Difference between revisions of "Armor"

{{Quality|Masterwork|19:39, 13 February 2023 (UTC)}}

Loosely speaking, anything worn provides some protection, so it is considered "armor". In the [[stocks]] menu {{k|k}}, each piece of armor is listed under the location where it is worn - "armor" being with other torso pieces, headwear, handwear, legwear, and footwear. However, this page will concentrate mostly just on combat-quality armor. Note that breastplates only protect upper/lower torso areas, while mail shirts also cover the neck, the upper arms, and the upper legs. (All this is explained below in more detail.)

Though many creatures, including non-humanoids, can wear all kinds of armor, it is only dwarves, [[human]]s, [[elf|elves]], [[kobold]]s and [[goblin]]s that will visually appear wearing different articles of armor. This is because those aforementioned races have dedicated sprite sheets for each of them. While other creatures ''can'' wear armor, it won't appear on their sprite, but clicking on them and checking their inventory can show they are wearing certain pieces of armor, even if it wouldn't make sense in real life.

'''The actual effectiveness of a given piece of armor depends largely on the weapon(s) being used against it.''' "Chain" pieces are flexible, and while good against slashing [[weapons]] (axes), they don't do much to stop the crushing force of blunt weapons (maces and hammers). "Solid" pieces (breastplates, greaves, gauntlets) are rigid, so they are more widely effective as protection against all weapons but are heavier. See the [[weapon]] article for more specific information.

Keeping in mind the enemies you are likely to meet and how they will be armed, it is advisable to equip your militia dwarves with at least bronze or iron armor, as copper will quickly be outclassed against most anything except silver weapons and (most) animal attacks. Testing in the arena shows that armored dwarves have a huge advantage over unarmored ones, usually taking no casualties while making short work of their enemies. (But you shouldn't need this wiki to figure that out.) However, untrained dwarves will become encumbered and slowed down wearing armor due to lacking the [[armor user]] skill.

[[File:Armor Coverage Chart.png|thumb|550px|Dwarven armor coverage chart{{Verify|Chart has errors, see talk page}}]]

[[File:armor_portrait_preview.png|right]]Armor's purpose is simple: to allow your dwarves to better withstand damage in combat. Where an unarmored dwarf would invariably suffer injury from a weapon strike, well-armored dwarves have a good chance of taking reduced damage or shrugging it off altogether. Potentially damaging blows become mere bruises and otherwise lethal or incapacitating wounds are reduced to serious ones. [[Clothes]], though not specifically recognized by the game as armor, nonetheless function as such and may block weak attacks.

While a clothed dwarf is a better fighter than a naked one, an unarmored dwarf will still succumb to a goblin [[ambush]] in seconds. One clad in a full set of exceptional-quality steel armor, however, can absorb most of a goblin squad's ammunition and half a minute of its time before finally being killed. Unarmored or lightly armored dwarves may suffice to deal with lone thieves and the local wildlife, but a serious [[military|army]] requires equally serious armor.

In terms of classifications, armor can be thought of as having three different types: clothing, leather, or metal. When you first create any [[squad]] in your squad sidebar {{menu icon|q}}, you will have the choice to assign a default uniform - "No uniform" (assigning no additional equipment, i.e., keeping their civilian clothing, no weapon), "Leather armor" (leather pieces and a melee weapon), "Metal armor" (any metal pieces and a melee weapon), or "Archer" (which is identical to "Leather armor" but with a choice of ranged weapon).  

The first type of armor is [[clothing]], which is made of [[cloth]] at a [[clothier's shop]] or [[leather]] at a [[leather works]]. Clothing can usually* only deflect very weak attacks - say, a [[raven]] bite - but nonetheless can reduce damage. Most dwarves will be wearing clothing; those that aren't will usually be either very [[tantrum|unhappy]], [[children|babies]], or [[insane]]. All dwarves, both your initial 7 and [[migrants]], arrive with a full set of clothing (but it does [[Clothing#Wear|wear]] out, so you'll need to make or [[caravan|trade]] for more sooner or later).

