D.M.G. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Treasure

Ilse Gort

The Black Dragon Onyx guards her treasure hoard in the ruins of Xak Tsaroth

Adventurers strive for many things, including glory, knowledge, and justice. Many adventurers also seek something more tangible: treasure. This chapter presents treasure in all its forms, from coins to magic items.

Treasure Themes

Monsters have treasure preferences, as explained in the Monster Manual. These preferences are expressed as themes, which helps you determine what treasures are found in monsters’ hoards, as summarized in the Treasure Themes table.

For advice on how to include treasure in an adventure, see chapter 4.

To randomly determine a magic item found as treasure, use the tables at the end of this chapter.

Treasure Themes

Theme	Appropriate Treasure
Arcana	Gemstones plus magic items of an eldritch or esoteric nature
Armaments	Coins or trade bars plus magic items that are useful in battle
Implements	Coins, trade bars, or trade goods plus magic items that focus on utility
Relics	Art objects plus magic items that have religious origins or purposes

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Coins

The most basic type of treasure is money, including Copper Pieces (CP), Silver Pieces (SP), Electrum Pieces (EP), Gold Pieces (GP), and Platinum Pieces (PP). See the Player’s Handbook for their relative value. Fifty coins of any type weigh 1 pound.

Trade Bars

Because large numbers of coins can be difficult to transport and account for, many merchants prefer to use trade bars—ingots of precious metals and alloys (usually silver). These bars are valued by weight, as shown in the Trade Bars table.

Trade Bars

Bar	Value	Dimensions
2-pound silver bar	10 GP	5 in. long × 2 in. wide × 1/2 in. thick
5-pound silver bar	25 GP	6 in. long × 2 in. wide × 1 in. thick
5-pound gold bar	250 GP	5 in. long × 2 in. wide × 3/4 in. thick

Trade Goods

Merchants commonly exchange trade goods without using currency. The Trade Goods table shows the value of commonly exchanged goods.

Trade Goods

Cost	Goods
1 CP	1 lb. of wheat
2 CP	2 lb. of flour or one chicken
5 CP	1 lb. of salt
1 SP	1 lb. of iron or 1 sq. yd. of canvas
5 SP	1 lb. of copper or 1 sq. yd. of cotton cloth
1 GP	1 lb. of ginger or one goat
2 GP	1 lb. of cinnamon or pepper, or one sheep
3 GP	1 lb. of cloves or one pig
5 GP	1 lb. of silver or 1 sq. yd. of linen
10 GP	1 lb. of silk or one cow
15 GP	1 lb. of saffron or one ox
50 GP	1 lb. of gold
500 GP	1 lb. of platinum

Gemstones

Gemstones are small, lightweight, and easily secured compared to their same value in coins.

If a treasure hoard includes gemstones, you can use the following tables to randomly determine the kind of gemstones found, based on their value. You can roll once and assume all the gems are the same or roll multiple times to create mixed collections.

10 GP Gemstones

1d12	Stone
1	Azurite (mottled deep blue)
2	Banded agate (striped brown, blue, white, or red)
3	Blue quartz (pale blue)
4	Eye agate (circles of gray, white, brown, blue, or green)
5	Hematite (gray black)
6	Lapis lazuli (light and dark blue with yellow flecks)
7	Malachite (striated light and dark green)
8	Moss agate (pink or yellow white with mossy gray or green markings)
9	Obsidian (black)
10	Rhodochrosite (light pink)
11	Tiger eye (brown with golden center)
12	Turquoise (light blue green)

50 GP Gemstones

1d12	Stone
1	Bloodstone (dark gray with red flecks)
2	Carnelian (orange to red brown)
3	Chalcedony (white)
4	Chrysoprase (green)
5	Citrine (pale yellow brown)
6	Jasper (blue, black, or brown)
7	Moonstone (white with pale-blue glow)
8	Onyx (bands of black and white, or pure black or white)
9	Quartz (white, smoky gray, or yellow)
10	Sardonyx (bands of red and white)
11	Star rose quartz (rosy stone with white star-shaped center)
12	Zircon (pale blue green)

100 GP Gemstones

1d10	Stone
1	Amber (watery gold to rich gold)
2	Amethyst (deep purple)
3	Chrysoberyl (yellow green to pale green)
4	Coral (crimson)
5	Garnet (red, brown green, or violet)
6	Jade (light green, deep green, or white)
7	Jet (deep black)
8	Pearl (lustrous white, yellow, or pink)
9	Spinel (red, red brown, or deep green)
10	Tourmaline (pale green, blue, brown, or red)

500 GP Gemstones

1d6	Stone
1	Alexandrite (dark green)
2	Aquamarine (pale blue green)
3	Black pearl (pure black)
4	Blue spinel (deep blue)
5	Peridot (rich olive green)
6	Topaz (golden yellow)

1,000 GP Gemstones

1d8	Stone
1	Black opal (dark green with black mottling and golden flecks)
2	Blue sapphire (medium blue)
3	Emerald (deep bright green)
4	Fire opal (fiery red)
5	Opal (pale blue with green and golden mottling)
6	Star ruby (ruby with white star-shaped center)
7	Star sapphire (blue sapphire with white star-shaped center)
8	Yellow sapphire (fiery yellow or yellow green)

5,000 GP Gemstones

1d4	Stone
1	Black sapphire (lustrous black with glowing highlights)
2	Diamond (blue white, canary, pink, brown, or blue)
3	Jacinth (fiery orange)
4	Ruby (clear red to deep crimson)

Art Objects

Idols cast of solid gold, necklaces studded with precious stones, paintings of ancient kings, bejeweled dishes—art objects include all these and more.

