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Equipment

Equipment for the character sheet focuses on specific items vital for your character. Other items can be described generally. You're assumed to have the basics for living or traveling.

Full Equipment Lists and Details are found in the Character Sheet Calculator page

Purchasing Equipment

1 Day of Work ('minimum wage') = 1 Silver

The primary calculation in all tables is given in Days of labor or silver. These are interchangeable since the average pay equivalent for a day of work for a farmer or an equivalent worker is 1 silver. Masons and artisans usually recieve twice the amount. For a detailed breakdown of the economy, see below.

Weapons

Different weapons grant different advantages. For instace a knife deals less damage, but is easier to hit with, so you get a bonus on weapon rolls, but major penalties to damage and parry rolls. A giant flail on the other hand is hard to hit with, hard to parry against, and deals massive damage.

Class Damage Base Description
Heavy Strength × 1.5 Massive two-handed weapons for raw power
Balanced Strength Standard one-hand weapons (swords, axes)
Nimble Strength ÷ 2 Finesse weapons (rapiers, knives)
Special Varies Unique or exotic weapons with custom rules

Armor

Armor is great at keeping you alive and reducing the damage you take, except that it can restrict your overall speed on the battlefield due to carrying more weight. If it is made well, it should not restrict your range of movement, therefore you aren't less accurate with weapons, however, it will affect your ability to dodge out of the way of attacks and the like. If you are wearing no armor and are not carrying anything that would weigh you down you get a +1 bonus on all dodge rolls due to being unencumbered. Someone who is a wizard or monk could benefit from this.

Fatigue should also be mentioned. It gets hot wearing armor. Protracted battles can lead to you succumbing to heat, even if it snowing outside! So keep this in mind as you roleplay the character.

Shields hinder you in close combat. Take a penalty to all Close Range attacks and equal to the shield defense bonus.

Warming Factor

Armor and heavy clothing have a Warming Factor from 0 to 5. This is not automatically good or bad. It is insulation and heat retention.

Warming Meaning
0 No meaningful extra warmth.
1 Light extra warmth, like ordinary layered clothing.
2 Warm layer or light enclosed armor.
3 Hot in warm weather, useful in cold weather.
4 Severe heat burden during work or combat.
5 Extreme heat retention; cold-weather armor or full enclosed harness.

In cold weather, Warming Factor offsets cold exposure point-for-point before the GM applies fatigue or injury. In hot weather, heavy exertion, direct sun, still air, or humidity, Warming Factor adds to heat burden. If the total burden is high, shorten work periods, require rests, or call for Fortitude checks.

This is intentionally separated from non-thermal wear comfort. An item can be tolerable in cool weather but still become annoying after hours because of pressure, weight distribution, rubbing, poor fit, or restricted breathing. As a practical baseline:

Warming Comfortable wear time when heat is not the main issue
0-1 All day if it fits.
2 A travel day, with normal breaks.
3 Half a day before straps, pressure, or sweat become a problem.
4 A few hours of steady use; longer requires deliberate rests.
5 One or two hard hours before rest is expected, unless the situation is cold and the armor is well fitted.

Use those times as roleplay and fatigue guidance, not hard removal timers. A trained, acclimated, well-fitted character can tolerate more than an exhausted or poorly equipped character.

Blunt Force Trauma

Even if armor stops the blow from penetrating, there is still the matter of blunt force trauma to contend with. In medieval times, much of the battle was just about landing significant heavy blows on an opponent to weaken them. It is traumatizing to be pummeled over and over again, and accumulates quite a shock to your system. So, in heavy armor, you take a point of HP damage every time you are dealt at least 5 points of damage but your armor deflected or absorbed the rest of the damage. For example, you are hit by a heavy axe dealing 11 damage, but your armor has dr 14. You will take 1 point of damage from the attack.

  • Armor: Reduces incoming damage by its Damage Reduction (DR) rating.
  • Blunt Trauma: If an attack deals ≥5 damage but is fully absorbed by DR, you still take 1 point of HP from impact.
  • Encumbrance: Heavier or poorly fitted armor may reduce your Speed or Coordination.
  • Warming Factor: Helps against cold, but worsens heat burden during hot weather, humidity, sun, still air, or heavy exertion.
  • Shields: When actively wielded and facing an attacker, add your shield's defense bonus to your parry or block.

Detailed Economy

not required reading, but potentially interesting to help you connect it to the modern world

Salaries/Annual Income Equivalents

Profession Multiplier Silver / year Euro / year
Peasant / Farmer 1.0× 300 € 18 900
Unskilled Laborer 1.0–1.2× 300–360 € 18 900–22 680
Baker 2.0× 600 € 37 800
Brewer 2.0× 600 € 37 800
Weaver / Tailor 2.0× 600 € 37 800
Carpenter (Master) 3.0× 900 € 56 700
Blacksmith ~3.5× ~1 050 € 66 150
Stonemason (Master) 4.0× 1 200 € 75 600
Armorer 5.0× 1 500 € 94 500
Scribe / Clerk 3.0–4.0× 900–1 200 € 56 700–75 600
Apothecary / Physician 4.0× 1 200 € 75 600
Merchant 5.0× 1 500 € 94 500
Low-level foot soldier 1.0–2.0× 300–600 € 18 900–37 800
City guard / Watchman 2.0–6.0× 600–1 800 € 37 800–113 400
Man-at-Arms / Squire 12.0× 3 600 € 226 800
Yeoman (Household) 6.0× 1 800 € 113 400
Deputy Sheriff 8.0× 2 400 € 151 200
Sheriff (City) 10.0× 3 000 € 189 000
Scholar / Teacher 3.0× 900 € 56 700
Knight Banneret 48.0× 14 400 € 907 200
Shipwright 4.0× 1 200 € 75 600
Fisherman 0.8× 240 € 15 120

Assumes 300 working days/year and € 63 per silver piece (day's wage).