Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General BG3 armour appearance

Mod edit: title changed for merge into Megathread. Previous title; "I think armor (and weapon) designs look atrocious"


I don't know if I'm the only one that thinks this, but recently I came across a post on reddit with datamined images of all equipment that is in the game, and I have some thoughts about them. Now, I understand that it's hard to make the models and designs, and I genuinely think that the models are of very high quality, my problem is with the designs itself.


Weapons: I don't have a problem with the weapon design, for the most part, there's some nitpicks I have with stuff like the length of the longsword's handle size, but nothing major. Except for the design for the +2 Greatsword, I don't know who thought that guard looked good, I'm all for outlandish designs in fantasy games that are impractical when they look good, but not only does this look impractical, it just doesn't look good, and it's not something I'd like to see my character wield.




Light Armor: it looks good for the most part, I think the designs are well done, my only "problem" is how regular leather armor looks so thin, kinda looks more like an apron, but it's nothing major that makes it look bad





Medium Armor: this is where I start having some thoughts, and I'll go through them one by one

-Hide armor: I think it looks good, you can't really go wrong with this

-Chain shirt: I wasn't sure how they could make a visual design for an improvement of chain armor, but I was pleasantly surprised, the designs are good and show how the armor progresses, except for the +2 female version, as it doesn't seem to have any chain for some weird reason?

-Scale mal: I have mixed feelings about this one because it's not really a bad design, but I just don't like it, if you're making scale armor, I want to see the metal scales all around the body, to me this looks like leather armor with some scales on it
-Breastplate: this armor looks fine, my only problem with it is that the base version looks just as fine and detailed as the upgraded versions, I think a more simplistic design, at least for the base version, would look a lot better, and maybe make the breastplate a bit larger

-Half plate: I'll be 100% honest, I absolutely hate this, and I can't even say it has a good design, at least for the female version. First off, I'll get the nitpicks out of the way, as I understand it, half plate is supposed to be just like full plate, but without the lower body, this just looks like a breastplate with kneepads. Now for the actual problems with this armor, the female version is literally just a metal bra; who in their right mind thought this was a good idea? There shouldn't be a change in design depending on gender, at least not one as big as this, and the worst part is that Larian didn't do this before, is DOS2 they had revealing armor, but it was the same for both genders, so it stayed consistent and made sense culturally, but here it doesn't make sense to have the male version be this badass looking guy that looks ready for battle, while the female version looks like a dress with a steel bra. This looks terrible and I hope they change it before early access ends.





Heavy Armor

-Ringmail: there's not much to say here, the armor looks great, the female +1 version doesn't have pants, but I'm guessing this is a bug of sorts so it's fine

-Chain mail: Again, I don't have any complaints about this one, the design is good and the progression between the different versions is done well

-Splint mail: Not how I would've imagined it, but this still looks good, my only "complaint" is the fact that the base armor is as detailed as its upgrades, a more simplistic version would do the trick

-Plate: Just like splint armor, I think this armor looks good and the designs are well done, I still think there should be a simpler version for the base armor, and the designs should be a bit more consistent between male and female versions.







So yeah, besides the few nitpicks I had, the two main problems these designs have is that some don't stay consistent for male and female versions, and some are ironically far too detailed, there's nothing wrong with simplicity, some people just want plain old plate armor, with no outlandish designs and engravings on it. I know it takes work to make designs of this quality, but better to get these complaints out of the way while the game is still in early access.

Padded and Leather Armor look great! What sucks is that the best and most used light armor, Studded Leather, doesn't look so great. Too many odd details, patches and color tones.

Hide and Chain Shirt are cool. Except you can't see any chain in the female version of chain shirt +2. Scale Mail suffers from the same thing as studded leather. Too many odd details, decorations, patches and layers of everything. Breastplate looks nice but really fancy and I'd like a more plain version. I can't imagine my stealthy Ranger wearing that in the wilderness. Female half plate has... boob plates and a skirt with no leg protection at all. I'm speechless. It looks more like a dress than plate armor. Change please.

Ring Mail looks really thin and light. Not heavy enough for heavy armor. Since it's made out of cheaper materials, it should be very bulky. Chain Mail is fine. Splint is very Samurai. Plate Armor looks really fancy again. I just want something less decorated.

Overall I think many armors look way too high fantasy and decorated. More like ceremonial armor for kings than actual armor for battle. In many cases I would prefer something more real and utilitarian. I'm not against decorations but these seem overdone for the most part. The better the armor gets, the less I like it. Should be the other way around.

The weapons seem all very elven style. Same thing again.. they look too fancy and decorated. I'd prefer more utilitarian looking weapons. Less gold, more steel. Unless these actually ARE elven designs and we get more normal stuff later.

Special mention for the Greatsword +2 which I probably can't use while it has the ridiculous morning star for a cross guard.

