Metal shields

[Rb1003]

Hi

what just happened? Does RQ Glorantha no  longer have metal shields? I found no reference to a metal/bronze shield in the latest rulebook. Am I missing something?

[jps]

The setting has an ancient world flavor (bronze age) I'm sure metal shields will surface when supplements for the West are released.

[Rb1003]

I don’t know why but when I think of RQ I think large bronze shield. Probably more likely large wooden with bronze rim/ facing if the hoplite Aspis/Hoplon is the real world reference. Even so I would then have thought a mention of reinforced or composite shield? 

Just me I guess.You reckon it’s a regional thing though jps?

[jps]

Same thing for roman bulwarks: they were consolidated with metal but basically made of wood.

I believe it's the norm: the West would be the regional thing. A large bronze shield would be too heavy to be used effectively.

Edited October 8, 2018 by jps

[M Helsdon]

Bronze-covered shields were common in the Iron Age, and probably in some areas of the Bronze Age. There are certaining a few Bronze Age shields made of bronze, but only a few show any possible signs of use, as unlike iron, bronze objects could be relatively easily repaired. If used in combat, a solid bronze shield would take dents, certainly on the edges, and probably on the disk, as Bronze Age arrows and heavy javelins could damage and sometimes pierce such a shield, and axes and swords could damage it. So, yes, bronze shields are a possibility, but be warned that any with pretty decoration are impractical as the shapes will catch and guide piercing attacks, not deflect them. So if your characters want a shield like Achilles, let them, but with penalties for encumberance and the risk the shield will enhance their CHA at the cost of making them more vulnerable. Note also that many decorated Bronze Age bronze shields may have had a wooden or wicker backing which has not survived.

In a bronze-covered shield, the bronze sheet was only one component in a shield also made of wood and probably leather. The Greek hoplite shield is a classic example.

I suspect that in RQ:G, calling a shield wooden doesn't mean that it purely wood, but that the wood is the primary defensive layer.

Many of the 'ceremonial' bronze shields are very thin, and would have been easily punctured. The Battersea Shield is very thin and would have had a wooden, wicker, or leather backing that could have provided real protection. Some woods would have been favored over others, for being lighter and more resilient.

From my tome on Gloranthan warfare:

Poplar or willow are more commonly used for shields than oak, ash or pine, because soft woods are pliable and tend to dent instead of split, also weighing significantly less than denser timber. Willow also contracts against a penetrating blade minimizing damage.
However, heavier shields use oak for its strength but are covered with hide stretched over the front and back, doubled up to reinforce the rim. Oak can be hardened by baking.

 

Edited October 12, 2018 by M Helsdon