Just check your hud, there should be an small icon that looks like body amor next to your armor bar. If that icon is red then that's a high tier armor, if that icon is blue then that's a middle tier armor and if that icon is white then that's a low tier armor. Armors have 2 skins (military and police), this is only to add visual variety, they are the same item.

Yes friend but picking up millitary plates results in blue armor icon and red when picking up a sheriffs plate everytime for both(Objective Mode). Double overhead attack from a cop deals 18 damage with no armor strength skill for both red and blue armor (sherriff and millitary plate respectively on the hud). I have had the impression the blue keeps me alive longer during firefights until now and you can feel it battling bandits around the boss area in the nightclub. Yet its puzzling me that the tutorial would have the blue one being the middle tier despite representing millitary grade equipment(which you would imagine also has a helmet compared to the sheriffs). I have so far seen only 3 armor varieties, the black vest, the sheriff and millitary plate. After testing it against zombies i have come to the conclusion i should just pick up the lighter one amongst three of them but dont know where to check for the weight units on every equipment in the game.

Reperrio Studios Official Server 1 Player level 500 test
Double overhead attack from a zombie cop with no damage absorption skills to HP results:
Tier Nr as per Tutorial - HUD Icon - Vest - Damage to HP - Damage to AR - Damage with Maxed Armor skill
1. - White Icon - Black Light Vest - 6 - 18 - 12 (Lighter?)
2. - Blue Icon - Green Millitary Plate - 6 - 18 - 12
3. - Red Icon - Sheriffs Plate - 6 - 18 - 12

It seems to be making a difference only against bullets and the black vest is evidently giving in way earlier in a firefight. Yet from how i have felt now without paying attention, so does Sheriffs armor in comparison to the millitary plate.

EDIT: Tested on BETA branch.

Originally posted by Blastland:

It seems to be making a difference only against bullets and the black vest is evidently giving in way earlier in a firefight. Yet from how i have felt now without paying attention, so does Sheriffs armor in comparison to the millitary plate.

EDIT: Tested on BETA branch.

I believe that they indeed only affect bullet damage, but you might need a developer to answer this. As for the military vs police/sheriff vest, again, they are the same item just with different textures. Both military and sheriff red vests are equal in strength and protection.

Sheriff is the best - protection and loss of speed
Blue is your middling one - protection and loss of speed
Grey is something but not much - protection and loss of speed

I'd love to hear from the developers on this one

Originally posted by The deadly Cutsman:

Just check your hud, there should be an small icon that looks like body amor next to your armor bar. If that icon is red then that's a high tier armor, if that icon is blue then that's a middle tier armor and if that icon is white then that's a low tier armor. Armors have 2 skins (military and police), this is only to add visual variety, they are the same item.

Originally posted by Puggle:

Sheriff is the best - protection and loss of speed
Blue is your middling one - protection and loss of speed
Grey is something but not much - protection and loss of speed

I'd love to hear from the developers on this one

Are there ways to test this or has it been tested already? Its hard to get one shot exactly to the torso and measure.

Originally posted by Blastland:

Are there ways to test this or has it been tested already? Its hard to get one shot exactly to the torso and measure.

Multiplayer versus I guess

if you want to live in deathmatch get the sheriff armour
the blue one is ok too
the grey one isn't going to do much

The armour does make a difference to how long you can expect to live and to your chances of retaining equipment you like

Originally posted by The deadly Cutsman:

... As for the military vs police/sheriff vest, again, they are the same item just with different textures. Both military and sheriff red vests are equal in strength and protection.

The Sheriff/Police Vest is the one and same for me, just with the police on the back and the Sheriff on the front. How I came to theoritize it were swapped models, was Mecklenburgs office armor that doesnt respawn on the second floor opposite the keypad. Its on the table and would have made more sense if it was police, but since its saying sheriff on the front it wouldnt have a place deep in a city like this, but more than being merely millitary plates.

As for why this mattered as a question, is that entire maps such as the Last Stand, Nightclub(Past and Before Strip Club Bosses) can be played using any armor having same results against zombies.

Originally posted by Blastland:

How I came to theoritize it were swapped models, was Mecklenburgs office armor that doesnt respawn on the second floor opposite the keypad. Its on the table and would have made more sense if it was police, but since its saying sheriff on the front it wouldnt have a place deep in a city like this, but more than being merely millitary plates.

The model is the same (both red armors share models), it's just the texture (known as "skin") that changes. Skins are randomized, it wasn't put there (in that part of the map) with any story/world building intention.

Originally posted by Blastland:

As for why this mattered as a question, is that entire maps such as the Last Stand, Nightclub(Past and Before Strip Club Bosses) can be played using any armor having same results against zombies.

Well, it's a bullet-resistant vest, not a melee-resistant vest. Don't know if the devs want to change that, but of course no one forces you to pick up one if you feel like you don't need it.