Additional Armour and Shields

The Quintessential Paladin

Author Alejandro Melchor

Series Quintessential Series

Publisher Mongoose Publishing

Publish date 2002

Armour Extras

Aventail: This is a short piece of chainmail that hangs loosely from a helmet to add protection to the neck.

Tabard, Padded: This rectangular piece of cloth is worn over armour. Normal tabards are meant to bear the wearer’s coat of arms or other symbols, but armoured tabards add protection. A padded tabard is made of many layers of heavy cloth that can be worn over any armour.

Tabard, Chain: Chain tabard consists of two layers of cloth with a middle layer of chainmail. It cannot be worn over heavy armour as it hampers movement too much.

Surcoat: Similar to tabards, a surcoat is a cloth garment worn over armour to identify its wearer. It is long and flowing like a tunic and some paladins use it as their Holy symbol if it is emblazoned with their deity’s icon.

Besagues: These circular plates are tied to the elbow joint and in front of the shoulders of full and half plate armour for additional protection.

Extras

Extra	Cost	Armour Bonus	Armour Check Penalty	Arcane Spell Failure	Weight
Avantail	20 gp	+1	–	+5%	+1 lb.
Besagues	50 gp	+1	–	+5%	+2 lbs.
Surcoat	2 gp	–	–	–	1 lb.
Tabard, chain	55 gp	+2	-1	+5%	15 lb.
Tabard, padded	15 gp	+1	-1	+5%	5 lbs.

Piecemeal Plate

Many poor warriors (or paladins under a vow of poverty) find themselves forced to scavenge battlefields for armour that is not too dented or ruined. They assemble a ‘poor man’s plate’ out of all the pieces that will never provide the same amount of protection and mobility of true full plate, but it will serve their needs.

The following listings are for the parts of a full plate. The information assumes that it is being strapped over padding or chainmail, and it does not include gauntlets. The parts cannot be strapped over medium or heavy armour.

Armour Bonus: Some parts, taken in and by themselves, only provide a fractional armour bonus; the total bonus of the pieces worn is rounded down.

Maximum Dexterity Bonus: Take the smallest number of all the parts worn and subtract the armour check penalties from the rest to obtain the maximum Dexterity bonus to AC, with a minimum of +1.

Armour Check Penalty and Arcane Spell Failure: The penalties and chances of failure for each part are added together so that, in the end, the character is better off looking
for matching pieces of armour or saving for a custom-made suit of full plate.

Speed: Wearing from one to four parts (not joints or breastplate) is equivalent to light armour, from five to eight parts (not joints or breastplate) is equivalent to medium armour; the breastplate always adds one category (no armour becomes light, light armour becomes medium, etc.) and the joints do not count.

Torso

The armour piece for the torso is the breastplate, but this is not the armour type of the same name found in the SRD; this is just the plating that covers the back and front of the torso. The armour bonus and weight are halved if the character is only wearing the front or the back piece, but all the other statistics remain the same.

Arms

If both parts of an arm’s plate do not belong to the same suit of armour, the character may wear only one or the other, but not both.

• Rerebrace: Covers the upper arm.
• Vambrace: Also called bracer, it covers the forearm.

Legs

If both parts of a leg’s plate do not belong to the same suit of armour, the character may wear only one or the other, but not both.

• Fauld: Short armoured skirt that covers the character below the waist. Tassets are triangular pieces of plate that hang from the fauld, adding protection to the area between cuisses and breastplate. The fauld can be from a different suit as cuisses and greaves.
• Cuisses: Cover the thighs.
• Greaves: Cover the lower leg.

Joints

Armour for the joints is a special case; they are seldom effective if they are not all present, for the additional protection they provide by themselves is almost negligible.

• Gorget: A piece of plate that covers the neck, resting at the shoulders. If the gorget is not part of the same suit as the breastplate, add -1 to the armour check penalty.
• Pauldron: Large curved plate covering the shoulders.
• Couter: Covers the elbow.
• Poleyn: Covers the knee.

