How to craft it
Work BenchSet bonus
The bonus applies while the helmet, chestpiece and leggings are all worn together.
the first armor you can make
Palm wood armor is available before you have found a cave, let alone an ore vein. The material comes off the palms along the ocean shoreline, so the whole set is a matter of walking to the beach with an axe. Nothing has to be unlocked and nothing has to be killed for it.
Wearing all three pieces gives a small bonus over wearing them individually. At this tier that is a marginal gain, but it costs nothing to have the full set on while you are still fighting slimes.
which wood, and how long it holds
Underneath, this is the same armor as the boreal and rich mahogany versions. They differ in the sprite and nothing else, so build from whichever tree grows nearest your spawn and do not travel for a particular one.
Any wood set is a stopgap. Copper or tin overtakes it almost immediately and the ore tiers keep climbing from there, so the honest use for this one is the first ten minutes of a world, then the social slots afterward if you like the look.