In MW, equipment condition was some random number (I'm assuming some result of quality and weight) whereas in Oblivion everything was on a percent system.

Personally, I liked the Morrowind system, it was easier to compare the quality of items. An example being that lower quality stuff had lower total condition values etc. I liked this because it made it easier to compare different items. And it also helped explain the repair system better (it would take more to repair an item with a high total condition value) I felt that the percent system in Oblivion made it harder to compare equipment being that all equipment maximums were 100%. I loved running around with Daedric weapons with 5000 condition in MW

Additionally, it seemed as though in MW higher quality stuff would take forever before you would have to repair them whereas in Oblivion I was repairing even the best equipment all the time.

I would prefer a system in Skyrim more like MW for equipment condition and wear. It showed that higher quality stuff had more advantages aside from damage/protection, weight and value.

If I remember in Oblivion items had their own hit points (if thats what you want to call them) just like Morrowind
But yes for displaying the stats, why did they chose a percent? Perfectly useless...





*Edit: Morrowind deserves capitalization!

They way I suggested it way back was to give every item a quality number, distinct from other things like weight/durability/whatever. For example, you might have two Steel Cuirass items, one with 20 quality and one with 80 quality, the idea being that the latter was forged by a much more skilled smith. After all, just because two items are both technically a "Steel Cuirass" doesn't mean they're identical. The meaning of this quality would vary with the item; an apple might start at high quality and then drop over time as it goes rotten, while a piece of art would have quality depending on the skill of the painter but lose it instantly if it were damaged in some way. For armor, this would generally mean the overall durability of the item, how good it is at stopping attacks and withstanding damage from them.

In addition to that, I'd like to see armor have various resistance grades (slashing 20%, piercing 45%, etc) effecting both how well it protects you from them and how well the armor itself is protected; a piece of armor that's made to protect you from fire is presumably, itself, pretty fireproof. In turn, the armor would absorb different types of damage. Instead of just "93/125 durability", you'd see things like "Dented: 40%", "Punctured: 25%" or "Melted: 11%", showing how badly the armor has been damaged by different attacks. Its subsequent defenses would be changed by these. Melted metal can become warped and brittle, reducing the armor's ability to resist future puncturing attacks, increasing the danger both to you and itself. Armor that has been punctured has holes, creating a chance of an attack slipping through and causing more damage, not hitting the armor at all. Higher quality would result in things like higher resistances, greater ability to withstand damage, and lower penalties. The armor would still have a durability rating, but this wouldn't reduce defense by itself, gradually going down with any type of damage. If any one damage type reaches 100% or durability reaches 0, the armor finally becomes unusable.

It would also involve more advanced methods of repair. Dents could be hammered out anywhere, reducing that damage level, but not increasing durability as effectively. Puncture holes could be hammered closed (straightening bent metal around the hole), but not sealed entirely, for only a partial fix. Full repairs of this nature would require heat and an anvil and such, to really reforge the item and make it like new again. If the skill of the blacksmith doing the forging is lower than the quality of the item, it's repaired like new, but ends up with lower quality than it had before. Things like leather armor could be stitched up and more easily repaired in the field, but would only diminish in quality, since you can't "reforge" leather and otherwise make it new. Aside from quality, there would also be material, which would have different abilities instead of being a simple better/worse scale. Ebony, for example, might be far more resistant to damage because of its hardness, but also impossible to repair in the field as a result.

But, I'm going off on a tangent into other subjects. Basically a single piece of equipment would last much longer and be more of a "big deal" as an item, like a trusty old briastplate you hang on your wall after an adventuring career instead of going through 80 of the dang things a week. That's the kind of system I'd like, anyway. As a sidenote on different repair methods, that was something I added into my suggestions on Necromancy; a very basic reanimation of organic-base armor (leather, chitin, bone, etc.), allowing them to "heal" and essentially be good as new again over time.

i like the system thats in the fallout games. perhaps they'll do something similar. what i mean is. how when you find a piece of equip, its usually in crappy shape(or random condition). and the player can then use similar items to repair them. couple this with repair hammers and tongs.

oh crap lol thats not even what your talking about.

uhm yeah so either MW or OB calculations of equip damage and durability is fine with me.

wow Rhekarid that idea blew my mind but the complexity of it would discourage the "new" gamer who just wants to play through a game similar to Oblivion

I agree, having actual "hit points" for items rather than a percent is better....

I'd add something else, too. In the past games, item degradation was very much a gradual, inevitable process. Stopping at the armorer in town for repairs was part of the standard routine...

Why not change it so that armor is damaged only if hit, and this is also more the case for really solid hits. This would be coupled with locational damage, I suppose. I'm not sure how things worked in Oblivion, but it seemed armor was damaged randomly, and only one piece per hit. Also, it would be nice if high quality armor would be in some cases immune to damage (even if the character was not) from lighter attacks. Basically, it'd be nice to see armor potentially last a bit longer before it becomes weakened.

There would need to be a balance between "Realism" and playability. Yes, it does make sense that armor would degrade fast if continuously battered and offer less protection to the character. But at the same time, even in an RPG, carrying a plethora of repair hammers or stopping to get armor repaired after short periods of time got old. And it took quite a long time to max your armorer skill.....

My weapons broke often in Oblivion and Morrowind without my knowing until it broke in the middle of battle. There was no way of knowing unless you looked at the weapon in your inventory. So maybe having a meter on screen that shows weapon condition would eliminate that.

Or even seeing nicks on swords or cracks on bows or on wooden handles on axes and hammers.

Or maybe having the weapon skills determine how good you are at repairing your weapons.

Also, unarmed enemies shouldn't affect armor degradation.

Didn't sound complicated to me, but then I've played on paper.

I personally would like a system that was more involved than the old smashing a hammer into everything to fix it. I would enjoy the challenge and depth of breaking my long sword on an opponents armor and having to rely on my secondary shortsword or even the boot knife last resort. Possibly a system for blacksmithing that went into reparing metal items and hunting and gathering of skins could repair your fur/leather gear.

A visiual distinction would be wonderful as well. Say with my longsword example I bust off the tip or there are noticeable scars placed on the blade letting you know it should be repaired soon. Any chance I get to feel my characters natural reactions is a huge step forward compared to in game menus. Not to say the in game menus are unwanted because they are wonderful but the addition of visiual cues would be much appreciated.