If a treasure hoard includes art objects, you can use the following tables to randomly determine what art objects are found, based on their value. Roll on a table as many times as there are art objects in the treasure hoard. There can be more than one of a given art object.

25 GP Art Objects

1d10	Object
1	Silver ewer
2	Carved bone statuette
3	Gold bracelet
4	Cloth-of-gold vestments
5	Black velvet mask stitched with silver thread
6	Copper chalice with silver filigree
7	Pair of engraved bone dice
8	Handheld mirror set in a painted wooden frame
9	Embroidered silk handkerchief
10	Gold locket with a painted portrait inside

250 GP Art Objects

1d10	Object
1	Gold ring set with bloodstones
2	Carved ivory statuette
3	Bejeweled gold bracelet
4	Silver necklace with a gemstone pendant
5	Bronze crown
6	Silk vestments with gold embroidery
7	Well-made tapestry that is 10 feet by 10 feet
8	Brass mug with jade inlay
9	Box of turquoise animal figurines
10	Gold birdcage with electrum filigree

750 GP Art Objects

1d10	Object
1	Silver chalice set with moonstones
2	Bundle of sheet music representing the lost dirges of a famous composer
3	Carved wooden harp with ivory inlay and zircon gems
4	Gold idol
5	Gold comb shaped like a dragon with red garnets as eyes
6	Bottle stopper cork embossed with gold leaf and set with amethysts
7	Detailed, life-sized dragonborn skull cast in electrum
8	Silver and gold brooch
9	Obsidian statuette with gold fittings and inlay
10	Painted gold war mask

2,500 GP Art Objects

1d10	Object
1	Fine gold chain set with a fire opal
2	Old masterpiece painting
3	Embroidered silk and velvet mantle set with numerous moonstones
4	Platinum bracelet set with an emerald
5	Embroidered glove set with jewel chips
6	Jeweled anklet
7	Gold music box
8	Gold circlet set with four aquamarines
9	Eye patch decorated with tiny blue sapphires and moonstones
10	A necklace string of small pink pearls

7,500 GP Art Objects

1d10	Object
1	Jeweled gold crown
2	Jeweled platinum ring
3	Gold statuette set with rubies
4	Gold cup set with emeralds
5	Gold jewelry box with platinum filigree
6	Set of gold nesting dolls
7	Jade game board with gold playing pieces
8	Bejeweled ivory drinking horn with gold filigree
9	Gilded royal coach or funeral barge
10	Ceremonial gold armor with black pearls

Magic Items

Magic items are gleaned from the hoards of felled monsters or discovered in long-lost vaults. Such items grant capabilities a character could rarely have otherwise, or they complement their owner’s capabilities in wondrous ways.

Magic Item Rules

Rules for identifying, attuning to, and using magic items appear in the Player’s Handbook. Additional rules are presented below.

Attunement Prerequisites. If a magic item has a class prerequisite, a creature must be a member of that class to attune to the item. If a creature must be a spellcaster to attune to an item, the creature qualifies if it can cast at least one spell using its traits or features, not by using a magic item or the like.

Items Made for Specific Creatures. Magic items that are meant to be worn tend to magically adjust themselves to the wearer. However, you can decide that a magic item doesn’t adjust its size to fit any wearer. For example, a particular armorer might make items usable only by folk who are sized and shaped like dwarves.

Unusual Anatomy. Use your discretion to decide whether a creature can wear an item not made for its anatomy. A ring placed on a tentacle might work, but a yuan-ti with a snakelike tail instead of legs can’t wear magic boots.

Paired Items. You can allow exceptions to the rule that paired items must both be worn. For example, a character with only one arm might be able to use a single Glove of Missile Snaring so long as the matching glove is on their person.

Magic Item Categories

Every magic item belongs to a category. The Magic Item Categories table lists the nine categories and provides examples. Rules for the categories appear after the table.

Magic Item Categories

Category	Examples
Armor	+1 Leather Armor, +1 Shield
Potions	Potion of Healing
Rings	Ring of Invisibility
Rods	Immovable Rod
Scrolls	Spell Scroll
Staffs	Staff of Striking
Wands	Wand of Fireballs
Weapons	+1 Ammunition, +1 Longsword
Wondrous Items	Bag of Holding, Boots of Elvenkind

Armor

An item in the Armor category is typically a magical version of armor from the Player’s Handbook. Unless an armor’s description notes otherwise, the armor must be worn for its magic to function.

Some suits of magic armor specify the type of armor they are, such as Chain Mail or Plate Armor. If no type is specified, choose the type or determine it randomly.

Potions

An item in the Potion category might be a magical brew that must be imbibed or an oil that must be applied to a creature or an object. A typical potion consists of 1 ounce of liquid in a vial.

Using a Potion. Potions are consumable items. Drinking a potion or administering it to another creature requires a Bonus Action. Applying an oil might take longer as specified in its description. Once used, a potion takes effect immediately, and it is used up.

