D&D 5E Immunity/Resistance to nonmagical attacks worth 50gp?

[Zardnaar]

That does seem low when you compare it to the prices of other weapons.
A silvered weapon costs at least 100g. A real magical sword should cost more than that.

Half that price and you get a torch as well that is good for the environment and is renewable energy.

 

[Phineas Q. Conundrum]

You could also just say it glows, but for some non-magical reason. Its just a sword that happened to be forged from glowing moon-ore.

 

[Cap'n Kobold]

Kensai can finesse a longsword, you can't use the -5/+10 part though.

Kensai can use Dex to attack and damage for a longsword. Its still not a Finesse weapon and can't be used for something that requires Finesse such as Sneak attack however.

Half that price and you get a torch as well that is good for the environment and is renewable energy.

I'n guessing the pricing is based on a weapon with Continual Flame cast on it rather than an actual magical weapon. Probably an oversight, but it does lead to amusing possibilities.

 

[Zardnaar]

Kensai can use Dex to attack and damage for a longsword. Its still not a Finesse weapon and can't be used for something that requires Finesse such as Sneak attack however.

I'n guessing the pricing is based on a weapon with Continual Flame cast on it rather than an actual magical weapon. Probably an oversight, but it does lead to amusing possibilities.

True I used finesse as short hand for dex to hit and damage.

 

[Fanaelialae]

Common magic items are actually 50-100 gp. I would always add the value of the weapon or armor into the price however, otherwise you end up with suits of adamantine and mithril plate that cost less than ordinary plate, which is just silly.

That said, looking at the Buying a Magic Item downtime action (also in XGE), buying that moon-touched longsword would actually cost you anywhere from 120 to 170 gp (or more). If you can locate one at all.

Ultimately, I find that 5e takes a much more 1e/2e approach to magic items than 3e or 4e did. It expects the DM to adjudicate situations as appropriate, rather than just mindlessly plugging numbers into a formula and expecting perfect results every time (which doesn't work IME).

The system doesn't assume that you can walk into a Magic Mart, plop down 50 gp, and walk out with a shiny new moon-touched longsword. You're free to run it that way if you want, but then it is up to you to figure out how to make it work for your campaign (rather than the system pretending it can do that work for you).

 

[CapnZapp]

I personally don’t interpret that the damage from a magic weapon is actually magic damage, I always treated that as needing the +1 bonus. But it’s a good point to debate

As long as you are cognizant of the fact your personal interpretation is not RAW, and significantly devalues the various magic weapons with no plus bonus go ahead

 

[aco175]

I thought there was something with the cost of consumable items like potions costing 1/5th normal cost for permanent items. I could be thinking of older editions though. Not sure if PCs can buy +1 swords in my game that cost less them some high number like 5,000gp. There could be a quest involved as well. Although in my game most have +1 weapons by 5th level.

 

[Satyrn]

As a DM, if I was using the magic item pricing rules or Xanathar's buying an item downtime activity, I'd bump the moontouched sword up to an uncommon rarity.

It just strikes me as weird - as a LotR fan - that glowing swords are common.

 

[Bacon Bits]

As a DM, if I was using the magic item pricing rules or Xanathar's buying an item downtime activity, I'd bump the moontouched sword up to an uncommon rarity.

It just strikes me as weird - as a LotR fan - that glowing swords are common.

It's not that glowing weapons are rare in Middle Earth. Enchanted weapons are.

Through the entire series, there's only a few "special" weapons: Glamdring (Foe-Hammer), Orcrist (Goblin Cleaver), Sting, Anduril (Flame of the West), the Bow of the Galadhrim, the four Barrow Blades. It's not clear if the bow is enchanted or just well made, but the rest are all enchanted in some way. Glamdring, Orcrist, and Sting lasted too long to be anything but enchanted. Glamdring and Orcrist were so old that Gandalf wasn't familiar with the runes on them (over 6000 years, IIRC). Both Orcrist and Sting glowed blue near orcs. The shards of Narsil remained razor sharp and unblemished for the whole of the third age (~3000 years), and it was said that Anduril "shone with the light of Narsil." The Barrow Blades were given to the halflings by Tom Bombadil were forged to fight the Witch-King of Angmar, and in the novels it's Merry's Barrow Blade that breaks the spells binding the Witch-King's undead body to his will, enabling Eowyn to kill him.

So, Orcrist and Sting can glow for certain when they detect orcs. Glamdring is supposed to as well, IIRC. Anduril always glows. The four Barrow Blades did not, as far as I can tell. So half the magical weapons glow, and the half that don't are basically the high production blades made to fight the undead.

In D&D, however, magical blades are fairly common. You're pretty guaranteed to find at least one during your adventures, even if you're using the DMG's loot tables. Seriously, you spend a month rummaging around the wilderness digging through dark caves and a few dusty old tombs, and you'll come home with a cartload of coin and two or three blades that won't rust and glow like a campfire. In previous editions, fully 30% of magic weapons would glow. That said, nearly anybody can get a blade with continual flame cast on it. Looks nice and intimidating, too.

 

[mrchuckmorris]

The system doesn't assume that you can walk into a Magic Mart, plop down 50 gp, and walk out with a shiny new moon-touched longsword.

I've been so spoiled by playing Baldur's Gate since 5th grade, that it's almost impossible for me to wrap my head around anything not that simple, even as a DM. I just want my players to be able to walk into town with a sack of gold, find the biggest Magic Store they can, check out the price tags, and buy whatever awesome stuff they can (and save for what they can't). I love the thrill of seeing that wow-inducing +3 Vorpal Greataxe in the display case with an astronomical price, then every time you haul in a cache later, counting your coins gleefully in hopes you can finally afford it. That's a rewarding feedback loop to me, at least... knowing what cool stuff your gold can buy has always been part of what I felt made dungeon-delving RPGs so special.

To each their own, of course. I'd like to add in elements of how they've developed the 5e system. There's got to be a nice middle ground somewhere.