Armor Descriptions	-	-	-	-
-	-	Oriental Adventures	-	-

In all places, in all lands, the need to protect oneself in battle has always arisen. For some it is a simple
shield or a coat of woven fibers woven by a craftsman. For others, the armorer hammers out the plates of metal,
fashioning them into gleaming suits of metal. Kara-Tur, too, has its artisans and armorers, toiling on the
warrior's second skin.

Geography and culture have made the armors of Kara-Tur much different from other lands. Kara-Tur is
a warm continent - steaming jungles, humid forests, and blistering steppes. A man encased in metal could
quickly die like a boiled lobster or, escaping that, slowly watch his treasured armor rust away to uselessness.
Eventually rusted joints would lock, brittle hinge pins would shear away, unknown growths would weaken
plates until there was little left but a decrepit shell.

It is also a land of quickness and speed. The dashing riders of the steppes strike suddenly, the stealthy
ninja slips nimbly and unseen through the enemy camp, the mounted samurai plunges from his fallen steed yet
lands on his feet still ready to meet his foe, the whirling monk strikes rapidly while agilely avoiding the blows
of his enemy. The speed of the warrior are prized above the massive power of his protection.
The armor of Kara-Tur reflects these conditions and values. It is designed to resist the weather, allow
great flexibility, remain lightweight, and be colorfully and artistically decorated. Thick metal armor such as
field plate is seldom seen in Kara-Tur. Instead, the armorers make great use of leather, brigandine, mail, and
lamellar constructions.

By far, the most common types of armor in Kara-Tur are of cloth and leather. The ordinary foot soldier
wears quilted layers of cotton or padded leathers. Higher ranking warriors may have suits of hardened leather
scales or brigandine. Chainmail is often worn concealed under clothing or sewn in with rich silks and soft, dyed
leathers. On rare occasions a noble may have armor built of metal bands. Solid iron and steel are reserved for
helmets and critical areas of the body.

In addition to these types, Kara-Tur has also developed the art of laced armors. These armors are
elaborate and colorful, but painstakingly slow to make. In them, small metal plates are tied together by colored
leather lacings, then carefully lacquered to seal them from moisture. Such pieces are more than armor, they are
an art form. The lacings form rows of brightly colored patterns. Sections may be covered by delicately painted
leathers. Edges are trimmed in red copper. Red silk cords tie each part down to elaborately sculpted bosses of
copper, silver, or gold. Each piece becomes a work of art and complete sets are rare. They are just too expensive
and time consuming to make.

In the Oriental Adventures rules, all armor falls into one of two general groups-suits and pieces. A suit is
a complete set of armor that provides overall protection to the wearer. The most common suits of armor are
padded, leather, studded leather, leather scale, chain mail and brigandine. Suits of metal scale mail, splint mail,
banded mail and laced armor are rare. Plate mail, field plate, and full plate armor are virtually unknown. Pieces
of armor are made of laced armor and come in a variety of shapes and colors. Each piece provides some amount
of protection to the wearer.

When a character is wearing a suit of armor, the type of armor determines the armor class of the
character. These ACs are given in Table 52: Armor Class. When a character is wearing separate pieces
of laced armor, the AC is determined by the number and type of pieces worn. Each piece of armor
improves the character's general AC, since it provides more protection to the character than if it were
not there. However, the protection provided is not equal to the type of materials used. A corselet of laced armor
(which covers the chest, back, and shoulders) is AC 7, equal to studded leather armor. Even though the
laced armor is made of tightly woven metal plates, the character's legs and arms are still exposed. Therefore the
average protection he receives is equal to the studded leathers.

Table 52: Armor Class Table

Type of Armor	Armor Class Rating
None	10
Shield/kote	9
Leather or padded armor	8
Leather, padded armor, & shield/studded leather/ leather scale/ring mail	7
Studded leather, ring mail, leather scale & shield/hide/metal scale/ brigandine	6
Hide, metal scale, brigandine & Shield/chain mail	5
Chain mail & shield/splint mail/ branded mail	4
Splint or banded mail & shield/o-yori	3

 Although pieces of armor only cover certain areas, the players and DM do not need to know where each
blow in a combat strikes. It is not necessary to know whether an opponent has been hit on his armor or not. The
AC rating averages the amount of exposed and unexposed area a character has, taking into account
higher AC of the exposed areas and the lower AC of the unexposed areas. The DM should not
allow his players to demand the location of each blow--this is unnecessary and time consuming. Instead, the
referee should use the averaged AC values given. Only in rare cases (striking from behind, stepping on
a caltrop, striking at the only exposed part of an opponent) should the specific type of armor worn on an AREA be
taken into account.

