Kerrick
First Post
Ever wondered exactly how many coins you could stuff into that belt pouch, or how much a portable hole really holds? Wonder no longer! I've come up with an elegant system for determining capacity based on the container's size and strength.
I've been playing Oblivion for about a year and a half now. I always thought containers were infinite capacity, but they're not - they have weight limits. In Morrowind, they also had size limits - you couldn't stuff a suit of armor into a jewelry box - but they apparently eliminated that in Oblivion. Oblivion also uses an encumbrance system whereby each item has a set encumbrance (the manual says weight, but I find it hard to believe that a sword weighs 15 pounds). This gave me an idea: If you assign sizes and encumbrance units (EU) to items, you can then determine exactly how much a container can hold.
This system took only a few hours to hack together, so there might be a few bugs to work out. I'm not sure that anyone will even care, but I figured I might as well toss it out there, rather than let it languish on my HD forever.
Items have encumbrance units (EU). An encumbrance unit is the item's weight times its size modifier times its density modifier. Items that are especially bulky or dense can have their size or density modifiers adjusted accordingly.
Size Modifiers
Fine: x1/4
Diminutive: x1/2
Tiny: x1
Small: x1.5
Medium: x2
Large: x3
Huge: x4
Gargantuan: x5
Colossal: x6
Density Modifiers
Very light (feathers): x1/4
Light (paper, cloth): x1/2
Average (flesh, hide/leather, loose dirt, wood): x1
Dense (glass, stone, wet sand): x1.5
Very dense (metal): x2
So, for example, a longsword (sized for a Medium wielder) is 4 pounds. It's a Small item, so it has a x1.5 size modifier; it's made of metal, so it has a x2 density modifier, for a grand total of 12 EU.This might sound like a lot, but it's not - the average person (Str 10) has an encumbrace limit of 1,000 EU. Furthermore, a belt is treated as a container (see below), which means that a sheathed sword hanging from it has less encumbrance than normal.
Containers: A container enables someone to carry much more than he could normally by reducing the amount of encumbrance he has. Containers have a specific EU allowance, based on size and strength. For instance, a cloth sack has a capacity of about 6 cubic feet, but since it's only cloth, there's a limit to how much weight it can hold. A portable hole, on the other hand, has unlimited weight capacity but limited volume.
Containers, like creatures, have size and Strength scores. A container cannot hold an item that is larger than it is (though there are exceptions; see below), and its Strength score determines its EU capacity. A container reduces the encumbrance factor for any items it contains by 1/4. For example, a large backpack containing 5 pieces of firewood (2 EU each) would have an EU factor of 7.5, plus its own EU of 1.5 gives a total of 10.
All containers listed below are sized for a Medium creature. Increase or decrease the size by one step for each size category smaller or larger of its owner (for example, a small backpack belonging to a Large giant would be Medium).
Since most containers (packs, pouches, sacks, etc.) are specifically designed to be portable and reduce encumbrance, they are themselves not very encumbering - they are treated as an item one density factor lighter than normal.
Containers
(1) See Size, below.
EU: The container's encumbrance when empty.
Size: The container's size. A container generally cannot hold an item that is larger than it is. Belts, bandoliers, etc. can hold items up to two sizes larger - a Medium character could hang his greatsword (size Medium) from a baldric on his back. A backpack can contain items up to one size larger - either poking out of the pocket, or strapped to the side.
Strength: The container's strength score. This determines how much it can hold - a container's EU allowance is 10 times its Strength score.
Backpack, small: This is roughly the size of a small military rucksack - a large central pocket (~7 cubic feet) and three smaller pockets (~1/4 cubic foot each). It is usually made of canvas or leather.
Backpack, large: This is the size of a large military rucksack or hiker's backpack (the type typically attached to a frame). It has a large central pocket (~10 cubic feet) and three smaller pockets (~1 cubic foot each).
Barrel: Barrels are identical in construction - wooden staves made of oak, ash, or maple bound with metal hoops. They are typically used to carry foodstuffs and liquids - water, wine, ale, etc. A small barrel is about 2 feet in diameter and stands 3 feet tall; it weighs 10 pounds empty. A large barrel is about 3 feet in diameter and stands 4-5 feet tall; it weighs 15-20 pounds empty.
Belt Pouch: A small pouch designed to be attached to the belt. They can hold a wide variety of small items, from coins and gems to spell components to random items picked up on the road. A typical belt pouch is 3 inches square and 6 inches long.
