History Main / AnimatedArmor

[[folder:Film -- Animated]]

[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]

* Doku from the UsefulNotes/XBox reboot of ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden''.

** ''Birth by Sleep Final Mix'' has the Armor of Eraqus and No Heart, which appear to be data versions of Master Eraqus's and Xehanort's Keyblade Armor.

In Science Fiction settings, a similar effect may be achieved by using PoweredArmor in unmanned mode (programmed or remote).

* A commercial for Hammerite paint showed four rusty suits of armour marching into a junkyard, there to paint each other with the product — and at the end, three brightly-painted suits walked out, and the fourth [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse was never seen again]].

* In ''Manga/DeliciousInDungeon'', animated armor stands vigilant in an old throne room. The party is fully aware of the threat, having passed that way on a previous dungeon crawl, but is caught off-guard regardless when the armor attacks them more aggressively than normal. Laios laments his inability to cook and eat them, something that he'd been getting accustomed to with other monsters, but they prove to slot into the ecosystem of the dungeon just like like any other monster. [[spoiler: Turns out they’re a colonial organism, made up of many interlinked clam-like monsters who mimic armour with their metallic shells. Even their swords are just specialized clams. They're unusually active right now because they're protecting their eggs. The party serves the clams up steamed, fried, grilled, and in soup.]]
* In ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' one can become this if a person attaches someone's soul to a suit of armor with a blood seal.
** Alphonse Elric is one of these. The fact that he has [[VocalDissonance the voice of an eleven-year-old]] takes a lot of the intimidation factor right out. It ''does'' [[ActuallyThatsMyAssistant get him mistaken]] for the Fullmetal Alchemist [[RunningGag on a regular basis]], which annoys his brother Ed--the ''real'' Fullmetal Alchemist--to no end.

** There are also the mass-produced suits of armor Hohenheim created for [[ThoseWackyNazis the Thule Society]] in ''Anime/FullmetalAlchemistTheConquerorOfShamballa''. Though they have people inside them, they've been killed by the intense cosmic forces inside the portal that connects the FMA-verse to the real world & the armors are animated by the [[EldritchAbomination forces]] that dwell within the gate. Taken to a slightly creepy level when [[spoiler:Al takes control of one (which [[ContrivedCoincidence just happens to look like his old self]]) and uses it to help him fight the others, then after they get recalled, temporarily mind-rides back to our world with it]].
* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] in ''Anime/GargantiaOnTheVerdurousPlanet''--[[spoiler:[[WellIntentionedExtremist Kugel]] was [[DeadAllAlong dead]] long before [[AntiHero Ledo]] found his fleet, but his [[HumongousMecha Machine Caliber]], [[AIIsACrapshoot Striker]], pretends that he is still alive inside of her so that she can continue his work]]. A similar twist, even though the "animated" part is to be expected.
* ''Manga/{{Guyver}}'': If the host is killed while in use of the armor, it goes into a murderous autopilot until it's host is resurrected. Technically not empty of an occupant aside from a temporary corpse, still qualifies for this trope regardless.
* Not really armor, but in ''Anime/KillLaKill'' Senketsu (and Junketsu to a lesser extent) are both [[LivingWeapon living sailor uniforms]] that can transform into [[{{Stripperiffic}} very skimpy]] armor.

* ''Manga/HunterXHunter'': In the GREED ISLAND arc, Gon and Killua were facing the monsters on the island, one of which is a small rat-like creature that controls a suit of armor while it hides.
* In ''Anime/PokemonTheSeriesBlackAndWhite'', an episode had a Yamask haunting a museum, going as far as having a suit of armor attack the gang. Similarly, another episode has a group of Litwick scare the gang by using Psychic and making a bunch of objects form a makeshift golem, such as a statue bust for a head, an umbrella for a sword, etc.

* In the ''Anime/RoninWarriors'' [=OVA=] ''Gaiden'' the Armor of Halo is seen running around the streets of New York without its owner. Turns out it is being controlled by [[EvilSorcerer Shikaisen]] the BigBad of the story. The Armor of Torrent is seen walking on its own in the last episode of the [=OVA=] ''Legend of the Inferno Armor'' in order to join the other Ronin armors that were captured by [[BrainwashedAndCrazy Mukala]]. It has been confirmed by the main characters that the armors can be used for good or evil but the more fights the armors are used in, especially without the human spirit, [[TheHeartless the more corrupt the armors become]]. That is why by the end of the second [=OVA=] [[spoiler:the armors are destroyed for good]].
* In ''Anime/SaintSeiya'', both Gold Saints of Gemini have used their armour to defend their temple without actually having to be there or wearing it. [[BlindSeer Shiryu]] overcomes the first instance of this quite effectively.

