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Armor piercing, or AP, bullets are specifically designed with a single purpose: to penetrate armor.

AP bullets usually have a sharp point, and are coated in copper. They are generally tipped with a solid metal, such as copper or steel, and have cores filled with tungsten carbide, hardened steel or even depleted uranium. In Fallout, AP bullets have the effect of lowering the target's Damage Resistance (DR), while decreasing the overall damage that weapon does.

Fallout 3 doesn't have AP bullets, but has three armor penetrating weapons. These are the player created Unarmed deathclaw gauntlet, the unique ranged microwave emitter, and the unique melee Man Opener. They are not the strongest weapons in the game, but they have the unique property of ignoring target armor, which make them as effective against an adversary in power armor as they would be against an unarmored raider.

Fallout: New Vegas features the return of rounds with varying degrees of armor penetrating abilities. Rounds specifically designed for this purpose reduce a target's Damage Threshold (DT) by 15 at the expense of a slight reduction overall damage and the difficulty in finding AP rounds; however, other types of specialized ammunition have some armor piercing abilities despite not being specifically engineered to do so (.357 Magnum JFP, .44 Magnum semi-wadcutters and 9mm +P rounds are examples). With the version 1.02 patch, all energy weapon ammunition gain innate armor-piercing capabilities, with over charge and max charge cells offering better AP characteristics. As of patch 1.5, standard 5mm rounds reduce DT by 10 and AP 5mm rounds reduce it by 25.

Inconsistency over effectiveness[]

  • Due to a bug in Fallout, AP bullets are identical to JHP or FMJ variants.
  • In Fallout 2, due to a mistake in their design, AP bullets are vastly inferior to JHP or FMJ variants. This is best observed while fighting the assault rifle-toting guards in Vault 15. Both rifles are initially loaded with 5mm JHP, and deal about 22 points of damage in a mid-ranged burst against combat armor. However, the guards only carry 5mm AP to reload with. Subsequent bursts from the same distance often fail to deal any damage at all.
  • Even against targets with high Damage Resistance, the resistance reduction does not make up for the reduced damage. In addition, AP bullets do nothing to reduce the Damage Threshold of the target's armor, making the armor piercing aspect less powerful than intended.
  • This inconsistency is not the case with AP rockets or HN AP Needler cartridges, which are both substantially better than their "normal" counterparts.
  • Due to a bug in Fallout 3, armor piercing effects don't work. This is not limited to player-usable weapons but also extends to non-player characters and creatures with armor piercing capabilities such as deathclaws. This bug was introduced in one of the patches; the unpatched version does not have this bug.

Ammunition types[]

Fallout[]

Ammunition Shots/clip Weight AC Modifier DR Modifier Damage Multiplier Used in Value V:W Prototype ID
10mm AP 24 1 0% -25% 1/2 10mm pistol
10mm SMG
100 100:1 30
14mm AP 30 1 0% -50% 1/2 14mm Pistol 150 150:1 33
5mm AP 50 1 0% -35% 1/2 Assault rifle
Minigun
120 120:1 36
Rocket AP 1 3 -15% -50% 1/1 Rocket launcher 400 133:1 37

Fallout 2[]

Ammunition Shots/clip Weight AC Modifier DR Modifier Damage Multiplier Used in Value V:W Prototype ID
10mm AP 24 1 0% -25% 1/2 10mm pistol
10mm SMG
H&K P90c
100 100:1 30
14mm AP 30 1 0% -50% 1/2 14mm Pistol 150 150:1 33
5mm AP 50 1 0% -35% 1/2 Assault rifle
Assault rifle (exp. mag.)
Minigun
Avenger minigun
XL70E3
120 120:1 36
Rocket AP 1 3 -15% -50% 1/1 Rocket launcher 400 133:1 37
HN AP Needler cartridge 10 1 -10% 0% 2/1 Needler pistol 300 300:1 362

Fallout Tactics[]

Ammunition Shots/clip Weight Penetration Damage Multiplier Used in Value V:W
.44 Magnum AP 20 1 +80% -40% Desert Eagle .44
44 M29 revolver
$?
?rp
$?:1
?rp:1
9mm AP 10 4 +50% -25% 9mm HSI Mauser
9mm M9FS Beretta
Browning HiPower
Calico Liberty 100
9mm Calico M-950
FN P90c
MP5 H&K
MP38
P220 Sig Sauer
Scorpio
Sten gun
UZI
Walther MPL
Zip gun
$?
?rp
$?:1
?rp:1
Rocket AP 1 3 +50% -25% Rocket launcher $1200
?rp
$400:1
?rp:1
Rocket Sabot 1 5 +31% -11% Rocket launcher $1600
?rp
$320:1
?rp:1

