"Agh my armpit! My only weakness!"
Targeting Chinks in Armor is a special combat option that aims at the weakpoints of a foe's armor, allowing one to bypass half of the armor's damage resistance (round down).[1][2]
Think of it as a specialized targeted attack against the tiny cracks between armor plates. The attack must be a type of piercing, impaling, or tight-beam burning. Furthermore, this type of attack does not work on flexible armor (which lack gaps), nor on most creatures with natural rigid armor (e.g. Giant Spiders). For the Harsh Realism rules, see below.
The Attack Itself[]
Targeting a weak-spot in plate armor is a flat -10 instead of the usual size penalty for hitting a limb, the neck, face, etcetera. This is a monumentally difficult hit! For slightly less tricky hits, see Armor Gaps, below.
Sliding Rivets[]
Developed in the 1600s and perfected in the 1700s, sliding rivets allow the gaps between plates to be quite small -- use the standard -10 for chinks in armor. Simpler TL3 armor has wider gaps, meaning a -8 for the torso.[3]
Specialized Weapons[]
Some weapons with thin, stiff points can erase -2 of the penalty for targeting chinks in armor.
Harsh Realism -- Armor Gaps[]
Some flexible places on the body are tricky to armor, and have armor gaps rather than ordinary armor chinks. These are the palms (for gauntlets), neck, the back of joints (elbows and knees) and limb connections (armpits, groin). These all have a -8 instead of -10, and receive DR 0 instead of half DR.[8] Eye-slits are still at -10. You can still use flexible armor on these points, or even use an arming doublet, a garment which uses mail specifically at the armor gaps!
Optional Rule; Damage To Armor[]
- "Damage to Armor" rules reduce penalty to hit chinks by 1 at less than 1/3 and by 2 at less than 0.[9]
Quotes[]
2006[]
- I once asked Kromm by email and he answered that the Targeting Chinks in Armor rule only applies to "worn, artificial armor" and not to natural DR.
2011[]
see http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=72511&page=30
House Rule[]
A quirk at https://sites.google.com/site/anthonysgurps/dungeon-fantasy/dragon-pcs
Armor Chinks [-1]
Natural DR is subject to the Attacking Chinks in Armor rule. Does not apply to Nictating Membrane, eyes are already a chink.
As an Advantage (and Limitation)[]
As A Limitation[]
By default, armor bought as an Advantage does not normally have chinks (for instance, Astral Armor, or the plating of a Coleopteran). If one assumes chinks are not built in, you could probably buy Accessibility on half the levels of the DR reflecting half those levels not applying when the foe takes a certain hit penalty and passes anyway.
Natural Armor Chinks[]
It's not clear if you can do that for natural DR like the skull or spine, but that would make sense since they do naturally have weak spots. On humans these would be both very small and very difficult hit locations, but perhaps against a huge monster (fifty-foot ape, Ancient One, massive wyrms) this would be a viable option!