Mixing Potions. A character might drink one potion while still under the effects of another or pour several potions into a single container. The strange ingredients used in creating potions can result in unpredictable interactions.

When a character mixes two potions together, roll on the Potion Miscibility table. If more than two are combined, roll again for each subsequent potion, combining the results. Unless the effects are immediately obvious, reveal them only when they become evident.

Potion Miscibility

1d100	Result
01	Both potions lose their effects, and the mixture creates a magical explosion in a 5-foot-radius Sphere centered on itself. Each creature in that area takes 4d10 Force damage.
02–08	Both potions lose their effects, and the mixture becomes an ingested poison of your choice (see “Poison” in chapter 3).
09–15	Both potions lose their effects.
16–25	One potion loses its effect.
26–35	Both potions work, but with their numerical effects and durations halved. If a potion has no numerical effect and no duration, it instead loses its effect.
36–90	Both potions work normally.
91–99	Both potions work, but the numerical effects and duration of one potion are doubled. If neither potion has anything to double in this way, they work normally.
00	Only one potion works, but its effects are permanent. Choose the simplest effect to make permanent or the one that seems the most fun. For example, a Potion of Healing might increase the drinker’s Hit Point maximum by 2d4 + 2, or a Potion of Invisibility might give the drinker the Invisible condition indefinitely. At your discretion, a Dispel Magic spell or similar magic might end this lasting effect.

Rings

For its magic to function, an item in the Ring category must be worn on a finger or a similar digit unless its description notes otherwise.

Rods

An item in the Rod category is a scepter usually made of metal, wood, or bone. A typical rod weighs 2 to 5 pounds.

Unless its description notes otherwise, a rod can be used as an Arcane Focus.

Scrolls

An item in the Scroll category is a roll of paper or parchment, sometimes attached to wooden rods and typically kept safe in a tube of ivory, jade, leather, metal, or wood. The most prevalent scroll is the Spell Scroll, a spell stored in written form. However, some scrolls, like the Scroll of Protection, bear an incantation that isn’t a spell.

Using a Scroll. Scrolls are consumable items. Unleashing the magic in a scroll requires the user to read the scroll. When its magic has been invoked, the scroll can’t be used again. Its words fade, or it crumbles into dust.

Any creature that can understand a written language can read a scroll and attempt to activate it unless its description notes otherwise.

Staffs

Items in the Staff category vary widely in appearance: some are of nearly equal diameter throughout and smooth, others are gnarled and twisted, some are made of wood, and others are composed of polished metal or crystal. A staff weighs between 2 and 7 pounds and serves well as a walking stick or cane.

Unless its description notes otherwise, a staff can be used as a nonmagical Quarterstaff and an Arcane Focus.

Wands

An item in the Wand category is typically 12 to 15 inches long and crafted of metal, bone, or wood. It is tipped with metal, crystal, stone, or some other material.

Unless its description notes otherwise, a wand can be used as an Arcane Focus.

Weapons

A magic weapon is typically a magical version of a weapon from the Player’s Handbook. Some magic weapons specify the type of weapon they are in their descriptions, such as a Longsword or Longbow. If no weapon type is specified, you may choose the type or determine it randomly.

Ammunition. If a magic weapon has the Ammunition property, ammunition fired from it is considered magical for the purpose of any rule that cares whether a weapon is magical or not.

Wondrous Items

Wondrous Items include wearable items such as boots, belts, capes, amulets, brooches, and circlets. Bags, carpets, figurines, horns, musical instruments, and more also fall into this category.

Magic Item Rarity

Every magic item has a rarity, which provides a rough measure of an item’s power relative to other magic items. The rarities are shown in the Magic Item Rarities and Values table.

Common magic items, such as a Potion of Healing, are the most plentiful. Artifacts, such as the Wand of Orcus, are priceless, unique, and difficult to acquire.

Magic Item Values by Rarity

Common magic items can often be bought in a town or city. Uncommon and Rare magic items are usually found only in cities, and rarer magic items might be sold only in wondrous locations, such as the City of Brass or Sigil. If you allow characters to buy and sell magic items in your campaign, rarity can help you set prices for those items. Gold Piece values are provided in the Magic Item Rarities and Values table, though a seller might ask for a service rather than coin as payment.

If a magic item incorporates an item that has a purchase cost in the Player’s Handbook (such as a weapon or a suit of armor), add that item’s cost to the magic item’s value. For example, +1 Armor (Plate Armor) has a value of 5,500 GP, which is the sum of a Rare magic item’s value (4,000 GP) and the cost of Plate Armor (1,500 GP).

Magic Item Rarities and Values

Rarity	Value*
Common	100 GP
Uncommon	400 GP
Rare	4,000 GP
Very Rare	40,000 GP
Legendary	200,000 GP
Artifact	Priceless
*Halve the value for a consumable item other than a Spell Scroll. The value of a Spell Scroll is double what it costs to scribe the scroll (as specified in the Player’s Handbook).

Awarding Magic Items

Awarding magic items is the purview of the DM. You can award a magic item because the story calls for it or the players would be especially pleased to have it. This section helps you to determine which magic items end up in the characters’ possession.

Are Magic Items Necessary?

