A force damping system progressively arrests a force imparted by an object generally includes a force damper member, a tear-away lanyard, and a force absorbing harness. The force damper member includes a compression member and a sacrificially elongatable member. The compression member is elastically deformable and compressible when the force is imparted, and the sacrificially elongatable member is plastically deformable and elongatable when the force is imparted. The tear-away lanyard includes a first terminal end and a second terminal end and at least a pair of sacrificial tear-away regions disposed between the first and second terminal ends. The force absorbing harness includes a harness connection member capable of connecting at least one of the first terminal or second terminal end of the tear-away lanyard, the harness connection member includes a sacrificial member that is plastically deformable when the force is imparted.