The low level sword, bow and spear looks good. I would want these in any game I play, instead what most other games have. The realistic weapon style is great but not every model it is like that: mace isn't like a real mace, and every shield is basic round so far. Staves are also very poor, I'd rather have a simple, empty stick than all that cloth and metal parts that makes no sense to be there, on the low level items.

The armor looks good on female characters, but not so much on male. The hidden paladin pink armor is bad. Wizards could use more variety, both traditional and a bit sexier clothing as well. So far there are no choices at all: it's all about stats, you pick which is better, not the one which looks good.

Would like to have a slot for looks (with no weight penalties, maybe transform the armor into a skin to use it here) and one for stats.

Could you please change your title? To use the word atrocious and then go on to say they are all good or ok except one reminds me of a line from the Princess Bride. Also, you include weapons in the title and then say nothing about weapons. Other than the title, I actually really like your post and agree with it.

I don't mind female specific designs. I prefer to not look frumpy.

If I want to look at frumpy, I'll look in a mirror.

Personally I think the half-plate armours are great designs for breastplates

Breastplates are probably my favourite armour from an aestethics viewpoint (especially the stereotypical wizard robe/long coat and breastplate looks) and to me the non-magical version look a bit too... fractured. I don't mind that so much for the magical versions because they can get away with being more "piecey" but I would like common breastplates to look more like they're a plate that goes over your breast.

I agree that some armours, like leather, could be bulkier. I also think hide should be bulky -- to me the difference between leather and hide is either using the skin of a thicker animal or more layering and fur. Magical hide (and leather) can be less bulky for obvious magical reasons.

I like very much that they've chosen to include the padded armour/gambeson look in all their armours. It's the foundation of every heavier armour, after all, and it delights the stickler for realism in me to see it.

Full Plate doesn't look platey enough. I think the upgraded Half-Plates look more like how a Full Plate should look. Which shouldn't be a surprise given that Half-Plate is supposed to be identical to Full-Plate except with many of the (half ) of the limb protection missing, as you mentioned. Once again the basic, unmagical armour itself looks more like what I could see magical Full-Plate looking like.

I too like the weapon design, including the morning star greatsword. Yes, I know it would be a really bad idea. But it would be a magnificently bad idea. It's ridiculous, but in a fun way.

However, last point. I'm not sure the linked pictures are the exhaustive list of armours. As far as I've seen there has been a few variants of all the armours in-game already, usually just details like shoulder pads or coat length, but still.

Armors, clothing, shields and weapons look very generic in the game. They would deserve more variants, especially shields. But as all types seem to be in there, I guess more variety will come later. It's just about making new assets and adding textures after all.

I kinda doubt that this is really "all" ...
Especialy since i cant find some armors, that are allready there. O_o

But except that, i can only agree.

I agree with some points you make, especially your critique.

I like armor design even less then you, overall. I see odd details, decorations and patches as absolutely unnecessary and taking away from the
main idea of the armor: it should protect and be comfortable. And if you are making a statement with your armor (as you should, because if you are a combat-oriented character, your life partially depends on it) - there is a stealth, shiny or intimidating approach. (To be undetected, to be detected and relied upon, to be afraid of). Form follows function.

Designers, you are making less of this statement by blurring the borders and having no single style approach in the most given armor. Please rely on realistic examples of armor - just look at the museum pieces, Royal Tower as an easy example. All you may need is between IX and XVI century. Sometimes no need to invent the wheel, when there are proven forms. Not everything needs to be creative.

As for Greatsword+2, I think they have just misnamed it. It's Loviathar greatsword, of course, sado-maso. Scare your enemy by inflicting pain on your own hands while swinging.

Why do people have to make these massive exaggerations lol.
How in the hell is the female half-plate a '' metal bra ''?
It just has leather around sorta simulating the appearance of a corset without being one ( which was an actual thing historically btw ).

It looks way better than the male version imo which just looks so.... Basic and dull.
The male version just lacks personality I think.

Scholargladiatoria made a video response to the whole thing with Sarkeesian freaking out about the female Mandalorians breastplates and he actually showcased real historical depictions of women wearing armor from the middle-ages.
Even back then people had the idea of armor specifically made for women being different and more feminine.
In a setting where women being soldiers and fighting is the norm I actually like seeing that, that women being a part of warfare has actually had an influence because it's VERY likely that this would've happened historically if women had worn armor enough that they'd even be taken into consideration at all.
And we have actual historical paintings depicting it from middle-age artists.
( And yes I am aware of Joan of Arc etc, we don't even know what armor she wore and even so women were so rare that they just slapped the developed standard on them and called it a day. Numerous of historians have covered this topic before. )

If people don't like it that's fine, but I'd really hate to see them get rid of it because of people who probably won't even play female characters to begin with.
And if you don't like it then it can be modded out later anyways, but I'd like to for once have something nice.
And the way they're doing it makes actual sense contextually and also even from a '' what if '' historical pov.

I mean it just sounds to me like you think that femininity isn't cool or badass.
I think that most women do, and you're severely overexaggerating about it too.

