Why is mage armor almost always weird/ugly?

[Zaik]

So I was playing Dragon Age 2 today(not one of those threads again...) and I'd just started over as a mage, blah blah I'm running around collecting 50 gold at the moment. Anyway I was sorting through what to wear and what to sell when I put on this helmet, I close the inventory page and what the shit? This thing is a turban with a bunch of scrap metal glued on.

It looks SO bad that it makes my previously just boring other pieces of armor look bad just by being there.

Here, look at it:

Spoiler: From a distance

Spoiler: Zoom!

Spoiler: Moar zoom!

That got me thinking, and I remembered that a bunch of the mage stuff from DA:O was a joke too, especially that one upside down bucket hat I can't find a screenshot of. Then i remembered that this seems to happen a lot, pretty much ever since mages wore light blue robes and pointy hats.

Why is that?

 

[OmegaAlucard777]

Yeah. I dont like a majority of the head gear. Thats why I always check "Hide Helmet" in the options menu.

 

[Rblade]

mage armor needs to look like you can move around in it easy, so it needs to be made out of cloth, so it will look like a dress.

wizard gear, or traditional sage/priest outfits were not meant to protect the wearer but to look extravagent, and match, in the old days. Metal armor is much more uniform in its purpose.

on top of that cloth ussually has color, and therefor is very hard to mix with pieces of other sets of armor. where as metal armor all looks metal and it will all kind of blend together even if the pieces belong to different sets. Worst offenders in this mismatching are headgear. Mages either wear hats or hoods. Or a variation/combination of those. especially hoods will look really silly if their details do not carry into the rest of the gear.

like in the screenshot, if you would have old arabian magicians attire to go with that piece of headgear (and assuming you think the arabian style looks cool) would be much much more awesome.

you can however easily mix a metal helmet with a metal piece of chest armor, there is just much less variety and extravagance in warrior outfits

[edit:] solutions could be either 1. only provide armor in complete sets 2. give wizards realiable/passive protection from their magic thus giving them the freedom to pick their outfits with esthetics in mind.

 

[Antwerp Caveman]

Technically, traditionally, mages can't wear armor. Metal holds back magic or something.

 

[Zaik]

You think thats bad? Play DA:O. Thats shit is terrible. Bioware is really quite horrible at designing clothing. True fact. If you look back through most Bioware games, 90% of the clothing is pretty blah.

Champion Outfits look awesome though.

Yeah, I mentioned the upside down bucket hat from DA:O. That wasn't the only one, but it was the worst one I could remember.

 

[SaetonChapelle]

I love the cliche's in clothing. I always play the mage or healer and find it entertaining that I'm always the weakest in my group AND have no armor, so when I get poked by the enemies stick I go down instantly. curse my lack of speed and clothing!

 

[TennysonXII]

Spoiler: So ugly...

Meanwhile, I get swallowed by a murloc:

Spoiler: Mrglrglrgl

 

[Hyper-space]

Technically, traditionally, mages can't wear armor. Metal holds back magic or something.

I don't think it because metals hold back magic (that would imply some sort of magic resistance), but rather that mages are not built (physically) to run around in brick-heavy armor while casting spells.

 

[Dimensional Vortex]

You think thats bad? Play DA:O. Thats shit is terrible. Bioware is really quite horrible at designing clothing. True fact. If you look back through most Bioware games, 90% of the clothing is pretty blah.

Champion Outfits look awesome though.

I started playing Dragon Age Origins and I chose a mage and gave him a beard and all. But later I got this head gear that completely covers my head hair excluding my beard. So no joke I now look like middle earth Lenin.

 

[2718]

If you spend all day reading books, as opposed to perfecting your swordwork, your physique will find heavy metal armor quite cumbersome to move around in. Also, if your mage is getting hit in melee, you're doing something wrong (unless you're an Arcane Warrior).

 

[Meggiepants]

I hate mage clothing, and Bioware is no exception. I hate the "dresses" they make me wear. Seriously, why dresses? Do you need a tent of fabric to store your spells up in?

The Champion Mage armor was a little better, but it still gave me random tattoos for some reason.

 

[rickthetrick]

Somatic movements my friends. You have to wiggle your fingers, and flail your arms about to cast spells. The heavy armor makes that a lil too difficult. This makes some sense to me, more than the whole Cleric's aversion to pointy objects at least

 

[Wynn Donivan]

Dunno why you're complaining; looks pretty bitchin' to me.

 

[Wayneguard]

Yeah don't think it's unique to mages. The champion armor looks like shit for all the classes.

 

[darth.pixie]

Woa...what's that on your head?

Honestly, I'm old fashioned. Give my mage a bathrobe and he's set for life.

And a hat. Can't forget the hat.

But yes, most armours in general suck. It's like someone stuck bits and pieces of cloth on a player model or dumped some metal plates on him.