Content based encumberment for backpacks

Game Talk The Drawing Board
1

(Would also apply to items other than backpacks)

Problem: Items with storage always have same encumberment. Doesn’t matter whether they are empty or full.

A backpack filled with 10 liters of items gives 10 encumberment. An empty backpack gives also 10 encumberment.

Solution: Contents based encumberment.

Items with storage would have two encumberment values: Empty storage encumberment and full storage addition. (empty storage encumberment + full storage addition = current encumberment )

The applied encumberment would be simply

empty storage encumberment + full storage addition * stored volume / storage

Artist rendetition of the encumberment line

(if you want a fancy curve instead of a straight line use different equation)

This would apply to all clothes that store items in them: backpacks, clothes with pockets and clothes that store items (scabbard, magazine pouches etc).

Example: Backpack (with some values pulled from thin air)
empty storage encumberment: 5
full storage addition: 5
Storage: 10 liters
Items stored in inventory: 7 liters

encumberment = 5 + 5 * 7/10 = 8.5

When the player wears multiple items with storage the carried volume is split to the storage items by their storage compared to total storage.

Example:
Player is wearing backpack (10 liters) and a jacket (3 liters).
Player has stuffed 8 liters of items in their inventory.

Backpack gets encumberment from 8 * 10 / (10 + 3) = 6.15 liters
Jacket gets encumberment from 8 * 3 / (10 + 3) = 1.85 liters

Things may get messier if player wears a jacket with pockets and pants with pockets but wants to fill the pants first to avoid body encumberment. Probably easiest to just tell them to not wear jackets with pockets.

Optional: The encumberment could also take into account the weight of items carried. But that would complicate things somewhat without adding much value.

2 Likes
2

Perhaps clothes could be (a)ctivated to open/close pockets

1 Like
3

I remember hearing this before. Like alot. If I recall rightly this is getting modded but not sure by who or where it is.

4

Water skins do some scaling I think, not the distribution of encumbrances over multiple clothing items, but their volume scales with liquid put in it. They contrast with rigid container options that have fixed volume. An empty skin worn has very little encumbrance, but once full it’s more encumbering than comparable rigid options.

5

If you are wearing cargo pants, a backpack, a fanny pack, a chest rig, and a rucksack… where do you assign the encumbrance of that can of beans you just picked up?

6

That’s a good point, I have to assume it’s divided evenly across all inventory since we don’t track where items go at the moment.

7

Would it be a terrible solution to have the highest volume containers always be the preferred container?

Ie, you have a backpack and a chest rig, everything goes into the backpack until it’s full or the item you’re picking up is too big for the volume left so it’d go into the chest rig if possible.

This allows for players to pack their pants, fanny packs, and whatever else for specific tools and leave big storage for looting.