So I have Daedric armor with 1k armor rating after a bit of smithing and enchanting. From what I heard there is an armor cap at like 537 or something? Does this mean I'm getting no benefit?
Armor Rating Cap in Skyrim?
- Thread starter AugustFall
- Start date
At 567 armor rating, you get a damage reduction of 80%, which seems to be the cap of the game. This is a relatively easy limit to reach with many forms of armor through the use of various potions, enchanted equipment, perks and the like. For some armor, this is relatively trivial to accomplish (Glass, Daedric, dragon) and others require a bit more work to make it happen (various forms of leather for example).
In the long run, it seems that investing significant numbers of perks in armor skills are unnecessary when it comes to achieving maximum protection. By contrast, investment in alchemy/enchanting/smithing are more useful than they initially seem. With a similar amount of effort, one can relatively easily get a one handed glass weapon to do well more than 300 damage in a swing. It would seem that, for the most part, only when dealing with the flimsiest of armors is it really necessary to invest a significant amount in armor perks in order reach a cap and even the benefits of lighter/quieter armor are mitigated by easily acquired and cast spells (muffle for quieter motion for example) and the steed stone (armor doesn't slow you down, weigh anything and you get a 100 point strength boost).
So, I guess what it really comes down to is this: there is a period of time that investing in all those perks and choosing the most protective armor matters but in the very long run that effort is largely wasted and your choice of armor is entirely cosmetic. I'm fairly convinced I could put on hide armor and get to the cap.
In the long run, it seems that investing significant numbers of perks in armor skills are unnecessary when it comes to achieving maximum protection. By contrast, investment in alchemy/enchanting/smithing are more useful than they initially seem. With a similar amount of effort, one can relatively easily get a one handed glass weapon to do well more than 300 damage in a swing. It would seem that, for the most part, only when dealing with the flimsiest of armors is it really necessary to invest a significant amount in armor perks in order reach a cap and even the benefits of lighter/quieter armor are mitigated by easily acquired and cast spells (muffle for quieter motion for example) and the steed stone (armor doesn't slow you down, weigh anything and you get a 100 point strength boost).
So, I guess what it really comes down to is this: there is a period of time that investing in all those perks and choosing the most protective armor matters but in the very long run that effort is largely wasted and your choice of armor is entirely cosmetic. I'm fairly convinced I could put on hide armor and get to the cap.
The armour rating is capped at 80% i believe and 537 is 80% damage reduction.
So i dont think you're getting anything from it.
EDIT: somehow got ninja'd with a wayyy better answer.. so there you go
So i dont think you're getting anything from it.
EDIT: somehow got ninja'd with a wayyy better answer.. so there you go
The protection different armor's provide in the late game is identical, but the perks are different.Zeckt said:
Had you gone with Heavy Armor, you could:
---10% chance to reflect melee damage back to the enemy
---50% less stagger time
---Half damage from falling
---Unarmed attacks with Heavy Armor gaunlets do their armor rating in extra damage
Where as in Light Armor, you can:
---10% chance of avoiding all damage from a melee attack
---Stamina regenerates 50% faster
You also have the issue of special armor pieces. The most you can put on an item is 2 enchantments, but there are things like the Masque Of Clavious Vile that have 3 boosts at decent levels that use the heavy armor skill. Not to mention spellbreaker which is a heavy shield that does a ward when you use it to block.Zeckt said:
It largely depends on how you play and what perks you want.
Also if you haven't mastered the game mechanics and how to min-max things and where to get whatever you want fairly quickly, choosing armor skills based on what you have availible is going to happen a lot during first playthroughs. If they say pick up enchanted heavy armor right off the bat out of a random chest, a player will probably choose to specialize in it, vice versa if in their initial experiences they wind up with decent light armor.
Basically, early game Heavy Armor is better, since it allows you to reach the cap much sooner. However, once Light Armor hits the cap, it's superior. Sneaking is better in Light. No, it doesn't matter that you got the zero weight perk for Heavy, there is still a penalty for sneaking in it (it's just reduced with that perk). The top perk in Light is better - 10% dodge = an extra 10% damage reduction, whereas the Reflect from Heavy is kinda pointless. Heavy does get 50% less stagger, but Light gets faster Stamina regen, so that's kinda even. The Unarmed damage and reduced falling damage are crap filler perks to make you pay for the weightless perk in Heavy and they are actually an argument AGAINST Heavy (IMO).
The nice thing is that with high Smithing and maxed out Skill (plus Perks) you can get to the cap in nearly any set of Armor. You think Scaled armor looks cool? Well, upgrade it enough, get the %Armor perks in Light and you'll be over the cap. Like the look of the Steel set? No problem, just jazz it up and you'll be maxed out on armor.
The nice thing is that with high Smithing and maxed out Skill (plus Perks) you can get to the cap in nearly any set of Armor. You think Scaled armor looks cool? Well, upgrade it enough, get the %Armor perks in Light and you'll be over the cap. Like the look of the Steel set? No problem, just jazz it up and you'll be maxed out on armor.
Are you sure about that?Jandau said:
I have not experimented with it, but I would think that 10% reflect damage means that you take 90% and they take 10%.
It would mean that both Light and Heavy top tier perks reduce the damage you take by 10%, but that the Heavy perk also damages your foes in the process, making Heavy Armor the better choice for non-sneaks.
But it could also mean that you take 100% and they take 10%, in which case Light Armor is clearly superior.
I'm 99% sure that you still take full damage and the enemy takes 10% of that. The only thing that I'm not sure is if that 10% is calculated before or after Armor. If it's after Armor, it's utterly useless. If it's before Armor, then it's not bad, but Light's Dodge is still better.willis888 said:
I interpreted the heavy armor perk to mean that 1/10 hits you take will reflect all of the damage back to the attacker.
wtf are you guys talking about... The final heavy armor perk owns. You have a 10% chance to counter attack the guy who hit you. If you are using a 2 hander you'll basically GG a mob hitting you 1 out of 10 times.
Also going over cap some is perfectly fine sense many mobs have armor reduction attacks.
Also going over cap some is perfectly fine sense many mobs have armor reduction attacks.
So in that case, you could do more damage with your fists in certain situations than with a flimsy weapon that you randomly find?
I know it's not likely, but I'd like to find out how much damage a 1.5k armor fist does to something like a giant or a dragon, lol...
well yes but heavy armor offers more perks like like fists of steel and only taking half fall damage
I believe so. And if that's it's otherwise it's probably a small boost on top of the base stats.Vorakiv said:Actually the unarmed perk only goes off of base stats for the gauntlets
Though it's fun to roll a Khajiit + Heavy Armor + Fortify Unarmed. Just fun punching dragons to death and suplexing vampires.