How does damage and armour work?

[MadMarcos]

Recently started playing.  I have the Tritanium Vest with Shield and have been taking damage from the front from low-damage kinetic weapons.

I thought the armour level of 54 means that it subtracts from the damage dealt by the weapon.  That is, if a weapon (like the MP5) does 25 damage, it can do up to 50, but the front armour will reduce it to -4.  Yet I'm still taking around 15 damage in these cases.

Anyway, I guess I don't understand how armour and damage work.  Or maybe they're hitting me in the sides, even though they are pretty close to a straight line in front?  Or these enemies (Dagon cultists) have special abilities?

[Juku121]

Or maybe they're hitting me in the sides...

This. There's a 1/3 chance of getting hit in the relevant side if you're not hit head-on.

One way to avoid this is to only present your front and shield side. Which presumes the shield side actually has armour, which it does not. Which is why I play with shield versions of armour that also boost left side armour, and my proposal - which apparently still sits far down on Solarius' list - for portable shields depleted shield HP from the front and shield hand side.

[MadMarcos]

Ah!  Thanks a lot, that clears it up.