10 Ways to Reward Magic Items without Breaking the Game in D&D

Ah, yes, magic items in Dungeons & Dragons. Let's just give cool magic items out like candy, shall we? What's that, you say? We'll break the game with all these powerful magic items? NONSENSE! Isn't that every dungeon masters first campaign ever? :D Let's talk about 10 ways to reward magic items to your D&D players WITHOUT breaking the game, shall we?
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#dnd #dungeonsanddragons

[@theDMLair]

𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐌𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐞 - Monthly D&D magazine with 5e adventures and DM resources ▶▶ www.patreon.com/thedmlair 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐌 𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞 - Get back issues of Lair magazine, map packs, 5e adventures, and other DM resources ▶▶ the-dm-lair.myshopify.com/ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆'𝗿𝗲 𝗗𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 ▶▶ amzn.to/2TogeZz 𝗦𝗮𝗻𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗜𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 ▶▶ forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?424243-Sane-Magic-Item-Prices

[@danielpayne1597]

Love the powering items. Can always dispense info on what the item does once it's unlocked and keep it a mystery until then.

[@mstjean9180able]

Is Lair Magazine a physical copy or digital?

[@goontubeassos7076]

For attunement and progress in the attunement from 3 to 9 you could also add rarity levels to that as well for instance you can’t attuned to a very rare item at level three but you could at level nine

[@chrissieinszweidreizweiein2013]

Number 11: Equip your monsters with the magic item you want to give out. Can't defeat the Orc Warchief with his Rod of Lordly Might? Well perhaps it's not the right item for the party, yet.

[@jgr7487]

this is amazing advice!

[@mikeyb6859]

Absolutely. Why is a +2 axe of smiting not being wielded by an appropriate foe? Why does the evil wizard have a wand of meteor storms sitting in his chest? They would be using these. Legendary and wondrous items may be buried in some long forgotten tomb or some such but your enemies should be wielding the powerful items that are the players rewards

[@r.s.2890]

I actually did this in our last session. The enemy knight had a circlet of blasting (reskinned as a bracelet) in case the players moved away. The sneaky enemy had boots of elvenkind, and the kobold sorcerer had 3 potions of healing, and had used 1 so the party got 2.

[@mikeoregan9354]

Yeah, been doing this for years. Never have a treasure chest with tonnes of gold and a +1 Sword in it. It makes no sense what-so-ever. Put the sword in the hands of the tribe/clan/warband leader. Give a wand of Magic Missiles to the tribe's mage ... and make them use it to hurt (not destroy just hurt, well maybe destroy, destroy-ish) the players. Two things happen. 1) The players see the items in action and WANT them all the more. Something gained in battle like this is always appreciated more and never call it a Short Sword +1, it's Grendar The Mighty's Sword ... don't tell them it's a +1 sword tell them it's shinier than the other swords and it stings a little more when it cuts you ... you tell them it's +1 after they get it from Grendar's cold dead hand and if you want to add stuff to it later (like Dragon Detection or whatever you can just do it) 2) The fights themselves become more fun, not just challenging but fun ... if the players can't kill (or at least don't think they can kill) Grendar The Mighty maybe the rogue can sneak up behind her and relieve her of it before combat begins ... cue disguises and distractions and lots of sneaking around ... fun. Special case ... Potions of Healing ... why wouldn't most orcs (or whatever) in a tribe have one of these? If they get hurt they drink them and heal up ... if the characters can kill them quickly before they can drink their potion then they can get access to the healing ... again more tactics, more fun. For example poor Grog died in round two of the combat, everyone can see the small potion on the chain around his hacked neck ... so now the players and the rest of the baddies are fighting over his body so they can get the potion for their side. The barbarian grabs Grog's foot, a big orc grabs his arm, we have a tug-of-war in the middle of a battle ...

[@jasonhosler9990]

I agree for this approach with the best items, but just like the players once the attunement slots get used up, weaker items get put back for safe keeping or distribution to a lieutenant or something later as that becomes an option.

[@slimee8841]

Yes, yes, I'm going to give that suspicious deck of cards to my lvl 3 players, what could go wrong...

[@grandmasterkurashi]

So did I to my level 5 group and they ended up killing death with their 5 immovable rods and 2 bags of holding, and Luck blade.

[@kamudo999]

please, don´t let it be the deck of many thing, there are more deck cards, anything but that.

[@scoots291]

I lost more character to the deck of many things then any other character death combined

[@josetellez7947]

I did that once, absolute chaos ensued

[@mikeyb6859]

There are a lot of decks you can use. You can have fun letting them think that it’s a DOMTs, then when they draw cards and the result is much less than they expected, you tell them “you don’t think I would give you that at this level, do you?”. This allows for some fun and tension but also teaches them that you’re not going to unbalance the world in their favor.

[@AfterDarkVision]

Was just planning to give my players the Rock of gravity detection. When you let this magical object go, it detects the direction of the gravity field by following it until it finds something that stops it.

[@mokane86]

Hilarious. I'm inspired to make a dungeon room based on the Pokémon type game arrows of one direction floor tiles. Where as the gravity in the room is all over the place and you have to chose the right pathway or fall hard and possibly into a pit or other trap. Then maybe a button at the beginning one person might have to stay at that reverses each "mote" of gravity.

[@theDMLair]

I'm sorry but a rock of gravity detection as you described it sounds way too overpowered. I would scale back just a little bit. They maybe sometimes it doesn't fall toward the largest mass with the largest gravitational pull. Maybe put a curse on it. Sometimes it flies from your hand and Strikes the nearest person.

[@AfterDarkVision]

@@mokane86 i like it

[@AfterDarkVision]

@@theDMLair Brilliant! I'll definitely put a curse like that on it 🤣

[@MonkeyJedi99]

You should make them buy it at the Minatorium Emporium. Where they can also find such things as the Invisible Ring and the Leek-Proof Cloak. - Yeah, I'm a 1 For All fan too!

[@LordOz3]

I'm a fan of items that grow with players, as opposed swapping out items. I gave a paladin a weapon that leveled, but he had to search for the lore to unlock each tier. I seeded the plot hooks for these through the game, but since he also had to reach certain levels, he didn't solely focus on unlocking his weapon.

[@chopcooey]

that's a great idea

[@blunk778]

My dm does that calles them vestiges

[@piranhaplantX]

@@blunk778 Sounds like someone watched critical role then.

[@Tinmann_77]

Thats what one of my dm's does

[@milesmatheson1142]

Ive thought about doing this, but how do you handle pricing (not just buying, but selling or gauging what to hand out when)?

[@CommanderRedVega]

DM Lair: "How to reward magic items without breaking the game." Me: What magic items? :)))))))

[@fenixmeaney6170]

+5 frostbrand sword of white dragon summoning Cursed item Whenever you unsheathe this weapon, it summons an adult white dragon 10 feet directly above the wielder. This creature is hostile towards you Good luck

[@MonkeyJedi99]

I laughed too much at this.

[@OlDirtySam]

*shining eyes* Monster trap dragon farming!

[@fenixmeaney6170]

@@OlDirtySam at level 5?

[@OlDirtySam]

@@fenixmeaney6170 just means you need time and creativity

[@tonyh8166]

@@OlDirtySam Yup. Unlimited free experience, potion ingredients and crafting components. And a big summons to bomb enemies with. Whats not to like? (Sure, its hostile to you, but you do that in the right places pretty soon it'll be hostile to everybody, but you were expecting it and the enemy isnt...)

[@fenixmeaney6170]

"don't let your players attune to more than 3 magic items" Laughs in 10 levels of artificer

[@jellegaard]

In my “Big Damned Heroes” campaign I have a level 15 Artificer wielding a Holy Avenger. I like the randomness of loot rolls from the DMG tables but they have caused that guy to get two stat tomes(int and he is the only int class), a belt of dwarvenkind and a bunch of other items so he currently has the highest HP pool, the biggest attack bonus and the 2nd highest AC

[@fenixmeaney6170]

@@jellegaard not really seeing a problem here Assuming everyone else was also that kitted out?

[@theDMLair]

I mean artificers get to break all the rules right? LOL

[@AflacMan13]

@@theDMLair The Artificer also has absolute GARBAGE for number of spell slots. Out of all the spells they get; only the majority of the cantrips they can choose from, a few of their level 1 spells, and (I think) like 3 of their level 2 spells; only those few can be classified as "attack" or "damage dealing" spells for Artificers. Artificers are now THE Utility/Support Caster. Nearly every single one of their spells above level 1 is either healing, buffing, directing, or battlefield controlling. They are DESIGNED to rely on magic items and magic weaponry. They make their own Temporary Magic Items. IMO, they NEED those extra attunement slots, or they wouldn't be what they are; nor would they survive very long. :-)

[@trevorgreenough6141]

@@theDMLair Artificers are the magic item rule writers though, right? They can break their own rules. Hhahaha

[@schylerfontenot7358]

As an experienced DM who hands magic items out like candy… I actually found inspiration from this video. You’ve given me the idea of keeping the flow good but turning some of the game’s powerful items into consumables instead. Such a great idea

[@jasonreed7522]

Another form of magic items to consider are "trinkets", where if a common item was a lv1 spell, a trinket is a cantrip. For example, some sort of noisemaker skinned as a childs toy, imagine your an orc gaurding a dungeon corridor and a "Tickle me Elmo" goes off, you have bo clue what the hell it is and might (dm rolls) go investigate and be confused by it for a minute before returning to your post, this lets the players have 1 minute to try and sneak past before he comes back. Other real world things to consider are glowsticks, fart in a can, silly string, and other childrens toys. They are not damage dealers but something like a glowstick or a stink bomb can be very situational, like clearing out a tavern or underwater lights. Just be careful of giving out a super soaker in a vampire campaign, players may decide to put holy water in it and give Stradd a shower. (I would reward such an action but I understand not wanting the BBEG to go down to a super soaker)

[@frozenzenberry4101]

@@jasonreed7522 Critical Role's "oops-stones", "celebones", and "chuckle dust" are good examples of this.

[@rustydynamo1088]

I think the rogue's fav expression is "Hoooly crap!". He always says it

[@TheodoreMinick]

Google "catchphrase".

[@Ixnatifual]

Hooooly crap!

[@Hallinwar]

Stabby stabby

[@timkramar9729]

Maybe it's "wholly crap"?

[@jortmungandr1112]

"Don't let them attune to more than three!!" .....*cackles in Artificer*

[@KnicKnac]

I had an older game in a different edition that we had magic weapons that leveled up with us after certain sections of the game. It was fun to feel like both my character and an item leveled up with me.

[@The_Murder_Party]

Yeah, I really like the idea of artifacts, where they get more abilities the further you get, so you can get like new stuff as you augment your gear with like monster drops and stuff, or as you level up.

[@KnicKnac]

@@The_Murder_Party They were crafted items that could've become artifacts, but they were basically improved magical items in the DMG.

[@The_Murder_Party]

@@KnicKnac thought that was just what artifacts where XD gear that improves with you.

[@jackishman7707]

Hey KZbin! The DM's Lair doesn't suck! In fact, he gives brilliant advice. I've only watched a handful of his videos so far, and I can say, as someone who used to play D&D a lot many many moons ago, and am just getting back into it! There is a lot of sage advice here! I will definitely be watching more of him!

