Ah, my first and so far only Divine Armor Sphere came from a level 120 (now level 123) Deviljho. Does it take long to get armor up to 800+ defense?
Yeah, it's possible to get them at quests which are 120 (although I don't think anything lower than that will provide them), but they are relatively more rare and tend to come from the 6* monsters (Elder Dragons, Jho, Rajang).
Once you reach the 126+/136+ mark, they'll become more plentiful and very rarely do you get quests without at least one or a couple of them dropping. Although again, they're more plentiful from 6* monsters.
That depends on the armor. Most rare 10 armor with high defense from the start (100 or more I'd say), is usually maxed upgraded at around 150 defense, some more, some less (the Max I've seen is 156 from the Fatalis armors). Most of the time the final upgrade level of a piece of armor is mid-high teens. Considering you start using divine spheres at around level 8, you'll probably need 8 or more divine spheres per armor piece fully max out that piece (more or less, I'm speaking in general terms).
Keep in mind that the only armors I have seen with natural 800+ defense is anything that has a starting defense around 120. This includes Crimson and White Fatalis (though Crimson has the Defense Down skill). However, their final defense without a defense honed weapon is around 806-811 defense (I'm taking into account both armor charms and talons, also keep in mind the reason I say 806-811 is because I don't have the exact number. The math may be a few points more or less so forgive me).
So, my tip to you, to broaden your horizons and have a large, reliable amount of 800+ defense, is to definitely hone your weapon for defense. You get +60 points and divine blessing. Secondly, you seriously want to make sure that every piece of armor is rare 10 with a base defense of at least 100 defense, or preferably more. More base defense may mean less divine spheres used depending on the armor. Rare 9 armor probably can't reach very high into the 800 mark or even reach 800 at all, depending on the armor. So yeah, definitely stick to rare 10.
When you're finished upgrading a full set of rare ten armors, I've made these observations:
-Armor from Elder Dragons that can leave areas (Shagaru, Teostra, Kushala, etc.), as well as the Star Knight armor, maxes out at around 152 defense.
-Armor from incredibly powerful creatures that aren't Elder Dragons (Savage Jho, Akantor, Ukanlos, Molten Tigrex, Golden Rajang) usually max out at around 150 defense.
-Armor from the Fatalis Trio maxes out at 156 defense.
(I am only referring to rare 10 armors obtainable from monsters you can hunt. Armor you get from trading can be a bit weird. For example, Ceadeus armor maxes out at 150 defense)
Therefore, I can give you these numbers. Assuming that you have a defense honed weapon, armor charms and armor talons, but have NOT eaten for defense, you'll get this:
-A full set of 150 defense armor will give about 836 defense
-A full set of 152 defense armor will give about 846 defense.
-A full set of 156 defense armor will give around 866 defense.
Again, keep in mind, the numbers may be slightly more or less, but should definitely be around those points.
Also, if you want to know what the defense would be if you DO eat for defense, assuming you eat for Defense up L, just add 15 points of defense.
Keep in mind your defense can also increase further with defense modifying weapons like the Insect Glaive and Hunting Horn.
-Alternis
Will return after dinner.