The D&D game assumes that magic items appear sporadically and that they are a boon unless an item bears a curse. Characters and monsters are built to face each other without the help of magic items, which means that having a magic item makes a character more powerful or versatile than a generic character of the same level. As DM, you never have to worry about awarding magic items just so the characters can keep up with the campaign’s threats. Magic items are truly prizes—desirable but not necessary.

Magic Items Awarded by Level

The Magic Items Awarded by Level table shows the number of magic items a D&D party typically gains during a campaign, totaling one hundred magic items by level 20. The table shows how many items of each rarity are meant to be handed out during each of the four tiers of play.

Artifacts are omitted from the table because they are most often used as plot devices in high-level adventures, and characters rarely have them for long (either because the Artifacts are meant to be destroyed or because the campaign is nearing its end).

Player Wish List. Encourage your players to keep a wish list of magic items they hope their characters will find in the course of the campaign. If you want to award a magic item but don’t have a specific magic item in mind, you can pick an item of the appropriate rarity from your players’ wish list.

Overstocking an Adventure. When creating or modifying an adventure, assume that the characters won’t find all the magic items you place in it. An adventure usually can include a number of items that’s 25 percent higher than the number in the Magic Items Awarded by Level table (round up). For example, an adventure designed to take characters from level 1 to 4 might include fourteen items rather than eleven, in the expectation that three items won’t be found.

Magic Items Awarded by Level

Character Level (Tier of Play)	Common Items	Uncommon Items	Rare Items	Very Rare Items	Legendary Items	All Items
1–4 (tier 1)	6	4	1	0	0	11
5–10 (tier 2)	10	17	6	1	0	34
11–16 (tier 3)	3	7	11	7	2	30
17–20 (tier 4)	0	0	5	11	9	25
Total	19	28	23	19	11	100

Justyna Gil

Downloadable PDF

Magic Item Tracker

You can use the Magic Item Tracker sheet to track how many magic items the characters have acquired. Each time the characters get a magic item, put a check mark in one of the empty circles corresponding to the item’s rarity and the current level range of the characters. If the characters gain a magic item of a rarity that has no unchecked circles at the current level range, check off an empty circle from a lower tier. If all lower level ranges also have no circles left, check off an empty circle from a higher level range.

Random Magic Item Rarity

When you decide that a treasure contains magic items, there are two ways to determine the rarity of those items. You can choose an appropriate rarity based on the items you’ve given out already (using the Magic Item Tracker sheet to keep track), or you can roll on the Magic Item Rarities table.

To use the table, find the level of the characters in the top row. Roll 1d100, and read down that column to find your roll. Then read across to the right column to find the rarity of the item.

Magic Item Rarities

————— 1d100 Roll —————
Levels 1–4	Levels 5–10	Levels 11–16	Levels 17–20	Item’s Rarity
---	---	---	---	---
01–54	01–30	01–11	—	Common
55–91	31–81	12–34	—	Uncommon
92–00	82–98	35–70	01–20	Rare
—	99–00	71–93	21–64	Very Rare
—	—	94–00	65–00	Legendary

Magic Items for Starting Characters

If you’re starting a campaign for characters above level 1, the Player’s Handbook offers suggestions for how many magic items such characters should start with and the rarity of those items. Consider these approaches to determining the items each character receives:

DM Choice: Choose items for each character using your own judgment.

Player Choice: Let the players choose whatever items they want, within the specified rarity.

Random Determination: Use the tables at the end of this chapter to randomly determine starting items. Use the Arcana tables for Sorcerers, Warlocks, and Wizards. Use the Armaments tables for Barbarians, Fighters, Paladins, and Rangers. Use the Implements tables for Bards, Monks, and Rogues. Use the Relics tables for Clerics and Druids. Feel free to vary the tables you use to give each character a mix of useful items and to match character themes. For example, for a Fighter with the Eldritch Knight subclass, you might choose one item from the Arcana tables and the rest of the character’s items from the Armaments tables.

Activating a Magic Item

It usually takes a Magic action to activate a magic item. The item’s user might also need to do something special. The description of each item category or individual item details how an item is activated. Certain items use the following rules for their activation.

Command Word

A command word is a word or short phrase that must be spoken or signed for an item to work. Spoken command words must be audible and fail to work in areas where all sound is suppressed, as in the area of the Silence spell.

Consumable Items

Some items are consumed—used up, in other words—when they are activated. A Potion of Healing must be swallowed, for example, while the writing vanishes from a scroll when it is read. Once used, a consumable item loses its magic.

Spells Cast from Items

Some magic items allow the user to cast a spell from the item. The spell is cast at the lowest possible spell and caster level, doesn’t expend any of the user’s spell slots, and requires no components unless the item’s description notes otherwise. The spell uses its normal casting time, range, and duration, and the user of the item must concentrate if the spell requires Concentration. Many items, such as Potions, bypass the casting of a spell and confer the spell’s effects with its usual duration. Certain items make exceptions to these rules, changing the casting time, duration, or other parts of a spell.

A magic item may require the user to use their own spellcasting ability when casting a spell from the item. If the user has more than one spellcasting ability, the user chooses which one to use with the item. If the user doesn’t have a spellcasting ability, their spellcasting ability modifier is +0 for the item, and the user’s Proficiency Bonus applies.

