D&D 5E Wizard Loot?

[venkelos2016]

So, I'll be honest, initially this thread was thinking about whining, in regards to how magical items work, in 5E, but as I came to think about it, I decided I actually sort of like the rarity of them that is 5th ed's handling of swords, armor, and mcguffins that are more than they may appear. Then I started to wonder when mithral and adamantine became vibranium, because making them "magic item equivalent" (I do LIKE adamantine making you immune to crits, mind) means that there must be next to no mithral, adamantine, dragon scales, or whatnot, to make things out of, even though elves, dwarves, and others are legendarily known for using those media.

Thing is, I thought past that all, though any thoughts will still be appreciated. What I want to know now is, other than trying to help the parties of the world appear more like heroes, and less like campaigning murder-hobos, what sort of loot is there, in dungeons and the like, for wizards to find (wizards are my class of choice, sorry)? I'm willing to say that, for the bulk of things, I really like where wizards have ended up in 5E, with cantrips, better hp, some good benefits for specializing, and a reasonable ability to use weapons, when spells aren't appropriate, but magic items, sort of their focus, are so rare now. Scrolls used to be a thing that wizards could make, because they write down all of their spells, sometime or another, and now they don't make scrolls, which would also take days, and cost a lot. With cantrips, they also have less need to bring some scrolls along, or make them, so wizards won't find new spells in dungeons. Items to augment their casting seem unlikely, too, with higher Intelligence not netting as much reward (no bonus spells for high Abilities), and such, while metamagic is now the purview of sorcerers.

I suppose it could be the same issue for anyone else wanting a nice, magical toy, but I'm not sure what the wizard is even hoping to find in a hoard, much less actually ever will. Quarterstaffs aren't really helpful, and there are better weapons even a starting solo-class wizard can use, making the iconic image of a wizard with a staff seem in danger of disappearing, and staves are rare even compared to many other magic items. While a fighter might hope for a better weapon, for a wizard, that often means a better spell, but I doubt they'll find too many of those. Why scribe a scroll, and then why is it in the dungeon (barring the likely "wizard died before they could use it)?

All right, I am now done needlessly whining. What cool sorts of things have you either found, playing as a wizard, or left in the refuse for your players to potentially find. With magic items finally not being a dime a dozen, what sorts of goods have your adventures revealed?

 

[Azurewraith]

I guess to me anyway the wizard dosnt require gear as he powers up with more "weapons"(spells) where as fighters need to find them. Just my 2c

 

[Beleriphon]

Staves are good options. Spells books are also good, especially if they are from previous adventurers. Then you get mostly the same spells with one or two new ones.

 

[jayoungr]

Robes, too, or any cloth armor.

 

[ExploderWizard]

I guess to me anyway the wizard dosnt require gear as he powers up with more "weapons"(spells) where as fighters need to find them. Just my 2c

Indeed this is why magical arms and armor were so much more common than wands, staves, and similar items in the original game.

 

[ccs]

Things characters in my game have found:
Several potions of various sorts.
A Cloak of the Manta - Ray
A Javelin of Lightning
Several magic weapons, several suits of armor
A few 1 use plot specific things needed for 1 adventure
A folding deck chair that shrinks & grows upon command.
And a small Coleman cooler that can hold up to 6 wine bottles & is always chilled.

 

[Al2O3]

I agree with others starting that staves and robes should be good. I would also add rings, cloaks and generally fun things (alchemy jug comes to mind). As a spellcaster I would also like to find priced material components (e.g. a pearl for the spell identify) as part of a treasure. Finding the very specific components needed for otherwise expensive high level spells (I think Mordenkainen came up with one or two of those) could add to the realistically available spells.

 

[NotActuallyTim]

See if you can talk your DM into removing the Formula requirement for crafting consumable magic items. Then scribe your own scrolls with with your gold.

 

[Sword of Spirit]

Then I started to wonder when mithral and adamantine became vibranium, because making them "magic item equivalent" (I do LIKE adamantine making you immune to crits, mind) means that there must be next to no mithral, adamantine, dragon scales, or whatnot, to make things out of, even though elves, dwarves, and others are legendarily known for using those media.

The way I decided to handle that is that you have to use magic item creation to turn adamantine and mithril into those specific magic armors that grant those specific properties. Non-magical mithril still weighs half as much as steel (but doesn't affect who can wear it), and non-magical adamantine is still extra hard to damage (as seen on the Object Armor Class table in the DMG), but doesn't negate critical hits.

Why scribe a scroll, and then why is it in the dungeon (barring the likely "wizard died before they could use it)?

Good question, which needs an answer because the random magic item tables are full of scrolls. Trading/selling cantrip scrolls makes sense to allow wizards instant access to cantrips they don't otherwise have. Spell scrolls make a bit less sense, since it would likely be cheaper to pay to copy them from another wizard's spell book than to pay to buy a scroll from them and then copy it into your spellbook. But maybe they are assuming that isn't the case. Maybe the assumption is that wizards are paranoid (and/or jerks) and are more likely to sell scrolls than to allow another wizard access to their spellbook (there is the risk of theft, of course). But then again, most spells would already be scribed instead of sitting on a scroll. No, it seems what the magic item table are telling us is a couple of things: 1) magic item formulas for creating scrolls are pretty common, and 2) wizards (or other casters) like to have extra spells on scrolls.

If you expand it beyond wizards, it makes plenty of sense that bards and sorcerers might want scrolls to access spells they don't know. So maybe these scrolls are created for that purpose. It also makes sense to create scrolls of spells of the higher level you can cast, since you are limited in spell slots for those. It is kind of odd to have all of those low level spell scrolls floating around though.

Does anyone have better ideas to reconcile the existence of all of those scrolls with the assumptions of the game rules and world?

 

[FormerlyHemlock]

Wizards mostly want spell components, not magic items. "Five 1000 gemstones? Yes! That's three semi-permanent Air Elementals and a Simulacrum for me!" Also, at my table they want gold to fund spell research.

Oh, and if you manage to find an actual spellbook, that's even better. Jump for joy! I sometimes hand out spells to my players from the Book of Lost Spells instead of the PHB.

Scribing scrolls doesn't make economic sense for a wizard most of the time, but scribing a backup spellbook is cheap and smart. Then you hide that spellbook in your tower, and if you never come back for it, someday a group of adventurers may come along, clear the tower's now-wild guardian demons and spell traps, and find the hiding place where you stashed your spellbook and Clone sarcophagus (with a dessicated ten-thousand-year-old clone still inside).