Calculate your actual damage reduction from armor, resistances, and damage reduction stats. Understand layered defenses.
Physical damage reduction: 85.0%
From gear, aspects, and skills (capped at 85%)
Current fortify amount
Active barrier shields
âšī¸ Resistances cap at 70%. Get as close to cap as possible for all elements. Each element requires separate gear rolls.
Higher level reduces armor effectiveness
Base damage before mitigation
đĄ Layer your defenses! Armor/Resistances â DR â Fortify â Barrier
Armor only protects against physical damage. The formula is: Armor / (Armor + Enemy Level à 5). Higher enemy levels reduce armor effectiveness. Maximum mitigation is capped at 85%.
Resistances protect against Fire, Cold, Lightning, Poison, and Shadow damage. Each resistance is separate and must be built individually. All resistances are capped at 70% and are crucial for endgame survival.
DR applies to all damage types after armor/resistance mitigation. Sources include gear affixes, aspects, paragon nodes, and skill modifiers. DR is additive and capped at 85%. This is your most universal defense layer.
Fortify absorbs incoming damage after all mitigation layers. When you have fortify greater than your current life, you become "Fortified" and take 10% reduced damage. Fortify depletes as it absorbs damage.
Barrier is a shield that completely absorbs damage before it touches your health. Unlike fortify, barrier blocks 100% of the remaining damage until depleted. Multiple barriers can stack.
Always aim for 70% in all resistances before heavily investing in other defenses. Uncapped resistances can lead to one-shots from elemental damage.
Both armor and DR have diminishing returns. A balanced approach (8000+ armor, 35%+ DR) is typically more effective than maxing just one stat.
Multiple defense layers multiply effectiveness. A character with 50% armor, 70% resistance, and 35% DR mitigates significantly more than the sum of individual percentages.
Use conditional DR affixes like "DR from Close/Distant Enemies" or "DR from Elites" based on your build's playstyle and the content you're running.
Fortify and Barrier are powerful when maintained. Build around skills and aspects that generate these shields consistently during combat.