does having no hair make your head harder?

[CheertheSecond]

Genuine question.

 

[RedMuffin]

 

[JayMark]

Actually. The answer is no. It makes your head softer.

In grain-boundary strengthening, the grain boundaries act as pinning points impeding further dislocation propagation. Since the lattice structure of adjacent grains differs in orientation, it requires more energy for a dislocation to change directions and move into the adjacent grain. The grain boundary is also much more disordered than inside the grain, which also prevents the dislocations from moving in a continuous slip plane. Impeding this dislocation movement will hinder the onset of plasticity and hence increase the yield strength of the material.

 

[Zagaroth]

Id say it's more of a yes and no question, depending on context.

Hair is somewhat multipurpose.

It can make your head "softer" in that it provides padding against an impact. If you have long hair, you can use it as part of your padding for a helmet.

Just don't expect it to spill out in dramatic flowing locks when the helmet comes off. It would be tied or braided, plus stiffened by getting humid Ave then warm and then dry in cycles.

It can also make your head "harder" in that all the layers of strands going in not quite the same direction will reduce the slicing power of a blade.

For most combat, it is better to have long hair, so long as it is properly managed and kept from getting in the way.

Close quarters combat adds the problem of an enemy grabbing your hair easily.

So what type of fighting the character does will influence the hair length and style that they choose.