Armor

For most, armor is the simplest way to protect oneself in a world of rampant threats and dangers. Many characters can wear only the simplest of armors, and only some can use shields. To wear heavier armor effectively, a character can select the Armor Proficiency feats, but most classes are automatically proficient with the armors that work best for them.

Here is the format for armor entries (given as column headings on Table 6–6).

Cost: The cost in gold pieces of the armor for Small or Medium humanoid creatures. See Table 6–8 for armor prices for other creatures.

Armor/Shield Bonus: Each type of armor grants an armor bonus to AC, while shields grant a shield bonus to AC. The armor bonus from a suit of armor doesn’t stack with other effects or items that grant an armor bonus. Similarly, the shield bonus from a shield doesn’t stack with other effects that grant a shield bonus.

Maximum Dex Bonus: This number is the maximum Dexterity bonus to AC that this type of armor allows. Dexterity bonuses in excess of this number are reduced to this number for the purposes of determining the wearer’s AC. Heavier armors limit mobility, reducing the wearer’s ability to dodge blows. This restriction doesn’t affect any other Dexterity-related abilities.
Even if a character’s Dexterity bonus to AC drops to 0 because of armor, this situation does not count as losing his Dexterity bonus to AC.
A character’s encumbrance (the amount of gear carried, including armor) may also restrict the maximum Dexterity bonus that can be applied to his Armor Class.

Shields: Shields do not affect a character’s maximum Dexterity bonus, except for tower shields.

Armor Check Penalty: Any armor heavier than leather, as well as any shield, hurts a character’s ability to use Dexterity and Strength-based skills. An armor check penalty applies to all Dexterity- and Strength-based skill checks. A character’s encumbrance may also incur an armor check penalty.

Shields: If a character is wearing armor and using a shield, both armor check penalties apply.

Nonproficient with Armor Worn: A character who wears armor and/or uses a shield with which he is not proficient takes the armor’s (and/or shield’s) armor check penalty on attack rolls as well as on all Dexterity- and Strength-based ability and skill checks. The penalty for nonproficiency with armor stacks with the penalty for shields.

Sleeping in Armor: A character who sleeps in medium or heavy armor is automatically fatigued the next day. He takes a –2 penalty on Strength and Dexterity and can’t charge or run. Sleeping in light armor does not cause fatigue.

Arcane Spell Failure Chance: Armor interferes with the gestures that a spellcaster must make to cast an arcane spell that has a somatic component. Arcane spellcasters face the possibility of arcane spell failure if they’re wearing armor. Bards can wear light armor and use shields without incurring any arcane spell failure chance for their bard spells.

Casting an Arcane Spell in Armor: A character who casts an arcane spell while wearing armor must usually make an arcane spell failure check. The number in the Arcane Spell Failure Chance column on Table 6–6 is the percentage chance that the spell fails and is ruined. If the spell lacks a somatic component, however, it can be cast with no chance of arcane spell failure.

Shields: If a character is wearing armor and using a shield, add the two numbers together to get a single arcane spell failure chance.

Speed: Medium or heavy armor slows the wearer down. The number on Table 6–6 is the character’s speed while wearing the armor. Humans, elves, half-elves, and half-orcs have an unencumbered speed of 30 feet. They use the first column. Duervar, Folkin, and gnomes, have an unencumbered speed of 20 feet. They use the second column. Remember, however, that a duervar’s land speed remains 20 feet even in medium or heavy armor or when carrying a medium or heavy load.

Shields: Shields do not affect a character’s speed.

Weight: This column gives the weight of the armor sized for a Medium wearer. Armor fitted for Small characters weighs half as much, and armor for Large characters weighs twice as much.

Armor Descriptions
The Pathfinder Core Rulebook provides a broad cross-section of armor that can be used by several different cultures, across several different time periods. Play on Naeja is understood to be occurring during the beginning of the 14th Century N.C., though, and on either the Verosian or Old Camusian continents. At this time, and on those lands, the knowledge of the Duneimen has advanced to a point where certain types of armor have become obsolete, others have become quite rare, and still others represent the apogee of the smith's craft.

Any special benefits or accessories to the types of armor found on Table 6–6 are described below.