Charges

Some magic items have charges that must be expended to activate their properties. The number of charges an item has remaining is revealed when the Identify spell is cast on it. A creature attuned to an item knows how many charges the item has and how many it regains.

“The Next Dawn”

Magic items often have charges or properties that recharge at the next dawn or some other specified time. If such an item is on a world or plane of existence where the specified event doesn’t occur, the DM determines when the item recharges.

Cursed Items

A magic item’s description specifies whether it bears a curse. Most methods of identifying items, including the Identify spell, fail to reveal such a curse.

Attunement to a cursed item can’t be ended voluntarily unless the curse is broken first, such as with a Remove Curse spell.

Magic Item Resilience

A magic item is at least as durable as a nonmagical item of its kind. Most magic items, other than Potions and Scrolls, have Resistance to all damage.

An Artifact can be destroyed only in some special way. Otherwise, it is impervious to damage. Learning how to destroy an Artifact usually requires research or the completion of a quest.

Crafting Magic Items

The Player’s Handbook contains rules on brewing Potions of Healing and scribing Spell Scrolls. To create other magic items, follow the rules below. In these rules, “you” refers to the character crafting the magic item.

Arcana Proficiency

To craft a magic item, you and any assistants must have proficiency in the Arcana skill.

Tools

The Magic Item Tools table lists which tool is required to make a magic item of each category. You must use the required tool to make an item and have proficiency with that tool. Any assistants must also have proficiency with it. For more information on the tools, see the Player’s Handbook.

Magic Item Tools

Item Category	Required Tool
Armor	Leatherworker’s Tools, Smith’s Tools, or Weaver’s Tools depending on the kind of armor as noted in the tools’ descriptions
Potion	Alchemist’s Supplies or Herbalism Kit
Ring	Jeweler’s Tools
Rod	Woodcarver’s Tools
Scroll	Calligrapher’s Supplies
Staff	Woodcarver’s Tools
Wand	Woodcarver’s Tools
Weapon	Leatherworker’s Tools, Smith’s Tools, or Woodcarver’s Tools depending on the kind of weapon as noted in the tools’ descriptions
Wondrous Item	Tinker’s Tools or the tool required to make the nonmagical item on which the magic item is based

Spells

If a magic item allows its user to cast any spells from it, you must have all those spells prepared every day you spend crafting the item.

Time and Cost

Crafting a magic item takes an amount of time and money based on the item’s rarity as shown in the Magic Item Crafting Time and Cost table.

Work per Day. For each day of crafting, you must work for 8 hours. If an item requires multiple days, those days needn’t be consecutive.

Assistants. Characters can combine their efforts to shorten the crafting time. Divide the time needed to create an item by the number of characters working on it. Normally, only one other character can assist you, but the DM might allow more assistants.

Raw Materials. The cost in the table represents the raw materials needed to make a magic item. The DM determines whether appropriate raw materials are available. In a city, there is a 75 percent chance that the materials are available, and in any other settlement, that chance is 25 percent. If materials aren’t available, you must wait at least 7 days before checking on the availability again.

If a magic item incorporates an item that has a purchase cost (such as a weapon or a suit of armor), you must also pay that entire cost or craft that item using the rules in the Player’s Handbook. For example, to make +1 Armor (Plate Armor), you must pay 3,500 GP or pay 2,000 GP and craft the armor.

Magic Item Crafting Time and Cost

Item Rarity	Time*	Cost*
Common	5 days	50 GP
Uncommon	10 days	200 GP
Rare	50 days	2,000 GP
Very Rare	125 days	20,000 GP
Legendary	250 days	100,000 GP
*The time and cost are halved for a consumable item other than a Spell Scroll, whose crafting time and cost are given in the Player’s Handbook.

Crafting magic items requires time and research

Magic Item Special Features

You can add distinctiveness to a magic item by thinking about its backstory. Who made the item? Is anything unusual about its construction? Why was it made, and how was it used originally? What minor magical quirks set it apart from other items of its kind? Answering these questions can help turn a generic magic item, such as a +1 Longsword, into a more flavorful discovery.

Use the following tables to fill in details about a magic item’s history. Some table entries make more sense for certain items than for others. If you roll something that doesn’t make sense, roll again, choose a more appropriate entry, or use the rolled detail as inspiration to make up your own special feature.

On the Magic Item’s Minor Property table and the Magic Item’s Quirk table, “you” refers to the item’s bearer.

