Armor

The slots down the right side of your initial Character Menu are devoted to the different pieces of armor your Guardian wears, which are protective sections of your overall ensemble. This part of the training gives an overview of the different armor options available.

Armor Slots

There are five armor slots, divided into different body parts. Each slot can have up to nine different types of armor in it before it becomes full and additional armor pieces are sent to the Postmaster. Free up space by either dismantling items or storing them in a vault. These are the available slots:

Helmet: Armor protecting the head. This is not worn in Social Sectors, but you can change this in your Settings Menu.

Gauntlets: Armor protecting the hands and lower arms.

Chest: Armor protecting the upper arms, torso, and abdomen.

Legs: Armor encasing the legs and feet.

Class: This is a unique accoutrement that augments your Titan (a mark), Hunter (a cloak), or Warlock (a bond).

Armor Abilities

Armor has a set of statistics you can check, and these are related to one of three Attributes (detailed below).

Defense Rating: Helps determine your Power Level (a rough average of Attack/Defense values of all equipped gear). Power Level determines the amount of damage you take and inflict while battling high-level enemies.

Resilience: Increases the amount of damage you can take before dying.

Mobility: Increases your movement speed and maximum jump height.

Recovery: Increases the speed at which you regain lost health.

Perk or Mod: If a Perk or Mod related to this piece of armor is available, it is listed under the statistical data.

Armor Differences

The previous pictures show how dissimilar a Guardian can look: The Titan, Hunter, and Warlock all have distinctly different sets of armor, and armor purchased or rewarded is always the type your Class wears. This means that you can’t effectively share armor with a second character unless you’re both of the same Class.

Though armor might look bulkier on a Titan and more flowing on a Warlock, it is important to look at substance over style. Check the statistical rating of an armor piece and whether it has a Perk that affects other functionality (such as giving you more grenades to throw or increasing the effectiveness of a weapon type).

Armor Rarity

Like weapons, armor pieces feature color-coded Rarity ratings. Armor of any quality can be offered as rewards, found in chests, dropped by enemies (often as engrams), and purchased from vendors. As your character level grows, you can expect an increased frequency of high-quality drops, rewards, and vendor items.

While you’re free to use whatever bits of armor you choose, generally:

Common (white) armor pieces are as simple as it gets. They can serve as useful upgrades during early levels, but they’re rarely used beyond that.

Uncommon (green) armor pieces drop more frequently as character level increases, serving as useful upgrades for low- to mid-level Guardians.

Rare (blue) armor pieces occasionally appear early on, but they drop more frequently as a Guardian approaches max-level. They tend to be exceptional upgrades throughout the leveling process.

Legendary (purple) armor pieces are considered “endgame” gear, typically serving as upgrades (and “sidegrades”) to max-level Guardians.

Exotic (gold) armor pieces are exceptional Class-specific items that feature uniquely powerful Intrinsic Perks, many of which enhance one or more Abilities found within a specific Guardian Subclass. In many cases, Guardians will adjust their entire playstyle to make use of a recently acquired piece of Exotic armor. A Guardian can only equip one Exotic armor piece at a time. They’re most commonly acquired during endgame (Level 20) content, and they can be purchased from Xur, but they’re occasionally recovered during engram decryption.

As with weapons, the Rarity rating assigned to a piece of armor isn’t just tied to scarcity. It also indicates three specific qualities:

• The number/types of Perks featured on the armor piece
• The customization options supported by the armor piece
• The item(s) gained from dismantling the armor piece

Rarity Ratings: Armor