so here my idea will have its own topic
i think armor would be nice having holes in the hull
just in time escaping with holes in your defence
i have thought of a way but its a bit hard to explain because its build in diffrent parts so look
have you seen the redpower mod with covers that are flat perfectly in all the diffrent colors and textures
they can be used to cover up redstone while not requiring an extra block they have an collision box but two can fit in the same block
i think you could use something like that
a single pain has an hp of say 100
you have already discussed that if each block has hp for itself you get borgships
but this block has life on its own buttt if its dealed damage and it doesnt destroy it instantly it diverts 70 % percent of the damage to a 3x3 ring around it and to the inside it doesnt matter how much layers you have each 3x3 layer damage behind the hit plate would receive 70 % percent damage.
the real block against the pane would be destroyd at the same moment that the pane is destroyd
i have made an demonstration
there could be diffrent kinds of armor like heavy to light
and because there seperate of eachother you could plate key components heavier then things you dont really need
you could make it in a way that it counts the weight of the total armor and uses that to calculate the amount of engines needed
borg like ships are still possible but not as good because all the layers would be constantly receiving damage + you need more engine power
and because there seperate blocks someone needs to place them one by one making it very irritating to place them
but i have thought of an idea to place it in large amounts but furst i want to hear what you think of it
and again sorry for my grammar.