the REAL Difference Between Scale And Lamellar Armour

[@dreammfyre]

Metatron rocking that shady hacker look today.

[@janondrich123]

we are annonymous, we are legion.....roman legion

[@RestlessRebel]

He is a DedSec(Watch Dogs) member

[@sinjudow]

Dominus Robotum - "Salve, File"

[@gedludek8245]

By “shady”, you mean…. *SHADIVERSITY?*

[@Odiseusthelegend]

@@janondrich123💀

[@437cosimo]

My favorite thing about some types of Lamellar, is the fact that plates compress to spread the energy of blows to the armor.

[@borttorbbq2556]

Scale does too. (Why modern scale ie. Dragon skin is so absurdly good)

[@stgibbs86]

Which types?

[@stefthorman8548]

@@borttorbbq2556 "dragon skin" you mean that crap that was featured on the demolition ranch?

[@ΑντώνιοςΕυάγγελοςΒασιλειάδης]

Could you make any video covering Byzantine armours? They had some very good ones and almost no-one knows about them.

[@guilhermehx7159]

The armor of the Byzantine was decaying

[@stgibbs86]

@@guilhermehx7159 Still unique and very good in many ways.

[@ΑντώνιοςΕυάγγελοςΒασιλειάδης]

@Радован Кубурић I had in mind the iconic Byzantine lamellar but a video covering all kinds of armour by period would be even better.

[@ΑντώνιοςΕυάγγελοςΒασιλειάδης]

@P Ciprian Byzantines used lamellar alot. Maybe you just confused it with scale because they seem similar.

[@Nosirrbro]

P Ciprian As far as I am aware lamellar was very prolific in the Byzantine empire, more so than scale armour.

[@artix548]

I personally find Lamellar armor very appealing primarily because of the way it looks and functions.

[@caedenkniep3528]

I can't wait to see the video about japanese and Chinese armour! I like scale armour more bc it looks better and looks more protective.

[@julietfischer5056]

Chain mail is more flexible and can cover the insides of joints. Scale needs a tough backing or it can tear (I read an account of a duel in which one fighter easily tore open a scale hauberk); on the plus side, it can be made out of a variety of materials (horn, metal, leather) with basic tools. And it looks cool.

[@Emperor_Dolan]

Scale armor wasn't very good at stopping thrusts. It wasn't used nearly as much as Lamellar armor. Scale does look cool though.

[@caedenkniep3528]

@@Emperor_Dolan Yee I don't know much about lamellar armour

[@caedenkniep3528]

@@julietfischer5056 yeah I was just going with the question lamellar or scale mail, I would choose mail over those

[@MrAchile13]

@@julietfischer5056 Mail offers the least protection against impact blows.

[@ThibautVDP]

Subtitles at start: "hello never once welcome back to my channel"

[@crusaderofthelowlands3750]

Subtitles are right, Metatron is just pronouncing it wrong.

[@stevestarkukulele6046]

Why did they stop using it ?

[@samuelmore5746]

Could we get a video on Byzantine armour and weapons, they have such a long history and being on the crossroads of east and west their weaponry reflects this. They had their own variation of lamellar which should have a video of their own.

[@brandonortiz7340]

Metetron you look skinnier man in a good way thank you for the awesome videos

[@angorRainerNagel]

I prefer scale armor. first for the overlap and second for it having a natural model, like in our all beloved dragons :-)

[@profepik7525]

And it's much more protective against... rain !! That's important in a campaign.

[@steyn1775]

@@profepik7525 unless it's made out of iron, you will curse the rain

[@genghiskhan6809]

Cuz WHAT ABOUT DRAGONS! 🐲🐉🐲🐉🐲🐉🐲🐉🐲

[@MandalorV7]

Genghis Khan680 Wrong channel 😆😉

[@Vlad_Tepes_III]

@@MandalorV7 Incorrect! All channels are the right for DRAGONS!!!

[@lepapabarbu]

As an apprentice bladesmith and armorsmith, i was always interested with both scale and lamelar armor. I plan to build both for myself.

[@hugotrojanovsky7667]

I love lamellar armors. They look the coolest. I don't know whether it actually protects you better but to me it feels so. Scale armor looks, to me, like a very thin layer which could easily be cut through while lamellar looks more beefy.