Magic Item’s Creator or Intended User

1d20	Creator or Intended User
1	Aberration. The item is ancient. At a glance, it seems to be covered with mucus.
2	Celestial. The item is half the normal weight and inscribed with feathered wings, suns, and stars. Fiends find it repulsive.
3	Devotees of Lolth. The item is half the normal weight. It is inscribed with spiders and webs in honor of Lolth.
4	Dragon. This item incorporates precious metals and gems from a dragon’s hoard. It grows warm when within 120 feet of a Dragon.
5–6	Dwarf. The item is durable and has Dwarvish runes worked into its design. It might be associated with a clan that would like to see it returned to their ancestral halls.
7	Elemental Air. The item is half the normal weight and feels hollow. If it’s made of fabric, it is diaphanous.
8	Elemental Earth. This item might be crafted from stone. Any cloth or leather elements are studded with finely polished rock.
9	Elemental Fire. This item is warm to the touch, and any metal parts are crafted from black iron. Flame imagery covers its surface.
10	Elemental Water. Lustrous fish scales replace leather or cloth on this item, and seashells and worked coral (as hard as any metal) replace metal portions.
11–12	Elf. The item is half the normal weight. It is adorned with symbols of nature: leaves, vines, stars, and the like.
13	Fey. The item is exquisitely crafted from the finest materials and glows with a pale radiance in moonlight, shedding Dim Light in a 5-foot radius. Any metal in the item is silver or mithral rather than iron or steel.
14	Fiend. The item is made of iron or horn, and any cloth or leather components are crafted from the hide of Fiends. Leering faces or vile runes are engraved on its surface. Celestials find it repulsive.
15	Giant. The item is larger than normal and was crafted by Giants for use by their smaller allies.
16	Gnome. The item is crafted to appear ordinary and well used. It could also incorporate gears and mechanical components, even if these aren’t essential to its function.
17–19	Human. The item was created during the heyday of a fallen human kingdom, or it is tied to a human of legend. It might hold writing in a forgotten language or symbols whose significance is lost to the ages.
20	Undead. The item incorporates symbols of death, such as bones and skulls, and it might be crafted from parts of corpses. It feels cold to the touch.

Magic Item’s History

1d8	History
1	Arcane. This item was created for an ancient order of spellcasters and bears the order’s symbol.
2	Bane. This item was created to oppose creatures of a particular type, such as Aberrations or Dragons.
3	Heroic. A great hero once wielded this item. Anyone who knows the item’s history expects great deeds from the new owner.
4	Ornament. The item honors a special event. Inset gemstones, gold or platinum inlays, and gold or silver filigree adorn its surface.
5	Prophecy. The item features in a prophecy: its bearer is destined to play a key role in future events.
6	Religious. This item was used in religious ceremonies dedicated to a particular deity. It has religious symbols worked into it.
7	Sinister. This item is linked to a deed of great evil, such as a massacre or an assassination. It might have a name or be closely associated with a villain who used it.
8	Symbol of Power. This item was once used as part of royal regalia or as a badge of high office.

Magic Item’s Minor Property

1d20	Minor Property
1–2	Beacon. You can take a Bonus Action to cause the item to shed Bright Light in a 10-foot radius and Dim Light for an additional 10 feet, or to extinguish the light.
3	Compass. You can take a Magic action to learn which way is magnetic north. Nothing happens if this property is used in a location that has no magnetic north.
4	Delver. While underground, you always know the item’s depth below the surface and the direction to the nearest staircase, ramp, or other path leading upward.
5–6	Guardian. The item warns you, granting a +2 bonus to your Initiative rolls if you don’t have the Incapacitated condition.
7–8	Harmonious. Attuning to this item takes only 1 minute.
9	Key. The item is used to unlock a container, chamber, vault, or door.
10	Secret Message. A message is hidden somewhere on the item. It might be visible only at a certain time, under the light of one phase of the moon, or in a specific location.
11–12	Sentinel. The DM chooses a kind of creature, such as mind flayers or trolls. This item glows faintly when such creatures are within 120 feet of it.
13	Songcraft. Whenever this item is struck or is used to strike a foe, you hear a fragment of an ancient song.
14–15	Strange Material. The item was created from a material that is bizarre given its purpose. Its durability is unaffected.
16	Temperate. You are unharmed by temperatures of 0 degrees Fahrenheit or lower, and 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher.
17	Unbreakable. The item can’t be broken. Special means must be used to destroy it.
18	War Leader. You can take a Magic action to cause your voice or signal to carry clearly for up to 600 feet until the end of your next turn.
19	Waterborne. This item floats on water and other liquids. You have Advantage on Strength (Athletics) checks to swim.
20	Roll twice, rerolling any additional 20s.

Magic Item’s Quirk

1d8	Quirk
1	Blissful. You feel fortunate and optimistic about what the future holds. Butterflies and other harmless creatures might frolic in the item’s presence.
2	Confident. The item helps you feel self-assured.
3	Covetous. You become obsessed with material wealth.
4	Fragile. The item crumbles, frays, chips, or cracks slightly when wielded, worn, or activated. This quirk has no effect on its properties.
5	Loud. The item makes a loud noise—such as a clang, a shout, or a resonating gong—when used.
6	Metamorphic. The item periodically alters its appearance in slight ways. You have no control over these minor alterations, which have no effect on the item’s use.
7	Painful. You experience a harmless flash of pain when using the item.
8	Repulsive. You feel a sense of distaste when in contact with the item and continue to experience discomfort while bearing it.

Artifacts

Raluca Marinescu

An Artifact is a unique, singularly powerful magic item with its own origin and history. It could have been created in the midst of a crisis that threatened a kingdom, a world, or the entire multiverse, and carry the weight of that pivotal moment in history.

Some Artifacts appear when they are needed most. For others, the reverse is true; when these Artifacts are discovered, the world trembles at the ramifications of the find. In either case, introducing an Artifact into a campaign requires forethought. It could be an item that opposing sides are hoping to claim, or it might be something the adventurers need to overcome their greatest challenge.

