10 Best Armors In Chapter 1

Highlights

Armors in Baldur's Gate 3 determine a character's Armor Class, with different types suited for different classes and playstyles.
Hide Armor +2 provides a bonus to Dexterity saving throws and checks, making it ideal for Bards, Rangers, and classes focused on high Dexterity.
The Adamantine Scale Mail and Splint Armor have special effects that reduce damage and penalize enemies, making them excellent choices for STR-focused classes like Paladins and Fighters.

Armors in Baldur's Gate 3 are the biggest contributors to how much Armor Class a character is going to have. There are three types of armor in the game, each suited for different classes and playstyles, and each requiring a different type of proficiency to be worn.

Rogues want Light Armor to get a bonus to stealth and deception, Rangers prefer Medium Armor to gain the benefit from putting points into Dexterity, and Paladins want Heavy Armor to counteract the lack of investment into Dexterity. But there is a ton of variation in builds and multiclassing, and one shoe definitely doesn't fit all.

10 Hide Armor +2

Type: Medium Armor
AC: 14
Best For: Bard, Ranger
How To Obtain: Sold by Grat The Trader in Goblin Camp.

Hide Armor +2 is a big upgrade from the regular Hide Armor and not just the flat AC boost. Hide Armor +2 gives anyone who is wearing it an automatic +1 to all Dexterity saving throws and checks. This means boosts to lockpicking, stealth, and anything that requires high DEX to succeed.

College of Valour and College of Swords Bards appreciate this armor the most as they get used out of the additional DEX much more often than other classes. Rangers are also good candidates if they're already focused on pumping points into Dexterity.

9 Drow Studded Leather Armor

Type: Light Armor
AC: 12
Best For: Rogue, Ranger
How To Obtain: Inside a Heavy Chest hidden in Lolth's Cultist's cache at the Festering Cove.

Not only is the Drow Studded Leather Armor one of the better Light Armors in Act 1, but it is also among the most stylish. Both Shadowheart and Astarion look phenomenal in the armor set, but Astarion gets more practical use out of it.

The +1 to Stealth means that Astarion will have an easier time sneaking around, and enemies are much less likely to catch on to him if he sticks to the shadows. Gloomstalker Rangers focused on ranged damage can also benefit a lot from having this on.

8 The Oakfather's Embrace

Type: Medium Armor
AC: 13
Best For: Druid
How To Obtain: Found on a skeleton in the Owlbear's Nest.

The Owlbear's nest is an easily missable area just to the right of the entrance of the Blighted Village entrance. The Oakfather's Embrace is protected by the mother owlbear, but you can sneak past her to find the armor on the skeleton. Or, if you fail the stealth check, come back to this area after reaching the Goblin Camp to find the Owlbear dead and the skeleton unprotected.

Druids benefit the most from the special effect of this armor as they are much less likely to be attacked by Beasts due to their nature as animal whisperers. And if you find yourself dealing with a particularly bloodthirsty animal, you can always transform into your Wild Shape to negate the negative debuff from the armor.

7 The Jolty Vest

Type: Medium Armor
AC: 13
Best For: Fighter, Paladin, Bard
How To Obtain: Sold by Brem in the Zhentarim Hideout after completing the Find the Missing Shipment quest.

The Jolty Vest makes up for its subpar Armor Class by virtue of its interesting ability. The way it works is that whenever someone attacks the wearer, they need to make a DEX save or be shocked until the next turn. Shocked status means they have disadvantage on DEX saving throws and cannot take reactions.

The Jolty Vest is best suited for Melee combatants like Paladins, who are always going to be within melee range of enemies. The special effect only procs when hit by a melee attack. The Jolty Vest works best when combined with other pieces of Lightning gear to make a full Lightning Charges build.

6 Dark Justicar Mail

Type: Medium Armor
AC: 13
Best For: Rogue, Ranger
How To Obtain: Looted from multiple Dark Justiciar corpses in the Grymforge.

