Hikers knows this - good backpack helps you to haul heavier stuff around due better load positioning.
I suggest it would go like this:
(Leather) Backpack : +10% weight capacity
Hiker’s Backpack/Military Rugsack : +20% weight capacity
Only counted for first backpack item in torso.
Good idea it would actually give purpose to rucksacks!
The game as is does a poor job of simulation weight distribution on worn items. (why am I overburdened by the plate armor I have on?) However I do think there is a place for framed variants of the existing backpacks that do just exactly this suggestion for increased encumbrance.
Edit: perhaps have this apply to storage items with two straps for the shoulders
The ability to ‘upgrade’ backpacks to carry things better for you would be good too. Tailoring skill to put in a metal frame or belly strap or the like.
So it would be :
Backpacks = 10% weight reduce
Backpacks (framed) = 15% weight reduce
Rucksack = 20% weight reduce
You cant modify Rucsack because they are already framed.
Recipe to modify backpack: 4x pipe, 2x string - 3 ft, screwdriver, sewing kit, 20 thread
Nah. Special casing stuff that doesn’t really add anything to the game? Not so much. Also it would mean current carry weight would be nerfed, since it assumes perfect distribution.
Having worn items able to support some of their own weight (like plate and power armor) is something we should probably do though.
Agreed, the current limits are based on what you can carry with good gear, basically it’s self-correcting because unless you have the high-end (high volume) gear, you’re limited in how much you can carry anyway. I’m also fine with some kind of powered exoskeleton increasing carrying capacity, including dragging vehicles about.