Armor Class in Chainmail

[Havard]

http://playingattheworld.blogspot.no/20 ... nmail.html

Jon Peterson talks about an AC-like system for Chainmail, even using the term Armor Class, that appeared in an issue of International Wargamer. OTOH, the system starts at 1 and goes up to 8, sort of reversed from the AC system in OD&D.

From what I have heard from elsewhere, Dave Arneson was the one who introduced the descending AC system used in OD&D, which he borrowed from a naval game? It is sort of ironic if the whole AC thing came full circle with 3rd Edition....

-Havard

[hedgehobbit]

I was just rereading old dragon magazines and, in issue #1, Len Lokofka had what appears to be a variant of Chainmail. In it, he produced a version of the alternate combat system that used Chainmail 1-8 armor class numbers. I thought that was pretty odd. His rules also had variable spell effects and separated a monster to-hit chances from it's hit dice.

I'm surprised this article doesn't receive much attention these days.

[Vile]

It would if it was renamed "Armour Class in Chainmail Bikinis".

[finarvyn]

the system starts at 1 and goes up to 8, sort of reversed from the AC system in OD&D.

Amusing how 3E discovered this roughly 30 years later. :lol:

I was just rereading old dragon magazines and, in issue #1, Len Lokofka had what appears to be a variant of Chainmail. In it, he produced a version of the alternate combat system that used Chainmail 1-8 armor class numbers. I thought that was pretty odd. His rules also had variable spell effects and separated a monster to-hit chances from it's hit dice.

I'm surprised this article doesn't receive much attention these days.

Interesting. I've been using a variation of the ascending AC system since sometime in the 1980's. I didn't have a copy of Dragon #1 "in the day" (my friend and I had all of the SR but our Dragon collection somehow began with #4 so we missed the first three issues) and I'll need to go back to look at this article. I've always thought that Chainmail got AC right. :wink: