Dodge vs Armor — how Brotato's defensive stats really work
Updated 2026-11-03 · for v1.1 + Paws & Claws
Both stats keep you alive. They do it in very different ways.
Dodge: a chance to take nothing
Dodge is the percent chance to ignore a hit completely. It's capped at 60% for most characters. Cryptid goes to 70%, Ghost to 90%, and Sailor stops at 20%. Negative dodge counts as zero, so it never makes you easier to hit.
Dodge is swingy. At 60% you still take four hits out of ten, and a bad streak in wave 20 ends runs. Pair it with healing that triggers on dodge, like Adrenaline (+5% dodge, 50% chance to heal 5 HP when you dodge).
Armor: less damage from every hit
Armor reduces every hit you take. Each point is worth roughly 6.66% more effective HP, and there's no cap. It's steady where dodge is lucky. Negative armor is the dangerous one, because it increases the damage you take.
Which one to stack
- Most characters: armor first, dodge up to around 30–40% if items offer it cheaply.
- Dodge characters: Brawler (+15%) and Ghost (+30%, cap 90%) should push dodge to the cap. Ghost has −100 armor, so dodge is the only defence it has.
- Armor characters: Knight gets +2 Melee Damage per point of armor. Golem gets 33% more from armor modifiers. Both want every point they can find.
- Avoid: heavy dodge investment on Crazy (−30% dodge) or Sailor (capped at 20%).
Cheap sources
| Item | Gives | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Helmet | +1 Armor, −2% Speed | 15 |
| Feather | +3% Dodge, +1 Ranged Damage | 18 |
| Peaceful Bee | +4% Dodge, +4 Harvesting | 18 |
| Leather Vest | +2 Armor, +6% Dodge, −3 Max HP | 45 |
| Cape | +20% Dodge, +5% Life Steal | 110 |