Light Armor

Gambeson
Also called the “padded jack” by common soldiery, the gambeson is a thick, defensive jacket that is worn separately as its own armor, or combined with other armor by richer warriors and nobles. A gambeson is produced by as many as thirty layers of quilted linen or wool, stuffed scrap cloth or horse hair, and topped with a layer of heavy canvas, leather, or even studded leather. It protects its wearer’s torso, arms, and hips.
The gambeson is known as a "poor man’s cuirass", but that does not mean it is not effective. Thanks to its padding, it is capable of even stopping arrows and other small ranged piercing weapons (but not crossbow bolts). Against such weapons, it provides DR 3/-. On the other hand, the wearer of a gambeson quickly becomes miserable in hot climates or when under rain.
The gambeson is prevalent in Gand, J’Mir, Moar, Rona, and Sora. It is particularly used by archers, light infantrymen, and brigands who cannot afford better protection.
Cost: 25gp; +4 armor bonus; +6 maximum Dex bonus; -1 armor check penalty; 5% arcane spell failure chance; 10lbs

Leather (Pathfinder Core Rulebook)
Hunting leathers provide marginal protection against slashing, piercing, or blunt attacks. They are neither cheaper nor easier to craft than the gambeson used by the poorer warriors of Verosia. Thus, they are used as armor only situationally, by hunters or woodsmen who run into unexpected trouble.
This type of armor is common among frontiersmen in Moar, northern Rona, the Skarrelands, Sora, and Valdarheim. Among non-humans, elves - especially Seyl’Gelvani and Drey’Gelvani - incorporate finely-crafted leathers into their daily garments.
In Parthus, leathers are worn only by slaves. Duneimen wearing exclusively leather attire or armor receive a -2 modifier to their Diplomacy checks when dealing with Parthans.

Mail Hauberk
See coat of mail (medium armor). Mail hauberks are favored by Skarrels and the Valdar. Alternately, some warriors use them in conjunction with their brigandine armor.
Cost: 100gp; +4 armor bonus; +4 maximum Dex bonus; -2 armor check penalty; 20% arcane spell failure chance; 20lbs

Medium Armor

Breastplate
A breastplate is a single piece of sculpted metal, similar to those incorporated in a cuirass or harness armor. It protects the front of its wearer’s armor, and nothing else. It is long enough to rest on its wearer’s hips, which prevents chafing and exhaustion. Despite its sturdiness, the breastplate’s open back make it inferior to complete suits of armor.
Breastplates are generally not worn on their own. Their cost as an individual item is prohibitive because they are more often made as part of cuirass or a harness of plate armor. Thus, warriors generally do not buy a breastplate, but rather look to brigandine or a gambeson for cheaper, more comprehensive protection. The exception to this are Kamoran warriors, for whom ornately decorated, muscled breastplates are highly-desired.
Cost: 200gp; +4 armor bonus; +4 maximum Dex bonus; -2 armor check penalty; 25% arcane spell failure chance; 10lbs

Brigandine
Also known as the “jack of plates”, Brigandine is a doublet, generally made from canvas or leather, lined with small steel plates that have been riveted to the fabric. The steel plates themselves are typically cast-offs from damaged suits of plate armor. The vest is commonly worn over a lighter gambeson or a mail hauberk. Brigandine is generally unadorned, though some mercenaries often decorate the rivets with embossed designs.
A brigandine vest is sleeveless and primarily protects only its wearer’s torso. The mail hauberk provides some protection over the upper arms and shoulders.
Brigandine is most commonly used by a broad range of warriors, but is most often worn by archers, crossbowmen, and common infantry in service to Rona’s poorer baronies, Gand, J’Mir, and Sora. Brigandine is popular with such warriors because it is simple enough in design for an experienced soldier or even a common smith to make and repair it. As such, it is perhaps the most ubiquitous armor in Verosia.
Parthans disdain brigandine, as do Kamorans. The largely do so because they view it as an inferior sort of armor, while the latter do so largely on grounds of taste.
Cost: 50gp; +5 armor bonus; +3 maximum Dex bonus; -3 armor check penalty; 25% arcane spell failure chance; 25lbs

