UGS Armor

Armor in the Universal Game System is used to reduce the amount of damage that a character takes from the external environment or from weapon attacks. Armor does not aid the character from not being hit by an attack. The question of armor availability and the cost is dependent on the game world and that information would be found in the world supplement books.

Arms Race
The reason why there are so many different types of weapons and armor is simple. When someone makes a better weapon, someone else makes better armor to counter it. Then someone else makes a weapon to counter the new armor, the processes can continue indefinitely. It is this very reason why a small weapon like a dagger is not effective against plate mail armor (the dagger cannot overcome the plate mail AC reduction). To fight someone with plate mail you need a weapon that is designed to go against it like a battle axe, two handed sword or war hammer. If the characters are poorly equipped, they will need to employ different tactics rather than direct melee combat.

Armor Capacity
All armors in the Universal Gaming System will have two armor capacity ratings. One rating is for Ballistic (B) and the other is for Impact (I). Futuristic settings may have a Energy (E) rating for high energy weapons.


 * Ballistic: The ballistic AC rating for armor is used for reducing damage from high speed impacts, such as those from bows, crossbows, and guns.


 * Impact: The impact AC rating for armor is used for reducing damage on all other types of damage, such as falling, swords, slings, and other slower speed attacks.


 * Energy: The energy AC raring for an armor is used for reducing damage on various forms of high energy attacks from future weapons.

Who Can Wear Armor
The Universal Gaming System does not place any artificial restrictions on who can wear what types of armor. If the character is of the correct size, has the carrying capacity, and is willing to take the dice penalties then they should be allowed to wear it. No more will wizards be prevented from wearing armor.

What Makes Up Armor
Many different factors go into defining armor. By changing each of these factors new armors can be created by either the character or the GM.


 *  Ballistic Armor Capacity (BAC):  Ballistic Armor Capacity is the ability of the armor to adsorb the impact of a high velocity weapon. Most ancient armor was not designed for this type of impact, that is why crossbows were highly effective in ending the era of plate armor.
 *  Impact Armor Capacity (IAC):  The impact rating of armor is how much damage it can reduce from low velocity impacts, such as falling, melee weapons, and the like.
 *  Energy Armor Capacity (EAC): For most game worlds, the energy armor capacity is equal to the Impact Armor Capacity. The GM may use Energy Capacity if the world is futuristic and the use of energy weapons is more common then projectile weapons (i.e Star Trek).
 *  Material: What an armor is made up of greatly impacts how an armor will work in combat. For example, a leather armor made from rhino hide is going to offer more protection than that made from a deer, but the rhino leather will be heavier and not a flexible. Unlike ancient armors, which are often made from a largely single material, modern, or future armors are often made up of layered composites which would be more difficult for a character to find just laying around.
 *  Weight:  The weight of armor is often a direct relation to what material it is made out of. The weight of the armor will need to be factored into the carry load of a character. Wearing too heavy of an armor for the characters strength will slow him down and affect his movement.
 *  Armor Check Penalty:  The armor check penalty is a die penalty that is used to represent the bulk and restrictiveness of the armor. It is applied to all physical based rolls such as climbing, swimming, weapon use, spell casting, and many other. The armor check penalty is also used to factor the impact on the characters movement in combat. For every two points in armor penalty the characters movement rate is reduced by one dot or 5’.

==Improving or Modifying Armor[A3] == If you can find someone with the knowledge on to make or repair armor, then characters armor can be improved or created from scratch.

Material
Unless Majick is used, the base material of armor cannot be changed. However new armor can be created from scratch with the new material. The DM will have to figure out what the base material cost would be and if the materials are available to the character.

Armor Capacity (AC)
The AC or armor can be improved or made worst with the proper skill and materials. An armoror would do this by replacing various internal plates, adding additional layers, or many other modifications. The AC change is added separately for Ballistic and Impact AC Values.

 Table 14  – Armor Capacity Cost Chart

Weight
The weight of the armor can also be modified by someone with the armor skill. This is often done by reshaping the armor, replacing materials in various locations, etc. Lower quality armor can be simulated by increasing the weight for the same base AC values.

 Table   14     – Armor Weight Cost Chart

Armor Check Penalty
<span style="font-family:"Centaur","serif"">The armor check penalty of the armor can be improved or made worst with the proper skill and materials. An armoror would do this by replacing various internal plates, adding additional layers, or many other modifications (much like changing the AC values). Lower quality armor can be simulated by having higher armor check penalties then normal armor.

<span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc246130956"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc331427240">Other Armor Details
<p style="page-break-after:avoid"><span style="font-family: "Centaur","serif"">Below are additional details that deal with armor but don’t directly impact the AC or the cost of the armor.

Cost and Availability
<span style="font-family:"Centaur","serif"">The cost and availability of armor is a grey area, as not everyone will have equal access to purchase armor. In medieval times armor was often restricted to militia or members of the nobility while in modern or future times armor may be restricted to the military or police forces. The GM will have to interpret the laws of the kingdoms or countries in order to see if the characters can 1) get the armor and 2) are allowed to wear the armor.