* In ''{{Literature/Slayers}} Evolution-R'' the cast meets one of these when they begin their search for the Hellmaster's Jar. [[spoiler:This armor is in fact possessed by the soul of Naga the Serpent, who had a run-in with another cursed jar. In the process, Naga lost her memories and began referring to herself as Nama.]]
** In the same story arc they help a squad of animated armors recover the Helmet of one of their members.

* One of the pre-Season 8 ''ComicBook/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' comics featured Angelus assembling a very [[VideoGame/{{Darkstalkers}} Bishamon]] like armour.
* ComicBook/ConanTheBarbarian once fought one of these guys, realizing he was screwed as even though he could chop the arm and the head of the armor off, the thing could still attack. Thankfully the Wench of the Week shone some light into the priest controlling it, following which it collapsed like a sack of potatoes.
* ''ComicBook/FreaksSqueele'': Xiong Mao is exploring deep in the Hall of Archives with her companions in volume 9 when she encounters a living suit of armor who has been down there for centuries. His master was a knight so excessively fond of wearing plate armor that he [[TwentyFourHourArmor did not take it off to eat, to sleep, or even to have sex]]. He gave it a name: Halifax. And thus, the armor came to life. One day the knight died, and according to his will, he was interred together with Halifax. After several centuries of his master's silence and decomposition, Halifax climbed out of the tomb with his master's corpse still inside him and searched through every library it could find for the secret to reviving his master, eventually finding his way to the archives. Then, when Xiong Mao and her friends arrived, he remembered how his knight used to seduce women with the words, "If you do not offer me your heart, I will die!" Therefore, he is now convinced that he needs to take the heart of a woman -- literally -- and politely asks Xiong Mao to hold still while he cuts out her heart. That's just the start of the craziness.
* ComicBook/IronMan's armors are sometimes remote-controlled. And sometimes, like in ''Hypervelocity'' or the [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything Tony's Abusive Boyfriend]] arc, it has its own AI, which can impersonate him and speak. Special mention goes to the Safe Armor, which was partially infected by ComicBook/{{Ultron}} and became {{yandere}} for Tony.
* PlayedForLaughs in ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'' with "A History of Sex." A LadyAndKnight are eager to enjoy their wedding night, and the bride is eagerly pulling off her husband's multiple pieces of plate mail. It's only after she ''finally'' removes the helmet does she realize she's just married one of these.
* The Destroyer from ''ComicBook/TheMightyThor'' has been described as such, but is quite a deconstruction of the idea: The Destroyer armor is physically empty and only moves when animated by the LifeEnergy of a person using it, willingly or not. The same goes for the Destroyer in [[Film/{{Thor}} the film]], with the added coolness of being able to reverse its entire body. And [[SlowLaser energy blasts]].

* ''ComicBook/TheTransformersMarvel'': The Pretenders could remote-operate their synthetic-flesh shells from outside to fight alongside them.
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: Etta and Bobby are poking at a suit of armor in Lotsa Dough's manor museum when it moves and orders them to follow. By the time they realize that it's not an eccentric wearing the armor but Dr. Psycho using his ectoplasmic control, the Holliday Girls have already walked into a trap.

* Appears in ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'', while Cogsworth is showing Belle around the enchanted castle.
* An animated suit of armor appears in addition to the chorus of ghostly ancestors in Halas and Batchelor's animated adaptation of Creator/GilbertAndSullivan's comic opera ''Theatre/{{Ruddigore}}''.

* In Disney's [[TheFilmOfTheBook film adaptation]] of ''Film/BedknobsAndBroomsticks'' Ms. Price casts a spell that animates old suits of armour and old war uniforms to fight off German invaders. This is, in fact, the basis of the entire movie. They spend the first two-thirds or so of the movie ''getting'' the spell, and then the remainder of the movie ''using'' it.

