The northern brigandine type armour system is a leather with metal plates riveted in. And the armor doesn't really make sense in so far as Robb is concerned - he's got elements of plate armor yet his entire chest is basically only protected by nothing more than studded leather - whilst Theon in the same scene is wearing full plate. Was anyone else a bit disappointed with the costume design for the House Stark army? In particular - why are all basically wearing variants of the same outfit? Ned, Robb and random Stark infantry - its all the same thing. In short, armour selection is a complex decision which involves more than just 'metal armour > leather armour'. Hence, a person who spends a significant amount of time fighting on foot might opt for lighter armour.Īnd this is all before taking cultural aspects into the equation.

As such, wearing it on top of leather would cause a person to tire out quicker - which is very, very bad in warfare. As should be obvious, full plate armour is incredibly heavy. This gives the wearer a fair amount of protection while maintaining some of the advantages of leather armour.Īnother thing to consider is fighting style.

Moreover, based on the design (the raised, rectangular patterning on the coat), I believe Robb and the Northmen in general wear something called a 'coat of plates' which has metal plates sewn or riveted into a leather tunic/coat. As such, thick leather would be better in that regard compared to plate armour of equal weight. Coming from the North, and with winter approaching, protection from the elements (specifically the cold) would be an issue. In the books this was the first time he ever fought in a war, after all. Nothing that fancy, but surely Robb would have had something made for him. Take for example, Loras Tyrell's mangificent looking suit. Surely the first son of Eddard would have plate armor - Theon has it! It just seems really odd for the most important person in the north's army to be so poorly protected. I understand that, but we're talking about Robb Stark.

Game of thrones leather armor