Encumbrance take volume and bulk into consideration, not just weight.
There is no mention of volume, and besides that, there is no explanation of how to adjudicate volume. I want to pick up and carry my wounded battle buddy. What is the encumbrance?
They give a general concept of an item around 3kg that can be carried in one hand being around 1 Weight. I agree some more specific rules would be useful... something with broad categories:
I'd suggest a quick series of yes/no answers
- Can it fit in a pocket? 1/2 Weight
- Can you carry it with one hand? 2 Weight
- Can you carry it with two hands? 6 Weight
- Can you push/drag it? 12 Weight
- Is it lightweight or well-balanced? Halve the weight so far
- Is it very dense or unwieldy? Double the weight so far
I think those six questions will get you pretty far...
Let's try it out...
30kg dog: Carry with two hands... 6 Weight
Deer roasting by fire: already in the system.. how many units of Wild Food does it represent?
Case of grenades: Carry with two hands: 6 weight
Case of gold: Carry with two hands, but dense: 12 weight
Computer chasis: Carry one hand, 2 weight
Mainframe computer: Push/drag and unwieldy: 24 Weight.
That should be good enough to keep things moving.