Characters don’t typically find Artifacts in the normal course of adventuring. In fact, Artifacts appear only when you want them to, for they are as much plot devices as magic items. Tracking down and recovering an Artifact is often the main goal of an adventure. Characters must chase down rumors, undergo significant trials, and venture into dangerous, half-forgotten places to find the Artifact they seek. Alternatively, a major villain might already have the Artifact. Obtaining and destroying the Artifact could be the only way to ensure that its power can’t be used for evil.

Artifact Properties

In addition to its defined properties, an Artifact might have other properties that are either beneficial or detrimental. You can choose such properties from the tables in this section or determine them randomly. You can also invent new beneficial and detrimental properties. These properties typically change each time an Artifact appears in the world.

An Artifact can have as many as four minor beneficial properties and two major beneficial properties. It can have as many as four minor detrimental properties and two major detrimental properties.

Minor Beneficial Properties

1d100	Property
01–20	While attuned to the Artifact, you gain proficiency in one skill of the DM’s choice.
21–30	While attuned to the Artifact, you have Immunity to the Poisoned condition.
31–40	While attuned to the Artifact, you have Immunity to the Charmed and Frightened conditions.
41–50	While attuned to the Artifact, you have Resistance to one damage type of the DM’s choice.
51–60	While attuned to the Artifact, you can cast one cantrip (chosen by the DM) from it.
61–70	While attuned to the Artifact, you can cast one level 1 spell (chosen by the DM) from it. After you cast the spell, roll 1d6. On a roll of 1–5, you can’t cast it again in this way until the next dawn.
71–80	As 61–70 above, except the spell is level 2.
81–90	As 61–70 above, except the spell is level 3.
91–00	While attuned to the Artifact, you gain a +1 bonus to Armor Class.

Major Beneficial Properties

1d100	Property
01–20	While attuned to the Artifact, one of your ability scores (DM’s choice) increases by 2, to a maximum of 24.
21–30	While attuned to the Artifact, you regain 1d6 Hit Points at the start of each of your turns if you have at least 1 Hit Point.
31–40	When you hit with an attack roll while attuned to the Artifact, the target takes an extra 1d6 Force damage.
41–50	While you’re attuned to the Artifact, your Speed increases by 10 feet.
51–60	While attuned to the Artifact, you can cast one level 4 spell (chosen by the DM) from it. After you cast the spell, roll 1d6. On a roll of 1–5, you can’t cast it again in this way until the next dawn.
61–70	As 51–60 above, except the spell is level 5.
71–80	As 51–60 above, except the spell is level 6.
81–90	As 51–60 above, except the spell is level 7.
91–00	While attuned to the Artifact, you have Immunity to the Blinded, Deafened, Petrified, and Stunned conditions.

Minor Detrimental Properties

1d100	Property
01–08	While attuned to the Artifact, you have Disadvantage on any ability check or saving throw that uses Strength or Constitution.
09–16	While attuned to the Artifact, you have Disadvantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws.
17–24	While attuned to the Artifact, you have Vulnerability to Poison damage.
25–32	While attuned to the Artifact, you have the Blinded condition when you’re more than 10 feet away from it.
33–40	While attuned to the Artifact, you have the Deafened condition when you’re more than 10 feet away from it.
41–48	While attuned to the Artifact, you lose all sense of smell.
49–66	While you’re attuned to the Artifact, your appearance changes as the DM decides.
67–72	While attuned to the Artifact, you emit a sour stench noticeable from up to 10 feet away.
73–76	Whenever you touch a nonmagical gem or an art object while attuned to this Artifact, the value of the gem or art object is reduced by half. This affects a particular object only once.
77–80	While you’re attuned to the Artifact, all Holy Water within 10 feet of you is destroyed.
81–84	While you’re attuned to the Artifact, nonmagical flames are extinguished within 30 feet of you.
85–88	While you’re attuned to the Artifact, other creatures can’t take Short or Long Rests while within 300 feet of you.
89–92	While attuned to the Artifact, you kill any nonmagical vegetation you touch that isn’t a creature.
93–00	While you’re attuned to the Artifact, Beasts within 30 feet of you that have a Challenge Rating of 6 or lower are Hostile toward you.

Major Detrimental Properties

1d100	Property
01–09	You can’t attune to other magic items while you’re attuned to the Artifact. When you become attuned to the Artifact, your Attunement to other magic items ends immediately.
10–18	When you become attuned to the Artifact, a random one of your ability scores is reduced by 2, to a minimum of 3. A Greater Restoration spell restores the ability.
19–27	When you become attuned to the Artifact, you take 8d10 Psychic damage.
28–36	The first time you become attuned to the Artifact, it gives you a quest determined by the DM. You can’t use any of the Artifact’s properties until you complete the quest.
37–45	Each time you become attuned to the Artifact, there is a 10 percent chance that you attract the attention of a god who sends an avatar to wrest the Artifact from you. The avatar has the same alignment as its creator and uses the Empyrean stat block. Once it obtains the Artifact, the avatar vanishes.
46–54	Each time you become attuned to the Artifact, you must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw or die from the shock. If you die, you’re instantly transformed into a Wight under the DM’s control that must protect the Artifact.
55–63	The Artifact dilutes potions within 10 feet of itself, rendering them nonmagical.
64–72	The Artifact erases scrolls within 10 feet of itself, rendering them nonmagical.
73–81	While you’re attuned to the Artifact, creatures of a particular type other than Humanoid (chosen by the DM) are always Hostile toward you.
82–90	While attuned to the Artifact, you have Vulnerability to all damage.
91–96	The Artifact imprisons a Death Slaad. Each time you become attuned to the Artifact, the slaad has a 10 percent chance of escaping, whereupon it appears in an unoccupied space as close to you as possible and attacks you.
97–00	While attuned to the Artifact, you can’t spend Hit Point Dice or regain Hit Points.