[@albertnorman4136]

Oh, good, I was worried that the skits were ending for real.

[@stevegruber4724]

I'm learning to love them

[@markomalmi7989]

Last time I was this early, I was a wee lad. Btw noticed I gave players too much stuff while early levels, BBEG happened to have a lair action which made players choose to sacrifice a nonconsumable magic item or lose half of current hit points. they actually sacrificed about 2-3 each, which was quite surprising. nobody felt too bad afterwards.

[@okashi10]

That's a good idea. At least the players feel like it's their choice.

[@molittr]

Pardon me. Stealing this.

[@seanseamands]

"cat lover master" got my thumbs up 😂

[@dach829]

Too bad cats lack opposable thumbs

[@cassimosher]

Nice to know I heard that correctly. I wasn't paying 100% attention and thought my brain glitched! 🤣

[@robertabarnhart6240]

@@dach829 It's a good thing mine doesn't; she'd be an archvillain in no time!

[@johnathanrhoades7751]

The Monsters Know What They're Doing is so great!! I just got it recently and it's so great for thinking differently about encounters.

[@thomaspetrucka9173]

I have been blessed with players that tend to forget magic items I give them 😂 so I haven’t had to worry about this as much. A great way to playtest!

[@ShugoAWay]

Wait he waited till lvl 2 to give out legendary items rookie strats i gave 7 legendary magic items at lvl 1 (and yes luke this was for the algorithm and something i did and have had no regretsabout)

[@shadowspy81]

I agree with the attunement recommendation, but I think you should have mentioned the one exception, Articifers. I would be upset is I went Articifer and found out I will lose my lvl 10, 14 and 18 extra attunements.

[@Natsirt666]

Yeah, it was level 8 where i finally introduced a Magic Shop NPC to the players. They had recently finally come into some substantial money and had also become aware of bigger threats in the world (a local Red Dragon). Seemed like a good time.

[@BramLastname]

The way I do it is at 2nd level I usually introduce a magic shop that sells shady magic items, Like a half functional flametounge, A wand of poison spray (range 30ft), Scissors designed to cut the owner, Or a magic orb that does something unknown. Then later on I introduce specialists who make a few really good magic items, But nothing else.

[@jager8432]

Another good advice video. I've still got a while before a run my full campaign but I am starting to get the pieces together. Your videos have been helpful to me setting out some guidelines

[@renownedbandanawearer1345]

I’m glad you mentioned flavouring less powerful items! I’m only new to DMing but since I’m following a module I’m sticking to that book for the “real” magic items. But to kick off the campaign since I was running for newbies, I had a go at Matt Colville’s Delian Tomb. Instead of just a +1 longsword as the final reward, the Party found the Delian Sword, that was only +1 to damage but glowed and became a light source by reciting the Delian Oath. I also like Relics as an alternative to spell scrolls, for a bit of diversity; consumable items that do basically the same things as spell scrolls and potions but are cool unique items to keep afterwards, like an artifact with mysterious inscriptions written in a dead language or something. It’s just really fun to reward cool loot, without panicking that all encounters after that will be broken.

[@BSTobias]

You say this is only for new DM's but, as an experienced DM, I find it overwhelmingly helpful to go back to the basics to keep myself on track. Loved the video!

[@wizarde7]

I run a westmarches game with multiple DM's. We give out a magic item after every session for the player who writes a report that's voted as the best by the other players. This item is always limited to 1-3 uses before it expires it's magical essence. It means a DM can award cool items, without worrying about long term effects.

[@RongFo]

I was a very experienced DM--all the way back to the basic set. Finally started up again with 5e for my family, and nearly destroyed our campaign giving away magic items like it was Pathfinder. Reined it back in just in time, but not before giving the cleric a set of prayer beads (a rare item) and she rolled Greater Restoration and Wind Walk beads--which are cast as a bonus action for that item! Long distance travel, infiltration, emergency escapes, petrification by gorgons, beholder beams, curses you name it--so many things were never an issue again. Had to change so many things to keep that campaign interesting. Some good points in this video.

[@benjaminholcomb9478]

I'm using a manual recharging system myself. The magic arrows the archer has have to be charged by an artificer (the profession, not the class). A Spell Stone that has to be recharged by casting a spell into it, and it can only be used for a specific spell. I.e. a Stone of Fireball that can only be charged by casting fireball into it.

[@Matt-md5yt]

great video my friend. I been Roleplaying lately and Did one as a Goblin, he is so fun.I think the Elder Scolls games did good on the part about recharging their magic weapons

[@btmalo6817]

Great info as always Luke! Thanks for the help.

[@Hunchyson]

This was extremely helpful! Im new to DM'ing and still pretty new to the game. Thanks for making you no BS videos.

[@xxTerraPrimexx]

Your stuff is awesome as always Mr Luke!

[@InquisitorThorn]

Fantastic DM advice this whole video. I particularly like when you mention work and resources others have made that new players may not know yet. My particular rules are that wands run out but can be charged, lore/flavor over mechanics (even +1 weapons should have a name), and everything that gives a combat bonus/option must be attuned. Personally, I feel like creatures should always be acting intelligently if it makes sense to do so.

[@Envy4you]

Anyway, true comment: if my DM tells me "I've screwed sorry can you help me fix it?" imma hug them so tight their eyes will pop out of the sockets ❤️

[@erosmandex3048]

Great tips! Something I like doing, cause I'm indecisive, is to have a list of items and have em roll to see what they find. Helps me, personally, since I have issues deciding specifically what to give peeps

[@johntuck77]

I hear the voice of many years of experience in this video. Magic Items can break a campaign so fast you don't know what hit you. I am a veteran GM and I am extremely stingy with my magic items. The need to be special in any case.

