Tanks gained thicker armour and active protection systems so they could manoeuvre under fire. The battlefield is becoming saturated not simply with autonomous systems but with autonomous systems hunting one another in an increasingly rapid cycle of adaptation. Protecting combat power increasingly means protecting the capacity to regenerate combat power. The preservation of freedom of action and combat power is still the purpose of military protection. In the drone age, forces may increasingly preserve combat power by combining selective protection with regeneration, adaptation and industrial resilience.