It makes me wonder, thinking of this in the context of a D&D fantasy world. If it's SO expensive and difficult to make a suit of full plate armor, but apparently not very difficult at all to enchant some lesser armor, which will then be just as protective as the full plate, why would anyone ever make full plate anymore? If +1 Splint Mail is cheaper and easier to produce than Full Plate, why ever make Full Plate? Why ever wear Full Plate?
In BG1 and BG2 you couldn't combine magical armor with other magical rings or amulets or cloaks that gave a bonus to your armor class. So there was actually an incentive to wear full plate without enchantments in the Baldur's Gate games, (or any non magical armor for that matter), if it meant you could also sport a ring that gave +3 to your armor class. I can't recall if this was an AD&D 2e thing, but it was a nice solution for the games since the DM determines what kind of rewards are given anyway.
ps. the lack of cloaks and capes and such is notable. I haven't found any in game. Many of the coolest looks involve these, obviously.