To determine the armor class of a character who is wearing pieces of laced armor, consult Table 53:
Individual Piece Armor Class.

Table 53: Individual Piece Armor Class

Armor Piece	Armor Class Steps
Do-maru	2
Haidate	1
Hara-ate	* 2
Hara-ate-gawa	* 1
Haramaki	1
Haramaki-do	2
Kote	1
Sode	1
Sune-ate	1

* The armor does not cover the backside at all. Attacks from behind are treated as against armor class 10.

Armor Class Steps refers to the amount of improvement from AC 10 the particular piece provides. A
character wearing only kote would have an armor class of 9, while a character wearing kote, do-maru and
haidate would have an armor class of 6.

In addition to the pieces listed above, a full suit of laced armor includes a number of smaller pieces to
protect specific areas. The uses of these pieces are so specialized that they do not afford the character any
degree of general protection when worn alone. Thus, a full suit of laced armor (o-yoroi) has a lower armor class
than the individual pieces combined.

Each piece of armor covers a particular area or areas of the body and only one piece can be worn on any
area. A character could wear kote, haidate, haramaki-do, and sode at the same time, but could not wear a
domaru and a haramaki-do together, since each covers the same area. Likewise, armor pieces, since they are
carefully fitted and fastened, cannot be worn with suits of armor.

Armor Descriptions

Table 54: Types of Armor & Encumbrance
 
 

Armor Type	Bulk	Base Weight	Base Movement
Banded	bulky	35# +	9"
Buckler	non	3#	—
Chain	fairly	30# +	9"
Do-maru	fairly	20#	9"
Haidate	fairly	10#	—
Hara-ate	non	10#	9"
Hara-ate-gawa	non	10#	12"
Haramaki	non	15#	12"
Haramaki-do	fairly	20#	9"
Hide	fairly	25#	9"
Kote	non	<??>	—
Leather	non	15#	12"
O-yori (great armor)	bulky	40#	6"
Padded	fairly	10#	9"
Ring	fairly	25#	9"
Scale, leather	fairly	20#	9"
Scale, metal	fairly	40#	6"
Shield, large	bulky	10#	—
Shield, medium	fairly	5#	—
Sode, pair	non	3#	—
Splinted	bulky	40#	6"
Studded	fairly	20#	9"
Sune-ate	non	5#	—

Buckler: A buckler is a small shield, easily strapped to the arm close to the fist. It can be worn while
still using a weapon in the same hand. Due to its small size, it is considered a small shield for armor purposes.
Bucklers are commonly used by the horse nomads of Kara-Tur.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Chain:

Do-maru:

Haidate:

Hanburi: This is a helmet of simple construction. It is normally made of hardened leather or light metal
plates. It fits the head snugly. Some only cover the crown and forehead. Others cover the entire head and protect
the ears. They are designed to be small, lightweight, and collapsible. They are cheaply made and are
undecorated, often worn by common soldiers.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Hare-ate: The here-ate is a suit of armor designed to protect the front of the body. It has a breastplate
and thigh protectors made from laced armor. It is open in the back and attacks from the rear are treated as armor
class 10.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Hare-ate-gawa:

