Armor, slightly used

[mhd]

Well, I bet the brigands would have the same problems that quite a lot of "adventurers" would have: Selling stuff like that looks mighty suspicious.

So you're carting your load of slightly used breastplates to Lord Uffington of Uffington Manor, as he sent out heralds to announce that he's looking to upgrade the protective measures for the Upstanding Uffingtoners, and now he's asking you where you got those nice bits of shiny metal with the odd holes? "Took it from orcs?" Suuuure…
(Didn't the 7 Samurai movie have the villagers hide weaponry and armor? If they'd be allowed to legally sell that, they could've afforded better protection. Or, well, stopped working as rice farmers altogether.)

If loot like this is common enough in the setting to allow you to sell it easily, armor would have to be quite common altogether, putting us clearly out of the 13th century comparisons and decidedly more towards the D&D price list…

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Langy

This is normally more of a problem with roving bands of pirates (space or otherwise), than roving bands of bandits.

I've seen 'roving bands of bandits' in games that were equipped with swords and mail, something like $1,000 in gear per person.

[Witchking]

Well I tend to run and play in a non DF Low Fantasy setting...

So Weapons (especially) tend to be valuable...armor (unless Chain and up) less so.

We tend to not face hordes of mooks (2:1 odds or less the norm) so everyone lugging an extra 20-30 pounds to a drop/cache point is usually managable...

That being said with our benchmark start point for used being 50%; less for damage, less for market size (unless a major city/market/bazaar/fair); less if low demand/poor season (people in low tech will be equipping troops in late spring...other times not so much)...

Then it mods by a contest of skill PC Merchant (Arms+Armor) versus Merchants Merchant (Arms + Armor) skill...(PC's are unlikley to win the guy they will be selling to does this full time) about +/- 5% for each point won/lost by...

I have tended to take Merchant (Arms + Armor) skill as a PC...it helps keep the money decent but not earthshaking.

Now Pyrates are where the real money is at...you can keep all of the Arms and Armor...after all it comes with its own (VERY VALUABLE) carry all!!

Just have to beat the Pyrates first!!

[Celjabba]

Originally Posted by Ze'Manel Cunha

Though you have to watch those costs, it gets a bit silly when the roving band of supposedly starving brigands has enough equipment on hand, in the form of weapons and armor, to buy a keep and the couple of villages which support it, and retire on the proceeds for life.

One of my big complain with ICE MERP books ....

Celjabba

[Langy]

Originally Posted by Anthony

I've seen 'roving bands of bandits' in games that were equipped with swords and mail, something like $1,000 in gear per person.

Yeah, but that's not enough to buy a keep and a couple of villages to support it.

[Ulzgoroth]

Originally Posted by mhd

If loot like this is common enough in the setting to allow you to sell it easily, armor would have to be quite common altogether, putting us clearly out of the 13th century comparisons and decidedly more towards the D&D price list…

Quality armor is a valuable part of historical military loot. Of course, when you're doing the looting in some backwoods dustup that nobody knows about, don't have troops of your own to equip with it, and don't have major military or social clout when trying to sell it off, things may be harder than necessary.

Originally Posted by Langy

Yeah, but that's not enough to buy a keep and a couple of villages to support it.

Well, it might be if you use 'buy' loosely.

[mhd]

Originally Posted by Ulzgoroth

Quality armor is a valuable part of historical military loot.

Yeah, if you're in the military… A lot of parties don't exactly qualify.

[RobKamm]

Originally Posted by doulos05

On the contrary. According to LTC3, 1 pound of iron is $6.90. A broadsword weighs 3 pounds and costs $500. So, the materials cost for a broadsword is $20.70, or roughly 4% of the purchase price. Conversely, if you allow your sword to get to negative HP, it costs $50 worth of iron alone to fix it, or 2 1/2 times more iron to fix your sword than it takes to make the sword in the first place.

My "first pass assumption" still holds for the historical reality of the bulk of the period in question.

I'll also note that you selected a sword as your counter example. We were discussing armour repairs which were generally done by much less well trained individuals than swordsmiths. To put the skills into perspective: I can, on my anvil and with my hammers and torch, patch a munitions grade piece of plate; when I watch a swordsmith all I can do is shake my head in awe.

[DanHoward]

Originally Posted by gilbertocarlos

What about mail who easily fits many types of people?

Museum examples have a lot more tailoring than many think. They aren't just the "tube with sleeves" that re-enactors wear.

[doulos05]

Originally Posted by RobKamm

My "first pass assumption" still holds for the historical reality of the bulk of the period in question.

I'll also note that you selected a sword as your counter example. We were discussing armour repairs which were generally done by much less well trained individuals than swordsmiths. To put the skills into perspective: I can, on my anvil and with my hammers and torch, patch a munitions grade piece of plate; when I watch a swordsmith all I can do is shake my head in awe.

Yeah, but iron mail still works out to less than 20% of the original cost in materials. I lack the presence of mind to calcuate them for all, but still.