Are the newb armor quests available on lockjaw? The quests that you get bone chips and other items and combine them for class specific armor. I started playing EQ well after classic and am not sure when those quests were started.
Actually there are armor quests for dwarf plate wearers. They are completed by collecting certain scarab beetle parts and turning them in along with some cash for a BP, Helm and boots.
I'd venture a guess that the curscale armor quests in Field of Bone will go active when Kunark is released but until then old school ways of getting gear will be the only option for newbies. Edit to add: There's always the patchwork armor. It trivials at 26 and just requires a pattern and a ruined wolf/cat/bear pelt. It's pretty comparable to the curscale armor above, just takes a slightly different line of thinking.
The newbie armour quests were added between mid-Velious (Halfling) and the start of Luclin. Casters can use raw silk, everyone else can use patchwork/tattered (leather), and plate classes can wear banded. The dwarf scarab quested armour is a good starter. Some of the quests, e.g. Crushbone belts hand back patchwork.
As a high elf cleric I did the following. level 1-? - Gather Cloth, get a large sewing kit, make tattered armor Level 10ish+ - Crushbone drops stuff that's a little better than tattered level ? - Unrest (Clerics love Undead), Tons of Small Ringmail drops here, easily got a suit of the stuff minus Chest (only rare part I guess). Level 20+ - Still Unrest, started getting basement groups, got tons of Bronze drops Level 25+ - Started doing the Armor of the Priest quests from Temple of Solusek Ro off lavastorm, the Chest is hard to get but worth it (comes with a buff extension effect), the bracers aren't lore, so get 2 of them (nice +wis piece) I wouldn't bother too much with gear at lower levels, once you get to your mid 20s look at SolRo Temple (The P1999 Wiki can help you find gear for your class)
