Rethinking D&D 5e Armor and Damage Types
I was thinking about implementing a rock-paper-scissors system to make bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage more relevant in D&D 5e.
It needs to be simple to implement and track on the fly, but not as swingy as advantage/disadvantage or as powerful as resistance/vulnerability. I’m thinking it should depend on armor type. I have grouped the armors visually so players won’t have to know if something is “light” or “heavy”. Instead, they can glance and see “leather, mail, or plate”. The act of describing it tells them what type it is. Meanwhile the bonus is small, a mere +1 bonus to AC. Thus it will only come up during close calls and forgetting about it once in a while won’t break the game.
Leather
Includes: padded, leather, studded leather, and hide
New Effect: Grants a +1 bonus to AC against bludgeoning attacks.
Reasoning: Although leather and padding proved effective against many forms of attacks, it provides the most cushion against bludgeoning.
Includes: chain mail, scale mail, chain shirt, and ring mail
New Effect: Grants a +1 bonus to AC against slashing attacks.
Reasoning: Mail is highly resistant to slashes and still used to protect workers today using saws and knives. Bludgeoning would still harm the wearer. While it can withstand light piercing, heavy piercing from crossbow bolts can still easily penetrate it.
Plate
Includes: breastplate, half plate, splint, and plate
New Effect: Grants a +1 bonus to AC against piercing attacks.
Reasoning: Plate was designed to withstand crossbow bolts and firearms. Meanwhile bludgeoning can dent the armor causing lasting damage to the armor and those inside it. Slashing tends to scrape across it and get deflected unless a solid blow is struck. In spite of this, thrusting is still a method of breaking through this armor. To support the rock-paper-scissors system, we will assume the high damage from rogue-like characters will compensate for the discrepancy in logic. (they are difficult to hit, but once hit it’s a doozy).
Flavor Breakdown
Leather-wearing characters tend to be rogues and archers and bards. They will not be a bit more resistant to brute-force attacks, but still remain vulnerable to sharp things.
Mail-wearing characters like rangers, bards, dex fighters, clerics, and archers will now be more resistant to standard melee tech. Lots of players and enemies favor longswords, greatswords, and axes and now mail-wearers will have a slight edge. Many NPCs also wear medium armor so this is something to watch.
Plate-wearing characters like fighters, clerics, and paladins will now be more resistant to attacks from impudent rogues and archers, but still will be affected by their high damage.
Piercing weapon users like rogues, bards, and archers will have an easier time hitting weakly-armored targets (non plate). Creatures with bite or sting attacks will be stopped by plate armor.
Slashing weapon users like fighters, barbarians, paladins, and melee rangers will now have an easier time hitting leather and plate, so they are much more versatile in their usage in this system by being able to hit those at opposite ends of the armor spectrum. Creatures with slashing claws will be stopped by mail.
Bludgeoning weapon users like barbarians, clerics, paladins, and monks will now be useful against metal armor. Many large creatures with slam attacks will stymied by leather, which might be a flavor fail.
