Thread: Realistic Armor
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Old 06-18-2019, 02:52 PM   #3
Rupert
 
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Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Wellington, NZ
Default Re: Realistic Armor

Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl View Post
In many ways, GURPS fall flat on its face when it comes to realistic portrayals of modern body armor. In general, most modern body armor should probably be semi-ablative against piercing damage while modern ceramic inserts should be ablative against piercing damage (there are metallic inserts that are neither, but they are more recent developments). The result is that modern body armors are good for a few hits from bullets, but they should be replaced after someone is hit by a bullet.
Actually, steel inserts and plate have been around for a long time, and have always been non-ablative except vs hits right on top of each other.

Quote:
If such realistic changes are implemented though, I would suggest that modern body armor should have its DR doubled without changing cost and weight to account for the fact that you can generally take a few hits without severe injury beyond blunt trauma.
That makes no sense. Modern armours that are rated against, say 5.56x45mm ball (DR17) do not stop 7.62x51mm ball (DR24) for a hit (which they would if given DR34). They just let it through with somewhat reduced energy and break in the process.

EDIT: Now, if you don't like the way armour in GURPS tends to 'leak' because it's only rated against the average damage roll, I suggest you look at Douglas Cole's 'armour as dice' rules, which were in one Pyramid or another, and have been explied in these forums many times.
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