifier. +29 CF, -50% to weight.
Meditative: Grants the wearer +1 Chi Talent. +3 CF.

Hide

Layered Leather/Hardened Leather: Multiple thin layers of leather are heavier but stronger than a single thicker layer. Alternately, a single thick piece of layer can be hardened by boiling. Either way, these treatments remove the DR penalty against piercing and impaling attacks as well as the Flexible quality. Material Modifier. +0.1 CF, +25% to weight.
Quality Leather: The hides of certain exotic creatures (giraffes, sharks, trigers, reptile men) are stronger than the hides of creatures normally used to make leather, and makes for better armor. Material Modifier. +2 CF, -30% to weight.
Quality Layered/Hardened Leather: Quality leather can be layered or hardened, for armor that is nearly as strong as steel but still organic. Quality layered/hardened leather is not flexible and has no DR penalty. Material Modifier. +3.3 CF, -15% to weight.
Dragonhide: The skin of dragon's wings can be used to make strong and light weight leather armor without the need for hardening or layering. Dragonhide has no DR penalty, triple DR against fire and heat attacks, and reduces its thickness by one category. Exotic variants do not cost any more but give triple DR against other types of elemental damage - most commonly cold, but acid and lightning resistant versions exist. Material Modifier. +49 CF, -50% to weight.

Bone

Horn: Armor made from sculpted animal horns, tusks, or shells is reasonable strong and cheap, but bulky. Remove the semi-ablative quality of bone armor. Material Modifier. +0.5 CF, -20% to weight.
Dragonbone: The bones of a dragon are much stronger than normal animal bones and make excellent armor. Remove the semi-ablative quality of bone armor and reduce the bulk by one category. Dragonbone provides triple DR against fire and heat attacks just like dragonhide. Material Modifier. +29 CF, -50% to weight.

Wood

Straw: Straw mat armor is cheap but doesn't provide much protection. Add Flexible to the armor qualities, and increase the bulk by one category. Material Modifier. -0.4 CF.
Paper or Barkcloth: Layered paper is bulky but reasonably strong. Material Modifier. +0.5 CF, -20% to weight.
Cane: Flexible cane rods can be woven into a weak protective garment. Cane armor is heavy, bulky, and tends to come apart quickly under attacks. Add semi-ablative to its qualities. Material Modifier. -0.3 CF, -10% to weight.
Ironwood: Elves, druids, and faeries use this remarkable wood to create armor nearly as light and protective as steel plate, at nearly the same cost. Material Modifier. +9 CF, -40% to weight.

Scale

Cloth armors with some kind of metal reinforcement such as ring mail or penny-plate are examples of cheap scale armor.
Star Scale: Making the scales in scale armor out of a star shape allows them to withstand impact better. Remove the DR penalty against crushing attacks. +0.4 CF, no change to weight.
Brigandine: Advanced scale armor puts the scales inside a cloth or leather framework and tailors and overlaps them more efficiently than standard scale. Remove the DR penalty against crushing attacks. +1.25 CF, -20% to weight.
Dragonscale: The heavy body scales of a dragon are stronger and lighter than steel. Removes the DR penalty against crushing attacks, reduces the bulk of the armor by one category, and provides triple DR against heat and fire attacks just like dragonhide. Material Modifier. +19 CF, -40% to weight.

Mail

Banded: Weaving leather bands through the alternate rows of mail makes the armor less flexible and more resistant to crushing damage, in exchange for a notable increase in weight. Remove the -2 DR penalty versus cr and the flexible quality. +0.1 CF, +50% to weight.
Mail and Plates: Mail can be reinforced by small overlapping plates of metal, similar to scale. Reduce the DR penalty versus cr to -1 and remove the flexible quality. +0.2 CF, +25% to weight.
Elven: Advanced elven techniques make mail flexible but still resistant to crushing damage. Remove the DR penalty versus cr. +3 CF.
Mithril: The silver moon metal is nearly as strong as orichalcum, but cannot be forged into large plates, only wire. Reduces the armor bulk by one category. Material Modifier. +29 CF, -20% to weight.