* Like in the books, the suits of Hogwarts Armors in ''Film/HarryPotter'' can be animated. The incantation is 'Pierototem locomotor'.
-->'''Professor [=McGonagall=]:''' I've ''always'' wanted to use that spell!
* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse:
** The Destroyer in ''Film/{{Thor}}''. Its arrival to Earth includes this lovely ShoutOut.
--->'''Agent Sitwell:''' Is that one of [[ComicBook/IronMan Stark's]]?\\

** ''Film/IronMan3:'' The Mark 42 armor can be piloted remotely by Tony or controlled ''sans'' pilot by J.A.R.V.I.S. [[spoiler:The same applies to all of Tony's other armors, which he summons to fight off the Mooks in the climax.]]
** ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming:'' Iron Man rescues Spider-Man from drowning, but it turns out to be just an empty set of armor that Tony is controlling remotely.

* The Taiwanese film ''Film/TreasureHunter'' has a golem made from animated sand inhabiting an armour assaulting the protagonist early in the film. The protagonists managed to reassemble a broken-down pistol and gun down said armour in seconds.

** The armoury from ''Literature/TrialOfChampions'' has an undefeatable armour which activates the moment you tried collecting a magic helmet. Choose to fight and you ''will'' suffer some STAMINA damage - your best bet is to hold it off long enough until you found an exit.

** In Disney's [[TheFilmOfTheBook film adaptation]] of ''Film/BedknobsAndBroomsticks'' Ms. Price casts a spell that animates old suits of armour and old war uniforms to fight off German invaders.
* In ''Literature/CastleHangnail'' by Creator/UrsulaVernon, one minion is a suit of armor animated by a ghost.
* Sort of subverted and played straight at the same time in Literature/TheCulture novel ''Literature/{{Matter}}''. Some characters lack the training and reflexes to use the Culture's combat suits in a fight, so their targeting and evasion systems are slaved to the onboard computers.

* In Creator/KristenBritain's novel ''Literature/FirstRidersCall'', out of control magic causes every suit of armor inside the palace to come to life and attack the inhabitants for a period of about an hour.
* ''Literature/GauntsGhosts'' books have the wirewolves, daemons inhabiting suits of armour. The fething things are definite {{Lightning Bruiser}}s.
* [=McGonagall=] and Flitwick enchant the armour of the castle to fight in the FinalBattle of ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows''. This was hinted at in various places in the earlier books, if you paid attention (they occasionally moved on their own, and could even be taught Christmas carols).

* Lancelot fights against an animated suit of armor in the Creator/RogerZelazny short story "The Last Defender of Camelot".

* In the Creator/RickRiordan books, nearly all major public statues are dormant automatons, with the activation phrase "Activate Daedalus Twenty-Three" followed by their orders. But the downside is they will perform ONLY those orders. So the one sent to 'kill flying pigs' will do that and only that.
* In Creator/DavidEddings' ''Literature/TheSapphireRose'', the heroes find themselves up against a number of armored baddies. Until they realize that it is just armor with dusty remains that have been programmed to [[ArtificialStupidity defend the stone they stand on]], [[DisasterDominoes which turns out to be a mistake]]. [[spoiler:The armour was enchanted by [[TheDragon Otha]], who had frightening amounts of power, but also a frightening lack of common sense.]]
* Referenced by Puddleglum in Creator/CSLewis's ''[[Literature/TheChroniclesOfNarnia The Silver Chair]]''. When the protagonists first encounter the Lady of the Green Kirtle, she is accompanied by a knight in Black Armor. Puddleglum posits that while the armor is certainly ''man-shaped'', the wearer might not be a man. Among the possibilities he lists are "A skeleton" and "Nothing at all." Jill and Eustace are understandably spooked.
* In ''Literature/TheSecondMango'' Shula and Riv face two that wield swords and a person's insecurities to attack intruders created by the evil sorceror they're trying to defeat.
* ''Literature/SkulduggeryPleasant'': in the fifth book, [[TheDreaded Lord Vile]] makes his long anticipated return. Small problem - to the best of everyone's knowledge, Lord Vile is ''dead''. The best theory going around is that it's been reanimated by Vile's ghost, which promptly a) slaughters a powerful assassin who simply happened to be there when the armour reanimated, b) curbstomps and tortures Skulduggery, before informing him that Vile was going to regain his power before going after the [[DarkMessiah Death Bringer]], the ChosenOne of the Necromancers, a title he once held. Then, he vanished. Turns out that this is true. [[spoiler: So long as you accept that the definition of 'ghost' includes Skulduggery's LiteralSplitPersonality, which thanks to his recent trauma and proximity to the armour takes the opportunity to escape his head. This ceases to be an issue when Skulduggery reclaims the armour.]]
* In William King's ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' novel ''Literature/SpaceWolf'', after Ragnar defeats Madox, the power armor is empty. Almost every Marine of the Thousand Son are like this, having their bodies turned to dust.
* In Creator/KateDiCamillo's ''Literature/TheTaleOfDespereaux'', Despereaux dreams of a KnightInShiningArmor, only for the suit to take the helm off and show there was nothing inside. [[spoiler:Later, he realizes that it was empty because it was waiting for ''him''.]]

