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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Machiavelli" data-source="post: 3239557" data-attributes="member: 40964">Yep, firearms make armor seem MUCH less useful to a soldier, and darn near useless to a quartermaster.  An individual soldier may be able to afford an expensive set of armor for the merely marginal use it has against enemy fire, but he'll pass on the option because he'll have to march all day in it.  Perhaps he'll just purchase a nice, thick breastplate, hoping to survive a limb shot. A quartermaster will just flat out laugh at the price tag of even a breastplate.Even today, combat body armor only tends to protect the chest and gut, and usually concentrates on the front of the body.  New infantry vests are getting better with this, moving to protect the thighs, groin, back, neck, and shoulders, but once again these options become expensive and somewhat uncomfortable for wearing all day.Your best bet is to throw realism to the wind for the sake of balance, then go with whatever "feels" right.  If you want everyone to have a firearm, make them cheap, easy to use, and effective.  If you want archers to consider grabbing rifles instead, make them diffcult to use and expensive, but very effective.  If you don't want to displace the role of melee fighters, go for short maximum ranges and long reload times.</blockquote>