The Usage and History of Plate Armour

The tides of war are fickle, ebbing and flowing with the strength of arms and the wisdom of tacticians. One of the most valuable aspects of war, be it a personal skirmish or a siege of cities, is defense. How does one protect against the attacks of the enemy? The most ready answer is, of course, armour. And the best armour is plate.

— Altiarc the Wayward

  Plate armour is one of the many ancient creations lost during the Turmoil. While there are some extant examples of this impressive combat technology, and some nations have made valiant attempts at recreating full plate, the truly articulated metal skins of old are primarily lost to us. Still, people are nothing if not resourceful.  

Itanish Plate

The empire of Itania has a wealth of resources rarely seen in other places of the world. Unlike many other kingdoms that suffered from the Turmoil and slowly rebuilt, Itania has never known an end to the monsters and war of that troubled time. The creatures of the beyond continue to be drawn to their lands, though in lesser numbers than before, and their southern region is under constant attack from a mysterious enemy. Needless to say, Itania has grown rather competent in war.   As one of the few nations with a robust and successful mining industry, Itania has access to alloys that nearly resemble the steel of ages past. While their White Iron is not as enduring as true steel, nor is it as flexible, it is superior to other forms of iron and, most importantly, easy to create and shape with Itania's plentiful materials. Because of this, the infantry and cavalry of Itania are most often fully armored in half or full plate. Even the lowest-ranking troops are better equipped than the generals of some other nations.  

Gehnnia

The Empire of the Sleeping Tiger is one of the only kingdoms to survive the Turmoil nearly unscathed. Thus, they are one of the only nations that retained their ability to forge steel. Gehnnian steel is unique, created in the heart of their ancient capital. Their forges are powered by the concentrated light of the sun, which causes the steel to take on a golden hue.   The style of armour most in fashion in this isolated kingdom is very different from the wide, blunt plates of the southern nations. Instead, Gehnnia prefers a combination of interlocking "woven" scales, called Mountain plates, with solid plates that drape over joints. This level of armour is normally reserved for higher-ranking officers with the grandest patterns being worn only by top-tier generals.  

Historical Armour

There are few surviving examples of the true plate of ancient days. Full plate from this era was sophisticated in its design, functioning almost as a second skin. Unlike modern plate, this armour was fully articulated and covered every part of the body. Where modern plate has gaps in the joints where the underlying chain or gambison are exposed, ancient True Plate did not. Whenever the wearer would move their limbs, the armour would expand and contract as needed with complicated segments which overlapped and nested within one another.   The kingdom responsible for the original creation of this advanced armour has long been lost to time; one of many nations washed beneath the waves of the Turmoil. What evidence remains suggests that the design, at least, came from one source. From that, many different nations and people created their own versions. With so few examples to look at, however, it is nearly impossible to replicate the intricate articulations of True Plate.  

Ellar Plate

The Ellar peoples each have a unique culture and, with that, their own designs and ideas around armour and defense. Some stories suggest the Ziin had, at one point, armour that was something like plate. No evidence of such armour has been found. The Aure and the Liir, however, have many examples of their extant plate armour, each unique from the other.   The Aure'ellar armour has a quality and complexity one would expect from these Ellar. After all, the craftsmanship of Aure goods is known and sought after throughout the world. The style of the Aure armour has evolved over the centuries, slowly taking on the aesthetics of Shiruban armour. Despite this, it is still distinct and of superior quality.   Most interesting of all, in my humble opinion, is the full plate armour of the Liir'ellar. The kingdoms that the Liir built, along with the odd humans who worshiped their Wandering Queen, it is likely they could have conquered half the world if not for the Turmoil. The survivors who wander the world or search the isolated ruins of the plains are commonly found to be wearing the Queen's Plate.   Some refer to this armour as turtle plate or walking castles. It is the most complete plate armour in use. Due to the relatively common practice of knights traveling from the plains to distant locals all over the world, their armour has been copied and imitated in many places. These imitations, of course, don't measure up in quality but are widely used by many militias and guards around the world.