Coat of Mail
Commonly called “chainmail” throughout Verosia, this is armor consisting of small metal rings linked together in a pattern to form a mesh. A coat of mail protects its wearer’s entire torso, his hands and arms, his legs down to the knees, his neck, and his head (but not his face). It is worn over a lighter gambeson.
Chainmail armor is effective against slashing and piercing weapons alike in the melee, but cannot adequately protect against missile weapons or blunt trauma. Additionally, innovations in armor-making mean that the manufacture and repair of plate armor is both cheaper and faster than that of mail armor. As such, most of the coats of mail that can be found throughout Verosia are “legacy” items - armor that has been handed down (or stolen) over generations.
Coats of mail are still popular with both the Skarrels and the Valdar, though this is largely because neither of their civilizations have developed the extensive arsenals of Rona and her former possessions.
Cost: 150gp; +6 armor bonus; +2 maximum Dex bonus; -5 armor check penalty; 30% arcane spell failure chance; 45lbs

Coat of Scales
Scale armour is a form of armor consisting of many individual small scale-shaped plates attached to each other and to a backing of cloth or leather in overlapping rows. A coat of scale protects the wearer’s entire torso, his hands and arms, and his upper legs.
The coat of scales is an ancient form of armor, long since superseded by more advanced types of protection. It is used almost exclusively by Skarrels and Kamorans. The latter of the two favor scale armor because of its attractiveness, and typically forge these into masterwork items (thereby negating some of its disadvantages) that are as much a work of art as they are a means of protection. It should be noted that several cultures - the Parthans among them - use scale not as proper armor, but as a decorative part of their own harnesses.
Cost: 50gp; +5 armor bonus; +3 maximum Dex bonus; -4 armor check penalty; 25% chance arcane spell failure chance; 40lbs

Cuirass
The cuirass is most commonly a part of Verosian harness armor, and protects the wearer’s entire torso. It is, essentially, a breastplate and backplate joined together.
A cuirass is rarely worn on its own. When this is the case, though, it is worn over a gambeson, an arming doublet, and perhaps a mail hauberk, much like its inferior cousin, the brigandine.
Within proper social settings, this sort of armor is typically worn by bodyguards within a household. Alternately, a cuirass might worn by a poorer man-at-arms who wrested it as a trophy from the battlefield. Those mercenaries who are forced to purchase their armor “as part of a journey” (one piece at a time, until they have a proper harness) most often begin with a cuirass. Finally, much like breastplates (above), ornately decorated cuirasses are highly desired by Kamorans, even as stand-alone pieces.
The cuirass is known throughout Verosia, in one shape or another, by one name or another. It is a piece of armor that is nigh-universal, with the exception of the Skarrels.
Cost: 350gp; +6 armor bonus; +3 maximum Dex bonus; -3 armor check penalty; 25% arcane spell failure chance; 20lbs

Hide (Pathfinder Core Rulebook)
Certain beasts and monsters possess hides that are thick enough to be used as viable armor. Such hides are stitched with multiple layers of leather, padding, or fur. As repair of such armor typically involves a good deal of stitching and adding new pieces or even entire layers, hide armor has a distinctively patchwork quality.
Hide armor is only used by the most isolated frontiersmen, by the more barbaric elements of the Skarrels and Valdar, by some Seyl’Gelvani, and by monstrous humanoids - such as orcs and goblins. Individuals who wear such armor in communities other than those of the Skarrelands, Valdarheim, or Seyl’Gelvani woodlands receive a -2 penalty to their Diplomacy checks when dealing with “civilized” people.

Heavy Armor

Demi-Knight Harness
Demi-knight harness is of fairly low quality compared to the full and three-quarters harnesses worn by knights and the personal retinues of nobles, but that is because it was designed to be cheap. They are manufactured in royal or ducal arsenals en-masse, for the purpose of equipping entire cavalry forces. As such, it is one of the types of armor commonly called “arsenal armor”. They are marked by their added bulk and weight - more iron is used in their creation to make up for the lower-quality steel that is a result of the rushed mass-production.
This form of armor copies the look of a three-quarter harness, though with some notable changes. First, it is meant for a mounted warrior, and thus it includes cuisses and poleyns to protect the upper legs and knees. Second, it features a fully-enclosing, visored helm.
Demi-knight harnesses are most prevalent in the northern duchies of Rona and in Sora. The dukes who rule south of the Shield of Acascious suffer great losses with each passing year against the seemingly endless hordes of the orcs, and their arsenals are thus better suited to producing such armor. Among the Sorans, such suits are typically provided to the mounted Sergeants and men-at-arms who serve the Knights of Thamor and the landed nobility.
Cost: 800gp; +8 armor bonus; +2 maximum Dex bonus; -6 armor check penalty; 40% arcane spell failure chance; 55lbs
Notes:
1. The wearer of a full harness receive situational penalties to Perception checks, as determined by the GM on a case-by-case basis; the all-enclosing, visored helmet takes away almost all of the wearer’s peripheral vision, and significantly impacts his ability to hear.

