First time DM seeking guidance on creating a magical item

[daisy55]

I'm a first time DM, playing 5e. One of my players is a Draconic Sorcerer, Gold ancestry. He's a big fan of the video game Destiny, so I wanted to come up with a custom magic item that harkened back to and item from that game, the Sunbreakers (if you've never played, don't worry - it's mostly just flavor).

I'd like for them to be a pair of gloves that when worn, grant access to the Flaming Sphere spell (pp 241-242 of the Player Handbook). Flaming Sphere is not normally on the Sorcerer list, so I thought this would be a nice perk.

I took a look at the Dungeon Master Guide's section about creating magical items. It advises the following for spell granting items on page 141 (quoted text also found in SRD 5.1, p207, so I think this is okay to quote):

Some magic items allow the user to cast a spell from the item. The spell is cast at the lowest possible spell level, doesn't expend any of the user's spell slots, and requires no components, unless the item's description says otherwise.

I'd like for this to be relatively viable throughout the game, so the restriction on casting the spell at the lowest possible level would prevent it from scaling its damage up.

I looked at some of the basic magic items listed in the Dungeon Master Guide, and the Wand of Magic Missiles (p. 211) seems to get around this by providing charges, and allowing the user to expend multiple charges to replicate the effect of casting the spell at a higher level. This is not bad, and a bit closer to what I'd want, but not quite.

Ideally, I would like for these gloves to simply grant the ability to cast Flaming Sphere, as if it were just another spell the Sorcerer could learn. It would be cast with his regular spell slots, and allow for using a higher level slot to scale up, if desired.

Since this is my first time DMing and I'm a relatively new player, I wonder if this might not have consequences that I've not foreseen? For context, the we're running through the 5e starter set now, and I'd probably intend for him to have this by/at level 5.

tl;dr: Would a pair of magic gloves that allows a Gold Dragon Ancestry Sorcerer cast Flaming Sphere using their normal spell casting mechanics be "broken" in some way?

[Ninja_Prawn]

I think you're mostly barking up the right tree here. Level 5 is about the right time to acquire an item like this, and it's a good present because it lets the sorcerer do something new they couldn't do before. The only problem I can see is...

tl;dr: Would a pair of magic gloves that allows a Gold Dragon Ancestry Sorcerer cast Flaming Sphere using their normal spell casting mechanics be "broken" in some way?

...I'm not a mind reader, but I suspect the game designers kept Flaming Sphere off the sorcerer list because the Careful Spell metamagic is very good in combination with it. It takes away all the difficulty in using the spell alongside a tanky melee fighter to control a zone of the battlefield. I know evokers can do this as well, but it's basically their one cool trick, whereas for sorcerers it's only a small part of what they can do.

So really, the best thing to do is make sure that the spell is cast through the gloves, explicitly disallowing metamagic. A charge-based mechanism for upscaling the spell is probably a good idea; it would also place a much tighter limit the total number of times it can be cast, which just feels right. When a magic item grants you new functionality, it should be something you tap into occasionally when things get dangerous, not just something that folds into your day-to-day abilities as if it wasn't an item at all. To that end, I'd have this one free from attunement, so that a fighter or barbarian could use it, too.

[daisy55]

Thanks for the feedback! The point about Careful Spell was one I hadn't considered - I agree that it would make things a bit too easy.

Regarding charges vs. use whenever - I think what I was initially thinking was that the gloves would just give them another spell - sort of like how the Magic Initiate feat just gives a player another cantrip, so I was initially against "artificially" limiting its use. After thinking about it some more, I see your point about it not just being another part of their character, but rather a fairly powerful bonus effect that they tap into as needed, and I think that really helps it feel more magical. I really appreciate your feedback, it made me consider things I hadn't before.

If I might tap your brain again, I've a couple follow up questions.

I want something that feels useful, but isn't a one-trick pony, and doesn't feel useless or pointless after a certain point. That last part is the one I'm wondering about - is this a reasonable ask, or should I want/expect/design such things to have a certain shelf life. As an example - in a game I'm currently playing, I've an item that allows me to do 2d8 worth of damage as an action, once per day. Flavor wise, it fits well, but mechanically, I have cantrips that scale better, and are unlimited, so I haven't used it much. Perhaps I shouldn't worry about this thing's effectiveness at higher levels, expecting characters to acquire newer/better items? Or maybe allow it to be upgraded down the road, or something? Or, just not worry if/when it's replaced, as it's certainly not the first time an item has granted a bonus spell and it won't be the last, and if the player enjoys the tactical options it affords over some other benefit, there is nothing saying they must replace/discard it.

If I went with charges, what do you think a a reasonable number might be? One of my fears is that if I gave it too many, the character could basically cast a spell way beyond their normal ability (something I had hoped I might avoid in the first place). This could potentially open up some cool story moments, but I imagine it might get a little boring for the other players if every major boss fight simply saw our sorcerer friend unloading the highest level spell he could he could.

Perhaps this could be mitigated by having the amount of charges it regenerates be random each day, and unable to fully recharge in just one day. Even with perfect rolls each time, the character could still only unleash a max level spell once every other day, which seems right. Numbers could still be tweaked a bit, too. Might also add in a mechanic about it only being able to recharge if the sun is shining (fits in pretty well thematically, too!).