:''(*)[[Silk]] clothing is a little stronger against cutting/piercing attacks but still far from "military grade" protection.

The second type is [[leather]] and/or [[bone]] armor, which is specialized for the purpose of defense compared to standard clothing. It is also very weak and designed to protect against small- to medium-sized animal attacks; it provides almost no noticeable defense against larger animals or military weapons. Leather/bone armor is usually only used by [[hunter]]s, or as the very first armor that a fortress military uses, for defending against marauding [[Rhesus macaque|macaque]]s and the like. These can be made before any [[metal industry]] is up and running, and they only need the raw material ([[bone]] or [[Skin|tanned hide]]s) and a [[craftsdwarf's workshop]] or [[leather works]], respectively.

Note that [[clothing]] made from leather is ''not'' the same as "leather armor", even if it consumes identical raw material. Protective leather armor that can be produced from the [[leather works]] includes "leather armor" (referring to leather upper-body armor), leather leggings, leather boots (high and low), and leather helms - these items are forms of true "military" armor, and non-military dwarves will not pick them up to wear.

The last type is classic combat-quality [[metal]] armor. This armor is made by an [[armorsmith]] at a [[metalsmith's forge]] and should be the armor of choice for any serious military. This armor can further be broken down into two sub-types. Flexible "chain" armor pieces, either a shirt or leggings (only), are stronger against cutting weapons (axes, swords) but do little against blunt/crushing weapons (maces, hammers, flails, whips), though they are difficult to [[wear|destroy]] with blunt force as well. Rigid "plate" pieces provide the best all-around protection. Plate pieces include helmets, metal gauntlets, and boots - there are no "chain" versions for those pieces. A full suit might incorporate both, the plate pieces layered over the chain pieces, for the best of both worlds.

The second row is the more effective choice, while the first row offers less protection but does not slow down dwarves unskilled as "[[Combat_skill#Equipment_skills|armor users]]". Be aware that civilians will also pick up and wear leather caps and leather gloves; leather helms can be produced instead, as civilians will not equip helms, but this may slow your unskilled dwarves down.

Note that if a mail shirt is combined with high boots, explicit "leg" covering can be omitted. (Dwarves don't have knees to protect, so the upper leg is covered from the shirt and the lower leg from the boot for complete coverage; though using greaves is still recommended, as there can never be "enough armor" in the world of Dwarf Fortress).

Attacking and being attacked with armor on gives 3 [[experience]] to the [[armor user]] [[skill]], with 9 more points if the attack actually hits armor. Whereas armor quality affects hit block chance, armor user skill affects how quickly the dwarf can move in their armor. In arena tests, a grand master armor user could move at twice the speed of a dabbling user when in heavy armor. Faster speed translates into faster movement, although only when walking around since the combat/movement speed split in 2014.

Every time a dwarf deflects an attack with their armor, it will be [[report]]ed as - for example - <span style="font-family:IBM Plex Mono Medium, Consolas, monospace; font-size:12.5px; background-color:#000; color:#3cd5d5;">Dwarf 1 slashes Dwarf 2 in the upper body with his iron short sword, but the attack is deflected by Dwarf 2's small iron breastplate!</span>, and the dwarf will receive 18 experience on top of the 12 mentioned before. The skill can be trained by attacking local wildlife, or through [[live training]] schemes.

Likewise, shield use trains the [[shield user]] [[skill]]. Shields are a special piece of armor that can be worn on one arm (and cannot be worn with two-handed weapons) and can be used to block attacks better than equivalent armor can (a difference amounting to deflection instead of broken bones), greatly increasing dwarven survivability. The skill modifies how often the dwarf will be able to block an attack with the shield, and it is likewise trained every time the shield is used to block an attack, at 30 experience apiece. It can be trained in the same ways.

