[darkstorme]

As for the Mithril armour forged by Kobal that you were talking about, Shiff, think about the level of craftsmanship going into that armour. This isn't just your average suit of scale mail, links forged together "close enough". This is going to be a masterpiece of the forge. Intricate cuts and sockets make it move easily with the body beneath it, but lock tight as a stone wall when a blow strikes it from the outside.

I'd presume that Master Adventurer's armour would have some spells built into it that account for that Soak 10 damage, or at least part of it. For the rest, imagine a suit of thick leather, impossibly well-made (bear in mind, virtually nothing ever developed in real life is designed to absorb the kind of damage these outfits do). If a magic field absorbed some of the hit, padding and thick leather could distribute the rest across a section of the body that would feel, at most, a minor blow. A punch on the arm, instead of a bone-crushing hit. Certainly not something someone accustomed to receiving wounds would allow to slow them down - nor likely even notice until well afterwards, when they're bathing and wonder where that bruise came from.

Plus, as Gulnyr put it, the randomness of the damage roll comes from the fact that your opponent is moving, and you're trying to take a swing at them while they're attacking you. You're not going to land the best hit you could, in that situation - or maybe you'll get lucky, and hit them somewhere it hurts (ie. Critical Hit). Most of the time, though, your blows will be glancing, not mortal.

Finally, the LoTR example - at that point, Frodo was, perhaps, level 4, if that. Probably a rogue, so not much by way of hit points. Troll comes in, and hits him dead on (a critical hit!) for fifty points of damage. However, Frodo's mithril armour is rated at a Soak 26, so more than half of that blow is absorbed. The remainder is enough to throw him off his feet, across the room, and knock him out... but had it been Gimli wearing the mithril, you can bet he would've grabbed the spear pressing into his chest, yanked it close, and given the troll a taste of Dwarven steel. If you're tough enough to survive the damage dealt you, then it's not likely to throw you much of anywhere. If there's no damage dealt - then you've not been hurt, simple as that.