Studded Leather, is it a metal armor for game purposes?

[Wolfix]

Would someone casting the electric version of Energy Ray [XPH] at someone in a studded leather armor gain the +3 attack bonus? The armor is made of leather, but does have lots of metal studs on it. What do you think the rules would say?

For reference:

Energy Ray
Psychokinesis [see text]
Level: Psion/wilder 1
Display: Auditory
Manifesting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Effect: Ray
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Power Resistance: Yes
Power Points: 1
Upon manifesting this power, you choose cold, electricity, fire, or sonic. You create a ray of energy of the chosen type that shoots forth from your fingertip and strikes a target within range, dealing 1d6 points of damage, if you succeed on a ranged touch attack with the ray.
Cold: A ray of this energy type deals +1 point of damage per die.
Electricity: Manifesting a ray of this energy type provides a +3 bonus on your attack roll if the target is wearing metal armor and a +2 bonus on manifester level checks for the purpose of overcoming power resistance.
Fire: A ray of this energy type deals +1 point of damage per die.
Sonic: A ray of this energy type deals –1 point of damage per die and ignores an object’s hardness.
This power’s subtype is the same as the type of energy you manifest.
Augment: For every additional power point you spend, this power’s damage increases by one die (d6).

 

[Crothian]

I vote yes on the metal but really the rules don't seem to say for sure

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Based on the fact that Druids are prohibited from wearing it, I'd say that, yes, it is metal armor.

 

[diaglo]

they have bone versions of studs in some books.

 

[Creat]

I would clearly vote for no, since the armor is only reinforced with metal parts. It does not supply a conducting surface, only some conducting points, but I would probably rule this as something in between and still give a +1 bonus instead of +3.

Look at it the other way: Would you allow a player to craft a studded leather armor with the advantages of adamantine or mithral? I certainly would not.

Or just look at the AC bonus: A normal leather armor gives +2, a studded leather gives +3. Now consider that steel (or any metal for that matter) is singnificantly stronger than leather, but it only gives a +1 boost to the AC of the armor, it can't be that much metal after all.

But looking at those AC boni the +1 mentioned in my first paragraph would make sense, since thats the effect the metal has on the AC. though one could argue the metal is not helping since its isolated against the body and the other metal plates by all the leather =)

hope that helps,
Creat

 

[Ridley's Cohort]

Studded leather is (or should be) a catchall category for various types of reinforced leather armors. Reinforcement could be by any combination of metal, bone, and/or more layers of leather.

As for the spell based I the PHB description of studded, I would lean strongly towards no. It is ambiguous.

Realistically speaking, armors are not generally made out of one single material. Metals armors are always worn over padded armor and held in place by leather straps. But we call plate metal armor, and not "mostly metal with some leather worn over cloth" for mechanics purposes. Likewise I would call studded leather a leather armor, and not "mostly leather with some metal".

 

[Wolfix]

Creat makes some good points, but I find the fact that druids are prohibited from wearing it a really convincing argument. I hadn't thought of that at all. The quote from the druid in the SRD seems useable for this situation: "Druids are proficient with light and medium armor but are prohibited from wearing metal armor; thus, they may wear only padded, leather, or hide armor."

Thanks for the swift replies!

 

[RigaMortus]

"Druids are proficient with light and medium armor but are prohibited from wearing metal armor; thus, they may wear only padded, leather, or hide armor."

What makes ya think studded leather isn't included in this? Studded leather IS leather after all.

 

[KarinsDad]

I would clearly vote for no, since the armor is only reinforced with metal parts. It does not supply a conducting surface, only some conducting points, but I would probably rule this as something in between and still give a +1 bonus instead of +3.

Look at it the other way: Would you allow a player to craft a studded leather armor with the advantages of adamantine or mithral? I certainly would not.

This is a tough one. There appear to be rules to support both interpretations.


CON:

"Items not primarily of metal are not meaningfully affected by being partially made of mithral."

Leather Armor weighs 15 pounds. Studded leather weighs 20 pounds. It appears that Studded Leather is primarily made of leather, not metal.

Also, in the FAQ:

"As an object, armor has a hardness appropriate to its construction: 10 for metal, 5 for leather or hide, and 0 for padded armor. (Treat studded leather as leather.)"

In regard to the original poster's question, if you rule that studded leather (at about 5 pounds of metal) is metal armor, then a guy in leather armor carrying 50 pounds of metal weapons would not be affected by the +3 bonus of the power and a guy in studded leather with no extra metal would be. This does not really seem reasonable to me.


PRO:

"Druids are proficient with light and medium armor but are prohibited from wearing metal armor; thus, they may wear only padded, leather, or hide armor."

I think the pro side wins out here since studded leather is explicitly called out as metal armor with this statement.

 

[Creat]

Well that's your call, but after all I think that's because they contain a noticeable amount of metal (1/3 from the AC or weight differences).

Or just a nice picture: picture

Or the text that describes the armor in the PHB (3.0 and 3.5 edition, it didn't change):
"This armor is made from tough but flexible leather (not hardened leather as with normal leather armor) reinforced with close-set metal rivets."

it's not even metal plates as I thought, it's only rivets (also the picture in the phb shows the difference between studded and non-studded leather quite nicely, only those few dots are metal, that's all.

but then I seem to be alone on this

bye
Creat