About the chainmail bikini...

I'm a student of Armazare here. If nothing else, playing with weapons with my friends has taught me that weapons are the great equalizer and beyond accommodating the specific physical limitations that are different for EVERYONE there is no limit to your own skill beyond limits you place on yourself. Which means, I see no difference between a male and a female fighter. What this means to my illustration is when I draw armor I really try to draw things that are functional and based on my view on how armor and swords operate. Boob-plate is foolish because it risks your sternum and treats breasts like they are stones and not mushy sacks that move around. Exposed skin is risky, and padding and leather work really well to keep you alive. For a medieval-era soldier, gambesons are the first layer of armour and they wear like a winter coat. Someone kitted up for battle is going to cover everything they can, and protect their head, their neck, hands first, then joints and groin next, then on to full body armour. People wore shit to keep themselves alive, not to show off their physiques.  In reality, people who fought without armor were either from some crazy culture (Picts), needed enough mobility where the weight of your gear was serious concern (Apache) or lived somewhere stupidly hot. (Philippines) So drawing warriors with exposed necks and bare breasts is pretty silly and not realistic at all.