[@another3997]

Both types could be made of the same materials with the same thickness. If you wanted, both scale and lamellar can also be made up of similar sized plates. So the ability to penetrate the plate material isn't the defining factor. The difference in protection is mainly down to the way they are joined together.

[@aetheldread]

Scale armor looks like it would be more nimble and complementary to movement

[@julietfischer5056]

It was less rigid than lamellar. Mail beats it for flexibility.

[@borttorbbq2556]

Scale feels amazing heavy but ya

[@Evergreen4477_Typology]

I feel that scale has the possibility to be more nimble than lamellar armor, depending on what you wear underneath.

[@Robert399]

If it's only covering your torso (as a long of ancient world armour did), it doesn't really matter.

[@julietfischer5056]

@@Evergreen4477_Typology - It's more flexible, and could be worn over padding and/or mail.

[@merauder4693]

Hey I started watching your videos about 3 weeks ago, and have watched almost all of your armor/weapon/roman/Japanese/mideival videos. I just wanted to say that your content is amazing. Thank you for all you do

[@metatronyt]

Thank you I'm glad to hear!

[@merauder4693]

@@metatronyt hi I was wondering if you have a video about the thracian falx? I haven't seen a video about it, and it's a pretty cool sword

[@formam1022]

You should do a video on the slavic armors of medieval europe. I can find very little on this

[@-Zevin-]

So much this. Slavic armors and weapons are incredibly fascinating since the Slavic world was the most diverse in Europe being the crossroads between east and west. This needs way more attention in the western world. I think it's a really cool area that just isn't taught about much.

[@alinalexandru2466]

If you're interested, I recommend this blog about the weapons and armour of the Second Bulgarian Empire and from the region, it's in bulgarian but you can use the google site translator. Here's the site: terrazagora.blogspot.com/2014/07/blog-post_14.html?m=0

[@celtictemplar]

When it comes to these two types of armor, I would rather prefer a form of Celtic Scale armor. Of which was a lyre type armor, of which would have started with padding, riveted mail, scales attached to the mail, and then covered with boiled leather, and then sewn all together. Or as well as padding, scales sewn into the padding, and then covered with the leather, and sewn together. Of which this type of armor, was mainly known as the Chieftain Armor.

[@Tareltonlives]

I got these confused for so many years! Thank you!

[@richardmcarthur8568]

I have read that nowadays "lamellar" will also be used for downward-lapping armor; that the determinant is that it's not attached to backing.

[@saifernandez8622]

Mail has been tested many times recently, it would be awesome to test the effectiveness of scale against historical ancient and medieval weapons.

[@gian0giorg]

A big difference is the fact that scale armor is laced only on the top so a thrust from underneath (say a footman with a spear vs a rider with scale armor) can reach the backing material without much resistance from the scales as the tend to get lifted (in a way is like "cleaning" fish scales...). Lamellar is laced tight all around so the "tiles" can not get "lifted" easily. Also I would like to mention byzantine lamellar from 10c which was laced or riveted on horizontal leather stripes (example www.hellenicarmors.gr/en/armor/byzantine-cataphract/ )

[@another3997]

The Romans would disagree with you. They attached the scales at both ends to stop this happening. Plus the fact that on any scale armour, the amount of overlap of each scale has a huge effect on whether you could realistically get through a gap at such an angle as to be practical. You can slide a blade between individual lames on lamellar too... in the unlikely event you come in at a very steep angle.

[@ninjahombrepalito1721]

Well, because lamellar is sown together, it is less vulnerable while scale armor can get stabbed from underneath.

[@hanelyp1]

A sharp blade slicing downwards could cut through the cord tying lamellar together. The same blade thrusting might get between lames sideways, cutting cords.

[@ninjahombrepalito1721]

@@hanelyp1 yes but that is much more unlikely. Also, the armor can still be functional even if a few cords are cut.

[@blaketracy4377]

Hello, you make great videos with excellent content. I have learned a lot through this channel. It might just be me but Your videos seem very impromptu. Have you ever considered doing more video prep, such as buying some lighting, dressing like a teacher or working with back drops? I believe some professionalism will go a long way for this channel. I've been a big fan of yours keep it up!

[@tiocybot]

If you used scales to make lamellar armor would it be scale lamellar armor?

