Morrowind Adamantium Armor Guide (Full Set & Helm of Tohan)
Adamantium Armor is one of the strongest medium armor sets in Morrowind, and you can pick up nearly all of it in Balmora with no leveling required. The last piece, the Helm of Tohan, takes a trip to the far north, but it's the best medium helmet in the game.
The video walks through the route from Balmora all the way to the helm — this guide has the stats, locations, and quest details laid out so you can check them while you play.
Jump to a Section
Overview
Adamantium is a rare metal, and the armor made from it is among the better medium sets you can get. The cuirass, pauldrons, bracers, greaves and boots all sit at 40 armor rating. That's a step below Indoril Armor at 45 per piece, and well short of the Royal Guard armor from Tribunal at 55, but it's far easier to get.
The helmet is the exception. The Helm of Tohan has 70 armor rating, far above the rest of the set, and an enchant capacity of 150, twice what a Daedric helmet offers.
One thing to sort out before you go anywhere: none of this is in the base game. The set comes from the official Adamantium Armor plugin and the helm from the official Helm of Tohan plugin. The GOG release bundles both but leaves them switched off, so enable them under Data Files in the launcher. Steam doesn't include them, but UESP's plugins page has the downloads. There's also no Adamantium shield, even with every expansion installed.
Quick Reference
Stats from UESP's Adamantium Armor and Helm of Tohan pages.
Where to Get the Armor
Meldor's Chest (Balmora)
Head into Meldor's Armory in Balmora and go downstairs. There's a locked chest down there holding the whole set except the helmet: cuirass, both pauldrons, both bracers, greaves and boots. Open it with a lockpick or an Open spell. Treat everything inside as stolen goods, since it all belongs to Meldor.
One quirk: the chest never runs out of boots. Take a pair and there's another one waiting.
Buying the Pieces
If you'd rather not pick a lock, Meldor sells the set too, and so do Dandera Selaro in Ald'ruhn, Hodlismod in Caldera, and Ralen Tilvur in Vivec. Dandera and Hodlismod keep the same kind of chest Meldor does. Buying is expensive, though. The set without the helm is worth about 30,000 gold at base value, and the greaves are priced like the cuirass at 10,000 each, which is a strange number for a leg piece.
The Helm of Tohan
The helmet isn't in any chest or shop. The only way to get it is the Helm of Tohan quest below, and you have to start it in Dagon Fel.
How to Get the Helm of Tohan
Getting to Dagon Fel
From Balmora, take the Silt Strider to Vivec, then a boat to Ebonheart, another boat to Sadrith Mora, and a last one to Dagon Fel. It's a few transfers, but it's the easiest route from Balmora.
Starting the Quest
Talk to anyone in Dagon Fel and ask about Latest Rumors. Keep asking until you get the one about the Norvayne brothers searching for an ancient helmet in the ruins of Onnissiralis. This is the step you can't skip. Without that rumor, the brothers won't be at the ruins and you won't get the key. Once you have it, Vas gets marked on your map. If you're carrying a bounty of 1,000 gold or more, the rumor won't come up until you clear it.
Finding Onnissiralis
Run due west from Dagon Fel. It takes about five minutes to reach Vas, and a Water Walking spell makes the trip a lot easier. From Vas, keep heading west and you'll see a small island with two Dunmer standing outside. Those are the Norvayne brothers, and the ruins of Onnissiralis are right behind them.
The Norvayne Brothers
Talk to either brother and ask about exploring the ruins. They're in the middle of an argument: one wants outside help clearing the place, and the other thinks it should stay a family matter. They settle it with a fistfight.
Don't get involved. Attack either brother and they both turn on you, and you lose the key. Just watch. It doesn't matter who wins, but it does change how the next part goes. If Dalin, the brother with the red hair, wins, both brothers follow you into the ruins and help you clear them out. If Daris, the one with black hair, wins, you're on your own. Either way, once the fight is over, talk to them and you'll get a key. You need it for the helm's chest.
If they just stand there twitching instead of fighting, that's a known bug. UESP lists a fix on the quest page.
Clearing Onnissiralis
None of the cultists are tough. A Redguard in full steel armor jumps you right inside the entrance, and he's probably the strongest enemy in the place. Near the start there's also a crate with a full set of alchemy gear, a mix of apprentice and journeyman pieces. Go deeper and you'll meet a woman with a spear in netch leather, a Nord with a two-handed hammer, and a couple of mages, one of them in steel armor. UESP lists six hostile worshippers of Sheogorath in total at Onnissiralis.
I cleared it at level 7 without much trouble, and I think a good race and class combination could do it at level 1.
The shrine room at the bottom has a flame atronach soul gem, two diamonds, three pieces of ebony ore and two rubies sitting on the shrine. Pick up an ebony ore and a Dremora attacks, so be ready before you grab it. Behind the shrine is a chest with a lock level of 100. Open it with the Norvayne key and the Helm of Tohan is inside.
Who It's For / Tips & Things to Know
Best for: Warriors who plan to enchant their gear. Adamantium is slightly better to enchant than most medium sets, and the Helm of Tohan's 150 enchant capacity is hard to beat. The right pauldron's enchant value of 10 is the best of any medium pauldron, too, even though the left one only has 3. It's also a great-looking set. I just think it looks cool.
Armor rating context: At 40 per piece, the body armor trails Indoril (45) and the Tribunal Royal Guard set (55). The helm closes some of that gap. At 100 Medium Armor skill, 70 armor rating works out to 233 from a four-pound helmet. The LeFemm plugin's Gold Armor (60) is higher too, but it's tailored for female characters.
No Ordinator trouble: Unlike Indoril, nobody will attack you for wearing Adamantium, so you can wear the whole set in Vivec and Ghostgate. See the Indoril Armor guide for the full story on that.
Skipping the quest: If you can open a level 100 lock yourself, you don't need the key. You'd still have to clear the ruins, and without the rumor the brothers won't be there.
If the rumor never shows up: This usually means the plugin was added after the character was created. UESP has a workaround on the Helm of Tohan quest page.
