Ironically, the fewer mods, the more you need armor.
You will NEVER be lifted high enough to never hit...its just not practical.
The stock skids are more like splash sheilds....worthless for the most part....and not much more protective than a mud flap, etc.
Its not just X's either...the stock skids on the jeeps, and toys, and so forth, were just as bad.
With real skids:
You can slide over things you can't clear, you can survive not being locked, and needing more momentum to get over things, etc.
Sliders and skids are a top priority...sliders even before skids, as they do double duty in protection, plus, you can hi-lift from them, (And from NO WHERE on a stock X w/o them...)
Even mild wheeling can scrape the under belly, you never know what's under that snow, or that puddle, if a stupid rock will roll under there for no apparent reason...or what gets ripped off if you high center in a rutted fire road, etc.
If you puncture your gas tank (Not THAT hard to do...), its a long walk back w/o it's contents.
Your oil pan, tranny, t-case, etc...all work better w/o holes in them.
So - Skids are a really good idea...even for casual wheelers....kind of like insurance. (Some people might go years w/o a problem, others, not so lucky...)
Someone who is good at picking his way through places of concern can get away with less protection, say green or some blue trails, w/o skids, and survive...if he doesn't make a mistake...
Beyond that, pretty much any X, piloted by pretty much any driver...is taking a really big risk going naked.