Hull Armour

Hideously expensive, hull armour is nonetheless a vital component for any ship intending to engage in ship to ship combat, or planning to travel through waters inhabited by hostile creatures.

Ultimate Equipment Guide II

Author Greg Lynch, J. C. Alvarez
Publisher Mongoose Publishing
Publish date 2005

Initially, hull armour was intended to cover only a few feet of a ship’s hull, just above and just below the waterline, to protect it from the devastating attack of an enemy ship’s ram. In time, however, hull armour began to creep upward, eventually extending to just a few inches below the gunwale of the ship and offering it protection from the stones and bolts of siege engines like the ballista and the catapult. Hull armour reduces the damage done by an enemy ship’s ram by five points, and subtracts one damage die from the damage done by any siege engine attack (for example, a ballista would deal only 2d8 damage against a ship equipped with hull armour). It is important for Games Masters to remember that hull armour only protects against attacks that impact the hull itself, not the deck or rigging of the ship.

If desired, it is possible for the shipwrights to cover the entire hull of the ship, from keel to gunwale, with armour. This option, though it makes hull armour even more frighteningly expensive, is considered indispensable by captains who fear they will face other foes than enemy ships in their voyages. Extending hull armour across the entire hull can help stave off attacks by hostile undersea creatures like sahaugin, who otherwise enjoy hacking holes into the hulls of ships. To extend hull armour’s coverage to encompass the entire hull, double the price of the armour.

Hull armour is composed of sheets of bronze or copper. Though softer and weaker than steel, these metals can survive long immersion in salt water, where steel cannot. Hull armour is sold in ten-foot wide sections. To determine the number of sections required to protect a ship, double the ship’s length and divide by ten. For example, a 100-foot long warship would require 20 sections of hull armour to protect it. The price of hull armour does include installation.

Hull Armour (10-foot section): 1,500 gp