I keep reading about how natural attacks and unarmed strikes can be made magical and that bypasses damage reduction, but I don't understand how.
For example, +3 weapon enhancements bypass cold iron and silver. +5 bypasses alignment based stuff. The thing I don't see, though, is the +x variable for natural magical attacks and unarmed strikes.
How do magic natural and unarmed attacks bypass damage reduction, and if they do, which types of DR do they bypass? DR/Magic seems like the only one it's applicable to, and if so, that means the barbarian pouncing build, and pretty much everything else out there dependent on magic attacks becomes a rather weak strategy.
On top of that, how do magic natural attacks bypass stuff like silver, adamantine, piercing, and everything else?
Because they're magic.
If you want a arcanobabble answer, part of the enchantment of a +3 weapon involves the use of a magically treated amalgam of mithril and cold iron to focus the essence of mana into the impact surface of the blade; this gives that same impact surface the effect of being both cold iron and silver.
A similar process is used to focus the magic of a greater magic fang spell for natural weapons.
Creatures with DR/alignment automatically bypass that DR with their natural attacks, as I recall. Many abilities also allow natural attacks to count as some special material or other, and as for bludgeoning/slashing/piercing, nothing bypasses that except for the appropriate damage type and damage that ignores DR anyway.
And optimized barbarian pouncing builds don't usually rely on natural attacks, unless "RAGELANCEPOUNCE" has misled me severely.
OK, any creature with DR/(XYZ) can bypass DR/(XYZ) with it's natural attacks. So a werewolf fighting another werewolf can bypass it's DR with just his claws, but not with a weapon he is using, if he uses one, unless it's silvered.
Otherwise, unarmed strikes do not bypass any DR unless you are a monk or have an amulet of mighty fists; the latter turns your unarmed strikes or natural attacks into magical attacks with the relevant enhancement bonus.
OK, any creature with DR/(XYZ) can bypass DR/(XYZ) with it's natural attacks. So a werewolf fighting another werewolf can bypass it's DR with just his claws, but not with a weapon he is using, if he uses one, unless it's silvered.
Otherwise, unarmed strikes do not bypass any DR unless you are a monk or have an amulet of mighty fists; the latter turns your unarmed strikes or natural attacks into magical attacks with the relevant enhancement bonus.
No, not for Metals, just for Magic & Alignment.
You all are giving me multiple different answers, so, I'm going to try and summarize what I've learned.
Magical Natural Attacks bypass DR/Magic. Same goes for unarmed attacks. Natural Attacks and unarmed strikes have to be buffed by the corresponding enhancement bonus, alignment applier, and/or metal adjuster in order to bypass DR of the corresponding types.
Is this correct?
If you have DR/magic or DR/alignment only, then you bypass that specific type of DR with natural weapons and unarmed strikes.
Otherwise, yes, a buff is required.
+1 bypasses magic.
+2 bypasses nothing special.
+3 bypasses cold iron and silver.
+4 bypasses adamantine.
+5 bypasses alignment.
Nothing* except the appropriate damage type bypasses DR/slashing, bludgeoning, or piercing. Nothing* bypasses DR/-.
*except attacks that normally ignore all forms of DR anyway.
AoMF bypasses metal reductions in line with its bonus
See FAQ
AoMF bypasses metal reductions in line with its bonus
See FAQ
The Bodywrap of Mighty Strikes do the same (although, it is not a favored method, due to the limitations of how many attacks it can enhance in a round).
Besides monk abilities, a couple of feats (such as Eldritch Claws for silver, or a couple of options for Aasimar with Angelic Flesh), and the occasional magical item (frost fist amulet I think does cold iron and gives frost property), there are unfortunately few ways to enhance the attacks beside these. Greater Magical Fang only covers DR/magic, no matter the enhancement bonus, according to the spell itself.
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Nothing* except the appropriate damage type bypasses DR/slashing, bludgeoning, or piercing. Nothing* bypasses DR/-.
*except attacks that normally ignore all forms of DR anyway.
But there is a spell that can help bypass those restrictions as well.
Versatile Weapon
School transmutation; Level bard 2, ranger 2, sorcerer/wizard 3
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, M (iron filings)
Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target one weapon or 50 projectiles, all of which must be together at the time of casting
Duration 1 minute/level
Saving Throw Will negates (harmless, object); Spell Resistance yes (harmless, object)
You transform the physical makeup of a weapon as you desire. This spell functions like greater magic weapon, except that it subtly alters the physical properties of a weapon, enabling it to bypass damage reduction of one the following types: bludgeoning, cold iron, piercing, silver, or slashing. The affected weapon still inflicts damage of its normal type and its hardness and hit points are unchanged. This spell can be cast on a natural weapon or unarmed strike.
Where are people getting that a creature with DR/[alignment] can bypass the same kind of DR?
Some monsters are vulnerable to good-, evil-, chaotic-, or lawful-aligned weapons, such as from an align weapon spell or the holy magical weapon property. A creature with an alignment subtype (chaotic, evil, good, or lawful) can overcome this type of damage reduction with its natural weapons and weapons it wields as if the weapons or natural weapons had an alignment (or alignments) that matched the subtype(s) of the creature.
Emphasis mine.
Whether an attack bypasses DR/[alignment] depends on the attacker's alignment subtype (if any), NOT the attacker's own DR (if any), for example:
If an Astral Deva attacked another Astral Deva, it would NOT bypass the DR/Evil because Astral Devas don't have the Evil sub-type. A Babau Demon, on the other hand, would bypass the DR/Evil.
If people are looking at the monk's Perfect Self class feature, that's a case of a specific rule overriding the general rule.
PRE-POST EDIT: Didn't see KahnyaGnorc's post above.