Lorica Segmentata?

[larsdangly]

A brigandine coat (or 'coat of plates') was used more like a cheap, early cuirass to be worn over mail, not as a stand alone armor.

[hcobb]

Lorica Segmentata's 9kg actual weight means that it's leather.

brigandine over chain is up to Half-plate total weight.

[Skarg]

Steve's classic example in Melee is Flavius:

... his Roman armor counts as chainmail.

On the other hand, "Roman armor" could be types other than lorica segmentata, such as lorica squamata or lorica hamata, or a breastplate.

[Shostak]

Originally Posted by Skarg

Steve's classic example in Melee is Flavius:

On the other hand, "Roman armor" could be types other than lorica segmentata, such as lorica squamata or lorica hamata, or a breastplate.

The original Melee, for which SJ wrote that, didn't have half-plate, though.

[Skarg]

Originally Posted by Shostak

The original Melee, for which SJ wrote that, didn't have half-plate, though.

That's true. The current edition of Melee does have half plate, and doesn't change that example, but quite possibly Steve didn't even think about it.

Of course, Half Plate is weird in itself, in that, unlike the other armor types, the "half" part is not about how impenetrable the armor is, but about how much of the body it covers, and Roman armor focused on the torso at the expense of the limbs, while TFT tends to simplify to assume mostly whole-body suits of armor. So one could either argue lorica segmentata should be heavier than chainmail so protect more, or could argue that yes it's heavier protection, but doesn't cover as much as a full suit of chainmail, so rate it the same as chainmail.

i.e. I think there's wiggle room and no definitive answer without first choosing a perspective to look at it from.

[oldwolf]

As far as the weight of lorica segmentata, I remember reading an ad for modern lorica segnentata, made of 18 gauge steel, produced for re-enactors, weighing 25 pounds. Lorica hamata (roman armor covering about the same parts of the body but made of chainmail) is listed in wikipedia as weighing 11kg, which is 24.3 pounds. Not much difference at all.

[hcobb]

Originally Posted by oldwolf

As far as the weight of lorica segmentata, I remember reading an ad for modern lorica segnentata, made of 18 gauge steel, produced for re-enactors, weighing 25 pounds. Lorica hamata (roman armor covering about the same parts of the body but made of chainmail) is listed in wikipedia as weighing 11kg, which is 24.3 pounds. Not much difference at all.

Yes, neither offers the same degree of protection as a full suit of Norman chain.

[oldwolf]

Originally Posted by hcobb

Yes, neither offers the same degree of protection as a full suit of Norman chain.

Yes, Norman mail was giving pretty much head to toe protection and weighing about 35 pounds.

What I was more interested in with the weight comparison was that the solid plates of segmentata didnt weigh noticeably more than the chainmail hamata.

[hcobb]

One thing that Melee does well is to consider the entire defensive setup.

Lorica Segmentata provides very incomplete protection without that large shield.

So the combination is Leather + Large Shield for a good balance between speed and protection.