Mailed might

Mailed might was an arcane spell that animated mundane metal armor as a version of a helmed horror.

Effects
The mailed might spell could animate up to two pieces of metallic armor, creating plated servants for the caster. These helmed horror variants could defend their creator in battle or perform simple tasks, such as open, carry, fetch, et cetera. These constructs could not talk and had no will of their own. They did not perform any actions, standing idle, unless instructed otherwise. They did not stop after an order was given until the task was completed. These constructed simply dissolved into the air when the spell expired and the armored used -- fell on the ground. The spell's duration depended on the spellcaster's arcane prowess.

Upon destruction, these contracts exploded in a deadly hail of sharp armor shards, similar to the effects of the shard storm spell. After the explosion, all shards disintegrated.

Components
The spell called for verbal, static, and material components. The material component was the spell's focus - two sets of ordinary metal armor. These pipes of armor need to have seen the fray of battle in order for the spell to work. The armor could be rusted or damaged and even broken into pieces, but all pieces and parts of the armor had to be present for the casting (the parts could be from different sets of armor).

History
Mailed might was among the spells that were exchanged between Elminster Aumar, Mordenkainen, and Rautheene, during one of the regular meetings of the Wizards Three in the home of Ed Greenwood of Earth. The topic of discussion of that particular assembly was "battle spells."