Ammo & armor tiers explained
Six ammo tiers, six armor tiers, and one rule that decides most gunfights: the gap between them. Here's what each tier is for, what the gap does, and when budget ammo is the smart play.
By DF TOOLSUpdated 2026-10-08
Quick answer
Every round and every plate has a tier from 1 to 6. The closer your ammo tier is to the armor tier in front of you, the more damage gets through — same tier penetrates roughly half the time, one tier above about three quarters, and two-plus tiers above punches through almost every shot. Under-tier ammo still kills unarmored and lightly armored targets just fine.
See every matchup at once on the ammo chart → then check your gun on the TTK calculator.
The tier ladder
| Tier | Typical role | Think of it as |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Starting pistols, budget SMG rounds | Paper — dies to anything |
| Tier 2 | Early-raid plates and cheap overpressured rounds | A hoodie with opinions |
| Tier 3 | The mid-raid standard most players wear | The common denominator |
| Tier 4 | Serious mid-game kits | Where most fights are decided |
| Tier 5 | Endgame farming kits | Pay-to-penetrate territory |
| Tier 6 | Top-end plates and ammo | The final boss of armor |
Row descriptions are community loadout conventions for orientation — not official tier definitions.
What the gap does
- Ammo 2+ tiers above armor: near-total penetration — the plate barely matters.
- One tier above: roughly 75% of shots punch through.
- Same tier: about 50% since the penetration rebalance.
- One tier below: about 25% — you're paying full ammo price to lose most gunfights to the plate.
- Two or more below: the plate soaks nearly everything. Bring a knife and accept your fate.
When under-tier ammo is fine
- You're farming low-risk raids where Tier 1–2 plates dominate — Tier 2–3 ammo kills everything for a fraction of the cost.
- Your gun's raw damage is high enough that even 10–25% penetration ends fights in a practical number of shots — verify on the TTK calculator.
- You're saving for a better plate, which stops more damage per Koena than premium ammo starts.
Common mistakes
- Buying Tier 6 ammo "to be safe" into lobbies of Tier 2 plates — pure profit donation.
- Judging ammo by its damage stat instead of its tier; the tier is what the plate cares about.
- Forgetting durability: even winning tier matchups weaken as plates chip. Check the armor-break shot on the calculator.