What are your favorite non-magic items?

[D.O.M.T]

For D&D 5e, what are your favorite non-magical items?

[stoutstien]

A towel of course.

More seriously I'd have to say tinkering tools.

[MrStabby]

I do like nets.

[da newt]

I like to try to find creative ways to use ordinary stuff (block and tackle - why not?) and I prefer to use the weapons that you never see in play (warpick, flail, morning star), but the most fun I had was w/ a PC who came across a magic mirror (full length stand up type) that had a one use plot thing, but then was still a magic item SO IT COULDN'T BE BROKEN. He took that thing everywhere and often used it for cover or to look around corners or to sneak places etc ... it was just silly.

[Xihirli]

Alchemist's supplies!

[5eNeedsDarksun]

Poison. I particularly like the idea of harvesting it from monsters to use.

[Nidgit]

I've noticed a severe lack of ball bearings.

[Mastikator]

Caltrops are fun. Kinda wish there were bigger versions of caltrops, ball bearings and the like. I like the idea of tactical gear.

[Corran]

Cloak and dagger.
And grappling hooks!

[lall]

Clothes, money, and a pouch for the money.

[yellowrocket]

Clothes, money, and a pouch for the money.

By your logic I have to agree, also a set of armor goes a really long way to making or breaking a concept. Like a low Dex str fighter is a hard concept without full plate and a shield.

Honestly that 100 feet of rope is a personal favorite.

[Zhorn]

Ooooo, hard choice.

I always love leaning into the RP of using material components and general adventuring supplies in problem solving.

Checking for hidden traps and disarming them
Finding secret doors
gathering additional information through investigations
etc
Bags of sand or chalk pieces you crush up are good for many such events.

Rather than just having a dice roll and leave it at that, I like to have fun with using the items in reasonable applications that justify a roll not being necessary for determining binary success/failure, or flipping it into failing forwards/degrees of success if a roll is still on the table.

As a DM I'm always encouraging of my players attempts at this style of play, because i know from being a player that you really need the DM to buy into the idea for it to even be worth trying.
Such a mood killer to try out ideas or even just simple applications and the DM just ignores it for a dice roll on an unaffected DC.

Player: "I use my 10 foot pole to press down on the tiles ahead of us in the dungeon to make sure none of them are trapped"
DM: *rolls* "You step on a trapped tile"
Player: "... did the precaution I took have any effect?"
DM: "No, the DC remained the same as it would for anyone"
If you know ahead of time that those types of actions and item uses are meaningless to your DM, then yeah you know not to bother attempting such things at their table, but it is disheartening to find out after the attempt that the only acceptable plays are strictly spells or class features.

[DomesticHausCat]

I'm always of the opinion that you can never have too much rope. And a long strong chain is also good.

I don't think I'll ever have a character without a dagger for roleplaying purposes. For cutting it makes sense to cut small things with it rather than a sword.

[KorvinStarmast]

For D&D 5e, what are your favorite non-magical items? 50' of silk rope. Lantern. Oil. Tinder/fintandsteel. Torch. Clothes. Thieves tools. Armor. Crossbows and bolts. Daggers.

Poison. I particularly like the idea of harvesting it from monsters to use. +1

Caltrops are fun. Kinda wish there were bigger versions of caltrops, ball bearings and the like. We use them now and again.

Honestly that 100 feet of rope is a personal favorite.
As a DM, I keep track of rope/ask the players to keep track of it. Rope comes in handy so often in play ...

[Scarytincan]

Poisons, herbalism kits, cold weather gear etc from icewind dale, bullseye lantern, crowbar, grappling hook, manacles, steel mirror, canoe/basically all the survival gear/plants from ToA, net...basically anything with actual mechanical rules to increase options I guess lol.

[Scarytincan]

Warships/fortified towers :p

[Psyren]

Tools! I can justify a lot of unlisted actions with my GM and a bit of creativity.

[MrStabby]

Warships/fortified towers :p

Does the elemental plane of ranch dressing count as an item?