[@The_Murder_Party]

Yeah... I’ve never gotten that, I don’t like vanilla D&D, it has a painful tendency to be the same game over and over again mechanically, now this might be me being a power gamer, but D&D without magic gear is really boring, because you’re generally just doing the same thing over and over again in combat, and getting some new options helps with that a lot (Also because we tend to roll for stats, and I tend to roll poorly, I like how magic gear lessens the gap between me and everyone else because I rolled 2 8s and a 14 and they rolled at least one 16+)

[@BramLastname]

I remember in CoS my players were supposed to start of with the sunblade, Since they spend the night at the vestani camp, Which is really dumb.

[@dylangrimm7291]

I made an item for my campaign called "The Freshman's Ear Clasp", which requires attunement. It gave advantage on investigation and disadvantage on insight. The party got a real kick out of it.

[@martinphillpot2010]

Why do I have the impression that the barbarian is the real Lukd and all of the others are all personas he plays

[@Rolfe89]

This is just the video I needed. Thankyou

[@Notsogoodguitarguy]

I love your advice, Luke. In my campaign, players are just now starting to get a few magic items, and they're level 10. I also like to give out funny or useless but flavourful items instead of magical weapons. My goal is to play in a high magic setting, though, and by the end of the campaign, when they're level 20, I want them to face real tough monsters and have to earn their wins. If the monster has 1300-1400 HP, even a +3 sword won't do you thaat much good. xD

[@Wilhellm]

Great video and will implement the advice given to build up the power of the dragon slaying sword found in Dragon of the Icespire Peak module!

[@Stormer13]

I like giving my players personalized magic items that grow with them, as it's really cool for them to have unique abilities and fun to design. I've had to nerf a few and buff a few, but overall the players have loved it. I'll usually have my players assist in the initial form of the item and make the other forms secret until they earn it. I also have them level up based on both character level and important story moments.

[@boredcoffeeaddict3992]

The hexblade in my CoS campaign has a sentient sword that unlocks new powers. He a good aligned character, but he had to take the sword because he wants to keep it away from those who would use it for evil. It's evil and sentient, so I think it will make some good moral dilemmas such as the sword wanting to kill an innocent person to become stronger, so he would have to choose between power or upholding his beliefs

[@Stormer13]

@@boredcoffeeaddict3992 one of my players has a similar item, except it was his dad (a devil) who had been forged into the sword after double crossing his boss. The sword constantly tried to convince the player to do evil things, forcing the player to have to choose between the power and maintaining his oath of goodness.

[@screamingblue7]

I'm a sweaty toothed madman currently using limited charges for an Eberron campaign for many items. It just made sense that in a world where the manufacture of magical items ought to have some sort of planned obsolescence to encourage more trips to the market. Also a big fan of items that level up with PCs as the achieve levels or complete specific quests. Good video!

[@omerbl1996]

Tip no.7 is the best tip IMO. In my homebrew campaign, I made magical items for the pc's which are considered artifacts to begin with, and they will soon get them (they are 4th level). Those items are very very good, and they don't require attunement, cause each item belongs to a pc and it has a special bond to it, so I decided to surprise the group and give them something cool as a reward. BUT, just like the other set of magical items I prepared for them to get in the future in certain situations, they all have features that are rechargeable after each day or after a long rest, so hearing you say that about the consumables and recharging items makes me even more confident in my decision to make them this way. It gives the party a solid boost in power, but it's not something permanent that they can just spam all day long, so it's something else that I consider as resources for them to use and expend and since I made the items, I can monitor them and how they affect the encounters and balance them accordingly. Something else that can help when giving magic items and creating them is knowing what level will the party eventually reach, So even then I can design things in accordance.

[@manaraxjendo7900]

Love his list. As an experienced DM with 30+ years, I still have issues with too many or too powerful items at times.

[@Dannydarko27]

Great vid, newbie dm here. Currently running LMoP and since it's a module for lvl 1-5, I made it so the Lionshield Coster occasionally gets random magic items such as Cloak of many fashions, immovable rod, nightvision goggles; nothing that does damage. I let the characters open a line of credit so they can get a taste of magic items.

[@mitche314159]

I agree with most of this but your fighter is going to need at least a +1 Sword unless you don't have them fight anything with Damage immunities. It feels real bad when you're level 7+ and can't do anything in a fight.

[@trappyboi8678]

Yeah that take was honestly bullshit. The game is designed against martials so they quite literally need to be spoonfed to defeat what casters do without items.

[@thecharmer5981]

I had this problem with a monk before level six. We were fighting a monster that was immune to non-magical damage, and I was the only person who had no magic

[@anonymoose2386]

This is why Manastorm Golems are great

[@2g33ksgamingttv3]

The sheer amount of enemies with nonmagical damage resistances or outright immunities makes it really hard for me to take the whole sidebar about "5e is designed around play with little or no magic items" seriously.