Textile, Hide, or Mail

Athletic: The encumbrance of the armor doesn't penalize Acrobatics, Jumping, Running, or Swimming rolls, nor attacks with Fencing weapons. +5 CF.
Thieves: The encumbrance of the armor doesn't penalize Climbing or Stealth rolls. +3 CF.

Plate

Spiked: As per DF1 p 27. +2 CF.
Segmented Plate: Less advanced metal workers cannot forge large plates, and must carefully construct armor from smaller pieces riveted together. Unlike scale, there is no underlying textile or hide layer. -0.2 CF, +15% to weight.
Dwarven: Dwarven techniques provide articulation of even the thickest armor in exchange for increased weight. Reduces the armor bulk by one category. Incompatible with the Cheap or Segmented Plate modifiers. +1 CF, +5% to weight.
Orichalcum: Essential metal makes excellent armor, but cannot normally be made in large plates and must be combined with the Segmented Plate modifier. Extremely skilled smiths can harden it, add fluting, and tailor it so well that an impenetrable harness weighs little more than heavy clothing. Reduces the armor bulk by one category. Material Modifier. +29 CF, -35% to weight.
Celestial Steel: Armor made from the metal of the gods glows with an inner light and resists the forces of corruption. The glow eliminates darkness in a 3 hex radius (as a Daylight Continual Light Spell). Reduces the armor bulk by one category, and provides its full DR (Cosmic Irresistable) against any attack made by Unholy, Demonic, or Undead powers. Material Modifier. +29 CF, -20% to weight.

Scale, Plate, or Dragonparts

Fluting: Carefully designed fluting, ribs, bosses, and vertical ribs can strengthen key components of armor, making it effectively stronger. For dragonparts, using the parts of elder dragons produces a similar effect. +4 CF, -10% weight.

Scale, Mail, or Plate

Copper: Metal armor can be made from copper, which is an inferior metal for the purpose. No one does this if they have access to iron or more exotic alternatives. Material Modifier. +3 CF, +20% weight. Low-Tech suggests +0 CF for copper, but doing so means that copper scale is 1/3rd the cost of copper by weight, which doesn't seem right.
Bronze: Metal armor can also be made from bronze, which is as good a choice as iron. Material Modifier. +3 CF. Assume in DF settings that tin is plentiful. In historical games set outside Britain, bronze should probably be +9 or +14 CF.
Hardened Metal: Any metal armor can be made from hardened metal, produced from master mages, dwarven smiths, or gnomish factories. Can also be applied to dragonhide, dragonbone, and dragonscale, to represent the use of elder dragons parts to produce a similar effect. +4 CF, -10% weight.
Meteoric Iron: Armor made from sky-metal is resistant to magic. No spell can affect it, and counts as cosmic DR against spells normally ignore armor (such as a wizard's Mystic Bolt or Deathtouch) if the spell has to pass through the armor (ie, a meteoric iron helmet won't prevent a Deathtouch to the unarmored hand, but it will act as armor against a Mystic Bolt targeted at the face). Material Modifier. +19 CF.
Soulsteel: Armors made from the tortured souls of the damned are disturbing, but are a cheap and effective armor for the champions of the unholy. Provides the wearer with Resistance to Holy Powers +8 and Frightens Animals. Material Modifier. +3 CF, -20% to weight.

Better Fantasy Armor: Locations, Types, and Bulks

GURPS Low-Tech introduced a new set of rules for pre-modern armor, based on much more comprehensive research than the previous rules. Metal armor became much more expensive and much lighter per point of DR; non-metal armor became somewhat cheaper and much, much heavier. At the same time, a new set of rules for buying armor by location and adding sub-locations like the elbow or shin were added.