[@caedenkniep3528]

😮

[@danconti5984]

He knows too much

[@joeampolo42]

That's what I was wondering. Can you imbricate lamellar armor? At which point is it scale or lamellar?

[@claudiussmith8798]

Blasphemy!!! Mamma mia🤣

[@malahamavet]

And what about armour with bird motives and decorations? If you see scale on a falcon warrior you need to assume they represent feathers... but they are not!!! 😱

[@sheep1ewe]

I wonder about that differense in the direction of the elements, what's beneficial with making them owerlap upwards instead of pointing down? (i guess there must be a tecnical reason for that)

[@FreeOfFantasy]

It would be different in how the plates are moving against each other. However I think the main difference is from what direction are you expecting blows to come from and what do you want to do with the blows. Lamellar like for instance the samurai shoulder guards where the lower row overlaps the one above would catch a blow on it's edge instead of deflecting/directing it into the elbow-lower arm region.

[@peasantmob1712]

Scale armor has to overlap downwards because if you overlap it upwards, the scales will fall downwards from the force of gravity (there are some scales with a rivet in the center which would prevent this, but that's probably not what the rivet is there for). Lamellar armor don't necessarily have to overlap in any direction because most plates were attached to the adjacents plates to its left/right/upward/downward direction. So lamellar lapping don't have to overlap upwards (so I think Metatron's speaking of generality), there are portions of lamellar armor overlapping downwards. For example this armor: i.redd.it/ur8jbqrfprg21.jpg

[@julietfischer5056]

Scales are attached at the top, and sometimes down one side, to the backing material. Down is the only possible direction. Lamellar pieces are sewn to each other, so they can overlap however the armorer (or his customer) wishes.

[@sheep1ewe]

Interesting, yes the direction of scales is pretty much self explaining, but my taughts was that on for example a Samurai armour different pieces where most likly tested ower long time and one took the sum of the previous experience from wearing it when someone was making a new one. Some of it are probably simply for better movement as some of You said, but I newer taught about those things like for example the angle of the spear before, but why not, i would not be supprised if it is the case actualy, i know for example they calcylated a lot on the exact curvature on the swordblades in order to gain maximum power out of a single blow (at least in theory but some of those tecniques require for example that one stand on the knees in order to realy get the maximum power, but if one master those it is indeed possible to cut throu steel (then actualy piercing an armour suit in battle is a different thing, but it's theoreticaly possible) so i think it actualy make sense if someone had practical experience from practising with spears and decided to optimize parts of the armour. The explanation i heard about those riveted scales is that it was to prevent the scales from lifting up if one hitted the pice with a blade from below, i think it was mainly used in northwest Russia according to finds, but there was other types of scales that where attaced in similar ways with lace or rings, so i guess the Romans used a similar construction, but probably rings instead of rivets (at least it look so on preserved pictures and finds).

[@profepik7525]

Put the warrior under the rain, and you will see which kind of overlapping is the best...

[@chaosmatic404]

Great stuff, and you seem to have sorted out your sound recording levels too! No unpleasant distortion this time! My ears thank you!

[@laughingdaffodils5450]

Thanks for the video. Number 1 is technically incorrect. Lamellar can overlap in either direction, it's often upwards because it's often horseman's armor, optimized to protect against a footman with a spear likely coming from below, but you can lace it whichever way you want and there are historical examples that overlap downwards instead. Lamellar is superior to scale in every way so there's no question which I prefer. Easier to modify and repair, lighter, and more protective. Of course it's possible to make really good scale and really poor lamellar in order to get the other result, but generally speaking/other things equal it's just a better way of arranging the platelets.

[@littlesalvo000]

The Metatron rocks with that hoodie:)

[@metatronyt]

Oh yeah

[@AisleorWindow]

GREAT information, thank you

[@smalltarpan]

Hello, I´m kindly asking for your opinion regarding my lamellar armor project: I want to resemble a 9th ct. Magyar warrior, so a look similar to other steppe peoples from the East. First I was thinking of D-shaped plates but I´m getting the impression that they were common rather among the Norse, and that I should rather use A-plates for a steppe culture. Also on the picture at 2:06 the Turkic ones are A-shaped and the D is labelled Wisby. What do you think?

