GURPS Help

[Avatar]

Salvete!

I am planning a GURPS campaign set to the Roman "empire" shortly after Cannae, and I need some help.

Thing I need a little help with are legionary equipment. Specifically armor. My knowledge tells me that bronze corselets, maybe the odd chain shirt was the order of the day, but I was wondering when, roughly, did the legions adop the segmentata as the armor of choice?

Lastly, for those with GURPS experience, what would be appropriate skills for the legionares? I assume Shortsword, Spear, Thrown Weapon (spear), Shield, and Hiking, as well as Soldier?

Many thanks for all help!

[Sean Manning]

Hi Avatar.

A number of GURPS books and Pyramid articles give templates for Roman soldiers, including Martial Arts (4e), Imperial Rome (3e), and Fantasy (4e).

In the Second Punic War most Roman soldiers would wear a helmet with cheek-flaps, a square of bronze atop their chest, and possibly one or two greaves. Some wealthy soldiers wore mail with the Greek or Celtic cut instead. Banded armour seems to appear under Augustus, possibly from smithies in conquered Gaul.

I don't have time for a long answer- sorry. You might try the SJ Games forums for GURPS-related questions.

[Avatar]

I have Imperial Rome, so that's all taken care of. It's just that the book is a little hazy on the details at times. But thanks, you've just made my day. I owe you a pint.

[Avatar]

I've hit upon an issue that annoys me greatly. In the historical textbooks, it says that the Hastatii used a bronze breastplate, and a chainshirt if they had the money. Trouble is, in GURPS, a bronze breastplate, a simple piece of bronze to cover the front, costs up to twice as much as a chainshirt. How do I get it "balanced" without raising and lowering prices?

All suggestions and help appreciated.

[Caius Fabius]

You are the GM, set your own price. The books are a guide. [yes I was quoting Steve Jackson] (Or you could see what the price is in GURPS Ancient Greece which would also be helpful for creating a world from this time period)

[Ironhand]

Yep Caius is right. The great thing about GURPS is its ability to easily be customized. Put your knowledge of history to work. The core books are going to need a lot of revision from most of our points of view since they are not exactly done by historians, but more as rough guides for gamers. The framework is more important than the details since they fiqure you can alter the details pretty easily. Make the changes and have a great campaign.

[Sean Manning]

These "breastplates" (pectorales) were bronzes squares about 15-20 cm on a side and held on by straps, not full armour like a Greek breastplate. I'd say they protect the torso and vitals hit locations on 1-2 on 1d6. Some Romans might just have used an old Greek-style breast-and-backplate though.

But yeah, half the fun of GURPS is fiddling with things! There are endless discussions on the SJ Games boards about how much armour and weapons should cost and weigh (Dan Howard is a major contributor).

[Avatar]

Oh yes, I've seen the discussions. I think I'll just encourage the players to get some Wealth and buy a chainshirt that is slightly more expensive than the one in the book.

Many thanks for all the help.

[Dan Howard]

FWIW GURPS Low Tech 4e has just finished editing and has entered production. Should be released later this year. It will have an entire chapter on armour, which will handled in a manner that is more realistic than any other RPG supplement.

[Dan Howard]

GURPS Low-Tech is now available in PDF format
http://e23.sjgames.com/item.html?id=SJG31-0108

The hardback is due in December.

In the interests of disclosure I wrote two of the chapters in the book. I was paid a flat fee for this, not royalties, and therefore have no financial interest in how well this book sells.