just curious...why is Riot Gear more damage resistant than power armor? Esoecially the Elite.

I would think the opposite would be true.

Because it's not? It's only superior to the T-45d Power Armor in terms of DT, and it's only by 1 point of DT when wearing both the armor and the helmet. This is to probably show how inferior the T-45d model is, which looks like crap IMO.

T-51b and Enclave Power Armor are the PAs worth using anyway.

Because gameplay mechanics. "lore-wise" T45 should be at 27ish + the helm putting it at low 30s. T51b & Remnants should exceed 36+ with armor + helm. They're power armor for a reason.

The DT system is a plus for Power armor... if their DT was actually high. But Obsidian dropped the ball and made them ridiculously weak while making light and medium armor over-powered. The only medium armor that should exceed 20 DT is the Advanced and Elite Riot gear. Speaking of which, why is reinforced Metal armor less than 20 and weaker than reinforced combat armor... MK 1 let alone MK2? I'm not sure what they were thinking. But it makes no sense.

Because PA isn't worth it. Good Medium Armours work just as well as PA without making you slower than a snail stuck of molasses. Not to mention the PA's look clunky and disproportionate.

To be honest, none of that matters, as Bleedthrough 20% kind of kills the idea of "Power Armor".