Sentient Magic Items

Some magic items have sentience and personality. Such an item might be possessed, haunted by the spirit of a previous owner, or self-aware thanks to the magic used to create it. A sentient item might be a cherished ally to its wielder or a continual thorn in the side.

Most sentient items are weapons, but other kinds of items can manifest sentience. Single-use items such as potions and scrolls are never sentient.

The DM controls sentient magic items and their activated properties. A bearer who maintains a good relationship with the item can access those properties. If the relationship is strained, a conflict can ensue (see “Conflict” below).

Sentient Magic Item Traits

When you make a sentient magic item, you create the item’s persona much as you would create an NPC (as described in the “Nonplayer Characters” section of chapter 3), with these exceptions.

Abilities. A sentient magic item has Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma scores. Choose the item’s abilities, or determine them randomly as follows: roll 4d6 for each one, dropping the lowest roll and totaling the rest.

Alignment. A sentient magic item has an alignment. Its creator or nature might suggest an alignment. Otherwise, pick an alignment or roll on the Sentient Item’s Alignment table.

Communication. A sentient item communicates by sharing its emotions, broadcasting its thoughts telepathically, or speaking aloud. You can choose how it communicates or roll on the Sentient Item’s Communication table.

Senses. A sentient item can perceive its surroundings out to a limited range. You can choose its senses or roll on the Sentient Item’s Senses table.

Special Purpose. You can give a sentient item an objective it pursues, perhaps to the exclusion of all else. As long as the wielder’s use of the item aligns with that special purpose, the item remains cooperative. Deviating from this course might cause conflict between the wielder and the item (see “Conflict” below). You can pick a special purpose or roll on the Sentient Item’s Special Purpose table.

Sentient Item’s Alignment

1d100	Alignment
01–15	Lawful Good
16–35	Neutral Good
36–50	Chaotic Good
51–63	Lawful Neutral
64–73	Neutral
74–85	Chaotic Neutral
86–89	Lawful Evil
90–96	Neutral Evil
97–00	Chaotic Evil

Sentient Item’s Communication

1d10	Communication
1–6	The item communicates by transmitting emotion to the creature carrying or wielding it.
7–9	The item speaks one or more languages.
10	The item speaks one or more languages. In addition, the item can communicate telepathically with any creature that carries or wields it.

Sentient Item’s Senses

1d4	Senses
1	Hearing and standard vision out to 30 feet
2	Hearing and standard vision out to 60 feet
3	Hearing and standard vision out to 120 feet
4	Hearing and Darkvision out to 120 feet

Sentient Item’s Special Purpose

1d10	Special Purpose
1	Aligned. The item seeks to defeat or destroy those of a diametrically opposed alignment. Such an item is never Neutral.
2	Bane. The item seeks to thwart or destroy creatures of a particular type, such as Constructs, Fiends, or Undead.
3	Creator Seeker. The item seeks its creator and wants to understand why it was created.
4	Destiny Seeker. The item believes it and its bearer have key roles to play in future events.
5	Destroyer. The item craves destruction and goads its user to fight arbitrarily.
6	Glory Seeker. The item seeks renown as the greatest magic item in the world by winning fame or notoriety for its user.
7	Lore Seeker. The item craves knowledge or is determined to solve a mystery, learn a secret, or unravel a cryptic prophecy.
8	Protector. The item seeks to defend a particular kind of creature, such as elves or werewolves.
9	Soulmate Seeker. The item seeks another sentient magic item, perhaps one that is similar to itself.
10	Templar. The item seeks to defend the servants and interests of a particular deity.

Conflict

When the bearer of a sentient item acts in a manner opposed to the item’s alignment or purpose, conflict can arise. When such a conflict occurs, the item’s bearer makes a Charisma saving throw (DC 12 plus the item’s Charisma modifier). On a failed save, the item makes one or more of the following demands:

Chase My Dreams. The item demands that its bearer pursue the item’s goals to the exclusion of all other goals.

Get Rid of It. The item demands that its bearer dispose of anything the item finds repugnant.

It’s Time for a Change. The item demands to be given to someone else.

Keep Me Close. The item insists on being carried or worn at all times.

If its bearer refuses to comply with the item’s demands, the item can do any of the following:

• Make it impossible for its bearer to attune to it.
• Suppress one or more of its activated properties.
• Attempt to take control of its bearer, whereupon the bearer makes a Charisma saving throw (DC 12 plus the item’s Charisma modifier). On a failed save, the bearer has the Charmed condition for 1d12 hours. While Charmed in this way, the bearer must try to follow the item’s commands. If the bearer takes damage, it repeats the save, ending the effect on a success. Whether or not the attempt to control its bearer succeeds, the item can’t use this power again until the next dawn.