[@ojeone]

bro whats with the snakes man. was about to dash my controller at the screen looool lmfao.

[@MrTyppie]

You know your stuff. Keep it up, love seeing your joy as you seek to educate people. And I am so old, you may even say that I am ancient. History is more likened the positive side of melancholy, happiness in times past, now treasured memories, if you can believe that. But there is nothing new under the sun, all things have their times, what was, will be once again. Every period, ore: the calm period, seemingly harmonious, people like to say "low entropy" but they have no idea, but they can see if they want to, and learn this: in higher planes there are higher law, and chaos is the last and the first, it is over and under. The word I use for entropy is Nothingness, as it was will be, that it is a law. Someone must be the first person to see it as it is, not as they are, and become the progenitor that see them all. The 7 globes and those "races" wom dwell there. Every age is 5500 times 7. One of the years can let 900 winters pass, the next year may not even last one day. Winter is 300 periods, exactly the same as 300 cycles. HERE IS THE FIRST LAST, LAST FIRST, this is simply a case of higher law, and it will not be known by any one that has "the island mentality" There is no way outside of: There's no separation from the all, the universe is mental, The all is mind. WE'LL I have put my little opinions on display, and I will be grateful if you would let me give you what I can. Please feel free to contact me, even if you need to critique m. Please correct my way's if I am missing the bullseye, show my sins to me, as I see no sin in anything people can with joy and happiness in the soul. Ps not all have: "The Essence of the one thing" and that's mysterious to say, but the truth is that way. 🇧🇻tse1.mm.bing.net/th?id=OGC.4bb72187adacd5e0705035e3c6718cef&pid=Api&rurl=https%3a%2f%2fmedia.giphy.com%2fmedia%2fKqF1voH5vptCg%2fgiphy.gif&ehk=oRhXfHTx09qgIJwj6WDWc4UzCqe0l0UYi2eEbxsNWzo%3d

[@yokai333]

I'm currently working with both types of armor using leather. It's hard when you can't afford material to stitch the pieces together

[@javipipes5124]

I like the look of lamellar armour better than scale armour. The fact that it is practically a stand alone by being tied together rather than attached to another backing would do away with the risk of scales breaking loose from a base material.

[@hamasmillitant1]

instead you have to rethread the entire row of scales when cord is cut which happens a lot with most lamellar as up to 20 or 25% of surface is thread and its a continuos thread in most construction not individual loops

[@aurelianthor4356]

Thank you Rafael

[@lawrencemayne1906]

great work as always metatron.

[@another3997]

As far as I'm aware, there is no specific requirement for Lamellar plates to overlap in an upwards direction. You can just as easily overlap in the other direction, the same way as scales, and it provides exactly the same amount of protection either way. It may be that certain cultures, at certain times used one over the other, but it's not a universal requirement.

[@seamus6387]

I prefer laminar armor myself. I once did hema and sometime reenactor and granted the scale armor I have worn might have been cheap/bad but, I didn't think it was as easy to wear. I just think lamilar was easier to wear and I feel it absorbed more force because of it's construction. But I am also about 6'4" and have a broad chest so, there is that. To me scale just felt more like mail that was overly heavy. (And yes, I know that scale would protect you a bit more than plain mail.) Well, I've rambled enough so I'll shut up. Haha ;)

[@smalltarpan]

Metatron, thanks for the great video! As a horse archer I´m planning to make my own leather lamellar armour. A question: There are some (I think mongol) armours on which the rectangular pieces do´nt overlap, but are arranged tightly next to each other, supposedly being rivited to a backing. A different type one can see is where the lamellae are arranged in rows but the rows aren´t connected to each other. They are also attached to a backing I think. Do you know structure and advantage of these?

[@creaturetransylvania8943]

Interesting.

[@wendigo1619]

I have made lamelar before, it takes forever but makes some cool looking armour

[@sitrilko]

Metatron, my man, thank you! I was just thinking about the difference and lo and behold, what do I find in your archive?!

[@MegaWarrior777]

Hey dude! Really like you're channel.. A totally out of this subject question.. But what kind of wine did the Ancient Greeks drink? And can you still get it or something that is close to it, this I understand they drinked it (cutten? ) so mixed with water. Did you already maked a video about this subject?

