Monk item that lets them enchant fists?

[Dr_Rictus]

And why doesn't it lead to more monks stocking up on potions of magic fang and greater magic fang? There really are already reasonably cost-effective alternatives when you look at the cost of magic weapons. Let's compare the cost of these potions to the cost of magic weapons on a bonus-for-bonus basis:

+1: potion (magic fang) is 1/40 the cost.
+2: potion (greater magic fang, caster level 6) is 1/9 the cost.
+3: potion (greater magic fang, caster level 9) is 1/13 the cost.
+4: potion (greater magic fang, caster level 12) is 1/18 the cost.
+5: potion (greater magic fang, caster level 15) is 1/22 the cost.

Conclusion: Except for maybe that dip at +2 to +3, you should be able to have potions for more than enough fights to take you though the encounters where DR matters. It only gets more efficient if you have a druid in the party and can rely on scrolls and/or their spells, but this is not by any means necessary.

I agree that ki strike seems poorly tought-out, but any monk who uses monk weapons as his primary alternative when he's high enough level that his unarmed damage is significantly more is, I think, a bit of a fool.

 

[Roland Delacroix]

Problem is in those high level fights you don't always have a round to spare drinking a potion. Mages and Clerics are running around with Persistent buffs by then, tossing save-or-dies (at your allies likely), and a good rogue or fighter can probably drop you in 2 attacks.

 

[Dr_Rictus]

Problem is in those high level fights you don't always have a round to spare drinking a potion.

Given that greater magic fang lasts 1 hour/level (that is, basically, the duration of an entire dungeon crawl), this problem isn't much of a problem. Plus, with the higher base damage of unarmed attacks over monk weapons, you'd make up the opportunity cost in your first or second round of unarmed attacks even in the unlikely event that you did have to drink a potion at the start of the fight.