Thoughts on magic items

[Sigreid]

I'm DMing for a party of 5 that is going to be hitting level 3 soon, and I'm looking for some suggestions to give each an uncommon magic item - standard from the DMG. The tricky parts is I don't want the items to directly increase their combat power, and I would like for each item to be something that would be good for at least 2 of the characters so they genuinely have to make a decision about who gets what.

The party consists of:

A pretty standard rogue sneaky guy
A dex fighter focusing so far on using a bow
A nature cleric heavy on dex
A sorcerer planning to focus on control more than blasting
A bard who's best described as a cad, focused on the social skills and support magic


Everyone is proficient in stealth, it's just something the group does without even talking about it.

Any input is welcome.

[Specter]

A pretty standard rogue sneaky guy
Gloves of Thievery.


A dex fighter focusing so far on using a bow
Cloak/Boots of Elvenkind or Quiver of Ehlonna.


A nature cleric heavy on dex
Pearl of Power or a raven figurine.


A sorcerer planning to focus on control more than blasting
Pearl of Power or Ring of Water Walking.


A bard who's best described as a cad, focused on the social skills and support magic
Hat of Disguise or Ring of Mind Shielding.

[Sigreid]

Thanks for the input. All suggestions worth considering seriously.

[Elminster298]

If you really want to start a war...

Cloak of the manta Ray
Deck of illusions
Goggles of night
Slippers of spider climbing
Winged boots

Ever single party member will literally kill each other for any of these items...

[ruy343]

I'm DMing for a party of 5 that is going to be hitting level 3 soon, and I'm looking for some suggestions to give each an uncommon magic item - standard from the DMG. The tricky parts is I don't want the items to directly increase their combat power, and I would like for each item to be something that would be good for at least 2 of the characters so they genuinely have to make a decision about who gets what.

OK, so if you're set on sticking to DMG items, then that makes it a bit more difficult. Before we move on, however, consider the characters' backgrounds, and think about what kind of item would help their characters develop both as an imaginary person, as well as mechanically.

That said, here are some good low-power, interesting items for a party that's mostly dex-based:
Stone of Good Luck
Wand of Web
Sword of Wounding (eh, it's rare, but it doesn't impact combat that much - great for roleplaying though)
Slipper of Spider Climbing
Sentinel Shield
Rope of Climbing
Robe of Useful Items
Ring of Jumping
A mithral chain shirt or Elven Chain
An immovable Rod
Eversmoking bottle

Hope that helped :)

[Afrodactyl]

You could always homebrew some magical items. For items you need to activate, look at the nearest equivalent to the ability you want it to have, give it a timer/limit, give it a cost and then flavour to taste.

For example, my Pyromancer Warlock currently has a cloak that once per short rest (timer/limit) as an action deals 1d6 damage to everything within five feet of the warlock (equivalent: thunderclap), at the cost of 1d6 of his own Hit Points (cost), and dealing fire damage because he's all about that fire (flavour).

For passive (or 'always on') items, I always either go for a very minor effect, or one that is situational at best. Like a sword that deals lightning damage or a ring that lets you speak to rodents, or a hat that lets you see clearly up to a mile away. All useful things, but either only useful a few times throughout the campaign, or one that only gives a very small boost.

[Sigreid]

Thanks for the input. I think I'm going to go with


Bag of holding
Amulet of nondetection
Pearl of power
Immovable Rod
And a necklace of adaptation


All useful long term. All valuable to more than one of the characters, and almost all valuable to at least 3. Nothing that's going to throw their power out of wack.

[Elminster298]

Thanks for the input. I think I'm going to go with


Bag of holding
Amulet of nondetection
Pearl of power
Immovable Rod
And a necklace of adaptation


All useful long term. All valuable to more than one of the characters, and almost all valuable to at least 3. Nothing that's going to throw their power out of wack.

Excellent selection. I'm sure they will be super excited!

[KorvinStarmast]

Great selection. Best wishes with the campaign.

[ruy343]

Regarding your bag of holding - are you giving this item to them so that they don't need to worry about encumbrance? That's a fair DM strategy, and it hand-waves away all the complicated stuff that most DMs don't want to deal with. Fine by me. But the bag of holding isn't something that they'll fight over, because they'll likely use it as a team.

Further, a bag of holding doesn't actually provide fun/meaningful roleplaying opportunities that complement a character's concept. I suggest you give that bag as a freebie to the party, but include a fifth item that they can fight over.

[Sigreid]

Regarding your bag of holding - are you giving this item to them so that they don't need to worry about encumbrance? That's a fair DM strategy, and it hand-waves away all the complicated stuff that most DMs don't want to deal with. Fine by me. But the bag of holding isn't something that they'll fight over, because they'll likely use it as a team.

Further, a bag of holding doesn't actually provide fun/meaningful roleplaying opportunities that complement a character's concept. I suggest you give that bag as a freebie to the party, but include a fifth item that they can fight over.

The idea isn't really to get them to fight over items. We're all in our 30's and 40's. It's to make it a decision about who gets what rather than each item being clearly targeted at a character. For example, I thought about the lowest rank instrument of the bards, but that clearly goes to one character rather than being a decision.

[Aett_Thorn]

Also, there's no reason why the bag of holding needs to be empty when they find it. You can always have it come with a few useful items in it, that won't be discovered until the person who gets it decides to start using it. I wouldn't put anything major in there, but some extra gold or a gem, some useful (if sometimes overlooked) items, some bags of caltrops or marbles, etc. The Bag of Holding can be something worth getting besides just being a part non-encumbrance tool.

[N810]

•A pretty standard rogue sneaky guy
bag of devouring

•A dex fighter focusing so far on using a bow
immoveable rod

•A nature cleric heavy on dex
sovern glue

•A sorcerer planning to focus on control more than blasting
wand of wonder

•A bard who's best described as a cad, focused on the social skills and support magic
deck of many things



Don't tell them the names of the items, just vaguely describe them,
then just stand back and watch the fireworks... :nale: