Next Stop the Armory....                                                                                                                        

Kharsih takes you by the hand and leads you into the small room off the hall.  As you look around you see various displays, from full suits of heavy plate, to helmets hanging on the wall, to shields resting against the heavy oaken table.  Some are dented, waiting to be repaired, others glint in the soft light of the room.  

"Okies, clerical armor....  " she scratches her head a little perplexed and wanders to the table, perching herself upon it.

"Clerics are not restricted in their choice of armor.  We get no benefit for using a specific type such as the Paladins get with heavy plate.  It depends a lot on your stamina and how much weight ye can carry. However, within the guild there are three prominent favorites. And I suppose I shall tell ye of them.

LEATHER:

     "Leather armor gives ye the least amount of hindrance and allows ye better movement.  As ye can prolly imagine it also weighs less than any other.  However, it will nae protect ye as well.  But ye will learn to evade in it rather well in time and the more ye evade the less chance ye have of getting hit.  If ye are slight on strength and stamina, ye might wish to consider it."  She runs her hand over a finely stitched breastplate carefully displayed on a mannequin standing beside her.

     "In Crossing's armory ye can find leather fairly cheap.  There are some hunting leathers in Haven I do believe that are a bit more expensive with better protection, and in Shard there are hunting leathers that are wonderful I have hear, but they are very expensive."

LIGHT CHAIN:

     "Then of course there is my personal favorite." She grins drawing a flawless silver guilt hauberk out of her journey pack.  "Light chain... this hauberk I have had since shortly after I came to this fair city.  In general Light Chain has a high maneuvering hindrance, and it can be heavy.  However I personally believe it is the best armor around.  I have yet to have it fail me, and it seems to stand up to heavy combat very well.. I have only repaired it once. Which keeps the bills down I might add"  She winks at you playfully as she spreads the hauberk out on the table beside her.

     "This particular piece is fairly expensive... it is sold in Theren, and covers your chest, back, arms, legs and abdomen.  However, most light chain is reasonably priced.  If you think you might wish to try it, my suggestion is to start out for a couple circles with leather, especially if you have a low strength and stamina, and hunt till you have some Kronars.  Then go purchase a chain shirt in the Crossing armory. They run about a gold there. With the same areas of protection.  Then if you every want anything a little more flashy and a little better quality, save up your Lirums and journey to Theren. " She gently lifts the hauberk form the table and places it back in her bag before inclining her head at a full set of armor.

HEAVY PLATE:

     "Heavy Plate seems to be the third most favored item.  Perhaps that is because of the protection that it offers.  It too covers a vast amount of your body, but like the name implies it is extremely heavy.  I once tried to carry some for a friend of mine an it brought me to my knees, unable to stand. If you are of a race that has high strength naturally, the heavy plate might just be what you need.  It can withstand many a shot, many a blow, and I have seen it save many people from deathly blows.  And it too is fairly expensive and is again sold in Theren."  She passes by the suit of armor and abruptly trails off.  She reaches into a small bin and withdraws a soft cloth, buffing at a spot on the massive armor, and chuckles when it shines like the rest of the finely tooled suit.

COVERAGE:

     "There are many many types of armor that ye can chose from that I have not mentioned.  All that I have said are those types most commonly found within the guild, but you can hunt in what ever you chose to use.  Scale, reinforced leather, laminated chain, heavy chain...  as I said there are many.  What IS important though is the coverage that you will need.  And as your coin will probably be limited, you will probably have to start in Crossing to purchase your armor."  She sits down again, this time on the floor near a large bin that contains armor to be repaired.  

     "Now, lets see there is, most importantly, your chest area." she draws out a breastplate from the bin.  "A breastplate, or a shirt will cover your chest and your abdomen.  I strongly recommend one of them, though they are a little more expensive.  It seems that you cannot learn your armor skills unless you have one." She chuckles at the large hole in the one in her hand and tosses it back into the bin, rummaging again.

     "If ye don't invest in one of them make sure ye do one of these, " she withdraws a tasset from the bin and ties it around her waist modeling it.  "A tasset protects your abdomen but cannot be worn with a breast plate or a shirt."  She removes it and tosses it back into the bin, pulling out another item.

     "These are a pair of vambraces. Again, unnecessary if ye purchase a shirt.  Protects ye arms. Very very important if ye intend to keep ye arms on ye for long."  Reaching in she pulls out something else and holds it to you at arms length.

     "Greaves, protects your legs.  Ye need these with anything I have mentioned.  If ye are going to use leather, and ye intend to purchase hunting leathers later on ye can get rid of these later. But right now ye definitely need a pair."  She places the vambraces back in the bin and encourages you to wear the greaves.

     "And finally for body armor ye need an aventail to keep ye from getting your neck sliced open.  But like so many other things, with a shirt or breastplate it cannae be worn." she tosses it halfheartedly back in the bin and taps her hauberk happily.  "See, cannae find anything that compares," she winks and giggles quietly.

     "Ooohhh, almost forgot a few things." She blushes.

GLOVES:

     "Gloves! must have gloves.  What type ye get matters little in the early stages of hunting.  I recommend though a pair of leather gloves.  Seem to be durable and seem to be fairly inexpensive.  As ye get older ye may want something a little better but when the time comes, ye will know what it is ye want.  I used leather gloves for a good part of my life so far.  Have no complaint with them whatsoever.

HELMETS:

     "Helmets are a definite must or ye will be dead instantly.  And again there are many many choices in helms. But ye will assuredly need something in the near future that will cover your eyes.  There are three types I know of that will do this for ye:  Greathelm, Bascinet, or Visored Helm.  These are nae cheap. Ye may wish to purchase a regular leather helm until ye can raise a few coins to get the other. But in time ye WILL need a helm that covers ye eyes.

SHIELDS:

     "The shield is a must for cleric life as ye will be asked to learn it for as long as ye study in the guild.  There are many shields that ye can chose from each ranging in how heavy they are, and how much they are.  There does not seem to be one that is more durable than the other, at least in my opinion. The one I currently use is a gift and have not had to look into purchasing another. But I digress... upon the wall ye will see a few types" She points across the room at another wall, decorated with engraved shields each handpainted. "These intricate ones are expensive and nice to have later in life. Ye can find them in shard.  For now..." she points to the shields resting against the table, "these will work perfectly."

     "Ye have an oval shield, a target shield and an ordinary shield.  All three ye can find in Crossing and I believe that the target shield is the least expensive."

She leans back upon her hands, stretching her legs before her then rises to stand.  "I hope ye can remember this chat.  I will go over it real quick afore we leave the room."

NECESSITIES                                                            RECOMMENDATIONS

-leg protection(greaves)                                                  -any type of greaves 

-arm protection(vambraces)                                              -shirt, coat               

-abdomen protection(tasset)                                          -breastplate, shirt, coat

-chest protection(shirt, coat, breastplate)                     -shirt, coat, breastplate

-neck protection(aventail, shirt, breastplate)               -shirt, coat, breastplate

                 -helm                                                                              -bascinet, visored helm, greathelm

  -gloves                                                                            -leather gloves                

-shield                                                                            -oval, ordinary, target

     "Now afore we go to the weapon room there is one more thing ye should know about these merchants in this world.  They like to inflate there prices.  When ye order an item and they tell ye something will cost a certain amount, offer them something else about 30 coins less, and barter with him or her until ye find an agreeable price. Shh, do nae tell them I told ye they were a fickle lot... they may decided I need to pay more if I let that info out."  She winks with a warm smile and leads you out the door.

Portal to: 

Kharsih's Chapel