Full Harness of Plate
A full harness of plate is the apogee of armor-craft in Verosia in this, the 14th century N.C. It is a full set of plate armor that protects almost the entirety of its wearer’s body. It includes a fully-enclosing, visored helmet and a gorget or bevor to protect the throat; a full cuirass; shoulder pauldrons; rerebraces, couters, and vambraces, and gauntlets to protect the arms, hands, and joints; and faulds, cuisses, poleyns, greaves, and sabatons to protect the hips, legs, and feet. What very few parts of the body are not left uncovered by plate are instead protected by mail.
Full harness armor was first developed at the Moarvik arsenal of Tharthin, while that realm was still beholden to Rona. It is the culmination of a centuries-long tradition of crafting plate armor, in a nation that has held the mounted charge as the highest form of warfare. From Moar, its use quickly spread throughout Rona and Sora, nations whose chivalric and knightly traditions also ran deep. Ganniard nobles favor it as well, though their knights tend to favor three-quarter harnesses of plate (see below).
Such armor is typically the province of full knights and the closest retainers of nobles. Only the most successful mercenaries and adventurers possess the coin needed to commission this sort of armor and the influence to engage the necessary smiths.
Cost: 1,800gp; +9 armor bonus; +2 maximum Dex bonus; -5 armor check penalty; 35% arcane spell failure chance; 40lbs
Notes:
1. The wearer of a full harness receive situational penalties to Perception checks, as determined by the GM on a case-by-case basis; the all-enclosing, visored helmet takes away almost all of the wearer’s peripheral vision, and significantly impacts his ability to hear.
2. A full harness of plate is forged for a specific individual’s dimensions; another person attempting to wear such armor receives a +0 maximum Dex bonus, a -8 armor check penalty, has a 40% arcane spell failure chance, and has their speed reduced to 15ft (10 if size S).
3. Nobles, champions, and high-ranking knights often commission agile full harnesses, which cost 2,400gp and reduce the armor check penalty to -4. A masterwork agile full harness would have an armor check penalty of only -3.
4. A full harness with regalia and heraldry would cost 2,500gp.

Half-Harness
A half-harness of plate armor is one of the most common forms of armor in Verosia. It is a type of flexible plate armor innovated by Rona and designed to be manufactured easily while still affording considerable protection to the wearer. It consists of an open-faced helmet, a breastplate and backplate, spaulders to protect the shoulders and upper arms, and tassets to protect the legs.
Like the demi-knight harness, a half-harness is a form of “arsenal armor”. It is typically used by heavy infantrymen in service to the crown, a noble, or a mercenary company. With the exception of J’Mir, Kamora, and the Skarrelands, it is common throughout the realms once ruled by Rona. Parthus also uses half-harnesses, but they shape and decorate them in a style unique to their nation, and wear radically different helmets (see below).
Cost: 400 gp; +7 armor bonus; +3 maximum Dex bonus; -4 armor check penalty; 30% arcane spell failure chance; 35lbs

Three-Quarters Harness
The three-quarters harness of plate is a compromise solution created for elite warriors who must fight on foot. Since their legs less exposed than if they were mounted, plated protection there is deemed unnecessary, and thus left out. Similarly, melee combatants on foot require greater peripheral vision. A three-quarter harness is thus a full harness, but lacking cuisses, poleyns, greaves, and sabatons (for the legs and feet) and substituting its all-enclosing helmet for an open-faced one.
Three-quarters harness is typically used by knights who fight on foot, the retinue of nobles, and chosen heavy infantrymen. It is popular among the J’Mir elite, and with noble retinues throughout Moar, Rona, and Sora. It is most prevalent within Gand and Parthus, though. In the former, merchant houses and nobles alike equip their best foot soldiers with such armor. In the latter, heavy infantry are held as the elite during times of war, and this armor - albeit in styles uniquely Parthan - is held in great regard.
Cost: 1,350; +8 armor bonus; +3 maximum Dex bonus; -4 armor check penalty; 30% arcane spell failure chance; 40lbs
Notes:
1. The statistics above are for a three-quarters harness of plate that has been forged for a specific individual’s dimensions; another person attempting to wear such armor receives a +1 maximum Dex bonus, a -7 armor check penalty, and has a 40% arcane spell failure chance
2. Nobles, champions, and high-ranking knights often commission agile three-quarters harnesses, which cost 1,800gp and reduce the armor check penalty to -3. A masterwork agile full harness would have an armor check penalty of only -2.
3. A three-quarters harness with regalia and heraldry would cost 1,800gp.

