Wardrobe Malfunctions

She squealed as a rat ran across her foot, and jumped back against the wall, bruising her hip and tearing her panties on a broken plank.

--From the "Dragon of Koa Tsu" by Robert E. Howard (writing as Sam Walser)

In some of the sleazier action/adventure fiction, clothes get torn off characters during fights or while they are moving through harsh wildernesses. This also seems to happen in standard jungle adventures where clothes seem to get tattered and torn at an amazing rate.

The following game mechanics bring this trend to roleplaying games set in a pulp fiction environment, or other setting where armor is uncommon. (This material is presented under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with its terms. Copyright Steve Miller 2015.)

THE RULES
Whenever the character suffers melee damage in combat, fails a Reflex save, Dexterity check, or some other roll intended to avoid damage, the character's clothes are torn. They are ripped during combat, snagged on a piece of wood, or through some other environmental effect. Roll on the following table to determine what part of the character's clothes are damage.

Table 1: Damage to Clothes
1. Pants leg/skirt, lower (1-3 left side. 5-6 right side).
2. Pants leg/skirt, upper (1-3 left side, 5-6 right side).
4. Top front
5. Top back
6. No damage.

Each tear in the article of clothing either reveals undergarments or bare skin. After three tears, the article of clothing is in tatters and reveals more than it covers. The d6 rolls are then applied to any undergarments.

This system does not track damage to characters--that's what the normal combat system does. It merely disrobes them as action unfolds.

From "The Origin of Rulah" by Matt Baker
(and she may or may not be the subject of a NUELOW collection some day)

If you find the above mechanics useful/amusing, you may also like Feats of an Adult Nature and Feats of Seduction and Subterfuge, both for OGL d20  game systems.