All dragonhide is is masterwork armor of the appropriate type, and it counts as non-metal, so druids can wear it. Also, again, I request that any new stuff be added as new, instead of replacing old.
Personally, i'd like to see the dragon hide plate armour in colour's other than the standard green one, I know that the rules don't state that the armour from a particular type of dragon convey's damage reduction or invulnerability against the type of damage the previous owner used as a breath weapon (and had immunity to), but IMO it should
IMO - That should be appropriate. - Dragonscale armor should provide a larger [or more] spell resistance and should also provide breath weapon immunity against the particular dragon type. - Dragonskin armor should provide a smaller [or less] spell resistance and also some breath weapon resistance, but not immunity to the breath weapon of a dragon type.
If you guys want to do it that way, that's fine, but they would be magical items, with appropriate costs and such. There's nothing innately magical about dragonhide in the 3.5 rules. (That said, in my own games, dragonhide shares the same traits as mithral and makes enhancements related to the dragon-type the hide is from less expensive. But that's totally a house rule.)
If a tribe, village, or nation or a group, society, or government would go to the trouble of having a dragon slain, be gutted and cleaned, for the sake of collecting its scales and skin to make a scale armor and skin armor, it would make sense for the new armor items to be crafted as magical while being made if they are not magical from the start. I definitely would like for the game to include a magically crafted version of your Barbarian Dragonskin Armor (no bugbear spikes, please) and, if time permits, Dragonhide Plate Armor with similar Icey edge visual eye-candy crafting on both.
If we're voting here, I'm for making it normal; but a component of a craftable item to become resistant to these effects. It shouldn't simply be that way once it's former owner is relieved of it after death.
If the two new armor items would be non-magical in the game, I would be up for that and would like to request that the two new items be masterwork armor and can be crafted.
uhhh sorry for lack of updates but the last while has been like hell. so much trouble and mess rushing towards this damned place... shit didn't go as planned and i lost lots of time... it appears i gotta wake up about a couple of hours earlier to manage to squeese modding into the damned real life time... sorry again, but i'll try to do my best now.
here's an initial version of a 'green dragonscale armor'. still got work to do on it, and i have the female version to complete, but anyways:
i've had to 'accidentaly' format the c:/ partition, and fortunately most of the textures and the TOEE and stuff were safe elswhere... i've lost my ACDsee 5.0 in the process, which will make me strain and suffer to get used to the so called "simplified" interface of the 8.0, but i'll live. anyway while i was offline i still worked on some stuff, including a Green Dragonplate armor based on the temple breatplate mesh ( 85% done), and i'm looking forward to turn that to red dragonplate soon. and i've edited the green elven chain into the dark armor which worked perfectly on my vampiric clerics of Nerull. they look just like Death Knights with a bastard sword in one hand and a tower shield in the other, and a group of several commanded skeletal gnolls (the ones with superior natural armor and dexterity, which are initially protecting the rainbow rocks.) i'll make some snapshots in a few minutes...