In Tom Clancy’s The Division, we are exploring the question of what impact the increase in the armor cap will have on the game.
In the last State of the Game, the developers revealed that with the Update 1.2, a new upper limit for armor value in The Division will be introduced. This will be increased from 65% to 75%.
In response to this announcement, one could quickly read misunderstandings from many concerned agents online: “OMG, PvP is dead!”, or “Now it takes forever to kill other agents.” But will these additional 10% really be a game breaker? How will PvP change?
75% armor cap likely won’t bring significant changes
As the YouTuber Skill Up notes in a new video: Armor values above 65% are not so new. Even before the upcoming update, agents are reaching similar levels of damage mitigation.
For this, players exploit the faulty armor talent Reckless: This allows you to deal more damage, but you should also receive more damage from enemies. However, the reality is that you take 10% less damage with it. And this 10% damage reduction applies in addition to the previous armor cap of 65%. This talent is expected to function correctly after Update 1.2, as mentioned several times by Massive.
Now, the YouTuber sees the increase in the armor cap as a reaction from the developers to the future lack of damage mitigation through Reckless. This change is not intended to create a new imbalance in the Dark Zone, but to maintain the current balance. However, it should be expressly noted here: These are merely the conclusions of Skill Up and not official statements.
Additionally, it must be noted: The Reckless talent currently increases damage mitigation by 10% and does not increase the armor value. Both values cannot be equated one to one.
It can still be assumed that PvP will not experience drastic changes from this aspect. How difficult it will be for the agents to even reach the new armor cap is another question altogether.
