Plate mail
[ plate mail 
| |
|---|---|
| Appearance | plate mail |
| Slot | body armor |
| AC | 7 |
| Special | |
| Base price | 600 zm |
| Weight | 450 |
| Material | iron |
- For other kinds of plate mail, see bronze plate mail and crystal plate mail.
Plate mail (tanko for Samurai) is a form of body armor. It provides a base AC of 7 and magic cancellation 2.
Plate mail provides the best protection, after dragon scale mail, but is also prohibitively heavy for many players.
Metal plate mail interferes with spellcasting when worn. Crystal plate mail, made of glass, is a better choice for spellcasters who can carry it.
Variants
In dNethack, it now provides 10 AC and MC3.
Origin
Plate armor consists of large plates of metal. At its simplest it could be a cuirass or breastplate, made of a few plates to protect the torso, but full plate included a helmet, gauntlets, and other pieces of armor made of segmented plates designed to leave no part of the body exposed. NetHack plate armor does not include a helmet, gauntlets, or boots, and so is probably a cuirass.
Plate armor for the torso was used by the ancient Greeks and Romans, but largely fell out of use in Europe after the decline of the Roman Empire, because of the cost and difficulty of making the plates. It was replaced by mail, which was easier to make. But individual pieces of armor made of plate gradually regained popularity, and by the late Middle Ages complete suits of plate armor were available.
Although plate armor appears to be heavy and clumsy, the weight of a full suit of plate (which, if well-made, was probably no more than 55 pounds or 25 kg) was distributed throughout the body, and quality armor was fully articulated, so wearers could remain relatively agile even in full plate.
Modern ballistic armor often features large internal plates of metal, ceramic, or synthetic materials.
Encyclopedia entry (tanko)
Samurai plate armor of the Yamato period (AD 300 - 710).
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It may contain text specific to NetHack 3.6.0. Information on this page may be out of date.
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