Plate Pieces
Part*	Cost	Armour Bonus	Max. Dexterity	Armour Check Penalty	Arcane Spell Failure	Weight
breastplate	160 gp	+2	+4	-3	10%	15 lb.
Arm (rerebrace)	50 gp	+0.5	+8	-0.5	5%	3 lb.
Arm (vambrace)	50 gp	+0.5	+8	-0.5	5%	3 lb.
Fauld (with tassets)	80 gp	+1	+6	-1	–	5 lb
Fauld (without tassets)	30 gp	+0.5	+7	-1	–	2 lb
Legs (cuisses)	60 gp	+0.5	+5	-1	2%	4 lb.
Legs (greaves)	60 gp	+0.5	+4	0	2%	4 lb.
Joints (full set)	150 gp	+1	–	-2	5%	5 lb.
Joints (individually)	30 gp	+0.2	–	-0.4	1%	1 lb.

Armour and Shields Ultimate Equipment Guide II

Author Greg Lynch, J. C. Alvarez

Publisher Mongoose Publishing

Publish date 2005

This section of the store contains a number of new models of protective wear, derived not only from armour but from clothing designs as well.

Leather Coat

This is a full-body leather overcoat, including a short cape over the shoulders and a high collar covering all the wearer’s neck up to the lower face. The suit includes a felt or leather cap and a pair of gloves. The coat features a great quantity of belts, pockets, buttons and buckles.

Designed for characters expecting both combat and a long journey, leather coats combine the best in light armour technology with fashionable weather protection attire. They are preferred by elite soldiers, overland couriers and secret agents. A leather coat offers excellent protection, while causing little or no penalties to the user’s movement.

Leather coats are a relatively new fashion item, more common with every passing season. Originally designed as standard issue for certain army officers, they have become available in most specialised armour stores. Their exact origin is unknown, though it can surely be traced to the evolution of Cold Weather Outfits to a gradually less bulky, more combat-oriented design.

In addition to armour bonuses, a character wearing a leather coat receives a +2 circumstance bonus on Fortitude saves and Survival checks made against the effects of stormy or cold weather.

Leather Coat: Light Armour; 250 gp; AC +3; Max Dexterity +6; Check +0; SF 20%; Spd 30 ft./20 ft.; 20 lb.

Mirror Shield

A mirror shield is specially treated with oils and acids causing its surface to become fully reflective. It appears as a masterwork heavy steel shield, except that its surface never has any decoration or heraldic symbols; instead, it reflects all light perfectly. A masterwork heavy steel shield (only) can be turned into a mirror shield by a process costing 50 gold pieces.

According to legend, the first mirror shield was employed by the hero of an ancient and faraway realm, who was sent to battle the oldest and most powerful medusa of his kingdom. This unnamed hero polished his shield to such an extent that it became a mirror in his hands, allowing him to see the medusa only through the reflection and thus fight it safely. Another version of this tale says the hero was a common peasant, who defeated a wyvern by holding a large mirror to the sun and causing its rays to reflect on the creature’s gaze. The blinded wyvern was easy prey even for the untrained farmer, who drove his spear right through the monster’s heart.

When in daylight or similar bright light conditions, a mirror shield causes all of the wearer’s opponents to suffer a –2 penalty to their Initiative. Furthermore, the wearer can spend a standard action to position the mirror in such a way that it focuses the light on to one opponent; the mirror shield’s wearer makes a ranged attack roll opposed by his opponent’s Reflex save. If the attack is successful, the opponent is blinded for one round. The wearer of a mirror shield can also use it to feint and confuse its opponent; by forgoing the shield bonus granted by a mirror shield for one round, the wearer is treated as having the Improved Feint feat for that round. All of the above features function only if the mirror
shield is carried in daylight or similar bright light conditions.

A mirror shield can also be used against gaze attacks: by looking at an enemy only through the mirror shield, a character can receive a +4 circumstance bonus on all saves against gaze attacks from that enemy; however, the enemy is treated as having concealment (20% miss chance). If the opponent is vulnerable to its own gaze attack, the mirror shield may be used to reflect the creature’s gaze upon itself: as
a standard action, the mirror shield’s wearer makes a ranged attack roll opposed by his opponent’s Reflex save. If the attack is successful, the
opponent is affected by its own gaze attack, with the appropriate consequences.

Mirror Shield: Heavy Shield; 200 gp; AC +2; Max Dexterity —; Check –1; SF 15%; Spd —; 15 lb.

