> Do you mean the hide of an actual rhinoceros, and not one of the > modern plastic vinyl things called rhino hide? I wouldn't be surpised > to learn it is. But cow leather isn't terribly tough. It's > reasonably thick, and suitable for all sorts of things. But there > are better leathers. Goatskin and horsehide are preferred for jackets > and gloves, for instance. Deerskin is prefered for some sorts of > footwear -- it's tough, very flexible. These days, most leather is > cow skin, because many, many cows are eaten, making the skins > available, and fairly cheap. Historically, leather was whatever was > convnient. You have cows, you've got cow hide leather. If you've got > goats, you use goatskin. You have stingrays, you use stingrays. > (Stingray leather is a traditional Thai leather.) You have rabbits, > you use rabbits. Etc.
Yes - well. Its sources that are the issue here. > That doesn't help you if you're trying to figure out if leather armor > made of rhino hide has more DR than cowhide. I'd be inclined to say > it does, but not much. So would I, but conditionally so. Deer hide is tough, but fairly thin compared to cowhide. Rabbit hide has more use for its fur. Ray skin is tough but is limited to coastal regions. I cannot see how rhino hide - for plains herder-nomads - would not work as a source of leather since they have to take the rhinos to stop them eating their slave settlement crops. The clansmen ride a modified diatryma, and go after the rhino from the saddle with lances to be _honourable_. It makes for nice colour if some of the Clawriders can have better armour as they earn it :) I am going with the thickest hide to be 5DR at base, with tanning failures loosing as much as 2DR as plain leather, or 1DR if boiled and kept stiff. The armour preparations will add back 1DR in either case. So... there are expensive 4DR stiff jerkins and 5DR breastplates and helmets for the Clawriders. Either of which can have 2DR sleeves/leggings This solves my armour problem for them. I do think that realistically, this hide would be helmets and shields rather than breastplates... but I need a way to make Clawrider losses against Brick People springuns personally survivable without Heroic Stats. I need to apply more thought. Thanks Listies. McE _______________________________________ No viruses found in outgoing message Scanned by iolo AntiVirus® 1.0.5.0 http://www.iolo.com _______________________________________________ GurpsNet-L mailing list <[email protected]> http://mail.sjgames.com/mailman/listinfo/gurpsnet-l
