Rank 1-3 flak/ carapace if given automatically

The only PC options that start with armour better than Guard Flak are some of the Alternate Ranks from later supplements, and many of these are effected by rampant 'power-creep', so be sure to keep an eye out for that. Even the fans of the Crimson Guard Alternate Rank from The Lathe Worlds , for example , don't try to claim that it is fairly balanced against the other Rank 1 Careers...

You call it power creep, I call it "original DH baseline characters are pretty much squishy crap compared to what the Black Industries modules throw at you, let alone FFG modules/bestiaries."

I don't put on restrictions beyond what they can find with Availability modifiers for the world they're currently on. It's not game breaking to allow shopping trips when on, say, Scintilla or Malfi, for the rarer stuff (which is also quite expensive, and acolytes are hardly rolling in gelt). Carapace isn't remotely overpowered if characters are going up against Slaugth. The only truly overpowered stuff is Sororitas power armor, and even that won't save you against a lot of non-mooks.

Slaugth are not intended to be Rank 1 Adversaries; by the time it's appropriate for PCs to be running into the Maggot-Men, they should be able to afford to buy their own Carapace armour.

Tell that to the DH GM Kit.

Basically why I'm putting Maggots in the Meat pretty late campaign I plan on running.

Well, in my DH group i usually give them the opportunity to shop at the appropriate times. Like my last groupt started as several of them arrived on Pilgrims Pause per Pilgrim bark. On their way to the nearest resting local from the Ecclesiarchy the ran through 2 different market places. Why not spend some Thrones?

If the availability is higher than common i make a roll if it's on display. If they want something not on display AND the group has the time he can roll the dice for Inquiry, otherwise he lucked out.

And weapons and armour always cause my civilans/NPCs to react. So unless they are not on a combat op every (local) Arbites is going to ask them into which war they are heading, civiloians run away, gangers smell money/competition/trouble....

And i give them jobs where heavy/modern equipment is a huge disadvantage.

One of their next jobs is to sniff out a fugitive/tomb robber hiding on Heterodyne, a feudal world. Horses, black powder guns, iron and steel for weapons and armor ... and not one generator in sight to recharge a simple charge pack for a las pistol.

That's what campside fires and tech priests are for.

I had a munitorium set-up at the Tricorn where the acolytes could get gear on loan, from weapons to armour and other gear. This allowed 2 things to happen:

1-I could reasonably control what they had; a rank 1 acolyte couldn't hope to get a carapace armour or boltgun (they're untested and unbloodied) but flak, lasguns, special gear like aupex, silencers and anything else up to scarce avail, no problem; of course they had to pass a literacy test to fill up the paperwork properly to actually borrow the thing. It wasn't a one shot deal mind you, they could roll as much as required but it ended up wasting precious time, and actually have a use for literacy. The only other requirement was if they lost/damaged anything, part of their next pay(s) had a cut as to reimburse the item.

Now that they are rank 8+, and took the Quartermaster as a contact, they basically got the doors of the munitorium open for them, but even then, they already bought/borrowed/retrieve the weapons they need (They're less about having the most powerful gun/armour than what actually fits their character- so silenced autopistols, dual laspistols and shotgun for everyday operation- The Tech-Priest got implanted lasguns and weapon mechanrendrites because hey- cult of Sollex)

2-Since they got access to pretty much what they want/need, they had little need to loot (I think they only did that once, even then it was high end weapons like power sword and bolt weaponry, as the tech-priest was not going to let those just lying there on some feudal world filled with backwater yahoos) and they actually could save money to buy that one piece of fancy gear they wanted; keeping with the Tech-Priest, he bought all of his mechanrendrites and cybernetics implants he wanted without too much trouble as he didn't had to spend all that money on weapons, armour, gear and ammo. The assassin got a best quality armoured bodygloves and some best quality Emperor's whispers. etc etc...

plus with a store they can borrow gear it feels more like they're part of some large organization instead of being dumped in a flask of mud and told to get busy chasin' heretics.

And i meant that they occasionally get sent to planets where certain equipment is even more obvious and indescret than in a hive. That is not something you should use/have when you want to remain incongnito. Otherwise your prey will get away.