I have a total of 11.8 body armor, and after getting used to it, it's really fine.
Also, never getting one shot by xbows, and sometimes surviving lance in the body.
I probably trade 5-10% of wpf, for a second chance. Depends on your playstyle, but for me, it's worth it.
Also, bodkins are sadly very expensive. Good thing is, there's a lot of archers who uses them. Take tatar arrows, kill archers or stay alive while your teammates (archers) get killed, and loot their arrows. You'll usually find half a dozen of extra bodkins, just for you, and for free.