D&D 5E How would you classify these Samurai armor types?

[Slit518]

This armory makes 3 types of traditional Samurai armor.

What armor in the PHB do you believe each one is similar to, or associated with?

Tatami (folding armor, economy armor, footsoldier armor)

"Classic" (better quality footsolider armor?)

Bugyo (officer armor)

Hatamoto (guard armor)

http://www.ironmountainarmory.com/our-armor.html

Would you classify any of these armors as a hybrid?
aka Light/Medium or Medium/Heavy

Thanks in advance!

 

[jaelis]

Tatami - Chain shirt (studded leather or scale might be reasonable too, it seems like there were various types).
Bugyo - Splint
Hatamoto - Scale or Half-plate (looks like there are two different types at your web site). Half-plate probably works better for game purposes.

And that's my 2c, which is worth about 2c

 

[Slit518]

Anyone else have an opinion?

 

[cbwjm]

From just a quick read and look over the armour (not a super informed evaluation), I'd classify them as the following equivalents.

Tatami: Studded Leather
Classic: Scale Mail
Bugyo: Half Plate
Hatamoto: Scale Mail (Dragon scale armour), Half plate (Gin-Ryu Gusoku)

Tatami looks like it is light armour providing good mobility. The others look like they are medium, providing decent mobility but perhaps a bit bulky to stealth around in.

 

[Satyrn]

It looks like there are two types of Hatamoto armor, one that is perfect for scale (it's even called dragon scale) and one that works for half-plate. I'd use both.

The bugyo is definitely splint to me - especially when you read D&D's description of splint.

And then I'd give the Tatami studded leather stats just to round out the options, although I think I'd actually do this:

Give it the Hide armor stats, and narrow the Hatamoto stats down to only scale - then up the maximum dexterity bonus of "Asian Medium Armor" to +3 to compensate for using the wlrst medium armor stats to model them.

 

[Azzy]

This armory makes 3 types of traditional Samurai armor.

What armor in the PHB do you believe each one is similar to, or associated with?

Tatami (folding armor, economy armor, footsoldier armor)

"Classic" (better quality footsolider armor?)

Bugyo (officer armor)

Hatamoto (guard armor)

http://www.ironmountainarmory.com/our-armor.html

Would you classify any of these armors as a hybrid?
aka Light/Medium or Medium/Heavy

Thanks in advance!

For a better look at Japanese armor, Wikipedia actually does a good job. The Iron Mountain Armory armor classifications aren't how Japanese armor are typically classified, causing me a bit of confusion. For instance, for the "classic" armor, they describe the helmet, but not the "dou" (cuirass). Also, the tatami armor would be karuta tatami (there are other types of tatami armor).

Basically, samurai armor can be described in D&D as either scale armor, splint*, or half-plate depending on its dou. Older, typically pre-Sengoku era armors (Kozane dou gusoku) used a lamellar (similar to scale) cuirass. Call it scale armor and be done with it.

Later armors, like the kiritsuke kozane dou, and the even later okegawa dō, forewent the individual scales (kozone) for horizontal lames (sometimes crafted to look like individual scales). These are essentially splint armor (though they used horizontal lames instead of vertical lames).

Later tosei dou (modern armor—post European contact Sengoku and Edo eras) used solid plate cuirasses. Some looked the same as European breastplates, while others were designed mimicked the earlier lamellar or laminar dou. These are pretty much half plate, or plate.

The tatami gusoku (folding armors) are typically fabric, mail, and small, non-interlocking scale plates. I'd just treat them as chainmail.


* Technically, banded or laminar armor, but the 5e armor list decided to leave out banded armor (armor made of horizontal lames—and historically existed in several cultures) while keeping splint armor (armor composed of vertical lames—of questionable historical usage), so we default to splint instead.

 

[Slit518]

The only thing that confused me is when I watched the video, they talked about how it was still easy to maneuver in these armors, and demonstrated that.

They then later showed the protection the armor still had, by subjecting it to weapon tests (even ones made for piercing).

To me, the video seemed to show armor that offered great protection, and decent mobility.

I was also wondering if anyone would think that maybe some suits could constitute as a medium (for mobility), heavy armor (for defense) mix?

Like a 16 or 17 Armor Class with the max 2 Dex Bonus, and Disadvantage on Stealth checks?

Or would that be too far fetched for any of the suits?

 

[Satyrn]

AC 16 (max 2), sure then it could be equal to plate.

AC 17 (max 2) will make it the best in the game. Do you want to do that?

(I still think if you want something unique you should go with AC 14 (max 3)

 

[jaelis]

All the standard armors offer good mobility. The heavier ones just require a decent strength score.

I don't think there's any need to do anything fancy, but you can if you want. I wouldn't make these armors better than the book ones though. If you keep the max AC at 17 for light/medium and 18 for heavy then it doesn't much matter if you want to tinker with the Dex bonus.

 

[Cap'n Kobold]

The only thing that confused me is when I watched the video, they talked about how it was still easy to maneuver in these armors, and demonstrated that.

They then later showed the protection the armor still had, by subjecting it to weapon tests (even ones made for piercing).

To me, the video seemed to show armor that offered great protection, and decent mobility.

I was also wondering if anyone would think that maybe some suits could constitute as a medium (for mobility), heavy armor (for defense) mix?

Like a 16 or 17 Armor Class with the max 2 Dex Bonus, and Disadvantage on Stealth checks?

Or would that be too far fetched for any of the suits?

They're pretty standard for armour: no reason for different stats compared to what is in the PHB. All armour offers protection and mobility: it would not exist if it didn't.
The video on the site didn't show anything that you couldn't do in a set of plate for example, which offers more coverage.

In sort: no, I don't think that you need to try to make new, superior entries in the armour chart. Just pick the armour you want and style it however you want.