Hello, I'm currently collecting ideas for a setting that is based more on antiquity than on the Middle Ages and while looking at pictures of armor from that time I wonder what it would be in Pathfinder terms.
I always considered the armor of wealthy hoplites breastplates, but according to Ultimate Equipment those don't protect the back.
Also, what would this be then?
I guess the rest would fall under everything from quilted cloth over hide and the various lamellar armors to scale mail, but those two are giving me headaches.
I'd treat the Hoplite armor as a Breastplate.
The armor you pictured didn't really look like armor at all. It's like shin guards and a bandolier. I'd probably treat it with stats similar to studded leather, but it's really almost no armor at all (because clearly, they expected to be standing behind a huge shield--hence the shin guards without worrying about pants)
Thanks for the armor stats, would you make it medium armor?
Concerning the feat I had up to know thought to just use the phalanx soldier archetype for hoplites.
@ mplindustries
Well, this site calls them pectoral or simple breastplate, even though I would agree about the stats. It kind of looks like they didn't expect people trying not to hit it...O_o
Greeks used different armors.
Many soldiers wore no armor beyond helmet and greaves, relying on their shields for protection. I wouldn't add an AC bonus for just wearing helmet and greaves.
One of the most common armors was the linothrax, made from many layers of stiff cloth stitched and glued together. I would stat this as leather armor in Pathfinder.
Richer soldiers sometimes had a cuirass of bronze scales, or most rarely, a solid bronze breast plate. I would stat these as scale mail or a breastplate respectively.
As for the picture of the Iberian warrior, the very small plate he is wearing would cover some vital organs. I would probably assign a +1 armor bonus. You could compare it to wearing a buckler (but as armor, so it stacks with the shield), or justify the tunic as padded armor. Either way, same stats.
The linothorax is another headache. According to this guy it offered the same protection as 2mm of bronze armor at 1/3 of the weight. Which, professor or not, doesn't explain why richer hoplites invested into a bronze breastplate if it only weighted them down. Maybe I would go with hide armor.
You're probably right with the pectorals, even though I wonder if the straps shown on the pictures would also provide a bit of extra protection, One seems to be covered with metal, the other at least studded. Strangely people who make them today don't think of that....
@Shadowdweller
That's interesting, was there any type of armor that was considered inferior to it? When I look at it I kind of have the feeling that I would rather wear boiled leather around most of my torso.