[@wdyd_masterattwitch4956]

Did a one shot for my brother and ended up giving him magic items (he was a druid), and so I had to give some more out to the other player to balance it out. I wouldn't have done it if I knew it wasn't going to be a one shot, but I thought of a cool item. I've always found +1/2/3 weapons boring and more difficult for the DM to balance out and flavor is free. 'Oh he has too much burst damage', make one more encounter before they long rest. The item was a Flaming Draconic Axe, they fought a minotaur to get his axe (villains using magic items are better than finding them typically, in my opinion). It was a stone black 2 handed Axe with the edges of the blade being colored like bronze and their are 7 symbols in draconic carved into either side of the Axe's head, the words are: Flaming, Fire, Smite, Incinerating, Scales, Curse, and Light, it has 3 charges and regains 1d2 at dawn. As a bonus action he can speak to of the words together to make an effect (He's a barbarian so he doesn't use he's bonus action to much). Fire Smite (1 charge): the Axe's Head turns red with heat and the next attack you land in the next minute deals an extra 1d8 fire damage. Flame Smite (2 charges): the Axe's Head gets consumed by a crimson flame, the next attack you land in the next minute deals an extra 1d12 fire damage. Flaming Light (1 charge): The Axe shines and creates 20 feet of bright light and 20 feet of dim light for 5 minutes, can be turned off with a bonus action. Paladin is my favorite class and I was disappointed that the Barbarian doesn't get burst damage or utility so I made this for them (a party of 5 with 4 humans, no dark-vision). He also gains new abilities as e beats other flame-based creatures, their about to fight a fire elemental and after words he'll gain a fire based control ability. This is how to make a magic item that the player won't just throw away.

[@sfrink1425]

I tend to mix in some items with minor curses with magic items, so the players are somewhat wary of using them, particularly if attunement is required. Here are a couple of my favorite. 1. A ring of Mind Shielding. Prevents the player's mind from being read, and gives them advantage on saving throws vs. mental attacks. HOWEVER, it is also a "Ring of Contrariness", which means that any time the user gets into a conversation with someone else, he always proposes the opposite of what they want to do, think, etc. Makes for a contentious situation, but is awesome if the player knows how to roleplay it. One of my current players has this right now, and he texts me all the time about it. And we give each other knowing looks whenever he's playing it up. 2. A +2 Helmet of Defence. Improves the users AC by 2, and makes them immune to being magically knocked unconscious (includes Sleep spells, as an example). HOWEVER, it is also a Helmet of Untimely Flatulence. Any time the user is trying to be stealthy, he must also make a DC15 CON save. If he fails...the entire party pays. Right now, of course, the rogue is the one using this, and its power just manifested in the last session, after he completed attunement. Hijinx have ensued... Not all of the magical items received in my games are cursed. So far, in this campaign, which is right now at about 18 months real-time, they've only encountered three cursed items (two of them outlined above).

[@wolfos420]

YES. Number 10 mostly. From DM/GM to all players if it gets too hard run, Your DM may not be experienced in beefing up the encounters and need to know when they have gone too far instead of bullheading in and making them down grade or fudge their rolls to make sure you win, they didn't want a TPK, but they didn't know how tough they made it. :-D

[@cmoore6547]

I like how you offer a free example of your lair magazine to check out. More people should do samples before expecting a commitment. However I was going to try out the content to test its balance and couldn't read much of it because I f the sample text over the pages.

[@joe7176]

"Players should never be able to attune to more than 3 magic items that require attunement" Laughs in artificer I do totally get what he's saying though, and so much of this is amazing advice.

[@bearded_bear_gaming]

I bought that book a few weeks ago!! Haven't read it yet but glad to hear it's recommended!

[@OrneryMurderWeasel]

“The Monsters Know What They’re Doing” is awesome! Makes combat so dynamic. It’s also great on audible for those who’d rather listen than read.

[@twitchster77]

As a new DM...I'd be absolutely lost without this dude.

[@clarkside4493]

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! Give out more consumable items! _Spell Scrolls_ and Potions and Elixirs! _Spellwrought Tattoos_ from Tasha's Cauldron of Everything! A _Necklace of Fireballs_ if you're feeling spicy. If you give them something too powerful, it's one and done. Regarding non-rechargeable wands, I'd have both rechargeable and non-rechargeable wands so the recharging wands feel more special when the players do get one.

[@waynewilde]

as a person who needed this, I appreciate it. Great content, Keep it up! ez sub

[@jerrylove865]

Another option for culling already given magic items is to make those items popular with NPCs such that the start attracting unwanted attention... you know, people coming to take them one way or another. I had a party get downright terrified of an item once when they realized it would attract attention way above their ability to handle. They sold that off as fast as possible. Any number of specialized encounters can also strip characters of their carried gear or otherwise destroy items.

[@MikChaos]

some very useful ides, thanks Luke.

[@JimMonsanto]

22:00 "It's fun not knowing" *Maybe* for some people--maybe even for most people. But this is definitely an "ask your players, first" kind of thing. If they tell you they're looking forward to the surprise, then by all means, proceed. But if they express an interest in an item, or making an item, it's time to put that "fun not knowing" up on a shelf and pull down the "let's work together on this".

[@EnjeoLineMedia]

My balancing for early game magic items is actually to stick attunement onto common and uncommon magic items that don't already have it. That, plus creating crappy magic items that players will get emotionally attached to balances things nicely in high magic item campaigns

[@soMeRandoM670]

What type of magic items players get attached too?

[@EnjeoLineMedia]

@@soMeRandoM670 Anything they've used a lot, since it's been useful so far. I like to create attunement items that only give players a cantrip - my monk refuses to give up his bracers of minor illusion, despite finding really powerful attunement items

[@MonkeyJedi99]

@@soMeRandoM670 An example from my current rogue character: a magical dagger that is +0 to attack, +1 to damage, and activates Detect Magic twice a day. We got it from a were-rat cultists on our first adventure. This dagger was my only magical weapon for the first four levels, and I will likely stay attuned to it, and use it, to the end of the campaign. I have already passed off on better weapons to keep that one, not just because of the Detect Magic, but because of the story behind it. - In a previous campaign, we got a trio of magical longswords that let us cast Message at will to the holder of the other two wielders if they were in range. My sorcerer kept one, even though he is not proficient in the weapon, using up an attunement slot, simply for the ability to have near-silent coordination in the party.

