Corset

The Corset is a clothing item added in the Royalty DLC.

Acquisition

As a complicated garment, Corsets can only be made at tailor benches, and requires Noble Apparel to be researched in order to be crafted. A Corsets requires 45 of any textile, and 12,000 ticks (3.33 mins) of work.

It can also be found on Imperial Nobles, for sale at traders and as a quest reward.

Summary

Corsets cover the same layer of clothing as a flak vest. They can be worn over shirts and under outer layer clothing.

Female Nobles of Baron rank and above require either one of these, a Eltex vest, or prestige armor to consider themselves properly dressed and avoid a negative moodlet. The male equivalent is the Formal vest. Male pawns will receive a mood debuff while wearing this item.

When worn by a slave, a corset increases the rate that suppression is lost by 10% per day. This stacks additively with all other forms of suppression loss rate offsets.

Analysis

Even the best corsets provide dramatically less protection than a flak vest: a masterwork thrumbofur corset having about as much sharp protection and worse blunt protection than an awful flak vest, which also covers the neck and shoulders. However, flak slows a pawns' movement speed by -0.12c/s, a 2.6% reduction on a healthy, unmodified, untraited pawn. This is a small, but potentially relevant downside.

If speed is critical, then the recon armor is much more expensive, but completely outclasses the duster/cape + corset combination. Thus, the protective niche for the corset is small - where top tier textiles like thrumbofur or devilstrand are available and where either:

movement speed is significantly more important than protection, but recon armor is not available; or
a research state where corsets are available and flak vests are not.

Corsets are also considered noble clothing; Barons and Counts will become upset without one. Prestige recon armor is even more expensive than normal recon to create. Eltex vests boost psycasting power, but can't be crafted and protect worse than even a plainleather corset. It may be desirable to switch to flak during combat, taking the mood penalty in the process.

Comparisons

Sharp armor

Trade

Corsets and formal vests are the most efficient apparel for Value / Material, or profit per unit textile, in the game. This is because they require the most work time per material. Because an apparel's Market Value is determined by (Work Time * Material Value), you'll get the most value for 1 unit textile by creating corsets/vests. This also represents a way to train skills while also profiting from the pawn-hours invested.

Note that this is only a general rule - other considerations can exist:

If no remotely competent crafters are available, but great constructors are, then armchairs are an alternative for Value / Material. However, selling any building incurs a x0.7 Sell Price Multiplier, which makes armchairs inferior for equal skill.
If Value / Crafter Time is more important, then you should make tribalwear and top hats instead.

For example, you could create 6 good tribalwears or 9 good corsets for

480 textiles. The tribalwears would take 10,800 ticks (3 mins) and the duster would take 108,000 ticks (30 mins). However, quality applies a flat multiplier, regardless of work to make. Good quality gives a x1.25 price multiplier, so making tribalwear means you'd get the x1.25 multiplier in less work. Therefore, if materials are not an issue, but crafter time is, then you should make tribalwear (or top hats) instead. If crafter time is infinite, then make formal vests / corsets instead.

Lower value materials are profitable at lower skill levels. For example, cloth corsets require only a crafting skill of 1 with a average market value modifier of 68% to average a value higher than the 67.5 of selling the cloth itself, while the most expensive textile, thrumbofur, requires a skill level of 5 to do the same. Thus, a skill level of 5 is sufficient to average profitable for corsets for all available materials.