Edit: And why is it always that female gear needs to '' correct itself '' by male gear?
For once if you're gonna standardize things and make it all the same ( *yawn* ) then do it the other way around then.
I am so tired of people arguing about this as if the masculine is always the default that the feminine needs to be judged by.

That greatsword+2 is hideous. Not only does it look immensely impractical it also just looks plain gaudy. Who would use a morningstar as their handguard? I think I'd rather just use the greatsword+1 just to avoid using that thing.

Most everything else looks fine at least.

I actually like the lower tier versions of most of the armors, but most of them aren't glaringly bad at least. I do like studded leather+2 more than +1 though. Amusingly padded armor+2 looks way more protective than the leather and hide sets. I love it. Regal as Heck and very comfy looking.

I think my favorites by far are padded, hide, and chainmail. They all look good at all tiers and their top tiers all look fairly practical while still being stylish. Enjoying hide is especially good because I imagine my druids will be spending most of their time in that when they get introduced.

I would've liked more padded looking armor under the breastplate for the breastplate set instead of leather. It looks uncomfortable to me and breastplate tends to be the armor I go to when I want to look more stylish while still being protected.

Female halfplate looks disappointing compared to the male's. Why is their breastplate not visible aside from their boobs? Boobplate is one thing but this looks like she only has metal armor to cover her breasts specifically. That gets mostly fixed at halfplate+2 at least.

Not feeling the plate armor sets. Especially +2. Looks great if I wanted to be a paladin but if fighters and ranger-knights have to wear it too it is going to not mesh well with the class fantasy. At least for me.

Also just in general I think this really shows that we need some kind of basic dye system for the armor. Even if all we can change is the color of the fabric decorations that'd be a big deal. I really like the standard plate but once it upgrades I lose out on that nice green color that'd go great on a ranger-knight or Oath of the Ancients paladin. Same with chainmail+1 vs +2.

All in all I hope they give players some flexibility in how they look. It'd be less work in the long run than trying to design a dozen different variants of each armor type.

The funny thing about this is that you're literally asking them to make the breastplate LESS armored.
It's just leather meant to simulate a corset without being one, which again like I said above was an actual historical thing that even men did even with the actual shape of the breastplate itself.

It's for the same reason that men did wear breastplates shaped like corsets historically and why today male armor is usually emphasizing wide shoulders and wide torsos and chests ( wideness in general really ).
It's to emphasize femininity or masculinity.
But suddenly when it's femininity people act like it's wrong and a problem...

I think you misunderstood my complaint.

I don't care if the boobs are outlined in the armor or if the leather bits are modelled to look like a corset. What I find silly is that the lower tier versions of that armor have two metal boobs sticking out of what is otherwise visibly an all leather outfit.

It looks silly. Two big shiny boobs and no visible metal anywhere else on her body.

Edit: For the record I'd also think it would look silly if the fullplate sets had a phallic looking codpiece sticking out between the legs. This isn't a feminine vs masculine thing.

Most of it looks fine, but I wouldn’t say anything looks cool. I’d like my armours more gritty and functional looking than overly ornate. I hope Larian is having a good look at Demon’s Souls, that’s how I’d like my D&D characters to look.

I don't have a problem with that armor existing, what I have a problem with is that it doesn't stay consistent with both gendered versions. I think they should make it so the female version of half-plate armor looks like the male version, and a separate set of armor that looks like a corset for both genders, that way everyone's happy.

The only metal in the design is holding the breasts.

The Half-Plate is supposed to be a breastplate plus roughly half the additional protection of a Full Llate set. The design as is is less metal than the Breastplate.

The description of Half-Plate in the Player's Handbook is as follows:

So it should be "no cuisses" and "no sabatons". Poleyns (knee protection), however, should be included - it is the first thing to protect in any leg armor, even padded armor should have them.

Again, would be nice to get a developer comment on the designs.

If they came out and said that only the elven weapon designs and fancy armor designs are in the game currently, we wouldn't have to worry or discuss these at length.

They should at least provide a generic or utilitarian version of armor designs, because not all adventurers are pompous fools paladins of Sune or Lathander who want overly fancy decorated golden armor and weapons. Stealthy, woodsy and sinister characters wear armor, too.

I really don't see the current plate armor design as fit for a Lathander paladin at all. I can't imagine where this armor would look good at all; maybe with Solar or Planetar guys, because they have so unusual, bright skin and eye tones, so this armor would not look too weird on them. Why do you think of paladins so lowly? Most of them aren't vainglorious at all, by their code. You met some bad examples, it would seem.

Love the armors in the game, some that you have shown are from datamining I suppose, glad to see they aren't as fancy as they probably could be, great art style so far Larian! Agree with the female heavy armor needing a change, is there no armor that just fits both?

Why do these remind me of Guild Wars so much though, another game I enjoyed, don't quite think it should be in BG3 though