Armor (Origins)

Armor is protective covering used to prevent damage from being inflicted to the wearer. Armor mitigates physical damage; it does not make you harder to hit. Shields are an exception; they make you harder to hit and offer additional protection against missile hits. Armor in Dragon Age: Origins does not degrade and can be crafted from a variety of mystical and mundane materials.

Armor comes in the form of body armor, boots, gloves, helmets, and shields. Having the matching set of gloves, boots, and armor of a given set provides additional bonuses; as entire set that was designed to be used together is more effective than mix and match.

There are four types of body armor: massive armor, heavy armor, medium armor, and light armor. To use armor, a character must meet a minimum strength requirement. Armor is not limited by race or class, but some special armors are only usable by specific specializations.

Collars and Kaddis are the upgrade slots for the dog follower and have armor-like properties. The golem Shale can use crystals instead of armor.

Although technically not 'armor', some clothing and Cloth Helmets nonetheless offer limited protection, as well as other stat bonuses, meant especially for mages.

Note that Arcane Warriors using Combat Magic are governed by their Magic attribute instead of Strength requirements listed below.

Resources

 * Developer Post
 * Official Wiki: Armor