[Shostak]

1. Sure, armor should protect, if you bother to use these rules.

2. I agree. You can even have the player share in the storytelling by having to create some kind of setback in response to the failed rolls that they now had to deal with. I sometimes do something similar to cut to the chase on an adventure. Let's say the group of characters is exploring a distant cave and you want to gloss over the journey there. Have each player roll 3d against their character's lowest attribute explaining why they took 1d damage on a failure, or some bit of awesomeness on a critical success. Good role playing earns a a little extra XP.