Armored clothing can reduce the damage your character takes in combat, or from ambient damage (such as fire). Our goal is to allow characters to mix and match armor to get the kind of protection that they desire, at the price level they can afford.
DAMAGE TYPES
There are a number of different damage types in the game. The main ones in terms of damage dealt during combat are:
* Blunt * Edged * Piercing
You can inspect a weapon to see what kinds of damage it is likely to deal.
There are also a number of other damage types which are more environmental (such as fire or radiation).
SURVEYING ARMOR
Armor defines a special command used like this: survey
If you have the Arms Tech skill, you can see information about the armor item that others can not. This includes:
* the types of damage it protects against * (at higher levels) a general idea of how much protection it offers against each damage type * if the armor impacts the mobility of the wearer * (at higher levels) how much of an impact to mobility it causes
ARMOR STACKING SCORE
Every piece of armor has a score attached to it. A good rule of thumb is the more locations a piece of armor covers, the higher the armor stacking score. When you wear a piece of armor, your armor stacking score increases based on the score of the item you just wore.
There is a maximum armor stacking score. Attempting to wear a piece of armor that would raise your armor stacking score over the maximum will result in a failure and a message that you cannot wear any more armor. If you are NOT at your maximum, the message will indicate the failure AND that you may be able to wear a smaller piece of armor, should you find one.
ARMOR MIXING AND MATCHING
We intend for armor to be mixed and matched and still be effective. If you can figure out the kind of weapon your enemies uses, and what kind of damage that weapon uses, you can maximize your protection against that type of damage without needing to buy the most expensive armor. Mixing armor across levels is encouraged as well. You don't need a full set of a specific type of armor in order to get protected.
ARMOR LAYERING
We have a clothing layering system which defines what can be worn on top of what. This is specifically important for armor. We have lots of different types of armor. That armor is meant to be worn in a certain order, which helps us prevent stacking of armor we do not intend to be stacked. The order armor must be worn is dependent on the layer defined for that armor. Here are the general layers for armor:
If you attempt to wear a Layer 1 item over a Layer 4 item, you will be told the item must be worn under X item.
Layering armor on top of other armor is possible, especially when mixing and matching. You can wear a jumpsuit + a duster for example, and your armor score over any area covered by multiple pieces of armor will be the sum of the protection from each piece of armor.
ARMOR LAYERING WARNING
Do not cheese this. The system isn't perfect. It won't always prevent you from doing silly things like wearing 3 pairs of armored pants. Doing this is AGAINST THE RULES. Ask yourself if you would reasonably do something in real life. If the answer is no, don't do it. If the system lets you do something but you aren't sure if it should actually be allowed, xhelp and ask a staffer for their feedback. Anyone found to be layering armor in a cheesy way will be warned (or suspended) from the game, depending on severity and IC impact.
ARMOR WEIGHT
Armor can be heavy! If your character is weak, you may be limited in how much you can wear. Below is a general guideline for what armor sets may way at each level. It will depend on exactly what items you use to complete your sets.
Level 1 Armor sets: 25-30 pounds for a full set Level 2 Armor sets: 35-40 pounds Level 3 Armor sets: 28-38 pounds Level 4 Armor sets: 80-90 pounds.
ARMOR STAT EFFECTS
Some armor can have negative effects on your mobility, because wearing heavy or restricting stuff might protect you, but it makes it harder to move quickly / gracefully.
ARMOR PRICING
Armor is priced based on the coverage it offers, and the protection it offers from each damage type. Cheaper armor is more specialized/limited in terms of what damage types it protects against.
ARMOR LEVELS
There are 4 levels of armor, that offering increasingly protection.
LEVEL 1: STREET WEAR
This level includes clothing lines like Du-Wear, neXus, and EcoGear. neXus and Du-Wear each provide decent protection against a SPECIFIC damage type. EcoGear provides minimal protection from physical attack damage, instead providing protection against non-physical attack damage (fire, radiation, etc).
This level of armor is all about style. Armor at this level is specific in the damage it protects from, because it is cheap compared to other armor.
There are more armor items at this level (even in a single product line) than you can wear. Trade offs may need to be made in terms of what parts of your body you have protection.
LEVEL 2: ARMOR WEAR
This level includes clothing lines like Protek and some WAI and Dermalweave. At this level you can expect protection from multiple types of physical damages. The protection for any specific damage type is on par with Level 1 armor, but you're getting protection from multiple types of physical damage from the same piece of armor. This is the first level where piercing protection is available on armor.
There are more armor items at this level (even in a single product line) than you can wear. However, you should be able to get coverage on all your body parts if you pick the right items.
There are armored jumpsuits at this level that provide a base level of protection from all physical damage types with the addition of specialized protection against certain damage types.
LEVEL 3: MEDIUM ARMOR
This level includes Xo3. This level of armor provides an increase in physical and environmental protection.
This level of armor requires mixing and matching in order to get full armor coverage.
LEVEL 4: HEAVY ARMOR
This level includes Xo5. This level of armor provides superior physical and environmental protection.
This level of armor offers a complete armor set, if you are able to find the pieces and afford the cost. However, you can mix in armor from lower levels and still get excellent protection.
DAMAGE REDUCTION FROM ARMOR
Armor is rolled on every attack. If you are hit in a location that has one or more armor pieces covering it, and that armor offers protection against the damage type you were dealt, your overall damage will be reduced. The amount of reduction depends on rolling your armor score multiple times to determine how much damage is reduced. There will always be SOME damage reduction. If your armor reduces all of the damage, you will see a special message (in a different color) during combat. Otherwise the messages will appear as they always do, but don't worry, the armor is working in the background to reduce the damage you take.
ARMOR QUALITY / REPAIRING ARMOR
As armor blocks damage, it's efficacy is reduced. This is represented by an armor quality score. Characters with the necessary skills are able to inspect armor for damage and may be able to repair it with the appropriate tools.
SEE ALSO:
help weapons help combat *Last Updated: 05/15/25 by Fengshui*
