Epic Knights: Shields, Armor and Weapons [Fabric/Forge/NeoForge]

Overview

Epic Knights adds a massive arsenal of historically-inspired medieval weaponry and armor to Minecraft. The mod introduces 18 distinct weapon types, from quick daggers to towering polearms, each available in 8 different materials: Wood, Stone, Iron, Gold, Diamond, Copper, Silver, and Steel. That adds up to 144 unique weapons, plus 7 complete armor sets ranging from light Chainmail to the imposing Jousting plate.

What sets this mod apart from other weapon packs is its combat depth. Weapons have meaningful mechanical differences including armor piercing percentages, extended reach distances, and special effects like the Laceration debuff. Silver weapons deal bonus damage to Undead mobs, making material choice a tactical decision rather than a simple tier upgrade. You can browse all 197 items and 170 recipes this mod adds using the tabs at the top of this page.

Materials and Steel Production

The mod adds three new tool materials on top of vanilla's Wood, Stone, Iron, Gold, and Diamond. Copper is the weakest new material with just 150 durability and 0 bonus attack damage, making it roughly between Wood and Stone in power. Silver sits at 230 durability with 1.0 attack damage and an impressive 18 enchantability, the highest of any material in the mod. Silver weapons also deal +3 bonus magic damage against Undead mobs like Zombies, Skeletons, and Wither Skeletons, making them invaluable for Nether expeditions and night fighting.

Steel is the workhorse material with 400 durability, 2.5 attack damage, and 14 enchantability. It outperforms Iron in every category and is essential for all armor crafting. To make Steel, simply smelt an Iron Ingot in a Furnace. The mod registers Steel in the Forge Ore Dictionary, so if another mod also adds Steel, the ingots will be interchangeable.

Weapon Types and Combat Mechanics

Every weapon in the mod falls into one of several combat categories, each with distinct strengths. Understanding these categories is key to choosing the right weapon for each situation. All damage values listed below use Iron as the reference material (2.0 material attack damage bonus).

Light Swords (Fast, One-Handed)

The Stylet is the fastest weapon in the mod at 1.6 attack speed with 4.0 damage in Iron, making it a quick-hitting dagger ideal for finishing weakened targets. The Short Sword hits slightly harder at 4.5 damage with 1.7 attack speed, serving as the crafting base for several larger weapons. The Katzbalger rounds out this category at 5.0 damage and 1.65 speed, a solid all-purpose sidearm.

Medium Swords (Balanced)

The Bastard Sword deals 6.25 damage at 1.55 attack speed, offering a good balance of power and responsiveness. The Estoc is a thrusting sword with 6.0 damage, 3% armor piercing, and +0.2 reach distance, letting you strike from slightly farther away while ignoring a portion of enemy armor. The Claymore delivers 6.4 damage at 1.45 speed, the strongest pure damage dealer in this weight class.

Greatswords (Slow, High Damage)

The Zweihander is a devastating two-handed sword dealing 8.6 damage in Iron with 4% armor piercing and +0.4 reach distance, but swings at only 1.15 speed. The Flamebladed Sword shares similar stats (8.5 damage, 4% piercing, +0.4 reach) but inflicts the unique Laceration effect on hit. Laceration is a debuff that reduces the target's maximum health by half the weapon's effective damage for 15 seconds, effectively preventing healing and weakening the target. This makes the Flamebladed Sword exceptionally strong against high-health enemies and bosses.

Polearms (Extended Reach)

Polearms are the standout weapon category in Epic Knights. The Pike has +1.2 reach distance (total 6.2 blocks) at 5.0 damage, letting you hit enemies well before they can reach you. The Ronsard offers +1.0 reach with 5.1 damage, while the Ahlspiess trades some reach (+0.5) for higher damage (6.0) and slight armor piercing. The Chivalry Lance is the ultimate jousting weapon at 8.5 damage with 10% armor piercing and +1.0 reach distance, but its very low 0.84 attack speed means missing a swing is punishing.

Axes and Halberds (Area Damage)

The Lochaber Axe hits for a massive 10.0 damage in Iron with +0.5 reach, making it one of the hardest-hitting weapons available. The Concave Halberd takes this even further with 11.5 damage, 2% armor piercing, and +0.5 reach, though its 0.9 attack speed makes it the slowest weapon in the entire mod. These are best used when you can land the first strike from range.

Maces and Hammers (Armor Piercing)

If your enemies wear heavy armor, blunt weapons are your answer. The Heavy Mace deals 6.5 damage with 11% armor piercing, the Heavy Warhammer hits for 7.2 with 13% armor piercing, and the Lucern Hammer has the highest piercing in the mod at 16% with 6.6 damage. The Morgenstern (morning star) is a versatile choice at 7.0 damage and 1.25 attack speed without armor piercing but with solid all-around performance. These weapons ignore a percentage of the target's armor value when calculating damage reduction, making them devastating against heavily armored opponents.

Armor Sets

All armor in Epic Knights is crafted from Steel and its derivatives. Unlike weapons, armor doesn't come in multiple material tiers. Instead, each set represents a different historical armor style with increasing protection and crafting complexity. Every set is repaired with Steel Ingots.

Chainmail Set (Entry Level)

The Chainmail set is your entry point into Epic Knights armor. It provides 12 total armor points (head 2, chest 5, legs 4, boots 1) with no toughness bonus. Durability is extremely low at just 1x the base multiplier (11-16 durability per piece), so expect to repair or replace it frequently. Chainmail replaces vanilla's unobtainable Chainmail Armor with a proper crafting recipe using Steel Chainmail. The boots uniquely require Leather and Leather Strips rather than Chainmail.