{| class="wikitable"

Most armor must be made out of a weapons-grade material (steel, iron, etc.). The only exception to this is when a dwarf is in a [[strange mood]], in which case a piece of armor may be created out of any metal lying around. The material used in armor is extremely important to combat; fully [[iron]]-armored dwarves with iron short swords stand no chance against those clad in [[steel]]. In general, slashing weapons will have difficulty piercing armor made of the same weapons-grade material as the weapon, piercing weapons will be increasingly blunted, and blunt weapons will break bones through armor, almost regardless of its material. Rigid armor provides limited blunt protection, and chain mail shirts and leggings provide next to none. Even adamantine armor only prevents an estimated 13% of blows, demonstrating the utility of the slow but sure war hammer.

Shields are a bit different than other pieces of armor. Their material doesn't affect how well they deflect attacks. Wood and leather are both very light compared to their metal equivalents, and they are just as effective for blocking; however, they make for poor bludgeons if used to bash enemies (and they frequently are). When combined with changes made to how wear is applied to various materials, this means shields and bucklers of either will likely need to be replaced somewhat frequently if they are not artifact-quality. There can be no denying that the metal saved is worth it, however, especially in metal-poor embarks.

Certain weapons are surprisingly good at penetrating armor. Copper whips will shatter skulls through steel helmets. ^{[http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=116151.30 science!]}

{| class="wikitable"

:: (* Bronze here also includes [[bismuth bronze]], as both have the same combat stats and are armor-grade metals. [[Black_bronze|Black bronze]] '''cannot''' be used for armor.)

* [[Bone]] armor can be crafted very early in the game from the bones of livestock or other animals. Roughly equivalent to leather, bone armor provides practically no protection against "real" weapons, or large animals, and little against the attacks of medium-sized animals, making it an inferior option even for [[hunter]]s, except as a fashion statement.

* [[Copper]] armor is the lowest-grade type of metal armor but also the easiest to get, requiring one of [[native copper]], [[malachite]], or [[tetrahedrite]] (next to guaranteed on any embark containing more than one metal).

* [[Bronze]] is an [[alloy]] of copper and [[tin]], which requires [[cassiterite]]. It is much improved over copper armor and is slightly stronger than iron, but it also weighs more and is more elastic.

:* [[Bismuth bronze]] has identical properties to standard bronze, but has been alloyed with [[bismuth]], making it more valuable (and fancier-[[Color#Material_by_color|color]]ed). If you have access to bismuth and want to put it to use, and you have the time and [[fuel]] for the extra steps, you can save some tin and increase the [[value]] of the final objects this way.

* [[Iron]] can be smelted from [[hematite]], [[limonite]], or [[magnetite]] and is easiest to find in [[sedimentary]] layers (though [[igneous extrusive]] layers may contain hematite). It is comparable to bronze but is slightly weaker (but more rigid) and has a less complicated smelting process.

* [[Steel]] is the best non-adamantine armor material and requires [[fuel]], [[flux]], [[iron]], and [[pig iron]] in its manufacturing. Note that steel in ''Dwarf Fortress'' is just as valuable as [[gold]]; making lots of armor is a sure way to attract [[siege|attention]], but at least it's going into shiny armor, right?

* [[Adamantine]] is only found beneath the third [[cavern]] layer, plumbing the depths of the [[magma sea]]; it can be used to create unparalleled armor but is very time-consuming to produce in addition to being hazardous to mine. It is immensely valuable to boot.

[http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=92852.msg2601760#msg2601760 Some dwarven science] has also been conducted on the armor values of strange mood armors made from non-weapons-grade materials. The results seem to indicate the following ''rough'' order of preference in terms of armor properties (but take note of the artifact multiplier as well): Adamantine, Steel, Pig Iron, Iron, Bronze, Bismuth Bronze, Platinum, Brass, Black Bronze, Billon, Rose Gold, Electrum, Bismuth, Aluminum, Gold, Copper, Tin, Sterling Silver, Silver, Nickel, Zinc, Lead, Nickel Silver, Trifle Pewter, Fine Pewter, Lay Pewter.