Fallout: New Vegas[]

"Armor piercing" rounds are reintroduced in Fallout: New Vegas. The armor piercing capabilities are different in New Vegas as some rounds are actually labeled as armor piercing while others have the ability to negate Damage Threshold, which gives a target a certain amount of protection, depending on their what type of enemy they are or how strong their armor is. The types of ammunition listed below negate the Damage Threshold effect for both energy weapons and standard guns.

Name DMG DT CND SPRD used in Craftable Empty Casing Weight if playing in Hardcore mode
12 gauge, coin shot x 1.3 - 2 x 1 x 1 Hunting shotgun, Dinner Bell, sawed-off shotgun, Big Boomer, riot shotgun Yes None 0.075
12 gauge, Magnum x 1.3 - 2 x 1.15 x 1 Hunting shotgun, Dinner Bell, sawed-off shotgun, Big Boomer, riot shotgun Yes 25% chance 0.075


12 gauge, 4/0 buck Magnum x 1.3 - 2 x 1.15 x 1 Hunting shotgun, Dinner Bell, sawed-off shotgun, Big Boomer, riot shotgun Yes 25% chance 0.075
12 gauge, flechette x 0.9 - 6 x 1 x 1 Hunting shotgun, Dinner Bell, sawed-off shotgun, Big Boomer, riot shotgun No 40% chance 0.075
20 gauge, Magnum x 1.3 - 2 x 1.15 x 1 Caravan shotgun, sturdy caravan shotgun Caravan Pack, single shotgun, lever-action shotgun Yes 35% chance 0.065
20 gauge, 3/0 buck Magnum x 1.3 - 2 x 1.15 x 1 Caravan shotgun, sturdy caravan shotgun Caravan Pack, single shotgun, lever-action shotgun Yes 35% chance 0.065
.44 Magnum, SWC (hand load) x 1.2 - 6 x 1 x 1 .44 Magnum, Mysterious Magnum, trail carbine, FIDO Old World Blues (add-on) Yes 20% chance 0.043
.45 Auto, +P x 1.1 - 2 x 1.2 x 1 .45 Auto submachine gun Honest Hearts, .45 Auto pistol Honest Hearts, A Light Shining in Darkness Honest Hearts Yes - 0.065
.45 super (hand load) x 1.3 - 4 x 2.5 x 1 .45 Auto submachine gun Honest Hearts, .45 Auto pistol Honest Hearts, A Light Shining in Darkness Honest Hearts Yes - 0.065
5.56mm, armor piercing x 0.95 - 15 x 1 x 1 Varmint rifle, Ratslayer, service rifle, 5.56mm pistol Gun Runners' Arsenal, That Gun, light machine gun, Bozar Gun Runners' Arsenal Marksman carbine, All-American No 35% Chance 0.026
.308, armor piercing x 0.95 - 15 x 1 x 1 Automatic rifle Dead Money, hunting rifle, Paciencia Gun Runners' Arsenal sniper rifle, Gobi Campaign scout rifle, Christine's CoS silencer rifle Old World Blues (add-on), Battle rifle Gun Runners' Arsenal, This Machine No 40% Chance 0.055
.357 Magnum, JFP (hand load) x 1.25 - 3 x 1 x 0.8 Cowboy repeater, La Longue Carabine, .357 Magnum revolver, Lucky, police pistol Dead Money, K9000 cyberdog gun Old World Blues (add-on) Yes 15% Chance 0.04
45-70 Gov't, SWC x 1.2 - 6 x 3 x 1 Brush gun, Medicine Stick Gun Runners' Arsenal hunting revolver, Hunting revolver (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, Ranger Sequoia Yes 20% Chance 0.065
.50 MG, armor piercing x 0.95 - 15 x 1 x 1 Anti-materiel rifle, Anti-materiel rifle (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal No 25% Chance 0.25
5mm round x 1 - 10 x 1 x 1 Assault carbine, Assault carbine (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, minigun, CZ57 Avenger Yes 20% Chance 0.017
5mm, armor piercing x 0.95 - 25 x 1 x 1 Assault carbine, minigun, CZ57 Avenger No 20% Chance 0.017
5mm surplus x 1.15 - 10 x 3 x 1.2 Assault carbine, minigun, CZ57 Avenger Yes 20% Chance 0.017
9mm round, +P x 1.1 - 2 x 1.2 x 1 9mm submachinegun, Vance's 9mm submachine gun, 9mm pistol, Maria No 20% Chance 0.029