[Scarytincan]

Does the elemental plane of ranch dressing count as an item?

Only the best kind!

[Lokishade]

Even in a world where magic exists, you can't beat the usefulness of rope.

Especially when you want to incapacitate someone without killing them in the aftermath of a battle, because most spells only last a minute and allow for saves every 6 seconds.

[clash]

10 foot pole, hands down.

Use it to check for traps, pole vaulting across a crevice, spare tent pole, measuring distance, etc. Course the last one gets a little difficult when traps keep reading the size of your 10 foot pole.

[nickl_2000]

A hammer and piton. I end up buying extra pitons because I use them all the time and leave them attached places.

[yellowrocket]

A hammer and piton. I end up buying extra pitons because I use them all the time and leave them attached places.

As a level 1 character I used pistons to help break down a reinforced door by driving them in to the door. I had a sword and low-ish strength and wasn't getting it done that way. DM didn't even make me roll since it works mechanically. They're great to use to reduce those climbing DCs.

[nickl_2000]

As a level 1 character I used pistons to help break down a reinforced door by driving them in to the door. I had a sword and low-ish strength and wasn't getting it done that way. DM didn't even make me roll since it works mechanically. They're great to use to reduce those climbing DCs.

We bar doors shut with them when taking a long rest in a dangerous place. Tie off rope for crossing a dangerous cliff, and have had many other uses.

[Particle_Man]

A treasure map given to you by a mysterious elder figure in a tavern. :smallsmile:

[yellowrocket]

A treasure map given to you by a mysterious elder figure in a tavern. :smallsmile:

I love your item. Haven't gotten nearly enough of those. And I LOVE your quote even more. Haven't seen that in years.

[Particle_Man]

I love your item. Haven't gotten nearly enough of those. And I LOVE your quote even more. Haven't seen that in years.

I guess it is seasonal again! :smallsmile:

[Yakmala]

A Top 5 in no particular order.


Healer's Kit
50' of rope (silk if you can afford it)
Crowbar
Thieves Tools
Spyglass

[Sayeth]

What about a bit of rope? You'll want it, if you haven't got it.

[Chronos]

Left to my own devices, I usually end up with three-page equipment lists. Heck, if you count all of the tools on my Swiss army knives etc., my own personal everyday carry list usually ends up about that long.

That said, the one thing I won't carry on a character is a ten-foot pole. I have actually bought and carried those in real life (a couple of miles from the lumberyard home), and they're incredibly awkward. And that was even in the open outdoors; they'd be much more so in a cramped dungeon.

[dragsvart]

Oil is always a fun one and it makes my little pyromaniac heart very happy.

Sacks. They're super cheap and I always make a point of buying a dozen or so just in case the DM ever asked us how we plan to carry all those coins.

A wagon/cart. Same reason as the sacks, but bigger. Also I just like the idea of traveling around in our own wagon, maybe doing some trading for a little extra cash or getting a balista to mount on it or to be able to take Gary our favorite boulder along with us on our adventure.

[Chronos]

Along those same lines, a pack mule is very cheap, and can carry a lot of stuff. You might not want to put anything too valuable on them, in case they get stolen or killed, but they're a good way to justify "I'm carrying the entire mundane item list".

[Sigreid]

Shovels, properly used may as well be magic.

[Particle_Man]

Shovels, properly used may as well be magic.

Agreed. A good Shoveler is an amazing hero.

https://mysterymen.fandom.com/wiki/Eddie

[SociopathFriend]

I do like nets.

The unsung hero of every campaign where there's a low-strength little punk that refuses to hold still to properly melee.

MAKE him hold still. :belkar:

[Segev]

I am somewhat fond of bullseye lanterns, especially in combination with control flames.

I also have a soft spot for flasks of oil as ammow for catapult to then follow up with firebolt. +5 fire damage from each source of fire damage for a minute or until the oil is wipes off as an action is pretty nice!

Mounts ate frequently underrated, though they have their vulnerabilities. For a dedicated mount, I like asking the DM to make it a sidekick.