This means that effectively, masterworks produced by legendary [[armorsmith]]s cut damage done by as much as half. This, combined with the need to produce a lot of armor, makes armorers far and away the most desired dwarves for [[strange mood]]s, and various schemes exist for influencing such an event.

Dwarves in strange moods can produce legendary artifacts, which benefit from a 3x multiplier, or three times as good as a more mundane piece of armor. Artifact-quality weapons-grade armor items are very strong defensively. However, artifacts can also be made of totally inappropriate materials, and the spectacularly low defensive values of [[giant hedgehog]] [[bone]] leggings vastly outweigh any bonuses it gets. Fortunately, soldiers will not by themselves claim artifact equipment; it can only be issued by the overseer assigning it as specific item.  

Strange moods are an exception to the number-of-bars rule; only one bar is required for the item itself, although additional materials may be gathered for decoration.

Dwarves that have used a particular piece of armor for an extended period of time may grow [[Attachment|attached]] to it, becoming [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?msg=7312290 better] at withstanding blows with it and unhappy if it is taken away. This is fine if it is a pair of ☼Steel Greaves☼, but it is a major problem if they are using what is meant to be interim armor. This happens less often with armor than it does for weapons. These events generate announcements.

There is no fundamental difference in performance between clothing and armor, something accentuated by regular clothing's ability to block attacks. Armor can be thought of as metal clothing, thicker and made of materials that have a much better chance of blocking attacks. Armor is, however, different in that it is not subject to standard [[wear]], will not be automatically equipped by civilians, and only non-clothing garments increase the [[Combat_skill|armor user]] skill.

The availability of specific articles of clothing varies by [[civilization]], and each has its own set of clothing that it can produce. In Fortress mode, sandals and shoes are in the same clothing class, but only the latter can be produced by dwarves, whereas the former must be stripped off dead enemies. Dwarves are gender-insensitive; a male dwarf may well put on a dress.

Sometimes, it is better to wear less than more armor, because it slows you down. Non-armor users tend to get slowed down significantly if they are wearing more than 1 piece of armor with 15-25 units of weight. This includes items such as mail shirts, greaves, and breastplates. Gauntlets only weigh 1-2 units of weight depending on material, and high boots weigh 3 units. Most clothing weighs 1 unit or less, with the exception of plant cloth clothing, which weigh 4 times as much as their silk and yarn alternatives.  

Since most dwarves are not [[danger room]]-trained right away into legendary armor users, it is highly recommended that you do not outfit them with the maximum amount of armor possible, as this will make them super slow and allow the enemy to get in many hits before they have a chance to fight back. Weight also hinders ranged units like marksdwarves, who more or less depend on their first strike and fast reload to cripple the enemy before they get into melee and who may also spend the majority of their time behind fortifications anyway.

Wearing a combination of 1 pair of metal gauntlets, 1 pair of metal high boots, 1 metal helmet, and 1 metal mail shirt gives an armor level 2 {{Verify|Are armor levels still relevant in the new material properties-based mechanics?}} metal armor layer that covers all areas without sacrificing speed due to encumbrance on non-armor users. This setup will prevent most cutting and stabbing attacks from weapons below the armor's metal grade, but it will still be vulnerable to crushing attacks since no metal greaves or breastplate is worn. Lighter and weaker types of armor, like leather armor and bone greaves, can also be worn in addition to the metal layer to provide additional protection without encumbrance, and they tend to be at least moderately effective if they are masterworks {{Verify}}. Shields should be made of wood when possible because a copper shield could weigh up to 13 units of weight, and material does not matter for blocking attacks. However, wooden and leather shields wear out and break rather quickly in the new version when used to hit armor in combat, so in the long run, a metal shield might be worth it.

