Minor Magic Items

[Goblyns Hoard]

My home brew is a fairly high magic world - probably not as high magic as Eberron seems to be but magic is certainly prevalent. As such everyone, right down to commoners, expects a certain level of magic in the world.

While some of the spells listed in the books have obvious applications (Continual Flame as street lighting), I'd like some help in getting together a list of minor magic items - objects that would use cantrip or first level strength spells that could be 'commonly' available. Maybe not everyone has them, but things that no one would blink at. The purpose is not to create items that the PCs will consider 'need to have' but instead just the minor effects to make magic more common.

I figure that this is the type of thing that ENWorld is famous for - brainstorming lists of little things to spice up a campaign. I haven't had a good hunt through the archives - but if anyone knows of any threads with a similar aim that they could point out that would be very useful.

If not then any ideas posted here would be very grateful. Keep it low power, I'm not looking for anything that players would consider using to change the game.

If there's enough response then I will certainly pull them altogether into a list for everyone to be able to use in some format or other.

Some ideas to get things going:

Message Stones - a pair of small stone which when held sends a short message to it's partner stone. The D&D equivalent of sending a text message. The recipient is a single named given stone - there's not a network. To limit the power/use each stone can either send or receive one message per day, not both. Primary use - soldiers who are away from home can 'text' their wives back home to let them know they're OK at the end of the day.

Image Frame - a frame that on command reveals an unmoving, silent, partially transparent 3D image. The image is always exactly the same as determined when the frame was crafted. Essentially a hologram of something/someone that can be turned on or off. Creatures with any intelligence will never mistake the image for anything other than what it truly is.

Not the most creative I know - but any help is greatly appreciated

Cheers

 

[Quartz]

Tidy stone. When left in an unattended room, an Unseen Servant tidies it.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

Magic Chef - a small box that heats or cools food placed inside. Larger, more expensive versions are capable of actually cooking or freezing food.

Chime of Waking - This small chime looks like two bells attached to each other to look similar to an hourglass. Invert the chime once for each hour you wish to sleep, up to twelve time. After the number of hours has passed, the chime will ring until it is picked up. For each minute it is not picked up it will begin to ring louder. Maxiumum volume is reached in 5 minutes and is equivalent to the sound from a a large hand bell.

Vase of Blooms - flowers placed in this vase will bloom within one day, if unopened, and will remain fresh for up to one week without water.

 

[Celebrim]

You have to be careful with these things so that you don't end up creating a world with too easy analogies to real world technology. This ends up being humorous, which is why it works for something like Harry Potter, but generally does not work well IMO for a more serious campaign.

The real secret in my opinion is focusing on items which do things which real world technology cannot (presently) and not on things that it can.

The two most powerful spells for these purposes are 'prestidigitation' and 'unseen servant'. Between the two of them, you can do almost any household utilitarian chore.

Some examples of objects you might find in high magic areas of my homebrew:

1) Pitchers or mugs which chill any beverage placed in them. Alternately, a thermos or bowl that warms beverages placed in them.
2) Paper or cloth which repells water and, hense, dries itself when removed from water and is relatively waterproof.
3) Feather dusters which animate upon a command word and clean all dust from the area. (unseen servant + prestidigitation)
4) Candles which light themselves upon a command word.
5) Candles which play musical tunes, send out showers of harmless colored sparks, are produce simple illusions when lit.
6) Wands of hairstyling, which hold hair in place (even in gravity defying ways) when styled.
7) Boxes which act as insect traps by luring a particular type of insect to enter them. Practically used to control pests, and extragently used to attract fireflies, butterflies, or other decorative insects.
8) Salt or spice shakers which gradually refill themselves (so long as they are not emptied).
9) Spoons or pots which enhance the flavor of the dish they are used to prepare.
10) Various tools for giving small bonuses to craft or profession skills.
11) Wineskins or canteens that gradually refill themselves with water (so long as they are not emptied).
12) Dishes, or clothes which clean themselves of (light) grime on a command word.
13) Brushes which color minor scratches or blemish on an item (or polish it), or even specialized brushes that recolor makeup or hair.
14) Playing cards, dice, dice cups or other items designed to make it easier to cheat or to pull of cons (shell games).

Wands of utilitarian spells like mending, prestidigitation, and unseen servant might be common 'social emergency' devices in such societies, assuming that lose of face is a more common threat to ones station than loss of life.

