D&D General How Do D&D Adventurers Dress?

[Distracted DM]

Those with money would have dressed very flamboyantly. The medieval grunge look is a complete misconception.

True, I guess even level 1 PCs have a lot of coin relatively speaking.

 

[Stormonu]

I let the characters choose how they want to look, but within my own mind they don’t particularly stand out until they start getting into the high levels and their gear consists of magical items that may be in the hundreds of years old, and quite likely out of current style.

Beyond that, I suspect they are wearing garb typical to those around them - I suspect few have the skills to make their own and are limited to what others have made and what they’re willing to spend on. A fighter with a few levels and a few hundred GP can afford a cloak made of rich material and a fancy cut, but a back alley sneak-thief might be dressed to slip into a crowd unnoticed and have quite plain clothes to pull it off.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

1 They don't give a f
2 They make efforts to dress inconspicuously
3 They are flamboyantly fashion-aware and spend lots of effort and gold on

So, the same as real life(tm).

 

[HaroldTheHobbit]

So, the same as real life(tm).

You're right. Was going to write something "but" about barbarians and never-washed loincloths, but then again, I had an elder female modern equivalent in front of me at the supermarket queue yesterday. The mixed fragrance of catpiss and badly aged fecal matter definitely evoked inner visions of Sword & Sorcery.

 

[aco175]

Most PCs carry a spare set of clothes. I picture this more as city clothes, or the clean set you put on when you get into town since the things you wear in dungeons take a lot of abuse. Not to mention, smell. My NPCs notice this on adventurers. A mage with a clean cantrip can go a lot of way in keeping up the party's hygiene.

As far as style, I liked the 3e look and feel over the 5.5 look I have seen so far.

 

[Oofta]

Most movies and depictions of people in medieval or fantasy eras are quite drab and colorless. As far as we can tell though, that's not how people actually dressed though. Bright colors were the rule for most people. Outfits we would consider quite flamboyant today were quite common as a display of wealth.

So I don't consider most of the images out of line.

 

[Horwath]

Most PCs carry a spare set of clothes. I picture this more as city clothes, or the clean set you put on when you get into town since the things you wear in dungeons take a lot of abuse. Not to mention, smell. My NPCs notice this on adventurers. A mage with a clean cantrip can go a lot of way in keeping up the party's hygiene.

with new Origin feats, I will consider always getting Magic initiate wizard.
if for nothing else for Prestidigitation and one other cantrip that may or may not have combat utility.

As far as style, I liked the 3e look and feel over the 5.5 look I have seen so far.

100%
it's just too cartoonish and very bad overall, there is like 3 arts in new PHB that I like.

 

[sevenbastard]

Seasoned adventures would dress practically, knowing that staying alive was more important than looking good.

Most of the outfits you see in 3e and onward are ludicrously impractical. Especially all the buckles in 3e art, how long does it take to get dressed when you have 100 buckles? How long do you spend each night cleaning and oiling them to jeep them from rusting.

 

[BookTenTiger]

I actually really enjoy thinking about what my character is wearing. It helps me visualize the adventure and setting.

My longest running 5e character was a dwarven wizard archaeologist who had been banished from his hold, named Drustan Green. I started with him having a well-worn green cloak that kept him protected from the elements as he traveled about the wilderness, seeking out ruins. Over time as he became more powerful and opened up a series of museums, his clothing improved, and he got one of those breastplates with the muscles carved into it. He would also purchase clothing in different towns, especially those with different cultures. His winter weather gear was made by Goliaths from the hide of a giant rabbit, complete with bunny ears on the hood.

In the games I run, I like to give characters opportunity to purchase unique clothing. I once had a shop in a wealthy town that sold really, really fancy hats. They weren't magic or anything, they were just really, really fancy. The characters couldn't afford them, so they demanded the fancy hats as a reward for completing a quest. It was memorable and now everyone had a fancy hat!

 

[Distracted DM]

Seasoned adventures would dress practically, knowing that staying alive was more important than looking good.

Most of the outfits you see in 3e and onward are ludicrously impractical. Especially all the buckles in 3e art, how long does it take to get dressed when you have 100 buckles? How long do you spend each night cleaning and oiling them to jeep them from rusting.

View attachment 388714

Listen, that's the half elf sorcerer right there. He had a lot going on in his life, very complex, he needed the emotional security provided by dozens of buckles, and he'll have you know that he had a specific spell that he developed just to buckle and unbuckle his outfit at a moment's notice.

I think his name started with an H?