Armor can suffer [[wear]] when it is struck in combat. Whether armor is damaged in a fight depends on material differences (e.g. steel weapons can easily damage copper armor) and presumably also the power of the attacker. Armor is irreparable, so if it's destroyed in combat, new armor must be made or purchased to replace it.

Armor is typically sized for the kind of creature that produced it.  [[Goblin]]s, [[elves]] and your [[dwarves]] are all about the same size and their equipment can be used interchangeably, but [[human]] armor is too big for other races.  You can manually specify the target race when forging armor, which is useful if you have non-dwarf [[visitor|residents]].  Also, armor sized for [[hyena man|hyena men]] is big enough to be worn by humans, but still small enough to be worn by dwarves.  Being bigger, it also [[material science#Contact Area|offers]] slightly better slashing [[weapon]] protection than dwarf-sized armor, but is also more [[weight|heavy]].  Conversely, [[wolf man]]-sized armor is the smallest you can produce for your dwarf military, and may reduce their encumbrance a bit (but it's worse against slashing attacks).

 

Shields do not have a target race, so anyone can use them.

==Types of protection==

===Material requirements===

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|Graphic<br><small>(Preview)</small>

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|{{tooltip|Armor Level|Items without an armor rating are considered clothing.}}

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|{{tooltip|Materials|Can be Cloth, Leather, Bone, Shell, Metal, or Wood.}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Cap{{tooltip|^§|Shaped}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:cap_sprite.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:cap_icon.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|+{{verify|description for METAL_ARMOR_LEVELS token says it only works if ARMORLEVEL is explicitly declared, which is not for cap}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Helm{{tooltip|^§|Shaped}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:helm_sprite.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:helm_icon.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Mask{{tooltip|^§|Shaped}}{{tooltip|^ƒ|Foreign}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:mask_sprite.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:mask_icon.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|C,L,B,S,M

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Turban{{tooltip|^ƒ|Foreign}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Head Veil{{tooltip|^ƒ|Foreign}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Face Veil{{tooltip|^ƒ|Foreign}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Headscarf{{tooltip|^ƒ|Foreign}}

===Upper body===

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|Graphic<br><small>(Preview)</small>

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|{{tooltip|Armor Level|Items without an armor rating are considered clothing.}}

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|{{tooltip|Materials|Can be Cloth, Leather, Bone, Shell, Metal, or Wood.}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Toga{{tooltip|^≈|Uncommon}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Leather Armor{{tooltip|^§|Shaped}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:leather_armor_sprite.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:leather_armor_icon.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Breastplate{{tooltip|^§|Shaped}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:breastplate_sprite.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:breastplate_icon.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Cape{{tooltip|^ƒ|Foreign}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|3

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Unique

[[Quiver]]s and [[backpack]]s are also worn on the upper body, counting towards layer permit size. [[Flask]]s are attached to the upper body armor or the garment worn over it (but not cover-layer items, such as cloaks).

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|Graphic<br><small>(Preview)</small>

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|{{tooltip|Armor Level|Items without an armor rating are considered clothing.}}

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|{{tooltip|Materials|Can be Cloth, Leather, Bone, Shell, Metal, or Wood.}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Gauntlets{{tooltip|^§|Shaped}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:gauntlets_sprite.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:gauntlet_icon.png]]

Each crafting job produces a pair of gloves, gauntlets, or mittens -- one right-handed and one left-handed. The items from a single job may have different quality levels.

===Lower body===

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|Graphic<br><small>(Preview)</small>

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|{{tooltip|Armor Level|Items without an armor rating are considered clothing.}}

!style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:1.2em;"|{{tooltip|Materials|Can be Cloth, Leather, Bone, Shell, Metal, or Wood.}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Leggings{{tooltip|^§|Shaped}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:leggings_sprite.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:leggings_icon.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Greaves{{tooltip|^§|Shaped}}

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:greaves_sprite.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em; text-align:center;"|[[File:greaves_icon.png]]

|style="border:1px #AAA solid;padding:0.2em;"|Loincloths