[@IvanBarsch]

23:51 one of my favorite ones I’ve ever given is the Glowing Stick. It’s a simple old stick that glows bright light for 5 ft and dim for another 5…and it can’t be turned off.

[@markgnepper5636]

Great stuff friend 👏 👍

[@357Dejavu]

Agreed! Less is more when it comes to magic items. I do tend to drop a lot more flavor on a weapon. So a +1 sword would be “Admar the Bane Blade”. Describe it with having mist constantly flowing from the blade and a thumb sized black gem in the hilt. So not only is the +1 sword more fun but it also has potential hook points for the players.

[@MatheusYami]

Great video!

[@nerdgoria3811]

even though I have been DMing for 20 years i still find your fundamental videos interesting and fun perspective for food for thought.

[@bayardmartins]

Agree 100% with consumables and having items that grow in power with the characters. Never though about nerfing magic itens with slots, it's great advice, for sure I'll try out next time.

[@Spiceodog]

An interesting mechanic you can do is make charges recover weekly for some items , making there use more sparing while also giving them an item that will stay with them and the character may still get attached to. Edit , a great example of this is The Eye Of The Storm, in aerois. No spoilers, it becomes a defining part of the character, but do to it’s limited charges per week rather then per day, that character has to be very careful with how they use it.

[@metarmored]

For all the deck of many things Lovers: you could make an entire campaign or arc dedicated to a homebrew deck! I did this more than once and every table loved it! Even the players who dislike the original deck. There was tailored encounters from backstories on the cards, small and big empowered abilities or items, various curses that don't ruin the entire game or character and a lot of lore for the bookworm and history diggers

[@brenden6540]

I already bought the book before this video. BUT, I did get Arbiter of Worlds and the Tome of Foes books listed from your Amazon link. :)

[@byzantinex]

I made up the idea of a magic wand that requires gems to operate. You set a 100gp gem onto the wand and when activated, the gem is consumed. They can also change the gem type to change the effect.

[@Peter_Larsen]

I like theming those recharging items or limited use items as "damaged" or "broken". They find it at level 5, and it only works a few times, as the enchantments have been cracked through disuse and wear and damage. Later in the campaign, if they find a sufficiently powerful enough enchanter or maybe even a god/patron with that type of magic, they could fix the damage and have the full use of the item with no recharge. It simultaneously balances item power and adds story elements. For example: a level 5 Barbarian finds his family's ancestral battleaxe. The axe was rumored to be enchanted to never lose its edge (+2) and could curse your foes on the battlefield, causing you to endlessly hunt them (could cast Hunter's Mark/Hex without concentration, but without the ability to move to other creatures). However, when you find it, the axe is rusted and dull, though still bearing the symbols of your tribe and family. The rusted and dented variant is +0 weapon that can only cast its Hex variant once per long rest. Over the course of the campaign, you need to visit three increasingly difficult to find people who all have quests for you: 1) a skilled weaponsmith from your tribe who would know of the location to find more metal to reforge the edge and remove the rust (+1), 2) an ancient sage of the woodlands who knows how to find out why the axe lost its power but requires your companions to gather specific herbs and materials for a vision, and 3) a demon prince trapped beneath the mountains, who your ancestor gave his life and his axes power to the spell to keep the prince imprisoned, and so by defeating the prince can you reclaim your axe's true power (+2 and 2-3 times Hex variant per long rest).

[@joshvasquez8196]

A suggestion, if you do want to give a party a massive amount of magic items at low levels. I would recommend, give them more gimmicky or relatively useless items. Examples of this is something akin to a the Professional's suit. A magic item from an urban fantasy campaign, it was simply a suit of studded leather armor, that appeared to be a business suit that can never get dirty. I also gave them an endless pack of cigarettes. Just a simple infinite supply of cigarettes. Another one I gave was known as the hexblade's gloves. A set of gloves that teleports a weapon attuned to it to the user's hands, up to 2 weapons at base. Or you can make magic items that require certain things to be done (Level Requirements, ability score prerequisites, certain actions etc.)

[@TherealPolar-B]

This advice is amazing I've been dming just over a year now, this was the first mistake I made 😢 I had to learn the hard way, eventually the campaign Evolved into a Wild Beyond Spelljammee crossover. Surprisingly, it's the only campaign still going. So I think it turned out okay, but only bc I put the extra work in

[@christopheralbert2545]

Here is one of my homebrew items my Forge Cleric made/enchanted. We've had so much fun with this thing. And yes, it was named Morty from Rick and Morty. This Warhammer, crafted by the master blacksmith Fargim Moyer, in infused with an enchanted (or cursed?) piece of adamantine in Fargrim's Seal on the head of the hammer. Under the head of the weapon in dwarvish is the name "No. 78 Morty". The rest of the hammer is inlaid in gold and silver. Warhammer No. 78 "Morty" (Rare, magical, requires attunement, worth up to 5,000 gp) Damage: 1d8 Bludgeoning (one-handed) 1d10 Bludgeoning (two-handed) Weight: 2 lbs Properties: Versatile Magical Properties: Whenever the Warhammer hits an object, the hit is a critical hit. "Morty" Enchantment (or Curse?): When the Warhammer touches (or hits) a hostile creature with an intelligence higher than 10, that creature must make an Intelligence Saving Throw versus your spell save DC. On a failure, the creature becomes friendly to you for one minute. After the minute the creature knows you cast a spell on it and becomes confused/hostile to you again. Creatures with an intelligence of 9 or lower are unaffected by this enchantment. This effect ends early if someone is hostile to the affected creature. On a success, or after the one minute the creature is immune to the enchantment for the next 24 hours.

