| Bracer's of Armor give an armor bonus of just the enchantment, and while it is completely legal for a Monk to wear them, a Bracer's of armor +4 is far less than a Chain Shirt +4.
Not to mention, to get a good bonus from Dexterity, Intelligence, and Wisdom from all three classes, you really have to build your character just right. Remember, the Intelligence bonus has a limit, only 1 per Duelist level, so an 18 intelligence would still only grant a +1 to armor class at first level of duelist.
If you think about it in the long run, here's an example of Duelist versus fighter; not gonna list the magic armor and stuff like that, but assume that they are there.
Monk 10/Duelist 10- +5 Intelligence, +5 Dexterity, +5 Wisdom, +2 Deflection, +2 Natural Armor, +5 Armor, +2 Monk. Total AC- 36
Fighter 20- +1 Dexterity, +13 Full Plate Armor, +7 Shield, +2 Natural Armor, +2 Deflection. Total AC- 35
So they're pretty balanced actually. |