Cataphract armor

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Cataphract armor

Cataphract armor

A suit of heavy powered armor, built for maximum protection at the cost of mobility. Heavy layered plasteel-weave plates with solid ablative coatings stop all but the most well-aimed or powerful attacks. Neuro-memetic assistors prevent the suit's massive weight from immobilizing the wearer entirely, but the suit is still quite cumbersome. Armor like this is used by imperial cataphracts to break heavily fortified positions in frontal assaults when no other option is available.

Base Stats

Type
GearArmor
Tech Level
Spacer
Market Value
3120 Silver
Mass
15 kg
HP
400

Apparel

Insulation - Cold
36 °C (64.8 °F)
Insulation - Heat
12 °C (21.6 °F)
Armor - Sharp
120%
Armor - Blunt
50%
Armor - Heat
60%
Coverage
Torso, Neck, Left Shoulder, Left Arm, Right Shoulder, Right Arm, Left Leg, Right Leg
Layer
Middle, Outer

Creation

Crafted At
Fabrication bench
Required Research
Cataphract armorTechprint
Skill Required
Crafting 8
Work To Make
75,000 ticks (20.83 mins)
Resources to make
Plasteel 150 + Uranium 50 + Advanced component 6
Technical
thingCategories
ApparelArmor
thingSetMakerTags
RewardStandardHighFreq
defaultOutfitTags
Soldier
tradeTags
HiTechArmor


Cataphract armor is a type of advanced apparel (armor) introduced by the Royalty DLC that can effectively block gunshots, cuts, blunt trauma, or burns. It forms a full set of armor along with the Cataphract helmet.

When equipped, it slows its wearer's move speed by −0.80 c/s.

Acquisition

Cataphract armor can be crafted at a Fabrication bench once the Cataphract armor research project has been completed. The required techprints can be obtained either by trade or completing quests for the Empire. Each set requires Plasteel 150 Plasteel, Uranium 50 Uranium, Advanced component 6 Advanced components, 75,000 ticks (20.83 mins) of work, and a Crafting skill of 8.

Alternatively, the armor can be received as a quest reward, purchased from traders, or found on Imperial Cataphracts. Acquiring it through fighting the Empire is difficult due to their ubiquitious Death acidifier implants and the general difficulty of killing the pawns wearing this armor and carrying the empire's best weapons.

Analysis

Cataphract armor is the strongest power armor in the game - but as expected, one of the most expensive. Like recon armor and marine armor, it covers the limbs and torso, for great overall protection. It provides roughly the same protection as a marine armor of one quality level above its own (e.g., a normal set of cataphract armor is roughly equal to a good set of marine armor), or of recon armor two quality levels above its own. Cataphract armor also allows a pawn to reach the cap of 200% sharp protection at Legendary quality, and offers the highest blunt armor available in the game.

The armor provides a significant Move Speed debuff of −0.80 c\s, double that of Marine armor and over six times that of a flak vest, making the armor impractical for every day wear by some pawns. A moving factor of +125% is needed to counter this penalty. This can be achieved by installing 2 bionic legs or 1 archotech leg on the pawn.

Compared to flak vests

Compared to a flak vest and duster, Cataphract armor offers strictly superior protection to all body parts when all items are the same quality, regardless of duster material. Cataphract armor, like all power armors, covers all limbs, unlike flak vests, which only cover the torso, neck, and shoulders.

However, the high protective value of cataphract armor is offset by its extreme cost, length of time to craft, and the substantial move speed penalty of −.80 c/s. Flak vests and dusters are, by comparison, significantly cheaper and only incur a move speed penalty of −.12 c/s. The cataphract armor research project also requires 2 techprints to be purchased and applied before it can be unlocked.

Compared to phoenix armor

Phoenix armorContent added by the Royalty DLC is a sidegrade to cataphract armor, unlocked from the same research. Phoenix armor has −5% Sharp and −5% Blunt armor, but +15% Heat armor, before quality. This discrepancy increases at higher quality. However, at legendary quality, both phoenix and cataphract armor offer the maximum of 200% Sharp protection, the most common form of protection. Phoenix armor costs Steel 75 steel, Component 4 components, and Chemfuel 75 more than marine. Steel, components, and chemfuel are likely easy to produce for a colony producing power armor, so the material cost is not terribly significant.

Phoenix armor's main defensive advantage is that it reduces a human's flammability to 2%. Fire is a large threat to colonists - not because of its damage, but because it causes them to run around wildly. Phoenix armor reduces the chance of ignition from 70% to 2% - a massive benefit. Enemies with flame damage aren't terribly common (especially without the Biotech DLC). But 5% armor doesn't make a big difference, either. An extra 5% armor would translate to 2.5% chance to halve damage, and 2.5% chance to prevent all damage. Phoenix armor, by comparison, nearly eliminates a dangerous type of threat.

Phoenix armor also has an integrated flame launcher. It explodes into a 5x5 blast of fire, with each bolt costing Chemfuel 40 chemfuel.

Overall, the difference comes down to if you want to (nearly) prevent fire, or if you want some extra protection. This comparison should favor phoenix armor, especially at higher qualities. At excellent or better, phoenix armor reaches the (100% + weapon AP%) Sharp threshold for all ranged weapons. This is enough to always halve incoming sharp damage. In turn, this prevents all one-shots that could be prevented by any armor of armor. Past this threshold, armor has a reduced impact on protection: it only reduces chance to prevent damage rather than both chance to halve damage and chance to prevent damage. See Apparel for more details.

At legendary quality, phoenix armor reaches the cap of 200% Sharp armor, making phoenix armor a no-brainer. While it still has less Blunt armor, blunt damage is comparatively rare. Blunt armor is never checked by any ranged weapon, only Sharp or Heat. Phoenix armor has better heat protection.

ever used by any ranged weapon.

Stats table

  • Cataphract armor Cataphract armor Sharp Blunt Heat HP Insulation
    - Cold
    Insulation
    - Heat
    Market Value
    Quality
    Awful 72% 30% 36% 400 -28.8 °C (-51.8 °F) +9.6 °C (17.3 °F) 1560 Silver
    Poor 96% 40% 48% 400 -32.4 °C (-58.3 °F) +10.8 °C (19.4 °F) 2340 Silver
    Normal 120% 50% 60% 400 -36 °C (-64.8 °F) +12 °C (21.6 °F) 3120 Silver
    Good 138% 57.5% 69% 400 -39.6 °C (-71.3 °F) +13.2 °C (23.8 °F) 3620 Silver
    Excellent 156% 65% 78% 400 -43.2 °C (-77.8 °F) +14.4 °C (25.9 °F) 4120 Silver
    Masterwork 174% 72.5% 87% 400 -54 °C (-97.2 °F) +18 °C (32.4 °F) 5120 Silver
    Legendary 200% 90% 108% 400 -64.8 °C (-116.6 °F) +21.6 °C (38.9 °F) 6120 Silver

    For the full effects of qualities, see Quality.

  • Trivia

    Cataphracts were heavy armored cavalry used in ancient warfare by people in Eurasia, including the Byzantines that inspired the Empire.

    Every set of cataphract armor found on an Imperial Cataphract will be white.

    Version history

    • Royalty DLC release - Added.
    • 1.1.2647 - No longer meets the clothing requirement of nobles, replaced in that role by Prestige cataphract armor. Stellic Wardens and Defenders no longer spawn with a regular cataphract armor, and instead spawn with the prestige version.

    See Also

    • Phoenix armor - a variant of cataphract armor that is slightly more protective against heat and temperature but less protective otherwise, with an integrated incendiary launcher.
    • Prestige cataphract armor - a variant of cataphract armor that both pleases nobles and improves psychic ability.