I'm attempting to come up with an alternative way of handling armor that relies on customization. It uses a * system to determine type and stealth, and separates torso and legs. Let me know what you think, and especially if you feel some part is imbalanced.
This idea assumes that you're using the cuirass, chausse, and corslet system described below. If you as a DM do not care about where on a PC's body they are being hit, double the prices and weight below for armor and reinforcements (but not other).
Other: Gauntlets 20 / 10 / +1 (hand/wrist) * - for only one gauntlet, half the price and weight Shield 10 / 5 / +2 ** (must defend as an action)
Proficiency: * Light *** Medium ***** Heavy
Stealth: * Advantage ** -- **** Disadvantage
Cuirasses (torso) and chausses (legs) are separate. You can have a Leather Cuirass and Leather Chausse and still be 1*. Your star is the highest of the two, not the combination.
You can also take the middle road and use a corslet. You can use a cuirasse and chausse together, although they're separate purchases. A corslet cannot be used with either of the other two.
It's up to the DM's discretion to care about the difference, but it's useful for roleplaying combat differently between bipedal and quadrupedal enemies, short and medium enemies/players, and attacks from the front/back or sides. For example, if someone is trying to target a PC's throat - a cuirass would be better protection than a corslet. If someone is being tripped, a chausse would help them resist that.
I'm attempting to come up with an alternative way of handling armor that relies on customization. It uses a * system to determine type and stealth, and separates torso and legs. Let me know what you think, and especially if you feel some part is imbalanced.
This idea assumes that you're using the cuirass, chausse, and corslet system described below. If you as a DM do not care about where on a PC's body they are being hit, double the prices and weight below for armor and reinforcements (but not other).
Armor: (choose) gp / lb / ac
Cloth: 1 / 1 / 10 * (unarmored without reinforcement)
Padded: 5 / 8 / 11 **
Leather: 10 / 10 / 11 *
Hide: 20 / 12 / 12 **
Chain: 50 / 20 / 13 ***
Plate: 750 / 30 / 15 ****
Reinforcement: (cannot combine, can replace without replacing armor)
Ring 15 / 30 / +3 **
Studded 30 / 3 / +1 *
Scale 50 / 35 / +2 **
Spiked 100 / 10 / +4 ***
Splint 200 / 50 / +5 **
Banded 400 / 25 / +3 *
Other:
Gauntlets 20 / 10 / +1 (hand/wrist) * - for only one gauntlet, half the price and weight
Shield 10 / 5 / +2 ** (must defend as an action)
Proficiency:
* Light
*** Medium
***** Heavy
Stealth:
* Advantage
** --
**** Disadvantage
Cuirasses (torso) and chausses (legs) are separate. You can have a Leather Cuirass and Leather Chausse and still be 1*. Your star is the highest of the two, not the combination.
You can also take the middle road and use a corslet. You can use a cuirasse and chausse together, although they're separate purchases. A corslet cannot be used with either of the other two.
Cuirass: Torso, chest, neck (partial), shoulders, arms (not hands/wrists).
Chausse: Waist, hip, upper legs, lower legs (not feet/ankles).
Corslet: Torso, chest, waist, hip, upper legs (partial).
It's up to the DM's discretion to care about the difference, but it's useful for roleplaying combat differently between bipedal and quadrupedal enemies, short and medium enemies/players, and attacks from the front/back or sides. For example, if someone is trying to target a PC's throat - a cuirass would be better protection than a corslet. If someone is being tripped, a chausse would help them resist that.