* In Creator/PoulAnderson's ''Literature/ThreeHeartsAndThreeLions'', TheFairFolk send a knight to challenge Holger. When he falls, Holger finds the suit empty.

* In the TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}} novel series following Literature/{{Konrad}}, the eponymous hero encounters a knight clad in bronze plate, and upon defeating him finds the armour empty. Being too {{Genre Blind|ness}} to realize that this is the [[CrapsackWorld Wahammer Old World]], he takes it for his own, and finds that it is magically aiding him in battle. And then it takes control of his movements. And starts eating him.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS36E5Oxygen "Oxygen"]], shortly after arriving at a space station broadcasting a distress signal, the Doctor, [[TomboyishName Bill]] and Nardole encounter a person in a spacesuit stacking boxes who doesn't respond to any of their entreaties. As is soon revealed by the removal of the helmet, this is because there's no one in the suit, which is being animated by its internal AI.

-->'''Savitar:''' I forgot to tell you--my suit's cooler than yours!

* ''Series/KolchakTheNightStalker'' episode "The Knightly Murders". The ghost of an evil knight animates his old suit of armor to kill everyone responsible for the desecration of his burial site.
* Failed pilot ''Series/LostInOz'' had these, enchanted by the Good Witch of the South.
* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1985'': In "The Last Defender of Camelot", Myth/{{Merlin}} animated a suit of armor to protect him during the 1,000 years that he slept in the cave in Cornwall. After he awakens, Merlin has the Hollow Knight fight Lancelot so that he can [[HumanSacrifice sacrifice]] Tom. Lancelot handily defeats it.

** ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'': There are Animated Armor constructs created by magic called [[https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Helmed_horror Helmed Horrors]] and Battle Horrors. Typically used as guardians, especially in isolated places. Also, a rare wizard spell "Iron Maiden" creates short-living, but fully powered and undispellable Battle Horror.

*** ''TabletopGame/CurseOfStrahd'', Ravenloft's updated successor, likewise has suits of armor in the castle rigged to spook the players more than hurt them... and one actual animated suit of armor, which activates when someone speaks its command word and follows that person's commands. Seeing as this is Strahd's armor and Strahd's castle, there's a good chance that a party venturing into the room where it's kept will have it turned on them.
** Module S4 ''The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth''. One room has three sets of empty, magically animated suits of armor. In order to escape a PC must defeat a set of armor and put on its helmet.

* ''TabletopGame/YuGiOh''

* The Battle Horrors and their weaker cousins the Helmed Horrors in the first ''VideoGame/BaldursGate''.

* In ''VideoGame/BloodOmenLegacyOfKain'', Malek's spirit is infused to his armor as punishment for his failure to save the Circle from Vorador.

* Magically animated suits of armor are called doomguards in ''VideoGame/{{Avernum}}''. [[DemonicSpiders They live up to their name.]]

* A common enemy in the ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' series. Though they come in many shapes and sizes, a mainstay since the first NES title has been one that hurls [[ArtisticLicensePhysics heavy axes as if they were boomerangs]].

