Post/Author/DateTime	Post
True Avatar 10-23-05, 01:13 AM	I'm looking for ways to have a monk breach DR such as Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Different materials such as Cold Iron while being unarmed. Could someone list a source and the item/feat/class combo to do it
Flouric 10-23-05, 01:23 AM	I don't know if it's been addressed in the rules but perhaps a gauntlet made out of the appropriate material would allow the monks unarmed strikes to bypass materials related DR. If I remember correctly there are feats in the book of exalted deeds and book of vile darkness for granting an alignment to unarmed strikes.
PhoenixInferno 10-23-05, 03:28 AM	It's as difficult as you think it is. Either you can start carrying The Golf Bag of Doom (TM) (which is carrying a weapon designed to counter each type of DR) or you can go into Kensai and make enchant your fists. There's one ability (although I don't remember what its called) that lets you automatically adjust to bypass the DR, although you have to wait for your next turn to do that. Sure Striking (Magic of Faerun? Player's Guide? Underdark?) lets you bypass alignment based DR, Metalline (Underdark for sure) lets you bypass metal based DR, although Mettaline is restricted to weapons made of metal, which human fists are not. A Warforged's fists on the other hand...
K 10-23-05, 03:41 AM	Kensai with the Metalline enhancement is a nice swiss army knife, but a spellcaster cohort with the appropriate spells also works.
SolitudeSeraph 10-23-05, 07:45 AM	Amulet of Natural Attacks (or something like that) from Savage Species....basically you enhance it like a normal weapon and it applies to your natural attacks.
saucercrab 10-23-05, 06:58 PM	Ways to penetrate material DR are not as plentiful (or easy to get) as ways to penetrate alighment DR. Sure striking is updated in Player's Guide to Faerun. Bracers of striking (Magic of Faerun) are magic bracers that can be enchanted with magic weapon special abilities (double the cost), & apply to all unarmed/natural attacks. Kensai (Complete Warrior) is a PrC that can enchant a chosen weapon with enhancement bonuses & magic weapon special abilities; this chosen weapon can be a monk's unarmed strike. Underdark has metalline, that allows a metal weapon to alter its metal (from steel to adamantine, to alchemical silver, etc.) & morphing, which allows a weapon to reshape into any other weapon of the same type (light, one-handed, etc.). Combine the PrC with these weapon special abilities to get literal dagger-fisted monks. Book of Exalted Deeds has feats that enable a monk's unarmed strike to be holy (good-aligned). Races of Eberron have two feats for warforged: Cold Iron Tracery & Silver Tracery, which make a warforged's natural attacks count as those materials to penetrate DR. Also, don't forget bludgeoning/piercing/slashing DR's. The kensai trick will work here with morphing.
Tleilaxu_Ghola 10-23-05, 07:57 PM	Don't forget psionic feats. The aligned strike feat allows one to add a component of their alignment to the strike (expend focus I think). So a lawful good monk could get a good aligned attacks.
Ectoplasmoid 10-23-05, 10:05 PM	Warforged monks work well with battlefists too.
kilroo 10-23-05, 10:50 PM	How about picking up a handfull of Creature Compass effects?
PhoenixInferno 10-24-05, 12:15 AM	Oh yeah, there's also an item from Weapons Of Legacy (a legacy item, if I remember correctly) that lets you ignore all types of DR. Or something like that.
Skulan 10-24-05, 12:29 AM	The Sense Weakness feat in Draconomicon lets you ignore 5 points of DR. I believe it requires Weapon Focus and Combat Expertise. Not a total solution, but it's a decent quick fix. -Skulan
solbergb 10-24-05, 01:11 PM	DR Evil is easy - 100gp for oil of bless weapon....done. DR chaotic - you need to hit level 10 Low levels, silver and cold iron kamas will do most of what you need, and also cope with DR for lycanthropes and fey. The diff between 1d6 and your unarmed strike isn't much, and the masterwork bonus on your weapon will tend to even things out. At higher levels, I like specific bane weapons on each special material (eg, evil outsider bane on your cold iron, undead bane/ghost touch on silver) An adamantium kama is an essential part of the monk equipment until level 16 (assuming you make it to 16 before PRCing away). Aside from the obvious use on constructs, it is a handy tool to pick locks, or slice down doors with a flurry (my monk can't break a stone door in one hit like his barbarian buddy, but he can stand next to it, wave his kama around, and have it fall into 3 or four pieces...which just good fun even if it takes a full attack to do). Give it construct bane and it will compete pretty well with your unarmed strike for use on all the crap your spellcasters can't sweep away. In a campaign where "spikes" is allowed, you will want a wooden weapon too, quarterstaff or nunchuck.
mean_liar 10-24-05, 01:29 PM	The aforementioned Necklace of Natural Attacks is the best DR-beater for a monk. It comes from Savage Species, and allows you to add enhancements to it which are transferred to a natural weapon you possess - your unarmed strike, as a monk. Imbue the Necklace with Metalline (a +2 enhancement from Underdark) to defeat substance-based DR. Alignment-based DR is much more difficult to pierce - I suggest sticking with Holy and not bothering with trying to prepare for creatures with Chaotic or Lawful DR, unless you're in a rather specific Planescape-style setting where it comes up often. The Chaos/Law DRs are relatively rare.