[@mohawkgunsmith7569]

Option 3 have a thief steal their items, have them recognize the thief later in the campaign giving the option to potentially recover those items later once the items are appropriate level

[@nemooh]

Excellent video.

[@AuntLoopy123]

My brother called the Wand of Pyrotechnics the "Wand of Distraction." It is basically nothing but a long-distance firecracker, which is pretty cool, but hardly game-breaking. Unless it is used just right, in a clutch moment. Meanwhile, I'm planning to give my niece's Cleric of Loki (Chaotic Good God of Mischief, Trickery, and Pranks) a Wand of Smiles (which does not get destroyed when used up. It turns into a Wand of Scowls). Anyway, all it does is make a person smile uncontrollably for a minute. I view that as a decent prank to pull. MY Loki doesn't like "pranks" that hurt or harm. "If the target of the prank isn't laughing, too, it's not really a prank." That said, he is also the God of Mischief and Trickery, as in the leading/guiding force behind the gods' attempt to break through the Mists of Barovia and allow free travel for souls again, through the use of deceiving the demigod who set it up, in the first place. But that will require the cooperation of a True Believer, which means that my niece's Cleric of Loki needs to do some pranks! I have actually home brewed a prank to play on Falcon, involving some magical wine and a triggered telepathy spell. But that's just one prank. I'm also going to give her the Nolzur's Marvelous Pigments, because I fully expect her to pull a Wile E. Coyote routine of some sort. You know how he paints a tunnel in the side of a cliff, to lure the road runner into running into the cliff and knocking itself out? Stuff like that is right up her alley. And if she does that one, specifically, I will use my Mighty DM powers to have an actual train come out, and roll on to nowhere in particular, tooting as it goes, while her Holy Symbol of Loki giggles madly. I'll probably need to come up with some consumables for her to use, as well. Like Tickling Powder, or a Turn Blue Brew, or the like. I love the idea of giving FLAVOR items, instead of POWER items.

[@jthompson7175]

I gave the barbarian in one game I started with Sunless Citadel Shaterspike. I added one ability that it auto-crits constructs so it would have some synergy with later Barbarian abilities and now whenever I want him to feel badass, I'll figure out a way to have a construct in a fight. Had the idea that the hilt currently on it isn't the original one so if he finds that and a smith who can swap out the non-magical hilt for the original, it'll get some extra abilities and become a +2. Figure that'll happen right before he gets to confront the BBEG of his backstory. I learned my lesson after one of my players figured out how to turn a home brewed ring that contained a ruin demon (basically a fly with a human face and a ravenous appetite for living meat), which I figured would just give a low level familiar that could attack. There was a hole in my logic that allowed it to replicate and he figured out how to theoretically turn it into a WMD. Luckily, he lost the ring during a fight. Now this was also Sunless Citadel and I made Belak the Outcast's motivation getting revenge on the town of Red Larch after their elders had his Tiefling wife burned alive. He got away during the fight at the Gulthias tree so even though they foiled his plans to infest the woods with an army of blights under his control, he got the accidental replicating fly demon ring. The party will see their own plan used against a town later. 3:) Moral of the story, maybe don't give out homebrew items as a new DM, but also don't be afraid to use the party's own ideas they don't get to use against them later.

[@awkward6125]

I like to homebrew items that are basically like normal weapons or armor or artifacts, but with different types of damage and minor utility. Beat this weird artificer type person? Find a mysterious red stone. First person who happens to try and put it onto a weapon will find it fuses into it. Weapon now has a light flame around it (dim light 10ft) that casts light and converts the damage to fire damage. Attunement needed to enable/disable the fire. Wanna make it stronger? Give it a few charges that allow the flame to rapidly power up. Deals an extra 1d6, extends range for 1 attack by 5ft, and has a limit to daily uses. Gives flavor, gives a way to use more damage resistances/vulnerabilities, can create for some fun interactions. Makes it still feel really cool without giving players a ton of power early on. Basically, anything that gives the player more choices tends to make them feel more powerful.

[@dannybeane2069]

6:59 yeah those level 1-2 players ain't gonna need basic potions of healing.

[@waynegourley1120]

One of the things I did to limit the number of magic items I have in my game is to give it a back story to every one of them and a reason for it to be in the location that it is found. I found this was enough for me to slow down giving out five +1 long swords if I have to come up with five different back stories for them to fit in my campaign.

[@theravenousrabbit3671]

Magic items can be tremendously different in power scaling depending on who you give them to. Some examples: Flame Tongue Weapons: *Fighters:* Nightmare incarnate in your campaign. They get so many weapon attacks and, if they decide to multiclass into something like warlock for hex, you are going to end up doomed. *Rogue:* They get a 2d6 extra fire damage on one attack.

[@AriThecraftydragon]

5e and it's lower fantasy/magic style is definitely different from 1e and AD&D 2e (which can be found for sale online). Decent info in your list.

[@jasonstephens6109]

I know I'm late to this but maybe can add something helpful. I use a way they can trade in old magic items. Certain smiths can destroy old items to extract magic from them to create new ones or upgrade existing ones. Then I simply put the the new items in their list of items they can create or have them be items found in a dungeon that have lost their abilities with time. Having them appraised reveals their properties once their power is restored and what they need. Likewise, the questing for power ups. You can simply place these items in their way within the normal campaign. Instead of telling them they are looking for that roc's feather. Have them simply find the rocks feather or fight one and loot it. Let them later find out it is useful for upgrading the items or even items they haven't found yet. There... done.

