Mithril Studded Leather?

[Sejs]

It'd look pretty, cost more, and probably (well.. okay, certainly) be masterwork if they're bothering to use mithral for the studs.

That's about it, though.

 

[irdeggman]

I think the question is a fair one but it is bound too much by the label.

Would you allow the mithral material bonus for studded leather. The actual leather in the world could be something worthy of the gold increase for the material and difficulty in acquisition - it need not be simply mithral studs vs metal ones.

Ideas:

Perhaps it has mithral studs and woven spider silk instead of leather.
Perhaps the leather is treated in special moonlight ceremonies that give it special properties.
Perhaps the studs aren't actually mithral at all but some other substance that shares the mithral material bonus.

Perhaps the studs are fused volcanic shards on a sharkskin base topped with chalots and overshies, garnished with truffle pate, brandy, a fried egg on top and spam.




Sigurd

No they are trying to answer a "rules" question based on the rules.


Per the PHB studded leather is:

Studded Leather: This armor is made from tough but flexible leather (not hardened leather as with normal leather armor) reinforced with close-set metal rivets.

Make a studded leather -like armor using mithral and some as yet to be determined backing material is a different question. That would be something like what knind of new armor could be made using mithral studs on a soft backing? How would I stat it out?

But that is not what was asked.

 

[Scharlata]

...what does Races of the Wild page 167 have to do with anything?

Hi!

Races of the Wild has a nice overview of all common armor types that can be forged with mithral. The chart is an easy reference sheet for all stats mithral will change - ranging form Maximum Dexterity Bonus to Arcane Spell Failure Chance.

Enjoy!

 

[Particle_Man]

I would go all the way to Mithral Padded Armor, baby.

More seriously, I would be in the "yes you could do it - but it would give no mechanical benefit" camp. Well, I suppose it might be a way to carry around wealth. If you sleep in mithral studded leather it would be harder for a rogue to steal than that bag of gems at your belt.

 

[Shin Okada]

By the way. Why you want such a thing?

 

[KarinsDad]

Not the same thing. We're talking about an item that someone would think to make, even if it gave no benifit. (Think of someone spending twice as much as normal for a set of plate mail simply for the styling that made it look special). However, by the rules, you can't make it at all.

Technicaly, you can't make mithril headed arrows, have mithril clasps on a backpack, or other such uses of the metal that might happen, even if it wasn't mechanicaly better.

Technically by the rules, you can make the metal portions of any of these out of mithril. They just do not benefit in any significant way (other than maybe a slight weight decrease) from being made of mithril unlike some other mostly metal items do.

The reason the 80 point buy ability scores question is applicable is that in order to give the mithral studded leather benefits, you would technically be creating a house rule: just like it is more or less a house rule to use 80 point buy.

You asked "Why not allow it?". I basically answer with "Because it is a powergaming stunt to attempt to get your DM to house rule this.".

I do not consider it being proactive for a player to attempt stuff like this, I consider it powergaming. For some reason, we seem to have a DND community culture where players sometimes think that they are somehow entitled to bend the rules and allow their characters to craft any item that comes into their head, or create any spell they can think of, or come up with any cool feat or Prestige Class they can dream up.

In my campaign, no you cannot get a game mechanics benefit from creating Mithril Studded Leather armor. You cannot create a Warwagon with cannon on it. You can create a Warwagon with crossbows or ballista on it, but it will cost you. As per a thread the other week, you cannot create a sliding slot on your helmet that allows you to quickly lower your Gem of Seeing over your eye. To me, that is taking away the "hand slot" that is typically needed to hold the gem in front of your eye. In fact, I do not allow Masterwork Bandoleers in my campaign since they are a lame attempt to bypass the core rules (and give the equivalent of a feat to any character who spends the money for it). Any newly designed crafted item that attempts to bypass the game rules mechanics is not allowed. Any newly designed crafted item that basically follows the rules as written will probably be allowed.

This concept of players being entitled to implement any idea that comes into their heads is not something which I allow as a DM. I only allow it if it fits the culture and technology of my world and it matches the rules. A game mechanics advantage from Mithril Studded Leather does not match the rules, hence, it is disallowed. Make your studs out of mithril all you want, but it won't change the game mechanics.