Slashing Shield

These are normal steel shields (the technology cannot be applied to wooden ones), whose edges have been sharpened to the point of functioning as slashing weapons. A slashing shield looks as a typical medium or heavy steel shield, its slashing quality being in fact unnoticeable by a casual observer. A Search check (DC 15) or Spot check (DC 20) reveals the shield’s sharpened edges. A normal shield can be turned into a slashing shield by a process costing 50 gold pieces.

The first slashing shield expert was Zahar the Noble, a gladiator known for his sportsmanship and fairness. He discovered slashing shields when he accepted to throw down his weapon before a rival that suggested an unarmed combat. However, as soon as Zahar had discarded his weapon, his treacherous opponent produced a set of hidden poisoned darts, at just the right distance for Zahar to be unable to attack first. Making a desperate effort, Zahar threw the only weapon he found at hand his light shield against his opponent and, surprisingly, decapitated him with the shield’s edge. Although Zahar later acknowledged it had been a lucky strike, he decided to sharpen his shield to use as a throwing, edged weapon. Later, Zahar himself developed the heavy slashing shield version, when a jealous arena master forbade him from using thrown shields, qualifying them of ‘highly unsporting’.

Slashing shields can be used as weapons, just like common shields; however, a slashing shield deals considerably more damage than a shield bash attack, even with a spiked shield. Spikes added to a slashing shield do not increase its damage at all; in fact they may hamper its usefulness as a thrown weapon in the case of a light shield. As with normal shields, making an attack with a slashing shield negates the shield’s bonus to Armour Class for that round. A slashing shield never allows the wearer to carry an item on the same hand. Any character proficient with shield bash attacks is considered proficient with slashing shield attacks.

The process to make a slashing shield removes a considerable percentage of the shield’s bulk, making it much thinner and lighter. A light slashing shield can be used as a thrown weapon with a five-foot range increment.

• Light Slashing Shield: Light Martial Weapon; 50 gp; Dmg 1d4(S)/1d6(M); Critical x3; Range 5 ft.; 6 lb.; Slashing
• Heavy Slashing Shield: One-Handed Martial Weapon; 75 gp; Dmg 1d6(S)/1d8(M); Critical x3; 15 lb.; Slashing
• Light Slashing Shield: Light Shield; 50 gp; AC +1; Max Dexterity —; Check –1; SF 5%; Spd —; 6 lb.
• Heavy Slashing Shield: Heavy Shield; 75 gp; AC +2; Max Dexterity —; Check –2; SF 15%; Spd —; 15 lb.

Quickle

Ultimate Equipment Guide II

Author Greg Lynch, J. C. Alvarez

Publisher Mongoose Publishing

Publish date 2005

Quickles, or quick buckles, are special armour clasps, chains and straps, specially designed to make the process of donning and removing armour much faster. A suit of armour fitted with quickles can be put on and removed, as the slogan says, ‘as easily as clothing’. Quickles appear as common armour straps and metallic poppers, which can fasten or unfasten simply by pressing them in a certain way. Fitting a suit of armour with quickles costs ten gold pieces for light armour, 50 gold pieces for medium armour and 250 gold pieces for heavy armour.

Quickles are another of Ambricus’ personal designs; he is particularly proud of this one. ‘Say goodbye to armour troubles’, he says, ‘for with quickles, the issue of being armoured or not is a mere moment’s work to solve!’ The idea of quickles came to Ambricus from the story of a warrior whose armour broke during battle, dozens of miles from the nearest smithy. During the night, the warrior had to repair his armour as best he could, using his own weapon belt to substitute the broken straps. The next day, the makeshift belts unfastened, leaving him trapped in half removed armour and a sitting duck against an enemy’s Battleaxe. However, his valiant sacrifice gave Ambricus the idea of making armour straps that were as easy to fasten or unfasten as a single belt.

Light armour fitted with quickles can be donned in five rounds and donned hastily or removed in two; Medium armour fitted with quickles can be donned in one minute and donned hastily or removed in five rounds; Heavy armour fitted with quickles can be donned in two minutes (or half this time if the character receives help) and donned hastily or removed in one minute.

Quickles: 10 gp (light armour), 50 gp (medium armour) or 250 gp (heavy armour); 1 lb.