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grig_since98
Guest
While Ive never seen a depiction of a "fantasy" leather armor historically, my understanding is that what we call brigandine or a coat of plates, being a leather garmet with plates of hardened leather or metal, was extremely common. Are you saying this isn't the case?Armor in the middle ages and even in the classical period was more about cost and materials available. Why in Japan did they not have metal plate? Well take a look at the amount of iron ore coming out of Japan. Japan doesn't have an abundant amount of iron ore. Celts did not have the advancements in metallurgy necessary to forge complicated metal armor and iron mining in Britain was very limited until the steam engine due to the low water table. Forms of plate were used in the Indian subcontinent but military affairs were given less of a priority and much of those occurred after the crossbow. Asian armies tended to be large and the open plains tended to promote larger armies of fast moving cavalry where the emphasis was on siege warfare. The plate armor weighs about as much as a modern combat load (without pack) and was as well distributed. Is it heavy heck yes. Ask anyone that has ever done a dismounted patrol, is it going to slow you down that much, not really. That being said all the belief that leather was ever used as armor is completely false. It was believed to be used in the classical period from looking at Roman statues. When they looked closer they realized that it was scale that rain had eroded down. For a leather armor to provide any protection it would need to be cured so hard as to immovable providing much less range of movement then plate. That being said there should be some advantages that give plate a boost even if it’s only removing the disadvantages. There certainly shouldn't be the largest base resist for studded leather armor.