does armor have any effects?

[Krauth]

i play mostly with an axe or a sniper rifle

but i have the feeling that armors dont really have any protection effect except adding more weight so you can carry less and less things.

i havent tried armor lvl 4-5 never dropped for me yet but lvl 1 to 3 feel spongy as heck.

[churros]

All armor except level 1 greatly increases survivability

[Krauth]

really? i didnt feel it at all, not with guns and not with being attacked by melee.
they felt so useless that i was just running without armor with an axe and syringe boosters. roll and slash xD