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<blockquote data-quote="ArmoredSaint" data-source="post: 3713666" data-attributes="member: 54539">If I were on the D&amp;D 4th Edition Design team, I'd have proposed an armour system something like the following:Armour protects you in two ways--by making you harder to hit, and by absorbing some of the damage that does hit you.&nbsp; Light Armour adds +2 to your Class Defense Bonus, Medium armour adds +3, and Heavy armour adds +4.Additionally, each type of armour has a DR rating:Light Armours----------------Padded&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; DR1/-Leather&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; DR2/-&nbsp; No &quot;Studded Leather&quot;&nbsp; or &quot;Hide Armour.&quot;Mail Shirt&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; DR3/-&nbsp; Not &quot;chain shirt&quot;--that's always bothered me.Medium Armours-----------------Scale&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; DR4/-Breastplate&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; DR5/-&nbsp; &nbsp; I've always thought that a head-to-toe suit of mail would afford Full Mail&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; DR6/-&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; much better protection than a cuirass and greaves.Heavy Armours-----------------Reinforced Mail&nbsp; DR7/-&nbsp;&nbsp; This replaces &quot;Splint Mail,&quot; &quot;Banded Mail,&quot; and &quot;Half Plate.&quot;&nbsp; Field Plate&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; DR8/-Full Plate&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; DR9/-&nbsp;&nbsp; I've always wanted to see 2nd Ed. Full Plate return.I'm not sure what I'd do with &quot;Max Dex&quot; ratings or Armour Check Penalties yet.Shields would add to your Defense Bonus, making you harder to hit as always.Buckler&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; +1Light Shield&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; +2Heavy Shield&nbsp; &nbsp; +3Tower Shield&nbsp; &nbsp; +4I know the DR figures would seem low at higher levels, but I recall that one of the official statements said something to the effect of wanting to make the characters less dependent on their equipment, so I thought there might be Feats available every so often that add to DR like Armour Specialization does in PHBII, or like the Armiger's class features in Iron Heroes.&nbsp; Other feats might increase your Shield Bonus like Shield Specializtion.&nbsp; Maybe a fighter could, through judicious feat selection, attain something like 12 or 15 DR by level 20 or 30--not enough to totally stop the damage from a Colossal dragon's claws or bite, but enough to significantly increase his chances of survival.&nbsp; Some of the attacks of very powerful monsters can do upwards of 30 points of damage; being able to cut that by 50% is nothing to sneer at.Alternately, I wouldn't mind seeing variable DR like in Iron Heroes, though I'd use larger dice for each armour type than that game uses.&nbsp; I'd also include an &quot;Armour Specialization&quot; feat tree that would allow you to increase the DR that your armour offered.&nbsp; So perhaps a high-level fighter could expect, say, 1d10+5 DR from his non-magical full plate if he'd spent a few feats on this particular feat tree.What do you think?&nbsp; Good?&nbsp; Bad?&nbsp; Ugly?Edit: I'm sorry I fuss about this one subject so much; some people might be sick of hearing me.&nbsp; It's really the biggest change I'd like to see in the new edition.&nbsp; I figure that, if I keep the topic at the front of the public consciousness enough, by clamoring about it on every discussion board that has a 4th Edition D&amp;D forum, WotC might drop us a tantalizing hint about what changes, if any, they've made to the armour rules in D&amp;D.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="ArmoredSaint, post: 3713666, member: 54539"] If I were on the D&D 4th Edition Design team, I'd have proposed an armour system something like the following: Armour protects you in two ways--by making you harder to hit, and by absorbing some of the damage that does hit you. Light Armour adds +2 to your Class Defense Bonus, Medium armour adds +3, and Heavy armour adds +4. Additionally, each type of armour has a DR rating: Light Armours ---------------- Padded DR1/- Leather DR2/- No "Studded Leather" or "Hide Armour." Mail Shirt DR3/- Not "chain shirt"--that's always bothered me. Medium Armours ----------------- Scale DR4/- Breastplate DR5/- I've always thought that a head-to-toe suit of mail would afford Full Mail DR6/- much better protection than a cuirass and greaves. Heavy Armours ----------------- Reinforced Mail DR7/- This replaces "Splint Mail," "Banded Mail," and "Half Plate." Field Plate DR8/- Full Plate DR9/- I've always wanted to see 2nd Ed. Full Plate return. I'm not sure what I'd do with "Max Dex" ratings or Armour Check Penalties yet. Shields would add to your Defense Bonus, making you harder to hit as always. Buckler +1 Light Shield +2 Heavy Shield +3 Tower Shield +4 I know the DR figures would seem low at higher levels, but I recall that one of the official statements said something to the effect of wanting to make the characters less dependent on their equipment, so I thought there might be Feats available every so often that add to DR like Armour Specialization does in PHBII, or like the Armiger's class features in Iron Heroes. Other feats might increase your Shield Bonus like Shield Specializtion. Maybe a fighter could, through judicious feat selection, attain something like 12 or 15 DR by level 20 or 30--not enough to totally stop the damage from a Colossal dragon's claws or bite, but enough to significantly increase his chances of survival. Some of the attacks of very powerful monsters can do upwards of 30 points of damage; being able to cut that by 50% is nothing to sneer at. Alternately, I wouldn't mind seeing variable DR like in Iron Heroes, though I'd use larger dice for each armour type than that game uses. I'd also include an "Armour Specialization" feat tree that would allow you to increase the DR that your armour offered. So perhaps a high-level fighter could expect, say, 1d10+5 DR from his non-magical full plate if he'd spent a few feats on this particular feat tree. What do you think? Good? Bad? Ugly? Edit: I'm sorry I fuss about this one subject so much; some people might be sick of hearing me. It's really the biggest change I'd like to see in the new edition. I figure that, if I keep the topic at the front of the public consciousness enough, by clamoring about it on every discussion board that has a 4th Edition D&D forum, WotC might drop us a tantalizing hint about what changes, if any, they've made to the armour rules in D&D. [/QUOTE]

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