[@crozraven]

what about brigandine or coat of plates?

[@gm2407]

I always thought Laminar as being superior to both scale and lamellar and inferior to a full plate armour suit.

[@advisorv]

I absolutely love both because they're not often seen, and I adore bronze armors of any kind.

[@lindsayheyes925]

Hi Metatron, what sort of armour - if any - is likely to have been warn in Sub-roman Britain around 500 A.D.? I can't find any illustrations or descriptions, so I presume that there are no known examples or records.

[@MegaGamer-lg7sp]

Could there be a video of your opinion on Mail vs. Scale Armor. Naming the pro's and con's of each as well as which you'd prefer?

[@skm1091]

I would like to see a test of lamellar armor made of proper steel and reinforced leather strings holding the plates together.

[@KuLaydMahn]

So basically: Scale = fish Lamellar = upside down fish, mouthing underneath Is that about right?

[@xarisdrag1890]

@Metatron. Why did they use both of these simutanusly? What are the differences in the protection, weight, cost and other aspects of its one?

[@Cavouku]

You may go over this in the upcoming video, but as a note: I believe there are cases of scale armour for cavalry that overlapped upwards. However, I may be misremembering, or it could be that the armour referred to was actually lamellar but called scale where I read it. Nonetheless, I would consider the only categorically important distinction between scale and lamellar to be the presence or lack of a backing, respectively.

[@theforcedmeme]

When are we getting metatron body pillows?

[@scribblingjoe]

I like scale armor, mostly for the aesthetics.

[@PpAirO5]

Difficult one 🤷‍♂️ The Scale mail looks more "fine" where as the lammelar looks more crude.

[@IvanHreshko]

Hyped for chineese armor topic

[@Testacabeza]

Hey Metatron! Quick one, have you watched the miniseries 'The name of the rose' with John Turturro as William of Baskerville? It's an Italian production. Perhaps you can review it and comment on the historical details? I think it's pretty good.

[@Rhunzzz]

Great video. Were there any advantages to having the scales/lamellae overlapping downwards vs upwards?

[@homelesstvh7737]

Scales *have to* overlap downwards. It's the only way for the pattern to work. Lamellae can overlap however you want, but it was mostly done upwards. Perhaps to better catch blows from below?

[@NikimKrow]

Per me armatura lamellare, puramente per un fattore estetico, non saprei dire quale delle due sia più funzionale rispetto all'altra. Credo quella di scaglie, soltanto mi chiedo se con un armatura del genere (entrambe le tipologie) gli affondi e le perforazioni siano efficienti(penetrare tra le scagli o lamelle nelle varie giunture). Come vanno le cose in America? spero tutto bene. In bocca al lupo per i tuoi progetti.

[@Randomdudefromtheinternet]

Hey Metatron, could you make a video about the Auxilia? There is so few information about them, and wish to know more about how they were equipped and how they lived when in service.

[@smugb]

Personally, I prefer the Dorchester armour you find on the Challenger 2 main battle tank.

[@another3997]

@incinerator950 Dorchester armour is just one informal name for what is commonly known as Chobham armour, as it was developed at a research centre in Chobham, Surrey, UK. Hence the name. It is used by both the UK and the US on their tanks, even if they are known locally by different names.

[@PolymurExcel]

I would like to know how well Lamellar compares to Brigandine.

[@d4vin446]

Please make a video analysing the effectiveness and practicality of Geralt's armour from the new Witcher series

[@robertsilvermyst7325]

Laminar seems more effective against blunt strikes, given how they compress and spread that impact energy across the other plates. Also, it seems easier to slip a sword/spear tip under a scale due to the way they overlap downwards.

[@hamasmillitant1]

lamellar you can cut open armour by just drawing a blade over it and cutting threads so the plates fall away. its great in reenactment, but if you where using it in combat you would be sewing armour back together after every battle

[@TheNapster153]

​@@hamasmillitant1True, but I imagine it's easier to sew back than needing it repaired in a forge due to suffering damage from a cavalry lance, which is where these armours were most prominently used. Like all armours, a thick fabric padding is used on the underside to absorb 'shock' damage and keep you from bleeding out internally. Hence, steel for cuts and piercing, fabric for bash and thrashing. The two overlapping in roles is just a matter of pragmatism.

