10190 Active Defensive Armor

Active Defensive Armor
Gear EQUIP card

card text:

[EQUIP]
:|: This card expires during the Discard Phase if it possesses 0 counters. Place 5 "armor" counters on this card when it is put in play.

:|: This vessel's Mobility gains -1.

When this vessel is attacked, you may pay 1 armor counter from this card to reduce the damage by 5 (only once per card if attacked by an ATTACK card).

description:
Active Defensive Armor is another defensive buff reducing combat damage only.

Unlike another armor card (Reactive Armor: Electromagnetic), Active Defensive Armor doesn't "transfer" counters from the ship to this card (see this post for more game keywords.) For this card, you'll simply add 5 armor counters to it from the general counter pool.

Also, like Reactive Armor: Electromagnetic, this card's effect is optional ("you may"). But it also stipulates you may pay one (and only 1) armor counter to reduce combat damage by 5 from any attack hitting your ship. But this armor can be used only once per ATTACK card shooting at you. If an ATTACK card allows multiple shots, you can mitigate only one of them.

Don't forget the Mobility cost: your ship's Mobility is reduced by 1 while you have this card equipped. If you reach the Discard Phase and it possesses no more armor counters, your Active Defensive Armor expires and goes to the discard pile - which also removes the -1 to Mobility debuff, effectively gaining Mobility when losing this card.