** In ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow Lords of Shadow]]'', they finally explain how they work (giant suits of armor possessed and animated by poltergeists). After ripping off their shield, you kill them for good by prying open the breastplate, grabbing the spirit inside, ripping it out of the armor, and crushing it.
* ''VideoGame/CityOfVillains'' has the very rare Living Armor boss.
* In the ''VideoGame/{{Crysis}}'' series, [[spoiler:this is Alcatraz's ultimate fate. His vital organs are all shot, so his suit starts to break his ''entire body'' down and turn it into more nanosuit mass. Thanks to BrainUploading, no physical problems arise, only existential ones (which Prophet is happy to spend the entire third game whining about)]].

* Bishamon from ''VideoGame/{{Darkstalkers}}'' is a suit of samurai armor possessed by an evil spirit.
* ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' games:

** [[VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII The threequel]] has the Dragonslayer Armour, which is empty and controlled by the Pilgrim Butterflies like a puppet. In ''The Ringed City'' DLC it comes back for a rematch, and defeating it this time gets you the armour set to wear for yourself. Its FlavorText says it was reanimated this time by "the memory of the hunt".
*** And then there is [[spoiler:[[FinalBoss Soul of Cinder]], who is a manifestation of whoever linked the First Flame [[AndIMustScream trapped inside an animated armor for eternity]], this includes the Chosen Undead and Gwyn]].
* The Eldar in ''[[VideoGame/DawnOfWar Dawn of War 2]]'' have the Wraith Guards, piles of metal inhabited by the erm... ghosts of fallen Eldar. In a similar vein, the Eldar also have Wraithlords, which are essentially bulked-up Wraithguards. So, Animated Armor meets MiniMecha.

* ''VideoGame/DisgaeaHourOfDarkness'' has the ominous-looking Dark Knight, complete with fire coming out of where its helmet should be. It makes a comeback in ''VideoGame/DisgaeaD2''.
* A common enemy in the ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' series.
* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'' had a quest where, if you went in a certain room that was filled with suits of armor, their heads would follow you, and if you got to a certain point, they would attack you.
** In ''VideoGame/DragonQuestV'', Restless Armours are one of the recruitable {{Mon}}s, ''and'' can be found as an equippable (and cursed) armor.

* Several of these appear as enemies in ''VideoGame/HypeTheTimeQuest''. They use flails as weapons and collapse piece by piece after defeat, although they reform after a short while.

** A straighter example is the [[OptionalBoss Lingering Will]] in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII [[UpdatedRerelease Final Mix]]'', the discarded armor of a previous Keyblade wielder animated by sheer willpower. In ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep Birth by Sleep]]'' [[spoiler:you get to briefly play ''as the armor'' after its original owner gets possessed by the BigBad.]]

* In the first ''VideoGame/LegacyOfKain'', Malek of the Sarafan. Also his minions in his castle.

* ''VideoGame/{{Musya}}'' has a gigantic samurai armor set as the game's second-to-last boss. It seems to be animated by some magic purple smoke - defeat it and the smoke leaks, causing the boss to collapse into regular armor.

* Invoked by the design of the Shadow from ''VideoGame/OneMustFall2097''. Though actually a {{Humongous|Mecha}} MoCapMecha, it has [[TheFaceless no acutal facial structure]], just an empty hollow space and GlowingEyes peering out from under the darkness of its helmet.

* Six possessed suits, each with progressively more energy, are battled in the fourth area of NES game ''VideoGame/PinballQuest''.

* One of the new families introduced in ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'', Golett and Golurk (particularly the latter), are golems resembling armor suits inhabited by spirits, giving them an unusual Ground/Ghost typing.
** If one considers an arthropod's exoskeleton to be armor then Shedinja also counts. It's the empty exoskeleton left from Nincada evolving into Ninjask and is a Ghost/Bug type with 1HP but an ability that makes it immune to any attack which is not super effective.
* ''VideoGame/PrayForDeath'': Although Maelstrom was once a flesh and blood human, he has become little more than his suit of armor. He no longer bleeds, for example - something the [[{{Bloodlust}} blood-crazed]] Pantera comments on.