[@silouhette99]

Would there be any practical utility to wearing both scale and plate at the same time

[@Trollvolk]

What a fitting timing. Last week I made a lamellar armor and just finished the torso. It is interesting how you figure out better ways of crafting and the armor construction in general while doing it. The next one will be better one XD. I I like lamellar armor more than the scale ones. But I am curious how durable and protective these are. You can play a little bit with the way they are connected to each ter and the way they overlap. More roommto improve XD I wanted to make a kazhar/ petcheneg style one but for a rus character. So I took the D shaped ones found in birka and connected them like a found from the altai mountains from the same aera.

[@smalltarpan]

I´m also planning to make one and I´m thinking about the D-shaped lamellae. Are they from Altai? Do you know those on which the lamellae are just connected in one row to each other but the rows are somehow seperate on a backing or so? They are to be seen on Central Asian images.

[@Trollvolk]

@@smalltarpan there are good examples frommlater age Tibet and earlier ones frommthe altai Region. Some findings are d shaped, but they are longer than what was found in 14.th century visby or birka finds. But its Not far fetched to think the way of lamellar from centralasia to Byzanz to the waränger to Birka. The more loose connection of the rows I guess would be more accurate for the altai Region. But thats just my guess. You can look for tibetian or altai lamellar in the internet, you can find quiet a lot. Or the earlier example from Niederstortzingen. This is around the migration eara. If you use lesther for the lacing bensure to grind smooth the edges of the holes and use a sturdy leather. I will go for rawhide for the next one. Silk or/ and rawhide. Depending in what you want to do with it. My first one is made with double laced leather and the rims of the rows also covered with leather. Beautiful looking thing, but its not working. If you get hit some lammelars bend, gut the leather after some short time. So my fault for choosing the wrong Materials. Its good for presentstion, but not for use XD.

[@NetherTaker]

I think scale would be more protective because of the amount of overlap.

[@teeprice7499]

Great vid

[@michalpluhar5108]

I thing that lamellar armor is a bit more protective than scale armor because plates are fixed on both sides.

[@erfan3578]

nice videos please make video about Persian armor

[@metatronyt]

It's planned and thanks

[@Yora21]

Extensive Ancient Asian armor video? Sweet... Does lamellar armor always overlap upward? There surely must be a reason behind that. Why might that be?

[@danielalexander8402]

I've always been a fan of scale armor but I often use lamellar in my table top RPGs

[@adcaptandumvulgus4252]

Have there ever been documented accounts of both types being used to better protect from up/downward thrusts?

[@pypy1986820]

isn't there a fatal weakness which cause scale armor to be less used in the form of stabbings and thrustings tend to slide in between the scales due the way the scales were arranged

[@Khorsathedark]

I've worn both and fought in both. Scale is far easier to move in but lamellar wears better and is more protective against impact.

[@DiegoFarre4]

Even if I think lamellar is better looking, I'm concerned on what would happen if ,for example caused by a slash of an enemy blow, the cordon keeping two rows of pieces together gets cut...

[@Joe___R]

I definitely prefer scale armour.

[@malahamavet]

Scale looks more glorious, lamellar looks more practical. As a Romanian, scale armour on Dacian noblemen looks epic

[@tworley210]

Lamellar tends to catch an edge while scale tends to shed. Hmm. I choose scale, as your opponent's weapon going down towards the ground seems a better thing than having it stop and remain in the deadly zone. Of course, for all practical purposes it can be an aesthetic choice. I like the look of scale better as in a fight I wish to be a real snake in the grass. :)

[@edi9892]

Why was lamellar often facing upwards?

[@metatronyt]

It more easily proects you from upward thrusts

[@edi9892]

@@metatronyt but downward thrusts are more common in men and are stronger.

[@metatronyt]

@@thefullmetalmaskedduo6083 Since it usually wraps around your whole body it will grant very good protection for your sides.

[@somerando1073]

@@edi9892 Lamellar tended to be worn by cavalry (exceptions of course, but usually), they have more upward thrusts to worry about than downward.

[@edi9892]

@@somerando1073 yep. This would explain a lot and despite Samurai being depicted on foot today, they were primarily horsemen AFAIK.

[@Wulfseal]

Old school Metatron still knows his stuff.

