The Belkanor Plate Armor Set is a full five-piece craftable set in Crimson Desert that doesn't require boss kills or difficult quest completions. Instead, the entire process revolves around raising trust with three specific gear merchants scattered across Gorthak, Tashkalp, and Demeniss, buying their hidden blueprints, and then forging everything at a single smithy. The catch is that each merchant needs 10 Thin Hide before they'll reveal their secret inventory, and some of their stock may not appear until you've progressed far enough in the main story.
Quick answer: Buy 30 Thin Hide from the Tannery in Hernand Town, give 10 to each of the three merchants (Leore in Delesyia, Brookner in Tashkalp, Helmut southeast of Demeniss) to unlock their hidden shops, purchase all blueprints, then craft the set at Smithy Alec south of Hernand using 20 Iron Ore, 8 Copper Ore, and 8 Gold Ore.
Thin Hide — stock up before you travel
You need exactly 30 Thin Hide total, split evenly among the three merchants. The fastest way to get it is from the Tannery shop in Hernand Town, where each piece costs 8 Copper. At 240 Copper for the full stack, it's a trivial expense even early in the game. If you'd rather save the coin, hunting foxes and deer in the forested areas around Hernand and Pailune will yield Thin Hide through skinning, though buying is far quicker.
Merchant 1 — Leore in Delesyia (Armor and Gloves blueprints)
Leore is an equipment vendor in the eastern part of Gorthak, near Delesyia. Hand him 10 Thin Hide to push his trust to 100, which unlocks a hidden tier in his shop. From there, you can purchase the Belkanor Armor blueprint (the chest piece) for 10 silver. Players who have maxed his trust have also reported the Belkanor Gloves blueprint becoming available here.
Merchant 2 — Brookner in Tashkalp (Cloak and Boots)
Brookner sits in the southern part of the Tashkalp region. The same routine applies: give him 10 Thin Hide, max his trust, and his secret shop opens. He sells two Belkanor pieces. The Cloak blueprint costs 10 silver, and the Belkanor Plate Boots can be picked up for roughly 4 silver.
There is a known chapter-gating issue with the boots. Players who visit Brookner early in the story — before roughly Chapter 7 — have found that the boots don't appear in his inventory even at max trust. The cloak blueprint tends to show up without issue, but the boots seem to require additional story progression, likely tied to reaching the Oongka sections of the campaign. If you don't see the boots, continue the main quest and return later.
Merchant 3 — Helmut southeast of Demeniss (Helm blueprint)
The third merchant, Helmut, is positioned southeast of Demeniss at a location sometimes referred to as Stronghelm Forge. Importantly, he is not inside the city walls, so you can reach him even if you haven't progressed far enough in the main quest to enter Demeniss proper. The Demeniss region does need to be at least partially accessible, though — the area around Stronghelm Forge may need to be liberated first, which happens around Chapter 8 or 9.
Give Helmut the final 10 Thin Hide, raise his trust to 100, and buy the Belkanor Plate Helm blueprint. Without max trust, the blueprint won't appear in his shop.
All Belkanor Plate blueprint locations at a glance
| Piece | Merchant | Location | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armor (chest) | Leore | Delesyia, eastern Gorthak | 10 silver | Trust 100 required |
| Gloves | Leore | Delesyia, eastern Gorthak | 10 silver | Trust 100 required |
| Cloak | Brookner | Southern Tashkalp | 10 silver | Trust 100 required |
| Boots | Brookner | Southern Tashkalp | ~4 silver | Trust 100; may require Ch. 7+ |
| Helm | Helmut | Southeast of Demeniss (Stronghelm Forge) | 10 silver | Trust 100; area unlocks Ch. 8–9 |
Crafting the set at Smithy Alec
Once you have all the blueprints, open your inventory and read each crafting manual. This registers the recipes and makes them available at any smithy. Head to Smithy Alec, who is located at the river crossing south of Hernand, where multiple waterways converge.
The total ore cost for the complete Belkanor Plate Armor Set is:
| Material | Quantity needed | Where to find it |
|---|---|---|
| Iron Ore | 20 | Widely scattered across the map; also sold at equipment shops |
| Copper Ore | 8 | Plentiful mining spots throughout Hernand and beyond; purchasable |
| Gold Ore | 8 | Less common; a single gold mine typically yields enough |
Iron and Copper are easy to come by — you'll stumble across mining nodes constantly during normal exploration, and both can be purchased outright from shops if you'd rather skip the mining. Gold Ore is rarer, but a focused trip to any gold mine on the map should net you the eight pieces without much trouble. No Abyss cores, special craft boosters, or additional reagents are needed.
Dye customization and equipping
After forging the full set, equip it from your inventory. The Belkanor Plate Armor Set supports complete dye customization, so every piece can be recolored to match whatever look you're going for. There are no restrictions on dye combinations or additional costs for changing colors.
Story progression and chapter gating
The biggest hurdle with the Belkanor set isn't the materials or the silver — it's chapter progression. Players who rush to these merchants early in the story often find that certain blueprints or the boots simply aren't in stock yet. The cloak and chest piece tend to be available relatively early (around Chapter 6–7), but the boots at Brookner's shop and the helm at Helmut's shop may not appear until later chapters when the surrounding regions have been fully opened through the main quest. If a piece is missing from a merchant's hidden shop despite having trust at 100, continue the story and check back after the next chapter or two.
The Belkanor Plate set is one of the more visually striking armor sets in Crimson Desert, with its lore tying back to a legendary warrior who defended Gorthak. Collecting it takes patience and a fair bit of travel across the map, but the process itself is straightforward — no combat challenges, no puzzle-solving, just trust-building and ore-gathering.