Sentence:  For example, it is unlikely that the right <WSD>couter</WSD> could be damaged or that it could be hit at all if the jouster had a large protective vamplate in place on his lance, though by the same token the folio of the "Inventario iluminado" on which Real Armeria harness A16 is illustrated (chapter 2, fig. 54) includes six vamplates of varying shapes and sizes for the joust royal so there is no guarantee that such capacious vamplates were used in each and every joust. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  A piece of armor which covers the elbow.