D&D 5E Video of guys in plate mail as reference for you!

[fireinthedust]

I got a link to this neat demonstration of plate armour mobility and combat that I can see as good information for anyone here. This is what your plate armour fighters can expect to do in full plate: climb up and down ladders, roll around, dance a jig, click their heels! As a bonus feature, note they're on stone floors, the standard dungeon building material.

However, Plate actually is *that* noisy. It can stop a sword blow to the torso, but you're going to make as much noise as someone with piles of pots & pans strapped to them would make.

Does this mean Warforged really shouldn't be able to use stealth? Considering they're walking suits of armour, maybe not.

Also, given the mobility, I could see allowing some kind of training for mages to cast spells in armour. Gauntlets might block finger movements (unless they're designed as metal mittens), or metal might inhibit spells, but otherwise I could see it being at least possible in theory.


[video=youtube;5hlIUrd7d1Q]https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=5hlIUrd7d1Q[/video]

 

[Mistwell]

I believe we already have a thread on this.

 

[Grainger]

Yeah, chain mail is heavy, but plate isn't that heavy - the reduced weight is the main benefit over chain. The long-standing D&D paradigm of plate offering better protection*, but being heavier, is a misconception.

But then, we have people still widely using chain in a world where plate exists, and we have rapiers at the same time as metal armour and great axes, so none of it makes much sense.

Plate is very noisy/clattery though. You wouldn't achieve much stealth while wearing it (much less so than chain IMO).


Edit: and it isn't "plate mail". It's "plate". [/pedant]


*Yes, a full suit of plate covers more of your body, so offers better protection than, say, a chain hauberk, but in D&D, even non-suit plate is usually "better" than chain.

 

[fireinthedust]

Edit: and it isn't "plate mail". It's "plate". [/pedant]

You're 100% correct. I think I avoided Mail in the body of the post, and was fighting my habit the entire time. Then I wrote the title, thinking how successful I'd been in switching to the proper term... and you see what happened. Guh. (hangs head in shame and exhaustion)

 

[Cyan Wisp]

Thanks! The mobility section was very informative. D&D PCs wear this stuff all day so its probably even more like a second skin to them. What a racket!

 

[Mishihari Lord]

That was cool and interesting, thanks for sharing.

On the noise, I always thought there was some cloth padding in there to muffle the clanging. Now I wonder if that's even possible. On a battlefield you wouldn't care, but on an adventure or in town I see this as being an issue.

On the mobility, I've seen videos like this before and I always wonder if the armor material is made use period techniques or modern materials. Current strength to weight is, I would expect, a whole lot better than in medieval times. If the armor weight doubled, some of those maneuvers might not be possible.

And wasn't armor built to protect from picks and maces as well as swords? I would have found the demo more convincing if they'd demonstrated that it was heavy enough to deal with those and not just a sword.

It was cool to see the last throw. It was almost the same as a one of the Hapkido throws I learned in college.

 

[Mishihari Lord]

Yeah, chain mail is heavy, but plate isn't that heavy - the reduced weight is the main benefit over chain. The long-standing D&D paradigm of plate offering better protection*, but being heavier, is a misconception.

But then, we have people still widely using chain in a world where plate exists, and we have rapiers at the same time as metal armour and great axes, so none of it makes much sense.

Plate is very noisy/clattery though. You wouldn't achieve much stealth while wearing it (much less so than chain IMO).


Edit: and it isn't "plate mail". It's "plate". [/pedant]


*Yes, a full suit of plate covers more of your body, so offers better protection than, say, a chain hauberk, but in D&D, even non-suit plate is usually "better" than chain.

Another advantage of plate over chain is that it spreads out an impact over a larger area. Chain will stop a sword swing to the chest but you'll probably get some broken ribs. The same blow on plate may not result in more than some bad bruises.

 

[Joe Liker]

You don't need special training beyond proficiency -- anyone can cast already spells in any armor they are proficient with. Just sayin'.

 

[Grainger]

That was cool and interesting, thanks for sharing.
It was cool to see the last throw. It was almost the same as a one of the Hapkido throws I learned in college.

I haven't done Historical European Martial Arts, but when I see the old manuals, I see a lot of the techniques I used to practise in Chinese martial arts. I guess there are only so many ways you can do an effective throw or joint lock, especially when carrying weapons.

 

[Mercurius]

But a ninja wielding two katanas could take down any plate-wearing warrior. Or the tarrasque.