Armor is one of the key defining traits of each class. Basically, the amount of armor points and the type of armor each class has determines how tough it is.

Note that the amount of armor points each class has does not determine the type. Several classes have medium-strength armor, but not a lot of armor points to go along with it.

The armor system is lifted directly from the original Quake, so if you've played that game before and know its mechanics, you shouldn't have any problems understanding it.

Armor is represented by armor points, which are to the right of your health on the HUD. Whenever the player is hit by an attack, the damage is split between health points and armor points. Armor will absorb a certain percentage of damage from an attack, which is subtracted from the total amount of armor points your class have. The rest of the damage will be inflicted on the player's health.

The armor absorption rate depends on the type of armor each class has. Each class will spawn with one of three armor types; Green (Light), Yellow (Medium), or Red (Heavy). This armor type cannot be changed.

Let's take the Soldier as an example. If he is hit by a shot that does 20 damage to him, his armor will absorb 80% of the shot (because it is Red Armor), which means that he loses 16 armor points. 4 health points are subtracted from him at the same time.

Without armor, you are much more vulnerable than anyone else in the game, so it's best to refresh your armor points as much as you can so you don't run the risk of running out. Attackers often don't have this luxury, but defenders do because they can quickly run back to the resupply room and get their armor points restored.

Armor can be restored in one of four ways.

• The first way to restore your armor points is to pick up red vests in your resupply room. These vests are actually armor pickups that give you 200 armor points when you pick them up.
  
  
• The second way is to pick up backpacks in the resupply room if the resupply room does not have red vests in it. If a resupply room doesn't have a vest in it, that means ammo backpacks have armor instead. The amount of armor in them depends on the mapper.
  
  
• The third way is to have a friendly Engineer hit you with his Wrench. When he does so, he'll restore your armor points. The more maximum armor points your class has and the more armor points you've lost, the more hits he'll need to restore your armor to maximum.
  
  
• The fourth way is from dispensers. When you stand near a dispenser, you'll get 20 armor points. The longer you stand by it, the more armor points you'll get. This can be pretty slow for classes that have a lot of armor points, but it's pretty handy for those that have a medium or small amount of armor points.

Maps originally made for Half-Life Deathmatch will have batteries and HEV chargers in them. These can restore your armor, but only up to 100 points. If you're playing classes that have a lot of armor points, then these won't be much help.

Now that we have the basics down, lets take a look at each armor type.

The Scout and Sniper have Green Armor.


Amount of armor points per class

• Scout: 50 armor points
  
• Sniper: 50 armor points

Green Armor absorbs 30% of damage.

Green Armor is pretty poor defense against the type of ordinance you'll be facing in TFC. The Scout has it to drive in the fact that you should be speeding around instead of fighting, while the Sniper has it to encourage to you avoid close fights.

Engineers shouldn't really worry about repairing Green Armor; it's not all that useful. In fact, being healed is often more useful than getting Green Armor repaired.

The Demoman, Pyro, Medic, Spy, and Engineer have Yellow Armor.

Amount of armor points per class

• Demoman: 120 armor points
  
• Pyro: 150 armor points
  
• Medic: 100 armor points
  
• Spy: 100 armor points
  
• Engineer: 50 armor points

Yellow Armor absorbs 60% of damage.

The majority of classes in this game have Yellow Armor. Yellow Armor is pretty damn effective; the only thing that limits it's potential is the amount of armor points a class has. Yellow Armor means jack for an Engineer because of how few armor points he has, but a Pyro can take a hit and keep on ticking because of the large amount of armor points his Yellow Armor has. Medics love Yellow Armor, as it's the key thing that makes them more likely to survive longer while attacking the enemy base compared to their Scout companions. Yellow Armor also absorbs enough that it can help a Spy survive in case things go FUBAR.

Yellow Armor absorbs enough that it's worth an Engineer's time to repair it if they see a teammate with low armor. 60% damage absorption rate is nothing to sneeze at and can save someone's life if the class has enough armor points.

The Soldier and Heavy have Red Armor.

Amount of armor points per class

• Soldier: 200 armor points
  
• Heavy: 300 armor points

Red Armor absorbs 80% of damage.


Now this is awesome armor. 80% damage absorption rate means that almost everything in the game will just tickle the classes wearing Red Armor. Combine that with the large amount of armor points each Red Armor-wearing class has, and you've got very tanky classes that can survive a lot of enemy attacks. Basically, if you want to last for a long time, grab a class with Red Armor.

You'll notice that two of the best defensive classes in the game have lots of Red Armor. This is not a coincidence; their powerful armor lets them take a lot of hits, allowing them to secure an area for a long period of time. Take advantage of this by restoring your armor points as much as possible. Combining a class that plays defensive with Red Armor and frequent trips to the resupply room to restore armor means that you'll last for a very, very long time.

If you're an Engineer, repair the armor of classes that have Red Armor as much as possible. By keeping their armor at max, you can almost double their lifespan than if you didn't repair it. Red Armor is that good.

I hope you have a better grasp of how the armor system works in the game. Armor is extremely useful for any class, and knowing how it works can help you play your classes better.