* In ''VideoGame/RuneScape'' there is a Warriors guild when one can bring a set of normal armour to animate it and fight against it as training.
* In ''VideoGame/{{SOMA}}'', [[spoiler:your character]] turns out to be something like this; a copy of [[spoiler:the real Simon Jarrett’s]] mind downloaded into an empty deep sea diving suit that’s been modified to contain an AI. [[spoiler:It’s not ''completely'' empty. You’re actually sharing it with the corpse of some poor woman who died while using it and ended up being [[BodyHorror melded with the suit by structure gel]], which is how you’re able to move around properly. But the basic principle of this trope is still there.]]
* Nightmare from the ''VideoGame/SoulSeries'' (see [[ImageLinks/AnimatedArmor Image Links]]) spent some time this way until his defeat and death in ''VideoGame/SoulCaliburIV'' requiring him to possess another human in ''VideoGame/SoulCaliburV'' when [[BackFromTheDead his minions reassemble the fragments of Soul Edge]]. There is some GameplayAndStorySegregation at work here as, though his 1P outfits in ''III'' and ''IV'' could qualify (as you don't see any actual body and by ''IV'' his torso has become a sphere of energy), his alternate outfits in those game show a visible body (moreso in ''III'' as his alternate in ''IV'' is less human in nature).
* ''VideoGame/SpiritualAssassinTaromaru'' have an animated samurai armour as the first major enemy (of '''seven''') in the final stage's BossBonanza.

* In ''VideoGame/SuperLesbianAnimalRPG'' the party is attacked by suits of golden armor while exploring the [[spoiler:secret Guardian's Vault underneath the town of Greenridge.]] The armor was animated by dimunitive shadow creatures taking up residence inside it, and while it is extremely sturdy at first, it looses defense as it is fought, as pieces of the armor come apart. Later in the [[spoiler:Uncanny Valley]], two more variants are encountered, the Emerald Armor and Cerulean Armor.
* ''VideoGame/SwordOfTheNecromancer'' have your heroine, Koko fighting various enemies in some dungeons, one of them being sentient ''headless'' armor wielding gigantic axes.
* In ''[[VideoGame/TelepathRPG Telepath RPG chapter 2]]'', if you choose to go against the [[spoiler: shadowlings]] in the end, you'll fight phantom armors in the last and second last fights.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Terraria}}'', one of the enemies is the Possessed Armor.
* The [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/walkingarmor_1586.JPG former]] page image is Alice Margatroid from ''Franchise/TouhouProject'', who [[MarionetteMaster COULD]] pull this, but usually prefers dolls. It's fairly popular in fanart to draw her controlling suits of armor though.

* In the Arthurian Legend-inspired ''VideoGame/WildBlood'', many of Morgana's mooks are animated armors with Medieval Great Helm for heads. They're among the only enemies that doesn't bleed when hacked, and falls apart after their life is spent.

* ''Webcomic/{{Pibgorn}}'' [[http://www.gocomics.com/pibgorn/2008/11/06/ It's nothing but a shiny bucket of nothing.]]

* ''Webcomic/TalesOfTheQuestor'': The dead knight's armor turned out to be a sort of Magitek PoweredArmor, but it picked up some of its' owner's personality and can move on its' own. Leading people to think it's haunted.

[[folder:Web Original]]

* In the ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'' episode "The Girl of the Dreams", XANA's specter takes control of a {{samurai}} armor owned by Yumi's family, which she brought to school for a presentation about Japan.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' episode "[[Recap/GargoylesS2Avalon Avalon]]", a pair of Animated Armor guard the [[Myth/KingArthur Sleeping King in the Hollow Hill]].
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfTheGummiBears'', Zummi accidentally [[TalkingInYourSleep casts a spell in his sleep]] that brings a suit of armor to life, which then begins attacking Gruffi.
-->'''Gruffi:''' Zummi, get this bucket of bolts off my back!

** In "[[Recap/JusticeLeagueS1E20And21AKnightOfShadows A Knight of Shadows]]", Batman and Jason Blood fight off a bunch of animated suits of armor. Batman's being awesome, but getting overwhelmed, so Jason turns into ComicBook/{{Etrigan}} and starts [[SuperStrength tearing them in half]] and [[PlayingWithFire melting them]].

