Chainmail

“Good steel mail takes much effort to manufacture. Every ring must be riveted by hand. Now do you understand why I get angry when an orc tries to slice through my hauberk? I don’t mind one or two bruises. It’s the repair time that bothers me.”
— Hardas son of Kurolas, dwarven warrior, modern

Even though this common form of armor is properly called mail, which means mesh, many Aventurians erroneously refer to it as chainmail, and dwarves cringe when they hear merchants describe it as such to customers. Dwarven mail — the finest example of this kind of armor — is more expensive, partly because it takes much longer to produce. Versions produced by other races are easier to make and therefore less expensive, but do not last as long.

Mail provides good protection against blades and arrows, and its natural flexibility makes it more comfortable to wear than most other types of armor. Although mail is comparably heavy, wearers soon learn to transfer a portion of their hauberk’s weight to their hips by cinching the armor with a sturdy belt.

Unlike plate armor, mail does not require custom tailoring. One size fits almost everyone (except perhaps dwarves and extremely large humans). On the down side, mail armor is less effective against impact weapons such as hammers and clubs. Also, mail tends to jingle when moving, thus limiting attempts to sneak up to enemies or participate in an ambush.

“Exceptional quality, and easy to wear. Dwarven mail is a masterwork of smithing. It provides excellent protection from blades and arrows and is as comfortable as a good cloak. I never remove my chainmail — um, I mean mail! Argh! Now you’ve got me saying it wrong!”

— Arbosh son of Angrax, forge dwarf master smith

“It has the added benefit of robbing mages of their power, or at least preventing them from casting spells.”

— Brother Hilbert of Auen, Blessed One of Peraine

“You’ve witnessed that, I assume?”

— Mirhiban al’Orhima, Tulamydian fire mage

“Of course. I once used Arbosh’s chainmail to bind an evil mage. I heard that it would interfere with his spells, and I was surprised by how well it worked. Frankly, I was even more surprised that Arbosh agreed to let me use his chainmail that way.”

— Brother Hilbert of Auen, Blessed One of Peraine

“Extreme situations call for extreme measures. And it’s just called mail…”

— Arbosh son of Angrax, forge dwarf master smith