Realistic Kevlar Vests

[jcanup]

After some extensive research, I have come to the conclusion that the standard Kevlar Vests in the HERO rules does not realistically represent the real thing. Here is what I came up with:

 

LEVEL I   IIA   II   IIIA   III   IV

WEIGHT 3.0 lbs   6.0 lbs   6.5 lbs   7.5 lbs   20.0 lbs   21.0 lbs

PRICE $450   $700   $750   $850   $1,200   $1,300

rPD/rED 6/3   8/4   10/5   12/6   14/7*   16/8*

Weight and price are based on several actual vests used today.

 

All vests cover locations 10-13.

 

Type III and IV Vests include ceramic inserts and have 1 level of Hardening; Limited: Hardening doesn't apply to STUN (-1). for protection against those Snipers with AP Rounds. As a side note, the Ceramic Inserts float so the wearer doesn't have to fear falling into the river.

 

Against standard rounds, the IIIA vest (most commonly used by Law Enforcement) will stop basically any handgun but they could still take a butt-load of STUN.

 

Magnum Rounds should have one level of Armor Piercing while AP Rounds should have 2 levels.

 

Using these Vests will more accurately simulate the vests worn by real police officers and military personel.

 

I have included my PreFab for these armors in case anyone wants to use them.

 

Please let me know what you think.

[Fox1]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

This is workable for the game, but I wouldn't call it realistic.

[jcanup]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

I didn't want to turn this into an argument or a lengthy lesson on Ballistics, which is why I said, "Using these Vests will more accurately simulate the vests worn by real police officers and military personel."

 

There is no way to be completely realistic in a game.

[Fox1]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

I didn't want to turn this into an argument or a lengthy lesson on Ballistics' date=' which is why I said, "Using these Vests will [b']more accurately simulate[/b] the vests worn by real police officers and military personel."

 

There is no way to be completely realistic in a game.

 

I don't see any improvement of any kind over the ones given in the game.

[jcanup]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

I don't see any improvement of any kind over the ones given in the game.

 

Hee, hee. You're right! I screwed up.

 

I went back and edited the original post to what I really meant. I know this looks like a lot of ARMOR, but a Kevlar Vest is really good at stopping bullets that are not AP or Magnums. Perhaps half that DEF should be limited only to bullets.

 

Sorry about that.

 

What do you think?

[Edsel]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

What I am curious about is how well a kevlar, or any fabric, ballistic vest protects against things like knives and falling damage.

 

I have seen some claims that kevlar is very effective against knives and then I have read and seen things that indicate that it is relatively weak against such things. Sources for both sides are fairly authoritative. I have watched different shows on TDC, The Science Channel, etc. that make oppisite claims.

 

One of the most interesting showed how a thrown knife has little chance to penetrate kevlar, whereas a thrust knife will easily penetrate the vest. It had something to do with the momentum behind a thrust blade as opposed to a thrown one.

 

I have seen very little that deals with falling damage.

[jcanup]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

I also have seen demonstrations where knives (handheld) will penetrate a Ballistic Vest relatively easy. And I really doubt that a Ballistic Vest would have any value at all verses falling damage. This is a good reason that most of the armors DEF should be limited to: Only vs. Bullets (-1). What about doing it like this?

Cost	Powers	END
	Type IIIA Ballistic Vest, all slots Independent (-2), Limited Coverage (Loc 10-13) (-1 1/4), Extra Time to put on (1 Turn (Post-Segment 12), Only to Activate, -3/4), Real Armor (-1/4), Quarter Mass (-1/4)
1	1) Basic Padding: Armor (2 PD/2 ED) (6 Active Points)	0
2	2) Type IIIA Ballistic Cloth: Armor (10 PD/0 ED) (15 Active Points); Only Verses Bullets (-1)	0

[Chris Goodwin]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

I have seen some claims that kevlar is very effective against knives and then I have read and seen things that indicate that it is relatively weak against such things. Sources for both sides are fairly authoritative. I have watched different shows on TDC, The Science Channel, etc. that make oppisite claims.

 

Not just kevlar. Bullets alone. Stopping power and damage potential discussions become holy wars among gun groups, even not taking armor into account.

[Red Knight]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

Well... speaking from experience, I wear Kevlar every day, the vest provides very little protection from falls and such. Against knives.... Well there are different types of armor and some are better than others but in general, they are limited in their knive defense ability.

 

The vests work by spreading the kinetic force of a ballistic round out across the entire surface, which in turn stops penetration. Ballistic inserts on the chest can increase the protection provided. A thin layer of a wire mesh is sometimes woven in to increase the knife resistance.

 

My 2 cents worth.

[gewing]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

Older vests in particular were around 1/2 inch thick. They were flexible, but not clothlike, really. They would tend to disperse the force of a punch or a fall (if that was how you landed) somewhat.

 

We tried a few punches through my room mates vest, it worked fairly well. NOt as well as hard armor would, but...

 

otoh, several people have been killed settling bets over whether kevlar will stop knives.

 

blowdarts would penetrate fairly well, too, very small diameter. Very low energy, however, so I may have to rethink that.

 

 

I also have seen demonstrations where knives (handheld) will penetrate a Ballistic Vest relatively easy. And I really doubt that a Ballistic Vest would have any value at all verses falling damage. This is a good reason that most of the armors DEF should be limited to: Only vs. Bullets (-1). What about doing it like this?

Cost	Powers	END
	Type IIIA Ballistic Vest, all slots Independent (-2), Limited Coverage (Loc 10-13) (-1 1/4), Extra Time to put on (1 Turn (Post-Segment 12), Only to Activate, -3/4), Real Armor (-1/4), Quarter Mass (-1/4)
1	1) Basic Padding: Armor (2 PD/2 ED) (6 Active Points)	0
2	2) Type IIIA Ballistic Cloth: Armor (10 PD/0 ED) (15 Active Points); Only Verses Bullets (-1)	0

[gewing]

Re: Realistic Kevlar Vests

 

Not just kevlar. Bullets alone. Stopping power and damage potential discussions become holy wars among gun groups' date=' even not taking armor into account.[/quote']

 

HERETIC!

 

 

oh wait, I agree with you. There he is, over there!!!

 

 

:winkgrin: