When trekking across the radioactive wasteland, the beings you shoot on sight will sometimes fire back. Weird huh? I guess you need something to cover your TV Dinner body from getting too many bullet holes; well, that’s why you’re here with me.

This is my guide on the best armors in a progressive order to wear as you vaporized Deathclaws from Level 1 to 65,535.

1.Raider Armor

Image by Jspoelstra

You know it, you ignore it; the trash (literally) armor. You could make mountains of Raider Armor if you collected them and piled them up. With some of the worst stats, very few will use this for long in a normal playthrough. There are some good points:

• Easily Found & Repaired
• Roleplay Cosplay as Raider Scum
• You will have a chest full of Legendary pieces with decent effects but poor stats.

2.Vault Jumpsuit

Image by DistustingWastelander

Good old blue underwear, the vault suit is the quintessential “never take off” item. Simply because it goes with everything else.

• The Fallout Look
• Unlocks dialogue options in early encounters
• You can improve Energy and Rad resistance as you level up.

3.Legend of Vault 88

Image by DistustingWastelander

It’s a vault suit, but a little better. After finishing Lady Luck from the Vault-Tec Workshop DLC, you will be rewarded with this unique vault suit.

• Already has mid upgrade stats for Energy and Radiation
• Plus, a -15% damage from ghouls
• Sadly, still lacks ballistic weave compatibility.

4.Leather Armor

Image by Jspoelstra

My personal favorite of the early game armor; with the ease to find and customize them on the workbench, they are great choices carry you into the mid game.

• The Mad Max Look
• Better Energy Resistance
• Lighter Weight Cost

5.DC Guard Armor

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Diamond City is where I consider you leaving the early and enter the mid game; with the guards being real threats for under leveled players but a breeze for veterans.

• Added together will have decent stats
• Easy to get in an Institute run
• Shoot Mayor McDonough in the face immediately in a genocide run

6.Metal Armor

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Poor man’s power armor, Metal Armor has the best Ballistic Damage resistance for a mid-game armor that is non unique at the cost of carry weight.

• Ideal for fighting Raiders and Mutants
• Will find many legendary pieces as stronger raiders prefer Metal Armor to the weaker Raider
• Customization options at workbench

7.Minuteman General’s Uniform

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If you been colonizing settlements for Preston Garvey; then eventually he’ll send you to kill a mirelurk queen and get a kind of useless settlement and this decent outfit.

• Good Stats
• Charisma Boost
• Light weight

8.Synth Armor

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Depending on the side you take from mid game towards end; Synth Armor will become the most common drop you will find. It will be the later mid game Metal Armor.

• Better Energy resistance for fight Synths and Brotherhood
• Easy to find
• Decent Customization Options

9.Courser Uniform

Image by Jspoelstra

At the beginning of the End Game stage, you’ll have to start fighting elite units and finally join a side. One of the harder units to fight are Institute Coursers. Giving you one of the cool outfits in game.

• Good Stats
• Awesome stats once you add ballistic weave to it
• The Matrix Look

10.Combat Armor

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Finally, the last of the Tier basic armor. With a balance of resistance and high stats, combat armor is found where the difficulty is turned up such as on Brother of Steel Knights and High-Level Gunners.

• Great Stats
• The combined ballistic from Metal and energy from Leather resistance, it only lacks radiation. So, unless you’re fighting in the glow all day, no real harm
• Combine amazingly with an upcoming entry

11.Destroyer’s Armor

[Visual Same as Combat]

An almost complete set of Named Legendary Combat Armor. There is no visual difference besides one arm piece is missing, which can be replace by a standard Combat Arm piece.

• Same Benefits as before
• Has 4 effects amongst the pieces
• Is sold at set place across the wasteland, so is technically easier to get than standard combat armor

12.Army Fatigues

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This is one of most important pieces of clothing in the game. At first glance it seems worthless as they provide no stats beside a small boost to Strength and Agility; but that’s where Tinker Tom’s Gift to the Wasteland comes in, Ballistic Weave. Adding the weave give them 110 in both ballistic and energy resistance.

• Amazing Stats
• Green Underwear
• You wear them under your favor armor pieces, thus you can combine legendary Combat Armor with the enhanced Army Fatigues to have the true super soldier experience

13.Mechanist’s Armor

Image by Jspoelstra

The next three are similar as they are End Game pieces that have some of the highest stats in the game. So, from here on there is little difference in performance and more in taste. The Mechanist’s armor is the prize for competing the Automatron DLC questline, with initial stats being mid but adding weave will make it one of the strongest armors in the game.

• Adds +1 to Charisma, Intelligence, & Endurance
• -15% damage from Robots
• Th Retro Science Fiction Look

14.Pack Armor

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If you rather roleplay as a raider, then the Pack Armor from the Nuka World DLC is you home.

• Highest Stats of the 3 tribes in Nuka World
• Easy to get assuming you side against the Pack
• Sadly, lacks weave so the base stats are its cap

15.Marine Armor

Image by Jspoelstra

On the other side of the map is Far Harbor, which I personally consider as the true End Game; is where you fight to get Marine Armor. THE Strongest armor of the game.

• Over 150 in both Ballistic and Energy resistance
• Recon variants are legendary pieces scattered across the map giving up to 4 effects to your set
• The Power Armor without calling it Power Armor look

Thus, brings me to the end of my rambling on Post-Apocalyptic fashion, I hope this will help you plan out your next run and Min-Max your attempts to kill a Behemoth with a pipe pistol.

I would like to thank the Fallout Wiki for being a resource for the community and as the source of the images.

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