01-17-2011, 10:01 PM | #1 |
Join Date: Jan 2010
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[LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
Page 57 of Low-Tech includes rules for sheaths for a character's melee weapons - specifically knives and swords.
These optional rules state that approximately 2/3 of the listed weight is for the weapon and 1/3 is for the scabbard. It also states that a replacement sheath costs 1/5 of the cost of a good-quality weapon. If you were using these optional rules, would that mean that the weapon costs 80% of the listed price and the sheath costs 20%? Normally this can be ignored, but could be relevant if a character tries to buy a knife without a sheath. The other big impact this could have is when purchasing fine-quality and decorated weapons. If you are using the optional sheath rules it would not make sense for a character to pay the fine, balanced, etc. CF for the sheath, only for the weapon (why do you need a perfectly balanced sheath?). In this way, a character can pay the high CF for 80% of the weapin cost and a lower CF (maybe for decoration, etc.) for the 20% sheath component. This would give a cost saving against simply multiplying the whole cost. Does this sound like a correct assessment of the costs? |
01-18-2011, 12:26 AM | #2 |
Join Date: Sep 2008
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Re: [LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
That represents more work than I'd put into an item, but it makes sense.
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01-18-2011, 02:28 AM | #3 | |
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and some other bits.
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Re: [LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
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01-18-2011, 02:50 AM | #4 |
GURPS FAQ Keeper
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Kyïv, Ukraine
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Re: [LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
I'd say the listed sheathe cost is for an unmodified weapon. Just assume that the 20% of the original unmodified cost of a weapon is the sheathe, even for Fine weapons.
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01-18-2011, 04:45 AM | #5 |
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Torino, Italy
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Re: [LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
Sheaths cause a lot of trouble if you use the 1/3 - 20% rules.
In our campaigns, we just assume that the weight and cost of Sheaths are negligible, and that characters always have appropriate sheaths for their weapons (unless, of course, they just escaped from prison or something). And, if for some reason I really wanted to be detailed and accurate about sheaths, I'd rule that they weigh 1 lb and cost $50, in addition to the weapon (in order to avoid all the recalculations and weird stuff that happens if you mess with listed weapon costs and weights). I never understood why GURPS went into so much trouble just for accounting for sheaths.
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01-18-2011, 04:52 AM | #6 |
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Not in your time zone:D
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Re: [LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
Whatever weapon you buy, if it's meant to have a sheath, it's included. But if you lose, damage or otherwise need to buy a sheath, then it's 20% of the cost of that weapon. If you buy a fancy sword, they give you a better sheath.
Isn't there an option for poorer quality, lighter sheaths and the detriment to weapon health? A sheath that weighs 50% of the weapon weight does seem excessive - must go weigh my sword & wooden sheath... 2.2lbs total, 1.76lb sword, 0.44lb sheath. I've never done that before - never even thought about the weight. But that's 4/1 not 2/1
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"Sanity is a bourgeois meme." Exegeek PS sorry I'm a Parthian shootist: shiftwork + out of country = not here when you are:/ It's all in the reflexes Last edited by jacobmuller; 01-18-2011 at 02:08 PM. Reason: cool |
01-18-2011, 05:13 AM | #7 |
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Maitland, NSW, Australia
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Re: [LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
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01-18-2011, 05:27 AM | #8 | |
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Torino, Italy
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Re: [LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
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Even if they are too high, I think a better approach would be revise weapon weights, and keep sheaths weight/cost separate, to avoid all the confusion with Fine swords, odds of breakage and so on. Also because not all weapons have sheaths, so their (unrealistically high, I suppose) weight won't be reduced by the "sheath" rule... In your opinion, which weapons should be reduced in weight, and by how much? Or alternatively, do you happen to have a houseruled weapon tables you use in your games? :)
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01-18-2011, 05:44 AM | #9 |
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Maitland, NSW, Australia
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Re: [LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
Generally speaking, any weapon intended to be wielded in one hand rarely weighs more than 2.5 lbs with many being less than 2 lbs. Doesn't matter whether it is a sword, mace or axe. There are exceptions but this is a good rule of thumb.
Here is a good example regarding maces. I started this when I discovered that Oakeshott was wrongly being used as a source for mace weights in Low-Tech. http://www.myarmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=15182 Last edited by DanHoward; 01-18-2011 at 05:50 AM. |
01-18-2011, 08:36 AM | #10 | |
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Stuttgart, Germany
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Re: [LT] Sheaths for melee weapons
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http://paws.kettering.edu/~drussell/bats-new/batw8.html The next site/PDF is another paper by the above researcher addressing moment of inertia and the benefits of top-loading a bat, it looks like if he keeps going along this line of research he's going to conclude that the ideal design of a baseball bat for increasing distance is going to look like a mace, fancy that. *grin* http://www.kettering.edu/~drussell/P...wingWeight.pdf |
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low-tech, weapons |
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