Quote:
Originally Posted by vicky_molokh
If the motivation was adding harsh realism, then it's unrealistic. Even heavy armour isn't as bad as people unaccustomed to wearing it tend to believe.
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It's a DF game. It's not concerned with realism: this rule exists very specifically to make unarmored combat a reasonable choice, which it realistically isn't. Fleet thieves and lumbering knights, it's a stylistic element.
That said, while GURPS is absolutely right that armor isn't as restrictive as most people assume (the -8 of d20 is ridiculous), the extra weight carried does make one spend more energy, and a blanket -1 to -3 (which is hardly a harsh penalty in DF) is a pretty good stand-in for that, and easier to remember than post-battle FP. It's
not egregiously unrealistic.