Why is chainmail useless?
There are two reasons in my opinion.
1. Powerful villages have a possibility to craft more better armour like ctc and plate.
2. Production of wrought iron is not so easy for new players. Most of them will craft first leather armour, then bronze cuirass and finally ̶̶a̶b̶a̶n̶d̶o̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶g̶a̶m̶e̶ ctc/plate.
My suggestion is to make possible to wear chainmail in same slots like vapntreyiu. As it was IRL.