Casket: A casket is simply a very small chest used for carrying lesser amounts of coins, jewelry, gems, or other valuables. Its small size enables greater portability and ease of concealment, but its construction is the same as any normal chest - heavy wood, iron-bound, and equipped with a stout lock. A typical casket weighs about 5 pounds empty.
Case, Map/Scroll: A simple tube of leather, wood, metal, or ivory (or rarely more exotic materials) 3 inches in diameter and 1 foot long. These are generally used for holding maps, scrolls, or other parchments, but can be used to carry small items like coins and gems. A case weighs about 1/2 pound empty.
Chests: Small and large chests are identical except for their size - heavy wood bound in iron with a stout lock. A typical small chest is about 2 feet by 2 feet by 3 feet and weighs 15 pounds empty; a large chest is about 3 feet by 3 feet by 4 feet and weighs 25 pounds empty.
Lockbox: A small metal box (about 1 foot by 1 foot by 4 inches) with a (usually) very good lock. Lockboxes are generally used for carrying single items or a set of small items. A lockbox weighs about 3 pounds empty.
Sack: Sacks are the most common item used to carry things, besides the backpack. They are typically made of heavy cloth or sometimes canvas. A small sack is about 2 feet in all dimensions, and a large sack is about 3 feet.
Belts, bandoliers, and baldrics: Belts and similar items are treated as containers. Their encumbrance limit is much smaller than, say, a backpack or belt pouch, but they do enable someone to carry much more than they could normally - sheathed weapons, pouches for money or spell components, loops for vials or scroll tubes, etc. How this works is simple: A container reduces the enumbrance of any items inside it by 1/4. Thus, a belt could hold several belt pouches (each full of numerous small items), a couple weapons, a scroll tube (hanging from a cord), and a few other items besides.
Magic Items
Various magic items (bag of holding, portable hole, etc.) enable a character to carry far more than he could normally. While these items have weight limits, there are still no guidelines on how much you can actually put into them before they burst. With this system, though, it's easy.
I've been playing Oblivion for about a year and a half now. I always thought containers were infinite capacity, but they're not - they have weight limits. In Morrowind, they also had size limits - you couldn't stuff a suit of armor into a jewelry box - but they apparently eliminated that in Oblivion. Oblivion also uses an encumbrance system whereby each item has a set encumbrance (the manual says weight, but I find it hard to believe that a sword weighs 15 pounds). This gave me an idea: If you assign sizes and encumbrance units (EU) to items, you can then determine exactly how much a container can hold.
This system took only a few hours to hack together, so there might be a few bugs to work out. I'm not sure that anyone will even care, but I figured I might as well toss it out there, rather than let it languish on my HD forever.
Items have encumbrance units (EU). An encumbrance unit is the item's weight times its size modifier times its density modifier. Items that are especially bulky or dense can have their size or density modifiers adjusted accordingly.
Size Modifiers
Fine: x1/4
Diminutive: x1/2
Tiny: x1
Small: x1.5
Medium: x2
Large: x3
Huge: x4
Gargantuan: x5
Colossal: x6
Density Modifiers
Very light (feathers): x1/4
Light (paper, cloth): x1/2
Average (flesh, hide/leather, loose dirt, wood): x1
Dense (glass, stone, wet sand): x1.5
Very dense (metal): x2
So, for example, a longsword (sized for a Medium wielder) is 4 pounds. It's a Small item, so it has a x1.5 size modifier; it's made of metal, so it has a x2 density modifier, for a grand total of 12 EU.This might sound like a lot, but it's not - the average person (Str 10) has an encumbrace limit of 1,000 EU. Furthermore, a belt is treated as a container (see below), which means that a sheathed sword hanging from it has less encumbrance than normal.
Containers: A container enables someone to carry much more than he could normally by reducing the amount of encumbrance he has. Containers have a specific EU allowance, based on size and strength. For instance, a cloth sack has a capacity of about 6 cubic feet, but since it's only cloth, there's a limit to how much weight it can hold. A portable hole, on the other hand, has unlimited weight capacity but limited volume.
Containers, like creatures, have size and Strength scores. A container cannot hold an item that is larger than it is (though there are exceptions; see below), and its Strength score determines its EU capacity. A container reduces the encumbrance factor for any items it contains by 1/4. For example, a large backpack containing 5 pieces of firewood (2 EU each) would have an EU factor of 7.5, plus its own EU of 1.5 gives a total of 10.
All containers listed below are sized for a Medium creature. Increase or decrease the size by one step for each size category smaller or larger of its owner (for example, a small backpack belonging to a Large giant would be Medium).
