The Naked Warrior or Diapers in the Dungeon

Mythmere posts here in Diaper, Helmet, ADVENTURE on a cool Erol Otus pic that appeared on the back of the AD&D module White Plume Mountain that seemingly has a fighter wearing a horned helmet and a diaper . A simple mechanic is posted that suggests fighters are always considered to be of an AC equal to that of chainmail even when sub-optimally armored (like in a diaper and a helmet) to support the sword and sorcery naked warrior look.

Sure there were times in real life when naked warriors charged into combat and it unnerved foes but generally an under armored warrior is a dead warrior. The following are a few rule suggestions to encourage the diaper wearing dungeon bravo without giving them constant undue advantage in combat.


The I'm A BAD-ASS EXP rule-

Give fighters a 10% exp bonus for adventuring for an entire session wearing no more armor then a helmet and a shield.
If the fighter can survive long enough to become a better fighter by gaining a level ahead of his better armored colleagues he's a better fighter in the mammoth-hide diaper and horned helmet.
(NOTE: in some adventures and settings this may back-fire and induce reaction penalties and even an exp penalty.)

Is this guy nuts, he's naked? rule-

Whenever an npc is facing a foe of equal or greater level who is naked (shields and helms are okay) they must make a morale save or be shaken causing them to lose initiative for the next two rounds before they can gird themselves again for the rigors of battle.


The Agile Banana-Hammock wearing delver rule-

Whenever a virtually naked warrior is unencumbered by additional gear they are far more agile then overburdened and heavily armored fighters. Such fighters may climb walls as well as a thief of 1/2 their level and are +2 to save vs attacks where agility and lighting reflexes may save the day. Any degree of encumbrance that inflicts a penalty in your favorite game system causes the loss of this bonus.


The Wooing the wicked witch in your underwear rule-

The naked or nearly naked warrior is better at swaying the attentions of the potentially amorous gaining a 2 point bonus (or it's equivalent compared to a 2d6 roll) to reaction adjustment. Such characters are also more likely to be captured for...uh..."interrogation" later as opposed to being slain outright. Those who make no RPG attempts along amorous line lose this advantage.


Uh, pardon me miss but I can see your breasts rule-

In some lands men-folk are foolishly fascinated by breasts or are prone to underrate the competence of women warriors. When confronted by a nearly naked female warrior a male warrior must make a wisdom check (or save) or fail to judge the danger they are in. One who fails such a check is unable to act meaningfully for a round on confronting the nearly naked female warrior and will be -2 to hit her until they see her kill an ally or are themselves harmed for more then 1 pt of damage.