* ''WesternAnimation/RiseOfTheTeenageMutantNinjaTurtles'': The show’s version of [[spoiler:the Shredder]] is a demonic set of armor that apparently gained life after consuming its original wearer. After causing mass destruction, he was broken into pieces by Splinter’s ancestors, who scattered said pieces across the world to prevent [[spoiler:Shredder]] from ever rising again. The Foot Clan is now gathering the pieces and sticking them back together, and because the stories of [[spoiler:Shredder]] have long faded into myth, Splinter and the Turtles are almost completely unprepared for him.
* The villain in the ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooWhereAreYou'' episode "What a Night for a Knight" seems to be this at first, but it turns out to be a man in disguise, as was almost always the case in that series. Later played straight in the [[Film/ScoobyDooMonstersUnleashed second live-action movie]], where his structure is supported by a green, immaterial mist. [[GroinAttack He's still weak in one spot, though.]]

* The Skull Knight of ''{{Manga/Berserk}}'' is an empty suit of armor probably inhabited by the spirit of [[spoiler:Emperor Gaiseric, who conquered the world in ancient times]], and he's implied to be leading Guts down the same path towards undead-hood. Exactly how man and armor merged is a mystery, though elves might have been involved.

* ''Fanfic/PowerRangersAVX features one of these as a MonsterOfTheWeek.

* Hakumen from ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'' counts. His soul is confined to the Susanooh unit, the armour that covers his body. [[spoiler:This also applies to [[CardCarryingVillain Yuuki Terumi]]/[[SatanicArchetype Susanoo]], whose soul was the ''original'' owner of said armor.]]

This trope usually involves some type of full armor that is made up of rigid parts and more or less keeps its humanoid shape when not being worn, such as a medieval full plate or samurai lamellar armor. Because mail armor[[note]]You can also call it "chain mail", but that's not what they called it in-period and it's technically redundant. The etymology of "mail" goes back to the Latin word for "mesh" or "net", and it was originally used only to describe armor made of interlocking iron rings. In the 19th century some carelessness combined with technical misunderstandings led to the word "mail" being used to mean any kind of armor, hence the need to differentiate "chain mail" from "scale mail" or "plate mail"; the latter are properly called "scale armor" and "plate armor", while the former can simply be called "mail".[[/note]]takes the shape of its wearer and is formless on its own, you will not usually see a mail shirt and leggings walking about because it runs the risk of looking silly. On the other hand, many kinds of armor are made of some combination of textile, scales, mail, or plates and there is nothing saying you can't have an animated armor with both flexible and rigid components.

* In ''Manga/ZatchBell'', one of the mamodo's powers is to control things with flowers, one of the defenses guarding the castle where they fight is a ZergRush of empty armour suits controlled by these flowers.

-->-- [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jasxikI9G-I The Broken Lords]], ''VideoGame/EndlessLegend''

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' has an episode where a rogue AI hijacks the highly-advanced Batsuit, and Terry has to resort to using the old Batman's tricks to defeat it.
* In ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'' episode "The Girl of the Dreams", XANA's specter takes control of a {{samurai}} armor owned by Yumi's family, which she brought to school for a presentation about Japan.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' episode "Avalon", a pair of Animated Armor guard the [[Myth/KingArthur Sleeping King in the Hollow Hill]].

** Batman and Jason Blood fight off a bunch of animated suits of armor. Batman's being awesome, but getting overwhelmed, so Jason turns into ComicBook/{{Etrigan}} and starts [[SuperStrength tearing them in half]] and [[PlayingWithFire melting them]].
** There's also the Annihilator, a living suit of armor made by Greek gods that is fueled by rage.

** The ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'' setting had Animated Armor constructs created by magic called [[https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Helmed_horror Helmed Horrors]] and Battle Horrors. Typically used as guardians, especially in isolated places. Also, a rare wizard spell "Iron Maiden" creates short-living, but fully powered and undispellable Battle Horror.

* The [[http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Rubric_Marines Rubric Marines]] of the [[http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Thousand_Sons Thousand Sons]] in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''. Notable in that they are suits of futuristic powered armor, but animated by magic and the ghosts of their former occupants in the manner of the traditional fantasy version. The interesting juxtaposition of sci-fi and fantasy tropes is a big part of 40k's charm.
** And the Eldar Phoenix Lords who are no longer alive and have become amalgamations of souls controlling ancient battle-suits.
** Also the Green Knight in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'' is hinted to be this.

* In ''Series/TheFlash2014'', Savitar's hulking suit of armor can act on its own to some degree, as Barry learns mid-battle.