You'll find multiple dead bodies of Dark Justiciars from a previous war lying about at the entrance of the Grymforge. Looting their bodies will reveal multiple pieces of Dark Justiciar Mail.

The special effect on the Dark Justiciar Mail, Nightsinger's Reply, allows Assasin Rogues and Gloomstalker Rangers to deal an additional 1d4 Necrotic damage every time they attack from the shadows. If you have the proficiency for it, it can be an amazing source of extra damage.

5 Githyanki Half Plate

Type: Medium Armor
AC: 15
Best For: Fighter, Paladin, Ranger
How To Obtain:Lae'zel's starting armor. It can also be obtained by killing the Githyanki at the entrance of the Mountain Pass.

Lae'zel starts off with Githyanki Half Plate as a base armor set, but it can be swapped around to any party member who can benefit from the high AC this armor provides.

Before leveling up, Lae'zel doesn't really have the ability to take full advantage of this armor since she can't benefit fully from the extra +2 AC from DEX Medium Armors. This is why it's a good idea to give Lae'zel the heavy armor with the highest AC you can find and swap the Githyanki Half Plate to someone like Shadowheart until you can get Lae'zel's DEX to 14.

4 Chain Mail +1

Type: Heavy Armor
AC: 17
Best For: Fighter, Paladin
How To Obtain: Sold by Dammon (Druid Grove), Roah Moonglow (Goblin Camp), and Derryth Bonecloak (Ebonlake Grotto)

Heavy Armor is quite rare in Baldur's Gate 3, especially during the early game. Though a bit on the pricey side, Chain Mail +1 is one of the best early-game Heavy Armor pieces players can get.

Sold by multiple vendors, you'll get plenty of chances to get your hands on it, even if you antagonize one or two merchants. Lae'zel, in particular, loves having this armor to make up for her lacking Dexterity score.

3 Spidersilk Armor

Type: Light Armor
AC: 12
Best For: Rogue, Wizard, Sorcerer, Cleric
How To Obtain: Kill Minthara and loot her body.

Most players, when faced with the choice of massacring the grove by siding with the Absolute or saving Halsin and killing the cultists, will choose the second option nine times out of ten. We have the stats to prove it.

So, most players will find themselves in possession of Minthara's set of armor by the time the first chapter of the game is wrapping up. Other than providing a dash of style, it provides decent AC, and its special effect makes maintaining concentration much, much easier for spellcasters. The +1 stealth is just the cherry on top.

2 Adamantine Scale Mail

Type: Medium Armor
AC: 16
Best For: Cleric, Fighter, Bard
How To Obtain: Combine Scale Mail Mold and one Mithril Ore in The Adamantine Forge.

The Adamantine Forge is located in the Grymforge just after you deal with True Soul Nere trapped in the rubble. There is a massive steel guardian protecting the forge that you'll have to defeat in order to unlock the forge and its crafting capabilities. There are multiple options for what you can craft, but you'll be limited by Mithril Ore, which is a rare resource in Act 1 (only two instances found so far).

The Adamantine Scale Mail has multiple special effects that elevate it above other types of armor. All incoming damage is reduced by 1, and any enemy that successfully hits you in melee range gets a -1 penalty to Attack rolls for 2 turns. Not to mention the fact that nobody can land a critical hit on you while you're wearing this armor.

1 Adamantine Splint Armor

Type: Heavy Armor
AC: 18
Best For: Paladin. Cleric, Fighter
How To Obtain: Combine Splint Mold and one Mithril Ore in The Adamantine Forge.

The Adamantine Splint Armor is the heavy version of the Adamantine Scale Mail. It has all the same special effects as its counterpart except upgraded in every way. The AC is 18 instead of 16, the damage negation is 2 instead of 1, and the -1 penalty to enemies lasts for 3 turns instead of 2.

Heavy armors don't get +2 DEX bonus Medium armors do, which is why they're more suited for STR-focused classes. Frontliners like Paladins, Tempest Domain Clerics, and Champion Fighters benefit the most from having this armor on.

Next: Baldur's Gate 3: All Soul Coin Locations