I like the new system in concept, but the execution always bothered me. It may be realistic that even minimally protective leather armor weighs a great deal, but it isn't fun. The Low-Tech system is also a bit of a pain to work with: armor weights are given for the torso armor, and head, neck, and limb armor weighs a percentage of the total armor. But fully armoring a character gives an armor weight of 305% of the torso armor weight, which is an annoying number.

So I'm proposing a new Armor Locations Table, a new Armor Table (with the base weight being for the full suit of armor), and new rules on armor bulk to help with armor scaling.

Armor Locations Table

Armor locations in italics are sub-locations of the previous location, and do not need to be purchased separately if the main location is purchased. Sub-locations can also be purchased separately. For example, buying head protection at 10% of the total armor weight includes the skull, face, and neck protection, but a skullcap could be bought for 5% of total armor cost.

Location	Cost and  Weight	Hit Location	Notes
Head	8%	3-5, 17-18
Skull	(3%)	3-4
Face	(3%)	5
Neck	(2%)	17-18
Torso	32%	9-11	Vitals are hit on a 1 on a d6
Chest	(20%)	9-10	Vitals are hit on a 1 on a d6
Vitals	((4%))	-
Abdomen	(12%)	11	Vitals are hit on a 1 on a d6 Includes groin
Groin	((2%))	11
Arms	20%	8, 12
Shoulders	(6%)	8, 12*	Roll 1d; on 1-2 this location is hit
Upper Arms	(4%)	8, 12*	Roll 1d; on 3 this location is hit
Elbows	(4%)	8, 12*	Roll 1d; on 4 this location is hit
Forearms	(6%)	8, 12*	Roll 1d; on 5-6 this location is hit
Hands	6%	15
Legs	24%	6-7, 13-14
Thighs	(12%)	6-7, 13-14*	Roll 1d; on 1-3 this location is hit
Knees	(4%)	6-7, 13-14*	Roll 1d; on 4 this location is hit
Shins	(8%)	6-7, 13-14*	Roll 1d; on 5-6 this location is hit
Feet	10%	16

This is pretty close to the Low-Tech armor table with all values divided by 3 and rounded to make nice values. Some of the values were adjusted to make them a little less painful: per the by the low-tech rules, long gauntlets that fully cover the forearm end up weighing an absurd amount.

I made a big edit to this table, after realizing I'd rather have the numbers be multiples of 4 than multiples of 5. There's a lot of halving and quartering in the math, and all those 1.25% values were getting untidy. Even so, I'm keeping the face at 3%, since it makes the math for the face sublocations tidy. There's always trade-offs.  

Simplified Face Sub-Locations

There are 6 sub-locations on the face: jaw, cheek, ears, nose, eyes, and brow. Each one can be separately protected at the cost and weight of 0.5% of the base armor. Eye protection gives No Peripheral Vision. Ear protection gives either Hard of Hearing or removes -2 in penalties to target the armor gaps in the head. If the face is targeted and the target is wearing partial face protection, roll 1d: if the roll is less than the number of protected locations, the armor protects.

Armor Table

The following table shows armor cost and weight, per point of DR, for a full suit of armor.

Armor Type	Lbs/DR	$/DR	Notes
Textiles   (Cloth, Silk)	12	$100	Flexible -2 DR vs Impaling and Piercing
Hides   (Leather, Hardened Leather)	13	$60	Flexible -2 DR vs Impaling and Piercing
Bone   (Horn)	14	$60
Plants   (Wood, Straw, Paper, Cane)	14	$60	Combustible
Scale   (Lamellar, Brigantine)	10	$250	-2 DR vs Crushing
Mail	6	$500	Flexible -2 DR vs Crushing
Plate   (Segmented Plate)	7	$700

Any type of armor can theoretically have any amount of DR, but see the limits on bulk below. Individual variations of an armor type (such as scale versus lamellar versus brigantine) should have modifiers to their cost and weight that I've covered in another post.