Material table

Material	Sharp	Blunt	Heat	Item HP	Insulation - Cold	Insulation - Heat	Market Value
Bearskin Corset	22.4%	4.8%	30%	130	-8 °C (-14.4 °F)	+2 °C (3.6 °F)	196
Birdskin Corset	13.4%	2.8%	30%	100	-4 °C (-7.2 °F)	+1 °C (1.8 °F)	124
Bluefur Corset	16.2%	4.8%	30%	130	-8 °C (-14.4 °F)	+1.6 °C (2.9 °F)	147
Camelhide Corset	16.2%	4.8%	30%	130	-6.4 °C (-11.5 °F)	+2.4 °C (4.3 °F)	147
Chinchilla fur Corset	13.4%	2.8%	30%	100	-12 °C (-21.6 °F)	+1.6 °C (2.9 °F)	335
Dog leather Corset	16.2%	4.8%	30%	130	-5.6 °C (-10.1 °F)	+1.6 °C (2.9 °F)	133
Dread leather Corset	25.4%	4.8%	30%	130	-8 °C (-14.4 °F)	+1.2 °C (2.2 °F)	200
Elephant leather Corset	22.4%	4.8%	30%	150	-5.6 °C (-10.1 °F)	+1.2 °C (2.2 °F)	152
Foxfur Corset	16.2%	4.2%	30%	100	-8 °C (-14.4 °F)	+1.6 °C (2.9 °F)	200
Guinea pig fur Corset	13.4%	2.8%	30%	60	-15.2 °C (-27.4 °F)	+1.8 °C (3.2 °F)	270
Heavy fur Corset	24.8%	4.8%	30%	150	-12 °C (-21.6 °F)	+1.4 °C (2.5 °F)	192
Human leather Corset	12.8%	4.8%	30%	130	-4.8 °C (-8.6 °F)	+1.2 °C (2.2 °F)	230
Lightleather Corset	10.8%	2.8%	30%	100	-4.8 °C (-8.6 °F)	+1.2 °C (2.2 °F)	129
Lizardskin Corset	16.2%	5.4%	30%	100	-4.8 °C (-8.6 °F)	+1.2 °C (2.2 °F)	138
Panthera fur Corset	18.6%	4.8%	30%	130	-6.4 °C (-11.5 °F)	+2.4 °C (4.3 °F)	178
Patchleather Corset	9%	3.8%	18%	100	-3.6 °C (-6.5 °F)	+0.9 °C (1.6 °F)	111
Pigskin Corset	12.8%	4.8%	30%	130	-4.8 °C (-8.6 °F)	+1.2 °C (2.2 °F)	129
Plainleather Corset	16.2%	4.8%	30%	130	-6.4 °C (-11.5 °F)	+1.6 °C (2.9 °F)	138
Rhinoceros leather Corset	25.8%	4.8%	30%	150	-5.6 °C (-10.1 °F)	+1.4 °C (2.5 °F)	230
Thrumbofur Corset	41.6%	7.2%	30%	200	-13.6 °C (-24.5 °F)	+2.2 °C (4 °F)	675
Wolfskin Corset	20.4%	4.8%	30%	130	-9.6 °C (-17.3 °F)	+1.6 °C (2.9 °F)	178
Alpaca wool Corset	7.2%	0%	22%	100	-12 °C (-21.6 °F)	+1.6 °C (2.9 °F)	215
Bison wool Corset	7.2%	0%	22%	100	-10.4 °C (-18.7 °F)	+1.2 °C (2.2 °F)	165
Cloth Corset	7.2%	0%	3.6%	100	-7.2 °C (-13 °F)	+1.8 °C (3.2 °F)	111
Devilstrand Corset	28%	7.2%	60%	130	-8 °C (-14.4 °F)	+2.4 °C (4.3 °F)	290
Hyperweave Corset	40%	10.8%	57.6%	240	-10.4 °C (-18.7 °F)	+2.6 °C (4.7 °F)	450
Megasloth wool Corset	16%	0%	22%	100	-13.6 °C (-24.5 °F)	+1.2 °C (2.2 °F)	165
Muffalo wool Corset	7.2%	0%	22%	100	-11.2 °C (-20.2 °F)	+1.2 °C (2.2 °F)	165
Sheep wool Corset	7.2%	0%	22%	100	-10.4 °C (-18.7 °F)	+1 °C (1.8 °F)	165
Synthread Corset	18.8%	5.2%	18%	130	-8.8 °C (-15.8 °F)	+2.2 °C (4 °F)	225

^{Assuming Normal quality, for the effect of other qualities, see Quality.}

Version history

Royalty DLC release - Added.
1.2.2753 - Work to make 3000->12000

Apparel

Torso | Clothing: Button-down shirt • T-shirt (Kid ) • Tribalwear (Kid )
: Corset • Eltex shirt • Eltex vest • Formal vest • Formal shirt
: Slave collar
: Sash • Kid romper
Armor: Flak vest
Legs | Clothing: Pants (Kid )
Armor: Flak pants
Shell | Clothing: Duster • Jacket • Parka (Kid ) • Robe
: Cape • Eltex robe • Prestige robe
: Burka • Slave body strap
: Heavy bandolier
: Lab coat
Armor: Flak jacket • Marine armor (Prestige , Grenadier ) • Plate armor • Recon armor (Prestige , Locust , Mechlord ) • Cataphract armor (Prestige , Phoenix )
Head | Clothing: Bowler hat • Cowboy hat • Hood • Psychic foil helmet • Tuque • Tribal headdress • Veil • War mask
: Beret • Coronet • Crown • Eltex helmet • Eltex skullcap • Ladies hat • Stellic crown • Top hat
: Authority cap • Blindfold • Broadwrap • Flophat • Headwrap • Shadecone • Slicecap • Tailcap • Torture crown • Visage mask
: Airwire headset • Array headset • Gas mask • Face mask
: Ceremonial hood • Ritual mask
Armor: Flak helmet • Marine helmet (Prestige/Samurai helmet ) • Recon helmet (Prestige , Mechlord ) • Simple helmet (Kid ) • Cataphract helmet (Prestige ) • Gunlink • Integrator headset • Mechcommander helmet