The Bone Mail is a mid ranked heavy armor in Final Fantasy XII that boosts the wearer's Defense by 35 (Zodiac) or 34 (original) and Strength by 6. It halves Dark damage on the wearer while making them weak to Holy damage.
Obtain[]
Original[]
In the original PlayStation 2 version, the Bone Mail is sold for 5900 gil in Rabanastre and Nalbina Fortress after defeating Judge Bergan.
It is found as a treasure in Salikawood's Trunkwall Road (northeast; 45% chance to appear, 60% chance for gil, 50% chance the item treasure is Bone Mail without the Diamond Armlet equipped 
). It very rarely drops from the Wild Saurian (in The Yoma and Broken Sands only).
Zodiac[]
In the updated Zodiac versions, the Bone Mail is sold for 5700 gil in Mt Bur-Omisace after defeating Vinuskar, and in Mosphoran Highwaste after defeating Judge Bergan. It is found as a treasure in Dalmasca Estersand's The Yoma (75% chance to appear, 35% chance for gil, 50% chance the item treasure is the Bone Mail without the Diamond Armlet equipped), as well as in Trial Mode Stage 86 with the Diamond Armlet equipped. It still very rarely drops from the Wild Saurian in the Yoma and Broken Sands areas of the Estersand.
Use[]
Bone Mail is a mid level armor giving 35 or 34 Defense depending on version and 6 Strength. The strength bonuses make heavy armor ideal for frontline fighters, and the Bone Mail is a good helm to equip over any inferior equipment the player may have on anyone who attacks physically, although a gun-wielder does not benefit from the strength-boost. Bone Mail halves Dark damage while making the wearer weak to Holy, however, Holy is a rare element for enemies to use so it is not too much of a detriment. The Holy-elemental enemies in the game are the superbosses Ultima and Yiazmat, as well as the holy entites and elementals, all of which are faced after the Bone Mail is eclipsed by better armor pieces. However, the Dark-halving property can remain useful until late into the game, such as against the superboss Zodiark. However, the Bone Mail could also be skipped in favor of the Diamond Armor that is available from the shops soon after Bone Mail becomes available.
In the Zodiac versions, Uhlan, Knight, Time Battlemage, and Foebreaker can equip it, and so it is only useful to buy if the player has chosen these License Boards for the party. In The Zodiac Age versions, after fighting Belias the player can choose two License Boards per party member and so more characters can benefit from heavy armor, as it is usually a good idea to match jobs that use different types of armor to bolster light armor jobs' strength, and to give more durability to spellcasters.