Plated Mail
Plated mail is an ancient type of Moarvik armor. It is a full-body coat of mail, including sleeves and proper leggings, that has embedded horizontal, vertical, or square plates embedded around the key parts of the body: the torso, the shoulders, the forearms, and the entire front length of the leg. Gauntlets and an open-faced helmet were also worn. Plated mail was meant to provide maximum protection while also allowing a good degree of maneuverability and flexibility to its wearer.
Plated mail was first invented in Moar perhaps two centuries before the Ronans arrived in their lands. It was an evolution of earlier lamellar armor, full-body coats of mail, coats of scale, and other such suits designed for heavy horsemen. While the protection afforded by the newcomers’ armor intrigued the native smiths, plated mail made more inroads among Ronan ranks than half-plate did among Moarvik rycerz. The flexibility and maneuverability afforded by plated mail, combined with the incredible protection of half-plate, was to be the “holy grail” of armor-craft for smiths throughout Verosia. It would not arrive for more than half a millennium, but until then plated mail served admirably.
Though technically outdated, it is a tribute to the design of plated mail that it has not been abandoned even to this day. True, any knight would rather take to the field in a full harness of plate or a three-quarters harness, but not all can afford such protection. Thus, the traditional plated mail can still be seen in use among the poorer Moarvik rycerz.
Cost: 600gp; +7 armor bonus; +2 maximum Dex bonus; -5 armor check penalty; 40% arcane spell failure chance; 45lbs

Outdated Armor

Full Plate (Pathfinder Core Rulebook)
This suit of plate armor comprises multiple pieces of interconnected and overlaying metal plates, along with an underlying coat of mail. There are many different types of “full plate”, but all are outdated variations of the current “full harness of plate” armor. While all provide an impressive amount of protection, they are nonetheless products of a time of lesser craftsmanship. Unlike modern harnesses, their weight is not evenly distributed throughout, and the plates do not conform to the body as well. They are thus decidedly more cumbersome, and restrict the movements and agility of their wearer more so than modern armor.
Full plate was first developed in Moar. The Moarvik people, who had traditionally focused more on mail and plated mail armor, were impressed by the solidity of Ronan plate - and saw that it naturally lend itself to their favored type of warfare. By the end of the eighth century N.C., Tharthin, the empire’s regional capital in Moar, had grown into a bustling regional capital, and the Ronans were beginning to build the first of their Arsenals. Given the necessary resources, Moarvik smiths pioneered full plate armor as the next step in their armor-craft, and such suits dominated the Verosian battlefields for centuries.
Outdated full plate armor is no longer used by any nation or Ronan duchy, per se. The civilized parts of Verosia all possess the knowledge to devise three-quarters harnesses and full harnesses of plate. Rather, full plate armor is typically worn by poorer knights who simply can’t afford new armor and instead wear inheritance suits - often from centuries ago (think “A Knight’s Tale”).
Alternately, adventurers and tomb-raiders can often be found wearing ancient suits of full plate. These individuals sometimes have to worry about divesting their armor of its ancient heraldry if it matches a living house of nobility! Finally, there are some few Skarrel and Valdar heroes and chieftains who possess ancient suits of full plate forged by prodigies among their people. These are, of course, incredibly rare.

Half-Plate (Pathfinder Core Rulebook)
Half-plate armor is even more outdated than suits of full plate. Half plate harkens back to a long-ago time when armor-craft was but a shadow of what it is today. Ronans were the first users of half-plate, when they began to combine their ancient coats of mail with breastplates, shoulder, and leg armor - crude at first, but increasingly comprehensive.
Such armor incorporates antiquated versions of today’s cuirasses, pauldrons, gauntlets, and greaves, with mail armor protecting the rest of the body. The plates were forged at a time when shaping the metal to a specific wearer’s body was beyond the knowledge of all but the greatest of smiths. Half-plate thus provides an impressive amount of protection, but at a great cost to the wearer’s mobility.
Half-plate armor is common only among adventurers, tomb-robbers, the Skarrels, and the Valdar. No proper Verosian knight has worn half-plate armor in centuries.

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License