Shields
<span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc220630260"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc221839826"><span style="font-family:"Centaur","serif"">Shields are weapons that can be used to block a variety of attacks. However, they also provide a measure of protection by giving a cover bonus and may reduce the damage of incoming attacks. Shields will have an AC rating for Ballistic and Impact.

<span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc220630262"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc221839828"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc246130961">Magical Enhancement
<span style="font-family:"Centaur","serif"">Magical effects can be added to armor just like it can with any other object. In additional to spells, magic can be used to alter the material, weight, AC, and armor penalty. Follow the rules for creating magic items for enchanting armor.

<span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc220630263"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc221839829"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc246130962">Natural Armor
When natural armor is selected for a character or monster the GM or player needs to select what armor it is closest to. The character will gain the benefit of the AC but will also get the armor check penalty. The armor check penalties will stack if the character attempts to add additional armor to their character. The only other differences are that natural armor does not affect movement rates or the characters encumbrance. <p style="text-align:center"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc220052170"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc220630265"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc221839831"> Table   <span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc220052170"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc220630265"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc221839831"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc331312866">  11      <span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc220052170"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc220630265"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc221839831"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc331312866"> – Armor     <span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc220052170"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc220630265"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc221839831"> Table

<span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc331427243">Getting Into And Out Of Armor
<p style="page-break-after:avoid">Getting into and out of armor takes a fair amount of time, especially when enemies sneak up on you while you are sleeping.

Don
This is the normal amount of time that is takes to put on a piece of armor. The DON time can be reduced by half if the character has assistance putting on their armor. Plate armor actually requires that someone assist the character. If they do not have someone then they suffers the penalty associated with donning hastily, but still takes the full 8 minutes.

Don Hastily
This is the fastest that armor can be put on. Note that since it is not adjusted properly that the armor check penalty for the armor is one worse.

Remove
This is the time it takes to remove armor. <p style="text-align:center"> Table <span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc331312872"> 17   <span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc331312872"> - Donning and Removing Armor

<span style="mso-bookmark: _Toc246130976">Optional COMBAT Rules
<span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;color:black;mso-ansi-language:EN-US; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA">

<p style="text-align:justify"> These rules below are optional and will aid in more realistic interpretation on how armor actually works. The tradeoff is that it will slow combat down with additional factors to keep track off.

<p style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;color:blue">Site Specific Coverage:    There are five (5) places that can be covered by armor. They are the head, torso (to include arms), hands, legs, and feet. Each of these locations can have difference amounts of AC depending on what the character wears. By default it is assumed that the character has the same coverage at every location. When the coverage option is used an additional roll is needed for every successful hit to see what location was hit targeted

<p style="text-align:justify"> ROLL:  R oll a 1d12, 1=head, 2=left hand, 3=left arm, 4=right hand, 5=right arm, 6-8=torso, 9=right leg, 10=right foot, 11=left leg, 12=left foot to get the locations.

<p style="text-align:justify"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc220630266"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc221839832"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc246130978"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin; color:blue">Armor Weakness   <span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc246130978"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin; color:blue">:      In older versions of D&D there was the concept that not all armor protected the same. For example chainmail protects well against slashing attacks but provides no protection against blunt weapons and only partial protection against piercing weapons. Although not fully expanded in this supplement (due to time) this is my preferred option as it makes what you wear and bring to a fight more important and it will force the players to think of better tactics depending on who is wearing what, what weapons they have, and who their targets are.

<p style="text-align:justify"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc220630267"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc221839833"><span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc246130979"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin; color:blue">Armor Damage   <span style="mso-bookmark:_Toc246130979"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin; color:blue">:      If the GM allows, armor can and does take damage and will loose it effectiveness over time. Armor has a number of “hit points” equal to 10 times the AC. Every time that the damage done to the character exceeds the AC of the armor a point is taken from the armors hit points. As the armor takes damage the protection it offers also decreases. If the percentage drops the AC below 1 then assume that the armor is 0.

<p style="text-align:justify"> Field Repair:  A successful roll of ARMOR FIELD REPAIR will improve an armor to the next highest level worth of “hit points”. For example, if a piece of armor has enough damage to be below 25% a successful ARMOR FIELD REPAIR would bring it up to 50% of its total capacity and another successful roll would bring it up to 75%. Each roll uses material that the character will have to replace. Full AC can not be restored in field conditions (75% is the best that can be hoped for).

[A1] This is a nod to realism in that some armors are so good that it makes the wearer nearly invincible. Of course the armor penalty for place mail is very high. Your protected, but can move very well. [A2] I borrowed the concept of ballistic and impact armor from Scion and Shadowrun. This is more realistic AND it allows for more armor options [A3] I added a new concept here of making an armor worse than the average armor. The idea here is that older armors, or those armors made by apprentices or made worse on purpose can be on the market. This would allow players to get higher level AC values at a lower cost.