Armour

Armour is a protective suit worn by Artyom. In Metro 2033, it comes in three different variants: default, stealth, and heavy. In Metro: Last Light, the armour system has been considerably reworked. It returns in Metro Exodus, but has once again undergone fundamental changes to make the experience more customisable.

Metro 2033
Note: it is possible to buy armour only in the original Metro 2033 game. In Metro 2033 Redux, the armour system has been removed from the game as both stealth and combat have been made easier. Cosmetic changes to the in-game view models still apply though and will change automatically depending on story progression, similarly to Last Light.

Default Armour
Artyom's default suit. It offers moderate protection from most enemies. It also allows Artyom to sneak better than in the heavy armour, but not as well as when using the stealth armour. Artyom will make noise unless he crouches.

The default armour acts as a middle ground between other suits. The upgraded suits, however, allow the player to choose which one they want based on play-style: guns blazing or silent and stealthy.

Stealth Armour
The stealth armour is fitted for those who prefer to go in silent and lurk in the shadows. While it does not offer much protection compared to the heavy armour, the benefit of using this armour is that it is much better at stealth; when in total darkness Artyom can move past everything from patrolling Nazis to a sleeping black librarian.

This armour will keep Artyom undetected in some situations when the rest of the suits cannot. The player may notice that the stealth meter on Artyom's watch will frequently show no light (which means invisibility to enemies). Moving at a normal pace is extremely quiet and footsteps produce little sound. Use silent weapons to maximize the effectiveness of this armour.

The stealth armour costs 100 Military-Grade rounds in Armory Station and, as an added bonus, Artyom gains the night vision goggles with it.

Heavy Armour
The heavy armour is fitted for those who prefer to take out their enemies face to face. It offers good protection, but it is not recommended for stealth since the added weight and gear produces noise. This armour is especially useful when fighting more powerful enemies such as the demon and the librarian. It is basically the core of Ranger armour and has the MOLLE system. Despite its weight, wearing it does not affect movement speed. If you have spare MGR, consider purchasing it at Polis as it helps in the last portion of the game.

The heavy armour costs 100 Military-Grade rounds in Armory and Polis.

Metro: Last Light
Armour returns in Metro: Last Light, but not as a gameplay element, instead being mandatory pickups that Artyom has no choice over.

Default Armour
Artyom's starting attire appears to be the green sweater that looks and functions identically to the default suit from the previous game. He wears the hazard suit when going up to the surface during "Ashes", but loses it after being captured by the Reich recon team. After making it through the Pavel level, he picks the Spartan attire from one of the lost groups at the end of the concentration camp level.

He briefly loses his equipment at the Bolshoi Theater Station when he is captured and interrogated by the Reds. After Artyom escapes with the help of Leonid, he takes his weapons and ammunition back from the storage room at the start of "Revolution".

It seems that the helmet he picks up was a part of the stolen Spartan suit since it does not appear to offer any additional tangible protection.

Hazard Suit
After navigating through the Venice storage area, Artyom is helped by station resident Simon. Simon guides Artyom to the swamp and gives him an NBC suit as a gift for helping deal with the bandits.The effect of this suit will allow Artyom to swim back up to surface from irradiated water without dying.

Its actual effects become clear during the "Kshatriya" mission in the Faction Pack DLC: when crossing outside areas without it, the radiation becomes immensely damaging. Besides the description saying it makes the filters last longer, it also makes most outdoor areas actually traversable at all. Alternatively the player might simply sprint across the irradiated areas, ignoring the NBC suit entirely.

Since it allows moving around the sleeping librarians in the deep parts of the archives without waking them up, it is possible to avoid fighting them entirely if the player keeps the suit.

Anna, Simon, and many of the Reds wear this suit as well.

The Hazard Suit as portrayed in-game is based on the IDA59 Rebreather, a NBC suit worn by the Russian Navy. In reality, the suit does not require the wearer to have filters since it gives them a constant stream of oxygen via the suit's rebreathing canister on the front. Excess carbon dioxide is filtered out the same way as well, although the suit only allows for three to four hours of safe exposure to radiation before it starts to break apart.

Heavy Suit
Before the final battle at D6, Artyom is geared up in heavy armour. Despite its enormous size and heavy plates of the suit, he is not slowed down by it. On easier difficulties it allows the him to shrug off some of the hits.

It reappears during the "Kshatriya" mission in the Faction Pack DLC. Being true to its description, it proves invaluable when fighting swarms of nosalises in the sewers, packs of watchers on the surface or the librarians themselves.

Since it offers no protection against radiation, switching to the hazard suit when venturing onto the surface and switching back when respective underground shortcuts are opened is advised.

Super Heavy Armour
Two enemy bosses, one found in the battle of D6 with a flamethrower, and the other wielding a minigun in Heavy Squad, wear yet larger and heavier suits of armour. These suits allow their wearers to resist repeated shots from the Preved, Gatling, Hellsbreath, and explosives. This armour is not available for the player character.

Metro Exodus
In Metro Exodus, armour returns, though once again the system has been altered extensively for a more varied experience. This time players can modify the armour worn by Artyom at workbenches, affecting its stats and that of other pieces of equipment, which can result in a number of different suits for different play styles.

In Metro Exodus, the upgrades focus mainly on the carrying capacity of various items, with less attention given to actually upgrading armour protection or reducing visibility. Three out of four armour options provide +2 to the actual armour protection stat, with only the consumables carrier providing no protection bonus. There is one upgrade for the gas mask/helmet which increases armour protection as well.

Upgrades
Throughout Artyom's travels, numerous suit upgrades can be found. These upgrades vary in usefulness and can be found throughout the game.

Location of upgrades

 * Ammo pouches: Found in the Volga level at a bandit encampment near the bridge. If missed in the Volga, can be found in a shipping container in the central part of the Caspian, right next to 75 round drum magazine for the Kalash.
 * Throwing weapons harness: Also found in the Volga level, at the gas station.
 * Consumables carrier: Found in the Caspian, northwest from the helicopter base, in a cave.

Metro 2033 Video Game

 * Unless you do not want to use stealth at all, it's recommended to get both armours in Metro 2033: stealth in Armory (It will help a lot in Frontline, Black Station, and to lesser extent Outpost) and later Heavy in Polis (Since after Polis you will only be facing mutants against which stealth is much less effective, and the combat will be more fierce in the last two chapters as well). The player may want to think twice in Hardcore difficulty as they cost 100 MGRs each, and it is harder to collect MGRs on Hardcore.
 * Even if the heavy armour is bought in the Armory level, the Ranger helmet will not appear during cutscenes until arriving in Polis.
 * It's possible to buy both suits and wear them at the same time, however Artyom will only appear to be wearing whichever was purchased last. This is debatable; while there is proof the night vision goggles will be retained, it is unsure whether the respective armour or stealth bonus will be kept from the previously owned armour.
 * After arriving in Polis, cutscenes in both the Polis level and the end of the game show Artyom wearing the Rangers' heavy gas mask and helmet, no matter what armour you have equipped. This is contradictory to gameplay since he still wears his original full-face gas mask.

Metro: Last Light

 * Hans, the playable character in the Heavy Squad mission, wears armour comparable to Spartan heavy armour.