[@henrykkeszenowicz4664]

I prefer the scale armour, due to it's appearance and better flexibility.

[@rayray6490]

Is it true lamellar is easier to repair? Only need the spare plates and the cords...assuming backing is not used.

[@jathalan]

Your first photo at 0:21 Indian scale is actually pangolin skins, not scale. No backing. In this case it's gilded. Scale is my favourite.

[@Colonel_Overkill]

scale looks better but personally I like lamellar. that said scale is arguably one of the few types of armor still in use today.

[@stosism]

I like scail armor

[@thepubquiz3198]

Thumbs up for Lamellar Armour comment for Scale Armour

[@jankorinek2397]

Isn't the choice of scale/lamellar armor somewhat connected to the expected direction and character of the blows to be recieved by the owner of the armor? For example, the scale armor must be great against arrows comming frontally and downwards from above. But the lamellar armor may be better for cavalrymen against the infantry with pikes and spears. It's only a speculation. Is there any historical evidence, confirming or denying such a theory? Greetings from Prague, Czech republic!

[@metatronyt]

In theory yes, but in reality Roman cavalry sometimes has scale, even though attacks would be coming from below and although chinese cavalry did have lamellar, if you had to make a mixed suit of scale and lamellar, the part they would do in lamellar would be the defense for the legs, which Is Indeed counterintuitive but that's What they did. My Guess Is that probaly both armours worked no matter the direction where the Attack was coming from

[@guilhermehx7159]

Make video about armor in the firearm eras, suggestion

[@milosjanos5058]

I heard in some video, that chinese used paper to create armor also. In that video, they made paper armor and test it and result was, it is plausible, but not confirmed.

[@Mortvent]

I kinda like them both, but scale for me is preferable for appearance (with exception being some of the heavy oriental lamellar sets, especially from Japan)

[@Marcklooster]

Scale armor for me, but always wondered why it wasn't more common in midieval Europe

[@manofculture467]

Would you do a vid about ancient Chinese swords

[@somerando1073]

I prefer scale. While I know intellectually that it's not actually a problem, the exposed string on lamellar just bothers me.

[@Geroskop]

and it should be - you want your armour to be able to be patched everywhere,m even in the field, by a mediocre blacksmith that has only portable anvil. Whereas with lamer you'll need master craftsman, specialized equipment and a tonn of work.

[@toothclaw6985]

I tried asking you this before, but it was in a livestream. What do you think is more protective against piercing attacks; riveted maille or lamellar?

[@metatronyt]

It's very difficult to say, but if it were me, although both would be great, I would choose lamellar unless I could put plate over mail, then mail.

[@makisonoda7925]

I would prefer scale armor. But realistically both would be protective enough in their own right.

[@koosh138]

Hands down my favorite is lamellar. Specifically the chinese "mountain" lamellar.

[@orthedraespiders9278]

The mountain armour looks amazing in Chinese art. Shame there are no examples to show how it worked. I’ve read it would’ve been very flexible and strong in theory.

[@davidsjoblom3970]

Actually there's plenty of lamellar armor with full overlap (at least 2 plates at any point) e g Byzantine and some Japanese. Also, lamellar >>>scale

But which is better (and under what conditions)?

[@ndgaming1880]

after awhile Lamellar stops sounding like a word when you repeat it so much

[@pprot1337]

weird opinion, but i actually prefer scale, lamellar and mail over plate, full plate and brigandine, aesthetically speaking of course. I am aware the latter are much more effective than the former. I especially love lamellar, theres something incredibly satisfying in looking at those little plates in a pattern

[@hamasmillitant1]

not necessarily, a solid lamellar will protect you better than plate against a heavy crossbow gun or a club, 2000 knights in plate once got wiped out by peasants with 6 foot clubs with 9 inch metal spikes in the end of them, they followed them into a swamp were they where to heavy to move in the mud in the plate and they just punched holes in them with clubs wiped out the flower of i think it was english or french cavalry, i forget whoes nobles it was, in holand or somewhere. the point is though plate armours so heavy its only useable in some places, likewise brigandine is just iron riveted lamellar with plates on inside

[@foogoose1439]

I prefer lamellar because I have made one. Though it needs much more improvement since it's still quite heavy (about 3 kg) and it made me harder to move.