Platemail Set with Kettlehat

The next step up combines the Kettlehat helmet with Platemail body armor. This set offers 15 total armor points (head 2, chest 6, legs 5, boots 2) and 0.3 toughness. With a 19x durability multiplier (209-304 per piece), it's far more durable than Chainmail and comparable to vanilla Iron Armor. The Kettlehat has a distinctive wide-brimmed design.

Half-Armor Set with Barbute

The Barbute helmet and Half-armor Chestplate form a mid-tier set with the same 15 armor and 0.3 toughness as Platemail, but with a slightly higher 20x durability multiplier (220-320 per piece). The Barbute is an Italian-style helmet that covers the face, and the Half-armor Chestplate serves as a crafting component for the higher-tier Knight Chestplate.

Knight and Gothic Sets

The Knight set (Armet helmet, Knight Chestplate, Leggings, and Boots) provides 18 total armor points (head 3, chest 8, legs 5, boots 2) with 1.25 toughness. At a 23x durability multiplier (253-368 per piece), this is a serious upgrade that outperforms vanilla Diamond Armor in toughness. The Armet is a visored knight's helmet with a distinctive rounded shape. The Gothic and Sallet variants share identical stats with the Knight set but feature German Gothic plate styling with fluted details.

Maximilian Set

The Maximilian set represents late medieval plate armor at its finest. With 22 total armor points (head 4, chest 9, legs 6, boots 3) and 1.8 toughness, it's one of the strongest armor sets in the mod. The 34x durability multiplier gives it 374-544 durability per piece, rivaling Netherite-tier longevity. The Maximilian Helmet features a distinctive bellows visor.

Jousting Set (Endgame)

The Jousting set with Stechhelm is the ultimate armor in Epic Knights, sharing the Maximilian's 22 armor and 34x durability but with 2.0 toughness, the highest in the mod. However, it comes with a significant trade-off: wearing any Jousting piece applies Slowness II, drastically reducing your movement speed. This makes it a specialized set for mounted combat or defensive situations rather than general exploration. The Stechhelm (frog-mouth helm) is crafted from a Barbute surrounded by Steel Plates.

Material Tier Comparison for Weapons

Choosing the right material for your weapon matters more than in vanilla Minecraft because attack damage scales differently across all 18 weapon types. Each weapon has a base damage value plus a 1.0x multiplier on the material's attack damage bonus. The differences between materials are consistent across all weapon types, so you can apply these numbers to any weapon.

The Blacksmith Hammer

The Blacksmith Hammer is a unique Steel weapon that doesn't follow the standard material variant system. It deals 9.5 total damage (7.0 base + 2.5 from Steel material) with -3.0 attack speed, making it extremely slow but hard-hitting. It uses the Steel tool material for durability (400 uses) and appears in the Tools creative tab rather than the Weapons tab. Think of it as a utility weapon for players who want a single devastating strike.

Crafting Patterns

Most weapons in Epic Knights follow consistent crafting patterns. Light weapons like the Stylet need just 1 material piece and a Hilt. Short Swords use 2 materials and a Hilt, and they serve as ingredients for larger weapons. The Bastard Sword, Estoc, and Claymore are all crafted by combining a Short Sword with additional materials. Polearm weapons like the Pike, Ronsard, and Lochaber Axe use a Pole instead of a Hilt, giving them their extended reach. Two-handed weapons like the Zweihander combine a Short Sword, a Hilt, and extra materials.

Armor crafting follows a clear upgrade path. You start by making Steel components (Nuggets, Rings, Plates, Chainmail), then build each armor tier using the previous tier's pieces as ingredients. The Knight Chestplate requires a Half-armor Chestplate, and Jousting pieces require the corresponding Knight piece. See the Recipes tab for the full list of every crafting recipe.

Compatibility and Addons

Epic Knights has built-in compatibility with Epic Fight mod. When both mods are installed, the mod automatically generates an Epic Fight configuration file with proper weapon types, armor negation values, impact values, and max strike counts for every weapon and material combination. Each weapon is mapped to an Epic Fight combat style: swords use SWORD, greatswords use GREATSWORD, polearms use SPEAR, and maces/hammers use AXE.

The mod also supports Better Combat presets for 1.18.2 and later. Several official addon mods expand the content further: Epic Knights: Addon, Dark Ages, Slavic Armory, Antique Legacy, Ores and Alloys, Artillery Addon, and Open Helms. Each addon adds region-specific or era-specific armor and weapon styles. Note that OptiFine 1.20 and later causes visual glitches with this mod, so consider using alternative shader loaders like Iris if you need shaders.

Configuration

Configuration files are located in the config/epicknights folder. From version 7.0 onward, the mod requires Architectury API and Cloth Config as dependencies, which provide the configuration framework. The Epic Fight integration config is automatically generated at config/knightly-armory_epicfight.cfg when Epic Fight is detected, containing all weapon and armor stat mappings.

You can attach banners to armor and Horse Armor using the same mechanic as shields, letting you display custom heraldry on your knight character. Armor decorations can also be added to many pieces, and most decorations support dyeing in any of Minecraft's 16 colors. This makes the mod excellent for roleplay servers where faction identification through heraldry matters.