Armor General

In this section, there are descriptions of some very special kinds of armor. Before adding these to your campaign, however, be sure you are familiar with the armor gradation system:

For each +1 bonus to armor, regardless of the type of armor, the wearer's Armor Class moves down (AC 2 to 1, to 0, - 1 , -2, and so on). A normal shield improves the Armor Class by 1. A magical shield improves Armor Class like magical armor - to - 1 , -2, etc. Note, however, that Armor Class can never be improved beyond -10.

Thus, chain mail +1 is like ordinary chain mail (AC 5), but one category better (AC 4). A shield +1 is equal to Armor Class 8 - two places better than no armor (+1 for bearing a shield, +1 for the magical bonus of the shield).

When adding magical armor to the game, be aware of sizing problems: 65% of all armor (except elven chain mail) is human size, 20% is elf size, 10% is dwarf size, and only 5% is sized for gnomes or halflings. (Elven chain mail sizing is determined on the table below.)

After determining the magical properties of the armor the character found, purchased, or traded for, roll on the two following tables to determine the type of armor and the construction materials. Please note that certain armor types do not require a roll on the materials table (for example, the different types of leather and padded armors). Roll on the table below to determine the type of item found.