People seem to be thinking armored tail = a tail fully encased in armor like a worm in a metal tube. What I believe OP is suggesting is similar to that 1.0 screenshot earlier in the thread. A set of plate or leather armor can have the tail partially covered to show some protection (and attention to friggin detail like we used to have) without it looking odd. The Evenstar set was an abomination that had to have been a joke by the art team for how stupid it looked. I would definitely like this little detail to come back into future designs but I'm doubtful it'll happen.