Since most containers (packs, pouches, sacks, etc.) are specifically designed to be portable and reduce encumbrance, they are themselves not very encumbering - they are treated as an item one density factor lighter than normal.
Containers
Code:
Container EU Size Strength
Backpack, small 1.5 Small 10
Backpack, large 2 Small 12
Barrel, small (10 gal.) 22.5 Small 12
Barrel, large (25 gal.) 60 Medium 16
Belt 1 Tiny(1) 2
Belt pouch 1/4 Diminutive 1/2
Bucket (1 gal.) 2 Tiny 3
Case, map/scroll 1/8 Diminutive 1/2
Cask 7.5 Tiny 8
Chest, small 22.5 Small 15
Chest, large 75 Medium 20
Lockbox 2 Tiny 2
Sack, small 1/8 Small 3
Sack, large 1/8 Small 5EU: The container's encumbrance when empty.
Size: The container's size. A container generally cannot hold an item that is larger than it is. Belts, bandoliers, etc. can hold items up to two sizes larger - a Medium character could hang his greatsword (size Medium) from a baldric on his back. A backpack can contain items up to one size larger - either poking out of the pocket, or strapped to the side.
Strength: The container's strength score. This determines how much it can hold - a container's EU allowance is 10 times its Strength score.
Backpack, small: This is roughly the size of a small military rucksack - a large central pocket (~7 cubic feet) and three smaller pockets (~1/4 cubic foot each). It is usually made of canvas or leather.
Backpack, large: This is the size of a large military rucksack or hiker's backpack (the type typically attached to a frame). It has a large central pocket (~10 cubic feet) and three smaller pockets (~1 cubic foot each).
Barrel: Barrels are identical in construction - wooden staves made of oak, ash, or maple bound with metal hoops. They are typically used to carry foodstuffs and liquids - water, wine, ale, etc. A small barrel is about 2 feet in diameter and stands 3 feet tall; it weighs 10 pounds empty. A large barrel is about 3 feet in diameter and stands 4-5 feet tall; it weighs 15-20 pounds empty.
Belt Pouch: A small pouch designed to be attached to the belt. They can hold a wide variety of small items, from coins and gems to spell components to random items picked up on the road. A typical belt pouch is 3 inches square and 6 inches long.
Casket: A casket is simply a very small chest used for carrying lesser amounts of coins, jewelry, gems, or other valuables. Its small size enables greater portability and ease of concealment, but its construction is the same as any normal chest - heavy wood, iron-bound, and equipped with a stout lock. A typical casket weighs about 5 pounds empty.
Case, Map/Scroll: A simple tube of leather, wood, metal, or ivory (or rarely more exotic materials) 3 inches in diameter and 1 foot long. These are generally used for holding maps, scrolls, or other parchments, but can be used to carry small items like coins and gems. A case weighs about 1/2 pound empty.
Chests: Small and large chests are identical except for their size - heavy wood bound in iron with a stout lock. A typical small chest is about 2 feet by 2 feet by 3 feet and weighs 15 pounds empty; a large chest is about 3 feet by 3 feet by 4 feet and weighs 25 pounds empty.
Lockbox: A small metal box (about 1 foot by 1 foot by 4 inches) with a (usually) very good lock. Lockboxes are generally used for carrying single items or a set of small items. A lockbox weighs about 3 pounds empty.
Sack: Sacks are the most common item used to carry things, besides the backpack. They are typically made of heavy cloth or sometimes canvas. A small sack is about 2 feet in all dimensions, and a large sack is about 3 feet.
Belts, bandoliers, and baldrics: Belts and similar items are treated as containers. Their encumbrance limit is much smaller than, say, a backpack or belt pouch, but they do enable someone to carry much more than they could normally - sheathed weapons, pouches for money or spell components, loops for vials or scroll tubes, etc. How this works is simple: A container reduces the enumbrance of any items inside it by 1/4. Thus, a belt could hold several belt pouches (each full of numerous small items), a couple weapons, a scroll tube (hanging from a cord), and a few other items besides.
Magic Items
Various magic items (bag of holding, portable hole, etc.) enable a character to carry far more than he could normally. While these items have weight limits, there are still no guidelines on how much you can actually put into them before they burst. With this system, though, it's easy.
Code:
Container EU Size Strength
Bag of holding, type I 25 Small 17
Bag of holding, type II 30 Small 22
Bag of holding, type III 35 Medium 27
Bag of holding, type IV 40 Large 30
Handy haversack (main pocket) 1.5* Small 8
Handy haversack (side pocket) -- Tiny 2
Portable hole 0 Huge 100
