My grandfather is a big guy, and he once took a pellet in the forehead from a hunting "buddy." One single pellet knocked him off his feet, of course it wasn't a ricochet. When us grandkids were young he would have us feel where the pellet was still imbedded in his skull.

I have heard the old guys talking about shooting doves with reclaimed shot and they said that they had been occasionally hit by a stray pellet that they assumed due to its odd shape had taken a nearly 90 degree path.
CHAZ