Why are there so few shirts, vests, and vestements?

[Xath]

I look through the DMG for magical equipment quite often. One thing that has always stuck out is the supreme lack of items for the Shirt/Vest/Vestement slot. Why is this? Do you find yourself compensating with homebrew items? Or do your characters wander around with mundane/no shirt?

I blame the chainmail bikini market for stomping out the shirt industry.

But seriously, look at the number of items (in the 3.5 DMG only) that are available for each slot:

Headband, Hat, Helmet, Phylactery - 12
Eye Lenses, Goggles (Masks?) - 7
Amulet, Brooch, Medallion, Necklace, Periapt, Scarab - 15
Vest, Vestement, Shirt - 2
Robe, Suit of Armor - (infinite armors here, I'll count the robes) 7
Bracers, Bracelets - 4
Belt - 3
Cloak, Cape, Mantle - 12
Gloves, Gauntlets - 6
Ring - 46
Boots - 8

How do you cope with the lack of shirts? Or do you notice?

 

[BiggusGeekus]

How do you cope with the lack of shirts? Or do you notice?

We are all manly men and we brave the elments bare-chested! We wander, half-naked, in search of adventure! Then we clean off the grime off of our manly chests with long, hot showers ... er ... AHEM!!!

Moving on!

The "shirt" slot is typically occupied by a custom magic item. Since all the other slots are spoken for (usually) the shirt slot is where we put our power gaming items. For example, in our last game we saw a +9 Tumbler's Tunic which gave a +9 competence bonus to Tumbling checks. Nice item.

Now if I could just get my players to wear pants....

 

[der_kluge]

I think it has a lot to do with the fact that relatively few classes wear "armor", and D&D rules consider shirts to be the same as armor, if it provides some kind of armor bonus.

A bigger reason for the lack is the extraordinary lack of concise rules with regards to magical shirts and clothes. I chalk this up to laziness on the part of the writers. It's an over-simplification. This has to do with the "chakra" slots and what can be worn with what. Shirts can't typically be worn with armor, or robes (I think robes have the same slot).

 

[Xath]

I think it has a lot to do with the fact that relatively few classes wear "armor", and D&D rules consider shirts to be the same as armor, if it provides some kind of armor bonus.

A bigger reason for the lack is the extraordinary lack of concise rules with regards to magical shirts and clothes. I chalk this up to laziness on the part of the writers. It's an over-simplification. This has to do with the "chakra" slots and what can be worn with what. Shirts can't typically be worn with armor, or robes (I think robes have the same slot).

Shirts can be worn with armor or robes. It's armor and robes that can't be worn together.

 

[ThirdWizard]

Now if I could just get my players to wear pants....

I find your word choice of "players" disturbing.

 

[STARP_President]

Why are there so few?
Because while 'Magic Shirt' sounds like a great name for a rock band, it's less convincing as a magic item.

 

[Flyspeck23]

Because while 'Magic Shirt' sounds like a great name for a rock band, it's less convincing as a magic item.

Indeed, a magic shirt isn't really a magic item.

 

[diaglo]

all shirts in D&D are Red shirts.

they are the guys that get killed to further the story. they can be NPCs or PCs. on the side of the party or against them.

 

[Hand of Evil]

I think it is avoidance, by having magical garments you then have to address things like daily wear and tear and the cost of dry cleaning. You also get those players that have to have the answer to questions like: How do you remove Beholder blood from a shirt of too many pockets? And "when does my shirt of magic protection go out of sytle".

Joking aside, I do think it is avoidance.

 

[Ashen-Shugar]

Now if I could just get my players to wear pants....

Did you just say the PLAYERS don't wear pants? Where are you playing again?


EDIT:
Gosh! To slow. ThirdWizard already noticed. (I hope his Players wear pants.)