I need armor that protects me from piercing, and armor that protects me from shadow.
My armor and helmets (and shield) include:
Divine Veil
Skolver Cap
Vog Cub Coat
Barbarous Thorn Shield
Crest of Almire (once I get a Blackened Crest and the recipe.)
EDIT: I meant the actual "armor" piece and I meant like one for shadow, one for piercing. I apologize for the mix-up.
Radiant Silvermail answers the call of both
If you want great protection then Dread Skelly and Ironmight have excellent defenses
If you care more for offense then Justifier, Skolver, Snarby, and shadowsun provide good offensive choices
If you can afford it go for the BK set
Sorry for mixing up some things. It's fixed!
Okay, but you haven't answered any of my questions: what weapons you use, why you want this kind of armor, etc.
I use swords and guns, mostly swords.
I want the piercing or shadow defense because I noticed that the monsters were doing high damage to me, and I believe that a full set of special damage resistant gear will help me. I already have a full set of elemental resistant gear.
Special scenarios: Dark City, FSC, Lichenous Lair, Wolver Den, Candlestick Keep, Devilish Drudgery.
Great. Then you want
* Piercing: Skolver (easy to get). Consider also Justifier or Mercurial, but not really.
* Shadow: Shadowsun (easy to get, but you're more into swords), Snarbolax (harder to get, because of Shadow Lair), or Black Kat (very hard to get). If you want more pure defense, then consider also Dread Skelly.
If you just care about damage then get skolver, shadowsun, and snarby.
If you care more about survival then you need a larger collection that would allow you to match up to the various status/damage combos in the game.
Shadowsun may be good but when you're up against Devil-ITs then you are probably going to get stomped unless you're good
Why do you want piercing/shadow armor? Are there particular missions or scenarios, in which you'd like more piercing or shadow protection? Why don't you want elemental armor?
Many players (including me) feel that the most important considerations in choosing armor are shock/freeze/fire resistance and offensive bonuses. The other considerations --- damage protection and poison/stun/curse --- are less important.
So, depending on the shock/freeze/fire threats and the weapons that you use, my recommendation is one of
* Vog Cub, Skolver, or Snarbolax
* Shadowsun, Nameless, or Perfect Mask of Seerus
* Volcanic Demo or Mercurial Demo
* Chaos
* Black Kat
If you insist on seeking piercing/shadow armors, then I recommend Skolver, Snarbolax, Shadowsun, or Black Kat.
By the way, shields are very different from armor in this game. (Read the wiki page "Shield".) Consider Crest of Almire, Dread Skelly, Grey Owlite, Omega Shell, Volcanic Plate Shield, and of course Swiftstrike Buckler.