I've seen some items with charges ask for a d20 roll when they are depleted, with a 1 causing the item to disappear/break/whatever. That's not bad, but feels a bit punitive to me.

I appreciate your input and the time you've taken to help out a newbie with his questions, it is very much appreciated!

[Ninja_Prawn]

If I might tap your brain again, I've a couple follow up questions.

I want something that feels useful, but isn't a one-trick pony, and doesn't feel useless or pointless after a certain point. That last part is the one I'm wondering about - is this a reasonable ask, or should I want/expect/design such things to have a certain shelf life. As an example - in a game I'm currently playing, I've an item that allows me to do 2d8 worth of damage as an action, once per day. Flavor wise, it fits well, but mechanically, I have cantrips that scale better, and are unlimited, so I haven't used it much. Perhaps I shouldn't worry about this thing's effectiveness at higher levels, expecting characters to acquire newer/better items? Or maybe allow it to be upgraded down the road, or something? Or, just not worry if/when it's replaced, as it's certainly not the first time an item has granted a bonus spell and it won't be the last, and if the player enjoys the tactical options it affords over some other benefit, there is nothing saying they must replace/discard it.

In general, this is the sort of item you'd replace once you find something better. I think that's fine; the act of upgrading in itself should make the player feel more powerful.

If I went with charges, what do you think a a reasonable number might be? One of my fears is that if I gave it too many, the character could basically cast a spell way beyond their normal ability (something I had hoped I might avoid in the first place). This could potentially open up some cool story moments, but I imagine it might get a little boring for the other players if every major boss fight simply saw our sorcerer friend unloading the highest level spell he could he could.

Perhaps this could be mitigated by having the amount of charges it regenerates be random each day, and unable to fully recharge in just one day. Even with perfect rolls each time, the character could still only unleash a max level spell once every other day, which seems right. Numbers could still be tweaked a bit, too. Might also add in a mechanic about it only being able to recharge if the sun is shining (fits in pretty well thematically, too!).

It's really up to you. I might go for 3 charges, 1 to cast and 1 per level to power it up - so if you blow it all at once, you're capped at Flaming Sphere IV. Then I'd say it recharges 1 charge if it's in direct sunlight at noon or something.

I've seen some items with charges ask for a d20 roll when they are depleted, with a 1 causing the item to disappear/break/whatever. That's not bad, but feels a bit punitive to me.

Yeah, I think that might be a holdover from previous editions, to feed the nostalgia market. There are plenty of examples in the DMG that don't have this drawback, so I'd say you don't need to include it if you don't want to.

[Stan]

I agree that 3 charges, allowing extra charges to increase the slot level, sounds right. Spellcasters don't use their bonus actions that often so the ability to use a bonus action for 4d6 damage for a minute once a day is likely to be useful for a while.

I think rolling for destruction is a finicky and anxiety inducing mechanic.

[daisy55]

Thanks for all the feedback, Ninja_Prawn and Stan. Excited to drop the final result into my game and have my players pick it up!

[Nifft]

One additional thought -- if you want to make the gloves emphatically Sorcerer-specific, maybe have the usage cost sorcery points instead of spell slots or item points.

That also makes it clear that it's not a normal spell, and might make the metamagic prohibition make more sense from a flavor standpoint: "You're using sorcery points to power the thing at all, of course you can't use sorcery points to also modify it."

[Boci]

Is careful spell really something to be that scared of? Sorcerors get 2 metamagics, and they have to pay to activate it. It really doesn't seem that scary. They still take half damage, umm, why is it so wrong? Am I missing something?

[Ninja_Prawn]

Is careful spell really something to be that scared of? Sorcerors get 2 metamagics, and they have to pay to activate it. It really doesn't seem that scary. They still take half damage, umm, why is it so wrong? Am I missing something?

There must be some reason why WotC kept it off the sorcerer list; there's no thematic reason why it shouldn't fit. Perhaps Distant Spell is the problem? I recently found out (to my character's horror) that Flaming Sphere doesn't require line-of-sight. Thus, it would be a prime candidate for Distant Spell shenanigans.

[Boci]

There must be some reason why WotC kept it off the sorcerer list; there's no thematic reason why it shouldn't fit. Perhaps Distant Spell is the problem? I recently found out (to my character's horror) that Flaming Sphere doesn't require line-of-sight. Thus, it would be a prime candidate for Distant Spell shenanigans.

The creature moves away before taking any damage (since that triggers end of turn) and if you cannot see them, you cannot chase them with it. So seems more like a good way to waste a spell slot and a sorcery point.

[Nifft]

There must be some reason why WotC kept it off the sorcerer list; there's no thematic reason why it shouldn't fit.

Maybe it is thematic -- maybe a well-controlled sphere of fire didn't match the WotC idea about "Raw Magic" that is the core Sorcerer's theme.

Maybe a sphere of fire was not a good match for Draconic nor Wild Magic so it got bumped.

It's impossible to say that it was omitted for mechanical reasons.