Electron charge pack x 1 - 2 x 1 x 1 Gatling laser, Tesla cannon, Tesla-Beaton prototype, laser RCW, Elijah's jury-rigged Tesla cannon Old World Blues (add-on), Sprtel-Wood 9700 Gun Runners' Arsenal, Arc welder Lonesome Road (add-on) Yes 35% Chance 0.025
Electron charge pack, max charge x 1.5 - 10 x 2.5 x 1 Gatling laser, Tesla cannon, Tesla-Beaton prototype, laser RCW, Elijah's jury-rigged Tesla cannon Old World Blues (add-on), Sprtel-Wood 9700 Gun Runners' Arsenal, Arc welder Lonesome Road (add-on) Yes 5% Chance 0.025
Electron charge pack, over charge x 1.25 - 5 x 1.5 x 1 Gatling laser, Tesla cannon, Tesla-Beaton prototype, laser RCW, Elijah's jury-rigged Tesla cannon Old World Blues (add-on), Sprtel-Wood 9700 Gun Runners' Arsenal, Arc welder Lonesome Road (add-on) Yes 20% Chance 0.025
Energy cell x 1 - 2 x 1 x 1 Laser pistol, Laser pistol (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal Pew Pew, plasma pistol, Plasma pistol (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, Plasma Defender, Plasma Defender (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, pulse gun, Compliance Regulator Honest Hearts, Sonic emitter pistol Old World Blues (add-on) Yes 35% Chance 0.078
Energy cell, max charge x 1.5 - 10 x 2.5 x 1 Laser pistol, Laser pistol (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal Pew Pew, plasma pistol, Plasma pistol (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, Plasma Defender, Plasma Defender (GRA), pulse gun, Compliance Regulator Honest Hearts, Sonic emitter pistol Old World Blues (add-on) Yes 10% Chance 0.078
Energy cell, over charge x 1.25 - 5 x 1.5 x 1 Laser pistol, Laser pistol (GRA), Gun Runners' Arsenal Pew Pew, plasma pistol, Plasma pistol (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, Plasma Defender, Plasma Defender (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, pulse gun, Compliance Regulator Honest Hearts, Sonic emitter pistol Old World Blues (add-on) Yes 25% Chance 0.078
Microfusion cell x 1 - 2 x 1 x 1 Plasma caster, plasma rifle, Q-35 matter modulator, multiplas rifle, laser rifle, Gauss rifle, YCS/186, AER14 prototype, tri-beam laser rifle, Tri-beam laser rifle (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, holorifle Dead Money, LAER Old World Blues (add-on), Elijah's advanced LAER Old World Blues (add-on), The Smitty Special Gun Runners' Arsenal Yes 35% Chance 0.1
Microfusion cell, max charge x 1.5 - 10 x 2.5 x 1 Plasma caster, plasma rifle, Q-35 matter modulator, multiplas rifle, laser rifle, Gauss rifle, YCS/186, AER14 prototype, tri-beam laser rifle, Tri-beam laser rifle (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, holorifle Dead Money, LAER Old World Blues (add-on), Elijah's advanced LAER Old World Blues (add-on), The Smitty Special Gun Runners' Arsenal Yes 10% Chance 0.1
Microfusion cell, over charge x 1.25 - 5 x 1.5 x 1 Plasma caster, plasma rifle, Q-35 matter modulator, multiplas rifle, laser rifle, Gauss rifle, YCS/186, AER14 prototype, tri-beam laser rifle, Tri-beam laser rifle (GRA) Gun Runners' Arsenal, holorifle Dead Money, LAER Old World Blues (add-on), Elijah's advanced LAER Old World Blues (add-on), The Smitty Special Gun Runners' Arsenal Yes 25% Chance 0.1
NailsLonesome Road (add-on) x 1 - 5 x 1 x 1 H&H Tools nail gun Yes 0% Chance 0.01
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