Haramaki: The haramaki, or belly protector, is a lightweight piece of armor made from silk and chain
mail or small metal plates. It is not bulky and can be easily worn under clothing. It protects the stomach, chest,
and back of the character.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Haramaki-do: This piece of armor is similar in construction and design to the haramaki. However, it
cannot be concealed under clothing.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Hide: Hide armor is different from normal leather armor, in that it is made of the hide of particularly
thick-skinned creatures - elephant and rhinoceros hide being the most common. This gives better protection than
normal leather.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Horo: This is an unusual, yet simple protection that is sometimes worn by mounted warriors. It is
simply several long strips of cloth sewn together. One end is tied at the neck and the other near the waist. When
riding, the cloth fills with wind and balloons out behind the rider. When used in this method, it is only effective
when the wearer is riding. Alternatively, a wicker skeleton can be worn underneath the horo, allowing it to work
at all times. The horo improves the wearer's armor class by 1 against missile weapons shot at the back of the
character only. It has no other protective use. The horo is usually brightly colored and decorated with the crest
of the owner. This helps identify the rider by his family and lets all know that he is more than just a common
soldier.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Kabuto: This is the great helmet offers worn with the o-yoroi. The bowl of the helmet is made of strips
of iron riveted together. There is normally a small opening at the top of the head where the plates meet.
Mounted on the back and sides of the helmet is a flowing neck guard which normally curves outward in two
wings at the front. Elaborate crests are normally mounted on the front part of the helmet. Common crests are
horns, antlers, leaping fish, and half-moons. The whole affair is held on by red silk cords.
The kabuto is one of the most visible parts of the warrior's armor when on the battlefield. It is often quite
fancifully decorated and fantastically shaped. Unusual forms include ones shaped like demonic faces, seashells,
fists holding thunderbolts, tall cones, fish, or wild animals. Some are covered with human hair or furs. The
helmet bowl is often decorated with silver, copper, and gold while the neckguard is brightly laced on the outside
and covered with dyed or painted leathers on the inside.
The kabuto gives armor class 3 to the head of the wearer.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Kote (armored sleeves):

Jingasa: The jingasa is simply an iron version of the peasant's round straw hat. It is worn by common
soldiers. It has no guards for the ears, cheeks, or back of the neck. However, it is popular since it also serves as
a cooking pot when on campaign.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

O-yoroi (great armor):

Sode:

Scale: There are two types of scale armor in common use - leather scale and metal scale. Leather scale is
worn by common soldiers and horsemen. It is made of thick sections of hardened leather sewn to cloth or
another-piece of leather. Each piece overlaps the others around it. Metal scale armor is made in the same
manner, but is far less common. It is most offers worn by wealthier or more important warriors.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Shields: Depending on the area of Kara-Tur, shields may or may not be commonly used. Indeed, in
some lands shields are never used at all! However, nearly all shields are of lighter construction than those used
in other AD&D game lands. Typical materials include woven bamboo and wicker, stretched and hardened
leather, and thick layers of coconut fiber or hemp. Metal-edged wooden shields are extremely rare.
BULK:
BASE WEIGHT:
MOVEMENT:

Sune-ate:

Barding

Like shields, the use of barding varies from land to land in Kara-Tur. Even in lands where it is used,
barding is seldom as heavy or complete as that used in gajin lands. Unfavorable weather and the need for swift
movement generally limits the use of armor.

Barding is made of several different materials and comes in two different sizes, half and full. Half
barding covers the head, neck, and forequarters of the horse while full barding covers the entire body. Half
barding is more frequently used than full barding.

The most common material for barding is quilted and padded cotton. Other bardings used (in a general
descending order) are leather, leather scale, brigandine, metal scale, and chain mail. Plate barding is never used.
As a rule, barding is only used on the mounts of important nobles, generals, and shock troops.

Table 55: Barded Warhorse Base Movement Rates

Warhorse	Padded/ Leather	Metal Scale	Chain
Light	21"/24"	15 "/21"	X/15"
Medium	17"/18"	15"/17"	12"/15"
Heavy	15"/15"	14"/15"	13"/15"
Elephant	12"	-	-

The number before the slash is for full barding, the number after the slash is for half-barding. An X indicates
the barding is heavier than the horse can bear.
Barding affects the armor class of the creature as follows:
Leather or Padded: adds 1 factor to the AC, weighs 160#
Metal Scale: adds 2 factors to the AC, weighs 250#
Chain: adds 3 factors to the AC, weighs 350#
Half barding weighs half the amount of full barding and increases the AC for frontal attacks only.
Attacks from the rear do not gain the AC bonus.
The warhorse must be able to carry the weight of the barding, in addition to that of the rider and any
equipment. The barded warhorse's movement rate is reduced as follows:

Q: At the very bottom of page 50,
there appears to be an introduction
to a table. What happened to the
table?
A: The text at the bottom of page 50 refers
to table 55, which is located immediately
above the text.
(151.58)