Using these two tables should be pretty simple: choose an armor type, an amount of DR, and coverage, and multiple them together. For instance, a long-sleeved mail hauberk that covers all of the arms and torso (55%) and provides DR7 costs ($400 * 7 * .55) $1540 and weighs (6 * 7 * .55) 23 lbs. A head to toe suit of iron plate that provides DR9 costs ($500 * 9) $4500 and weighs (7 * 9) 63 lbs. A horn helmet that covers the face and skull and provides DR4 costs ($150 * 4 * .08) $48 and weighs (12 * 4 * .08) ~4 lbs.

Historically, armor wearers tended to optimize their armor: putting thinner armor on the inside of the arms or neglected the back of the armor. As two quick guidelines, armor with the weak limbs modifier halves the armor DR on the back of the arms and legs, reducing the total cost and weight by 11%. Armor with the weak back modifier halves the DR on the back of the torso, reducing the cost and the weight of the armor by 8%. Another arguably real-world optimization would be reinforcement over the vitals. Doubling DR for hits to the vitals only increases armor cost and weight by 6% (3% each for the front and back).

Armor Bulk

Thicker armor is bulkier armor, and bulky enough armor imposes a DX penalty. Larger creatures can tolerate more bulk; smaller creatures can tolerate less bulk. So while a pixie is strong enough to lift enough bronze to make a suit of 2mm thick plate armor, armor that thick wouldn't give him space to bend his elbows (being roughly equivalent to armor that is 12mm thick on a human).

The maximum thickness of armor that a person can wear without a DX penalty depends on their SM, and is shown on the table below. Similarly, a larger creature can wear a thicker layer of armor beneath another piece of armor without having their DX penalized.

SM	Outer  Layer	Inner  Layer
-6	Thin	None
-4	Light	None
-2	Medium	None
-1	Medium	None
0	Heavy	None
+1	Heavy	Thin
+2	Jousting	Thin

So an SM-6 pixie can only wear the thinnest of armors; a normal human can wear Heavy armor and layer it over Thin armor; and a SM+2 Ogre Barbarian isn't penalized by jousting armor and could wear a suit of thin mail under it.

Each armor type has its own maximum DR for each category of bulk. The DX penalty for wearing armor that is too bulky is -1 per level of bulk: an SM-4 leprechaun wearing jousting plate is at -3 DX.
The bulk penalty only applies to locations that are at least 50% covered by armor, just like the layering penalty.

Armor  Type	Thin	Light	Medium	Heavy	Jousting	Massive
Textile/Hide	1	2	3	4	5	6
Bone/Wood	2	3	4	5	7	9
Scale	2	4	6	8	11	13
Mail	3	5	7	9	12	14
Plate	3	5	7	10	13	15

Again, this should be straightforward. DRs are intentionally increased from normal GURPS ranges because the armor is generally lighter per point of DR and because (in my experience) dungeon fantasy games tend to be high lethality, so increasing DR is really helpful. A knight or samurai in heavy armor (with padding beneath) has DR in the 9-13 range, and is basically immune to sword blows from attackers.

Joints and Heavy Armor

As an optional house rule, anyone who wears the thickest safe armor on their joints (shoulders, elbows, knees, abdomen, and neck) suffers a -1 penalty to DX, which can be mitigated by leaving big gaps in the armor - attacks through the armor chinks in those locations get at +2 bonus. Wearing thick armor on the hands gives the Ham-Fisted 1 and Bad Grip 1 disadvantages.

Design Notes

Cloth armor, at low DRs, is affordable for both weight and cost. It rapidly becomes too thick to wear, well before it becomes good for anything other than avoiding knives and incidentally damage.

Bone armor is always bulky. It's not desirable armor for metal-working cultures, but that models historical trends.

Mail is lighter than plate per point of DR, which makes sense, because almost all metal armor should be equivalent. Mail's flexibility and vulnerability to crushing damage mean that plate is still better armor for those who can afford the expense and weight.