The armor you wear in Elden Ring can greatly affect your chance of survival. Some armor sets can be dropped by regular enemies, while others are acquired through specific tasks, such as completing sidequests. The Scaled Armor set fits into the latter category; you’ll have to join Volcano Manor and take on the first available bounty to obtain it.
To join Volcano Manor, you’ll have to travel through Mount Gelmir in Atlus Plateau until you reach the manor. Then, you’ll speak with Tanith, who can be found next to the manor’s Site of Grace. She’ll then offer you a chance to join forces with her. If you accept, she’ll give you a key to a drawing room down the hall from her. In this room, you’ll find some NPCs waiting around, as well as a table with some items on it. One of these items will be a letter; pick it up to learn about your bounty.
Read the letter, and you’ll find that your target is Old Knight Istvan. Luckily, finding him isn’t difficult, as the letter will mark your bounty’s location on your map, which you can see below.
Istvan is located on the ground slightly north of Limgrave’s Divine Bridge. When you arrive, however, you won’t see him at first. At the marked location, you should see a red summon sign that you can interact with to invade Istvan’s world. Do this and you’ll load into a one-on-one battle against Istvan. He’s a formidable foe, and can be quite a hassle to deal with if you’re underleveled. We recommend you hold off on fighting him until you’re around level 90.
Thankfully, most of Istvan’s attacks are fairly slow, and have such high ending lag that you should be able to get off a jumping heavy attack after he finishes any one move. Remember to watch out for his AOE magic attack. You’ll know this is coming if he plunges his sword into the ground. Once he does that, he’ll summon a circle of damage-dealing magic around him. Just roll away once you see him put his blade in the ground. Once you beat him, he’ll drop the Scaled Armor, which will now be yours to equip.
