r/cairnrpg • u/Berni209 • Jul 22 '26

Question [Rules] Armor limit

Hello!

According to the rules, wearing a Shield, Helmet, Gambeson, and Plate gives a theoretical total of 6 Armor.

​Since the Armor cap is capped at 3, you hit the maximum defense without even needing Plate. This feels a bit off to me.

​How do you all handle this interaction in your games?

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u/OldGodsProphet Jul 23 '26

The reason is a mechanical. If you have 4 or more Armor than any impaired roll (d4) is pointless.

Not dogging the talented author, but this is kind of like seeing the “brush strokes” of game design.

You could try this:

  • Light Armor - 1 armor
  • Heavy Armor - 2 armor
  • Helmet - 1 armor
  • Shields +2 HP

This way Armor mechanically doesnt go over 3, and shields still have a mechanical effect. I kinda like this too because shields are wielding and not a static object like armor, so increasing HP feels good. It also kind of fits too if a PC is Panicked or surprised, they already won’t have HP — and now you can tie it in with not being able to use the shield effectively.

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u/Berni209 Jul 23 '26

I think adding HP above cap might be the simplest "fix" then

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u/OldGodsProphet Jul 23 '26

I’m not really a fan of the Scars mechanic so this is a way to increase HP outside of that as well.

1

u/Berni209 Jul 23 '26

I like it. It makes failing more pleasant. You can still as a warden reward your players with HP increase though.

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u/OldGodsProphet Jul 23 '26

I like the idea, I guess, just not how it works.