I would strongly suggest you steer away from anything that can be used to communication (magical phones of any sort). or transportation (bag of holding variants, minor teleportation). Most items should be purely status symbols, toys for the magic controling aristocrats.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

Bag of Shopping - These thin bags activate when unfolded. Once activated, a single bag weighs one pound but can hold 15 pounds worth of goods, up to five cubic feet in volume. 12 hours after activation, the bag loses its magical properties. If the contents have not been removed, the bag tears and the contents spill out. Many merchants place the name or symbol of their store on the outside of the bags. Some merchants allow customers to return whole, discharged bags to them and pay a small return fee. Merchants can then have the bag's magical energy recharged at a 25% savings over the construction of new bags.

 

[schporto]

Based on create food and water you could have an oven that can feed a lot of people at the soup kitchen.

Based on endure elements you could have climate control on a building. Its a bit of a stretch, but one thing that would be a big boon.

Sewage plants running on disintegrate (which the druids think is a bad idea), or shambling mounds/tendriculous etc (which the druids like).

A table that prevents modified dice from being used at it. (Its always a push pull between the cheaters and the house )
-cpd

 

[Goblyns Hoard]

Cheers for these ideas guys - any more out there?

Celebrim - you've got the point exactly... no phones, transport etc. - except maybe one off items like Thornir's bag of shopping.

Schporto - I already have animals and magical beasts being tamed, controlled or just downright used in various ways. So one human army has cultivated Ankhegs (i.e. they breed/feed them) around a castle regularly attacked by hobgoblins - as a first line of defense. So sewers in some of the major cities are rife with gelatinous cubes, various molds, etc. precisely as waste control. So called sewer workers are very much 'beast control' ensuring the creatures don't threaten the population.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

For the paranoid or those who have reason to be wary, mugs, plates bowls and eating utensils that can Detect Poison - they glow a sickly green when poison is present.

Zephyrfan - A small paper fan that hovers near the bearer's face waving air to cool them.

Edgecloth - no more bulky whetstones and tiresome honing of blades, simply run this cloth over your edged weapon once to restore its sharpness. Nicks can be buffed out with just a few quick strokes. Great for cooking knives as well!

 

[The Edge]

Time Stone/Disc - A small round disc three inches in diameter and an inch deep, typicaly made of stone or metal. With engravings set around its perimeter, which mark the hours. The engraveings glow to indicate the time. Mid price mundane item, popular with merchants and middle classes, as well as those to which tracking time is important. The rich may carry more elaborate Time Stones, made of precious metals of with other finerys.

Based on 'Time Square', a large court yard in the temple district with twenty four huge slabs which glow acording to the hour. (IMC the temples of the sun god and moon godess were oposite sides of time square. Makeing the whole time thing somewhat relvent to the location.)

Scribes Quill - Everlasting quill, with clear benifits for those who would otherwise use a lot of ink.

Wonderous Soap - It's basicaly really good soap.

Dream Catchers - Keeps nightmares out. Spells that work through dreams or sleep will pass these minor trinkets, but a more powerful catcher could be created. (Would probably work via spell resistance or something)

Magical Bed/Bedding - Very comfy, and helps to sleep. May or may not cause problems in the morning.

Alerationists - Certain mages who will perform permanent alterations for an apropriate fee. Rangeing from simple colour changes for hair, eyes, maybe skin, to changeing features, height or posibly even rather extreme changes. Customers must consider the skills and reputation of their alterationist. Well trusted and competent practicers may charge more, but the cost of winding up with no hair, or worse is likely far worse. (If the PCs are interested, roll some dice. )

Other misc ideas - A dress which works as a +6 cha cape, a lumberjack's axe (tree bane?), a famous cooks special cooking pot, 'potions of voice' for public speakers.

 

[schporto]

The one idea I always wanted to try was a bank in a bag. Basically you walk into a branch office, and they give you a bag similar to a bag of holding. That bag's other end though is tied to a dimension where imps act as bankers. I liked the idea because it also got rid of encumbrance from coins too.
Animation coins. Put one on an object and that object animates for 1 minute. Not good for adventurers, but good for rearranging your furniture.
Animated chess. The pieces actually fight and move.
Animated taxis or couriers.
Decoder rings. Two rings touch and then you can tune a message you are writing to only be understood by the wearer of the other ring.
Some of these are like modern day things, but science and magic...
-cpd