Armor cap at 100?
So,
I'm curious if any other min/maxers out there have hit cap.
I'm currently sitting at the following:
NML: 100
PRC: 94
ELE: 92
SHD: 82
Stun: 15
Fire: 20
Ice: 20
Shock: 20
Sleep: -20
So here's the thing. If I remove one of my trinkets I stay at 100 NML. If I remove the other I drop to 94.
So this implies one of two things:
A. The numbers don't go past 100 right now cause the UI is bugged.
B. Defenses are capped at 100.
If it is B (which I think it is) That's something we should probably be informed of in advance. As the investment of time into armor crafting should not result in wasted mats.
That said. My armor is as follows:
Heavy Plate Helm (Lvl 10)
Grey Owlite Shield (Lvl 8)
Miracle Cloak (Lvl 10)
An Armor Trinket
A Shadow Trinket (Or a 2nd Armor Trinket)
My defense stats are displaying correctly beyond 100.
@aioli: I think shield stats aren't factored in. At least, that's the impression I got. I had a shield that gave stun defense, but it didn't appear to change anything when I equipped it. Perhaps the shield's specs factor in only when it is being used?
I thought that, but I don't see how it would work. All shields negate all damage regardless of their stats.

Shields *absorb* damage before they break. The better a shields defense the more of that damage a shield can absorb before breaking.
I have an emberbreak shield with 50 fire defense, I can sit in the flame jets for a long time without the color ticking down.
The question is Coriolis do you get lit on fire still or does the status ailment not get applied.

Status ailment sometimes doesn't get applied (I think, I've been hit by flamethrowers and not had the fire condition pop up), sometimes it does. When it does go on me it has a lower duration than without the shield up.
I currently have a full rock jelly suit on, weak against fire, very strong against stun.
Gremlins rarely stun me anymore, or when they do, I see it pop up with a 1 and then it is gone. When I get hit by fire though, it is a 6 or 7, but with shield up I don't take tick damage, the shield barely changes color, and the durations for any new fire effects are usually 1-3.
My main point is that they don't negate damage, they absorb it, and they have their limit. My better shields take a lot longer to break then the starter one, and I think the strong resistance can take more of a beating.
I don't know how the system works really, but they don't seem to affect you unless you are actively blocking.
Interesting to know, Coriolis. Cuz' with my firebreak armor and helm, I've been set on fire in the utter chaos of the final Moorcroft -> Emberlight arena matches on ye olde Iron Falcon gate WAY more times than I've been comfortable with.
Maybe I should invest in a firebreak shield too, so I've got the defense of that stacked when I'm blocking.
Wait ... numbers? How do you find the numbers for your stats?
@BehindCurtai
Press tab in game or the left side icon on the upper right side of you screen.
NIce.
I see
NML 41 -- I assume that's normal.
PRC 34 -- piercing
ELE 34 -- elemental
SHD 34 -- Shadow
I have a cyclops cap, and a fencing jacket; both have a little more than two full bars for normal. Both look to have two full bars for the rest.
If one bar is 10, then a little more than a full bar should be 11, right? That would make normal at least 42.
For 34, that would be 17 per item, and 17 is noticeably different than 20; yet the look that I see is 2 bars.
So how do you read the graphics? And what does a given number mean?

Sorry to let this one go for so long. Armor does not cap at 100. Right now that UI must be bugged. The character panel UI needs an update. The tool tips for items are actually newer than it and more in line with the direction we would pursue.
Resistances to status conditions will do two things: reduce the chance for it to apply and reduce the power once it is applied.
Lastly, shields only apply their defense to you when actively used.
I rarely use my shield since I find it more convenient to just dodge out of the way most of the time, but i thought the status protection was active even when i wasn't actually pressing the shield button
this means i will probably not upgrade my shield again for a long long time
I will be honest, I'm not entirely sure how these stats work.
Looking at my set of armour, one would think piercing defense is what I have the most. My helmet and armour have a decent amount of it, and my shield's is off the charts. But looking at the stats, I get something completely different. http://wiki.spiralknights.com/images/f/fd/Piercing_defense.jpg
I understand that I could be mistaken when comparing my equipment looking at the bars, but not by such a large margin. 36 piercing defense compared to 78 normal when I thought piercing was as high if not higher, it's pretty strange. I must be missing something here.
P.S.: My trinkets have nothing to do with defense.