[@Lcirex]

I don't question your cat love mastery. But I am suspicious of Gary seeing as he skipped giving a magic item to fat cat..... unless.... the old man is working under fat cat and the book of awesomeness is really his...

[@kevinsullivan3448]

I love magic items that give quality of life effects without giving combat bonuses. Magic cookpot that cooks food without a fire. Tentclock that becomes a furnished 4 man tent when you hang it from a tree branch. Potions and scrolls for 1-3 level useful spell affects that allow for greater variety of abilities among the characters.

[@justinjette1473]

I just want to comment that I love the old school HeroQuest DM screen at the beginning.

[@werewolfjedi38]

5:00 I agree, and I usually start with "tool" based magic items, not things that give bonuses.

[@CooperAATE]

Great video

[@hollowerten3709]

I’m guilty of this in one of my campaigns but this was quite helpful so I can fix things for next session

[@joshuasinger4649]

I like to do things like just add basic and tangentially relevant things, like "this longsword is unbelievably light for its size, it gains the light and finesse property in addition to its other properties."

[@NoActuallyGo-KCUF-Yourself]

I only made the mistake of giving too much magic and other treasure once, in the late 1980s when I first started as a GM. I have never followed rules by the book since. Each PC party is so different and unpredictable. I always custom design treasure according to character needs and flavor.

[@MageLeaderInc]

I like to make attunement actually take a task that fits the magic item. For instance say you get a flame tongue sword. You can't just take a short rest to attune to it, you must attune to it by thrusting it into a fire blessed by a cleric and then you may attune to it while it is bathed in the holy flames. Or boots of flying you must jump from a specific cliff and the boots will allow you to fly just before you hit the ground and you are then attuned to them.

[@stephenhowell7029]

Great Video! You don't suck! Thank You!

[@katjordan3733]

"The Monsters Know What They Are Doing" is the BEST BOOK! I've read just a few chapters and it's already changed the way my monsters fight! Liked this topic a WHOLE lot!

[@vaughn1643]

My favorite thing to do is give the 1st level party 1 legendary magic item as a plot hook. This item is usually sentient. Another thing that I like is having this item being capable of attuning to multiple creatures. Then whenever one of the attuned creatures needs the item, just uses a bonus action to teleport their hands. I've had a lot of fun with this. My favorite magic item that I have done this with the book of vile darkness. Giving that thing a sentient personality was hilarious, and it allowed them to learn so many dark-themed abilities. Another thing that I do if my players have too many magic items because they can combine magic items (or augment them) and combine them. You can combine this +3 sword with this cube of force to make a +3 sword of force. You can also sell the magic items for lots of money. Which is a good incentive for players to get rid of a few magic items. They can then sell them for castles, siege engines, and mounts. That usually doesn't break the dungeon crawl since those things are usually too big to take into a dungeon.

[@MonoKabi]

I am a loooong time DM, more than 30 years now, and this entire concept is something that really rubbed me the wrong way in 5E. I actually really liked some aspects of 4E, and this was one. Tons of magic items of all kinds. Some for raw power, some for utility, some for combat effects, some for buffs/debuffs and even ones for simple overworld style travel effects. I look at the limits that are put into place on magic items now and just cringe at how many cool, useful, fun, and empowering items would have been completely ignored or missed out on from past campaigns with these ideas. I love giving my players all manner of tools and options for all kinds of situations. I make the scenarios for my campaigns, and I gave them the items they have. I know what they can do, and I plan for it. and if they surprise me with a use I didn't think of, well, now I know of it, and I go forward with that new knowledge. On the other side of things, you sure as hell don't break out the Legendary gear list at level 5, that way lies MADNESS.

[@OZatchBell]

I am planning give my players mimic magic itens. The idea here is to adjust the power of each item as they progress, if i see that is not giving them the effect that I planned, and to even remove if i see that its too game breaking. The catch here is to test if a new power is gamebreaking in the first use, in a situation that they need help. If really flips the table, i make the necessary changes and in the the next session i explain to them the mechanics of this new power. The exemplify I am planning two magic itens. The first one is a eyeglass mimic for the archer. In the attunement, the mimic will eat his predominant eyeball and substitute it. It will work as a normal vision organ, but give him darkvision and a bonus of +1 with ranged attacks. If turns out that this is ground breaking, it's still manageable. And as he progress, i can change the bonuses, or add heat vision. The second one is aimed to the rogue. It is a mimic cape, that can change his outfit at will. In this case it is because he really do a well job roleplaying and this will greatly benefit this behaviour. The cost of use will be half of the hit dice that he gains with a long rest or a exhaustion. This will encourage the role of the cleric of the group as a healer. This one i get the ideia in a post in pinterest. Obviously, if too gamebreaking, the mimics will be, after all, monster at the end of the day. So, if i see not suitable anymore or have a better item to substitute, i can just make them die, or start atacking them or any bs like that. Probably they will make the magic itens their pet, with also increase the roleplay.

[@salimufari]

At times I've had to dig into the Monster Manual to "remove" some items from the equation. That OP Level 3 Paladin falling into a tunnel network that is the burrow of a handful of rust monsters to get rid of that +4 full plate that made him unhitable. Or make the OP item a macguffin that needs to be given up to survive a puzzle or crypt.

[@chuckles123]

Consumable magic items are also nice to replace permanent items with. Just have it break with use based on rolling a certain way. High, low, or a specific number. Better yet, have the item do something special when it breaks, like summon a gibbering mouther when and where it breaks. Would be cool, to throw a magical +2 hand ax just to have it break and unleash an unspeakable abomination upon the enemy and possible anyone else nearby.