Magic Items

Equipment

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Weapons
Armor
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Spellcasting
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 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 “Equipment.” 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 “Gameplay Toolbox”).
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

Magic Item Rules

Rules for identifying, attuning to, and using magic items appear in “Equipment.” 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.

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.

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 “Equipment.” 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.

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