How do you guys use armors? (need tips)

[TunaKhanate]

So basically i have some armor but it slows my pawns. Should i constantly keep them on my colonists because when a raid happens it is almost impossible to make them ready to fight so they mostly fight without armor or until they wear armor enemy destroy my defences. If i keep them constantly on my pawns they get slower and efficiency slows what should i do?

[KPJFormat]

Depends on your play style, do you have ideology? If so, you can make up for reduced efficiency with slaves/dryads.

In any case, you can improve efficiency by having more animal haulers as well. Using electricity instead of pawn power where possible (i.e. lights not torches, electric stove not wood-fuelled). Flooring your common routes helps efficiency as well. Keeping items close to where they're needed when possible (i.e. a shelf of fresh food in the kitchen cuts down on trips to the fridge).

I use heavy armours on important pawns that are good combatants, but the cost (in efficiency, in acquiring the armours, and also how it heightens colony wealth leading to stronger raids) can't be offset enough to put them on everyone.

Flak vest and full devilstrand is what I put on most pawns.

[Vintorez]

Might be better to tackle it from a different angle and make your pawns have to move less. Proper full body armor is important because flak/devilstrand gear don't provide adequate protection for the limbs, and those greater wounds can cause much bigger efficiency problems at the worst possible time. Of course you can also just use recon armor for your non-frontline fighters, less protection but gives full coverage and doesn't slow them down.

[di eshor ribly]

Since I play with Vanilla Armor/Apparel Expanded I have an extra option over the flak/devilstrand combo for most of my colonists: Trooper armor. It's a higher tech version of the flak vest that also gives armor protection to legs and arms, and fits under parkas/dusters.
Trooper armor does not give any movement debuffs, and defense wise is between flak vests and marine armor.

My general workers get devilstrand pants/shirts/boots/gloves, trooper armor (flak vest early game), and a hat/coat appropriate to the biome.

My soldiers get devilstrand pants/shirts, some form of marine armor (cataphract, grenade, phoenix, locust, whatever), marine boots, marine gloves, and the appropriate helmet. Snipers or ranged assault fighters might also get Trooper armor for the movement bonus - in which case they also get a duster for their Overcoat.

Slaves (if I take any) just get their collars/straps/pants.

Some people also build an armory near their main gate for their fighters to go and gear up in when a raid arrives. While this gives you unfettered movement speed most of the time you'll start to notice issues when you forget to have your pawns grab their gear, or during drop pod raids when they don't have time to arm up.

[Shinrinn]

I keep shelves full of armor near my defenses. So when I get the raid notification I make every run to the defensive positions and put on the armor.

[CrazyOdd]

Replace some legs and you are soon running faster then you where before armor.

[ZS Maeklos]

I generally only up-armor frontline melee fighters. Typically, because of backgrounds and traits, they generally don't have much in the way of skills *except* combat skills, so all they really do is clean and haul otherwise. In this case, heavy armor isn't going to matter much, so it's reasonable to have them all in marine, cataphract, locust, phoenix, whatever armor.

Everyone else generally gets vests or trooper armor, and whatever I feel like giving them otherwise. Because, the way I figure it, if my melee people can't hold then I'm already screwed and up-armored my shooters just meats it takes more time for my forces to get overwhelmed. This is where the whole "he who runs away lives to fight another day" ideal comes in: if my melee defenders and static (turret, etc) defenses are looking to get overrun, I have everyone else run back through my base and out an escape tunnel/back door... usually with one person setting an IED trap next to my mortar round stockpile before booking it.

[Lyrin]

I really only bother with heavy armor on melee pawns. Otherwise it's not worth the movement speed loss (even, or maybe especially in combat). Like I don't need my pawns with range to be super well-armored. Obviously a short-range gunner with something like a shotgun might be an exception but I tend not to use them too often.

[CrazyOdd]

Originally posted by Scooty Puff Sr.:

I really only bother with heavy armor on melee pawns. Otherwise it's not worth the movement speed loss (even, or maybe especially in combat). Like I don't need my pawns with range to be super well-armored. Obviously a short-range gunner with something like a shotgun might be an exception but I tend not to use them too often.

Snipers and lancer mechs, thanks you for the easy to kill ranged...
Unless you can block all line of sight or force the target into melee, all colonists will be hit equally.

[[MwaH] NeoStarr]

I skip plate armor because early game I'm running around the map trying to gather resources.

I wear Marine armor 24/7 because late game I'm sitting at desks and deep drills and the furthest I need to go is the end of the psychite fields; the dogs will fetch anything beyond that.

[thebadman]

Depends on raid type, if you like protection but hate penalties then research devilstrand and start running greenhouses if you have decent farmer, even tuques turn into helmets.

[Raelic]

I don't use armor. I use corners and offense and EMT. The armor is for raiding if I don't want to lose someone. But I rarely care enough to not want to lose someone. I like my noble and I like my doctor. Those are the only ones I'd be hurt to lose. My noble has learned a lot of psycast abilities. Probably all but a couple.

If it's a mech cluster I'll mortar them with EMT (if shielded) and then Explosives. If it's a siege mech where they break through walls, I hide around a corner of the wall they are breaking through and can usually gun them down before they run back for cover.

If it's a human raider crew with mortars I rush out there or mortar them before they get set up. I've got 12 mortars set up I think? It's around 12. Probably more.

If it's a human raider crew of multiple groups, My wall is all the way around my colony. It has a one hole opening, no kill box. I do similar to the ones that break walls and just hide around a corner.

If it's multiple groups breaking through walls on both sides, that's kind of devastating, but it's rare. I may lose one or two, but I don't get attached to colonists.

[Raelic]

https://imgur.com/gallery/5BRKyF2

So here's a pic of the corner I'm talking about. I don't even do a kill box. Sometimes they'll get a shot off, but nothing crazy.

[ZS Maeklos]

Originally posted by Raelic:

https://imgur.com/gallery/5BRKyF2

So here's a pic of the corner I'm talking about. I don't even do a kill box. Sometimes they'll get a shot off, but nothing crazy.

I usually build pillboxes/bunkers: alternating embrasure (or sandbag) with a solid wall. Then solid wall sides and rear with a steel (or plasteel) door. Usually 7 x 4 or so. I tend to space these within support range of each other all around my base. That way, as my base expands, old pillboxes stay where they are to be used as fallback positions.

[Lyrin]

Originally posted by CrazyOdd:

Originally posted by Scooty Puff Sr.:

I really only bother with heavy armor on melee pawns. Otherwise it's not worth the movement speed loss (even, or maybe especially in combat). Like I don't need my pawns with range to be super well-armored. Obviously a short-range gunner with something like a shotgun might be an exception but I tend not to use them too often.

Snipers and lancer mechs, thanks you for the easy to kill ranged...
Unless you can block all line of sight or force the target into melee, all colonists will be hit equally.

If you're hanging your ranged pawns out without cover or using the terrain to force them to come to you, etc. then that's more an issue of tactics than armor. Throw in psycasts, use of smoke, melee support, EMPs, sniper rifles of your own, etc. and I think probably at least 9 of 10 times I'd rather have my ranged pawns actually be able to move than tank shots they shouldn't need to in the first place.

[Raelic]

So my "corner" thing doesn't really work at my wealth now. Had a raid of 10 and they were armored. That was a brutal blow. Didn't lose anyone, but did have to burn 3 healing serums.