Armor

Armor is the last barrier between a hero and an incoming weapon, fang, or claw. Armor absorbs damage and, hopefully, keeps the hero intact. The amount of damage a piece of armor can absorb is described as its armor points—the higher, the better. Different hit locations may wear different forms of armor.

Unlike weapons and shields, the armor points for armor rarely change, even if a blow exceeds the armor points covering the hit location struck. Armor is designed for defense, and it can withstand repeated blows, and its armor points are rarely, if ever, reduced through damage. If armor is damaged, the appropriate Craft skill can be used to repair it.

Explanation of Headings and Terms

Some forms of armor protect more than one hit location. These types can, as a rule, be overlapped. Thus, one can wear both a heavy leather shirt and heavy leather trousers. Of course, encumbrance (ENC) adds up quickly in such cases.

Heading	Explanation
Covers	The part of the body the armor covers.
Hit Locations	The number range for the hit locations covered.
Type	This is a term taken from general armor lore; the terms come from all times and climes. The hit locations each type covers are shown in the Hit Location column.
Material	This briefly describes the type of material the armor is made of.
Absorbs	The number of points of attack the armor absorbs. Any excess reaches the wearer.
ENC	The encumbrance value for that piece of armor.
Cost	For leg and arm armor, the cost is for the set, not just one, as are ENC costs.
Move	Quietly: This indication shows how much the armor subtracts from a hero’s Move Quietly skill. When several different types of armor are worn, use the noisiest as the modifier. Do not add all the different types together.

Armor Materials

Material	Explanation
Leather	This is tough leather (2-point), the thickness of shoe leather. It is easy to obtain from cattle raised in Iceland.
Wool	Layers of wool fabric stitched together.
Chain Mail	Iron fabric made of interlocking iron rings in a 4-in-1 pattern, with each ring connected to four other rings. Only very wealthy householders and the goðar have access to chain mail shirts, and those are almost always short sleeved. Chain mail is considered too valuable to be buried with a dead warrior and is passed down through generations.
Iron	Iron helmets are always worn in battle by those who can afford them. These consist typically of several pieces of iron riveted together to form an iron bowl, with an iron nose guard riveted to the brow. Inside the helmet, a cap made of sheepskin is used to absorb some of the impact force of a blow. It also absorbs sweat and prevents rust from forming on the inside.

Armor Table

Covers	Hit Location	Type	Material	Absorbs	ENC	Cost	Move Quietly
Head	19–20	Hood	Wool	1	(2)*	6 ells	0
Head	19–20	Cap	Leather	2	(2)*	8 ells	0
Head	19–20	Helmet	Iron	5	1	200 ells	0
Arms	13–18	Sleeves	Wool	1	(2)*	—	0
Arms	13–15	Winter Coat	Fur	1	(2)*	—	0
Abdomen & Chest	9–12	Shirt	Wool	1	1	8 ells	0
Abdomen & Chest	9–18	Winter Coat	Fur	1	2	16 ells	–5%
Abdomen & Chest	9–12	Shirt	Leather	2	2	20 ells	0
Abdomen & Chest	9–12	Shirt	Light Scale	4	4	300 ells	–15%
Abdomen & Chest	9–12	Shirt	Chain Mail	6	5	2,400 ells	–25%
Legs	1–8	Pants	Wool	1	(2)*	6 ells	0