Creating magic items in 5e

[Ilbranteloth]

Do people have any ideas on how to do this in 5e? Do you think it should be a player option in 5e?

I recall the RC had rules which broke down to a percentage chance to create an item based on your casting modifier, level, and I believe the level of spell that you were using to create an item.

2e had enchant an item and permanency spells for magical item creation. You also had to gather up some exotic items like the branch of oak tree which had been struck by lightning to create a wand of lightning (this is nonspecific, it could have been anything the DM determined). Presumably priests just threw an item on the altar and prayed a bunch for their items.

3e had the item creation feats and allowed you to make items to your heart's content as long as you had the money and experience points to pay for it.

4e, as I was just reminded, had a ritual that allowed you to create items. I believe they also had one to break down items so if you had an axe if thunder but really wanted a sword of frost you could perform the rituals and swap them about.

5e I think has some downtime rules (I'm drinking coffee in a cafe at the moment so can't check) and I believe they expanded in them in a UA.

At any rate, how do you deal with enchanting items in 5e? Have you brought back a system from an earlier edition? Do you use downtime as a means for item creation? Do you even allow PCs to create their own items?

Yes, I allow it. It's a complex and dangerous process in my campaign, with potential long-term effects.

It requires a number of skills (although you can pay others to do many of them), rare and usually expensive ingredients, time (although not as long as some of the items in 5e), and imposes Strength and Constitution drain, which takes at least 3 days to recover, although there's always a chance it will be permanent.

Earlier editions sometimes used XP as a cost, but that is of a limited deterrent, if at all, and also doesn't have much of an in-world relevance. My rules are based around the question: why aren't magic items more common? In addition, I wanted to support the old depiction of a wizard with a well stocked library and laboratory performing experiments in magic. This is also used for researching spells, developing material components, etc.

Another thing I don't care for in most systems is the idea that and adventurer, who is presumably spending most of their time adventuring, has enough time to make magic items, when the rest of society (including the local wizards) are not, since there isn't a thriving open market for them. The majority of them are made by wizards hired by the local Lords, or the ones doing so under duress to provide items for the Red Wizard's program to attempt to create a market for them (of course, nothing too powerful).

Because in addition to having the ability to make them, you have to risk something of value. The exhaustion approach is the same as energy drain in my campaign.

Despite the risks, since every player has multiple characters in the campaign, with many involved in downtime activities, there are always a couple making some magic items.

 

[Ilbranteloth]

I've never seen the starter kit, what's it got to say on item creation?

I guess a somewhat related question is spell creation, whether a new spell or one from the phb that a wants in their spellbooks, how do people adjudicate that? I have some basic rules where phb spells are common, other officially published spells are uncommon (such as from elemental evil) and new spells are rare. Each requires are larger library to facilitate research.

The starter kit has nothing to say about it.

Spells are either found or researched in my campaign. Even found spells take time to learn, although I also allow them to cast spells they haven't mastered (with a chance of something going wrong). So a wizard in my campaign is always in the process of learning several spells, and they can select from among those for the spells they learn when gaining a level.

Of course, they could also be researching (or may have found) spells from any earlier edition too. Learning a spell you've found and researching uses the same basic process, but it's much easier to learn one you've found. Part of the reason for this approach is that NPC wizards they defeat are often of higher level than the party, and may have a lot of spells in their spellbook. I don't want the players to have instant access to all of those spells, so they end up having to pick which ones to work on learning first, and it will be some time before they can actually use them, and a little longer before they master it.

 

[neogod22]

The starter kit has nothing to say about it.

Spells are either found or researched in my campaign. Even found spells take time to learn, although I also allow them to cast spells they haven't mastered (with a chance of something going wrong). So a wizard in my campaign is always in the process of learning several spells, and they can select from among those for the spells they learn when gaining a level.

Of course, they could also be researching (or may have found) spells from any earlier edition too. Learning a spell you've found and researching uses the same basic process, but it's much easier to learn one you've found. Part of the reason for this approach is that NPC wizards they defeat are often of higher level than the party, and may have a lot of spells in their spellbook. I don't want the players to have instant access to all of those spells, so they end up having to pick which ones to work on learning first, and it will be some time before they can actually use them, and a little longer before they master it.

Have you read the rules for transferring spells to your spellbook? It's pretty costly, in time and in gold, and you can't just read a spell from another wizard's spellbook and cast it. It must be first transferred to yours by your hand. I'm not saying your way is wrong, but there are rules in the book.

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

 

[discosoc]

I tinkered with a system where great deeds could "upgrade" a normal item into a magic one. Critical killing blows or taking critical hits could contribute towards a particular weapon or armor becoming enchanted, for example. I had some hidden things as well, like paladins defending the weak, mages finding and researching lost tomes, etc.. Basically most classes had a few things they could do, and everyone had random chances via combat and RP actions.

Hardest part was tracking things, and I think if I found a way to streamline that, the system would be pretty cool.

 

[Ilbranteloth]

Have you read the rules for transferring spells to your spellbook? It's pretty costly, in time and in gold, and you can't just read a spell from another wizard's spellbook and cast it. It must be first transferred to yours by your hand. I'm not saying your way is wrong, but there are rules in the book.

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

I know. Well, sort of. I'll need to look up the 5e version again...2 hours per level of the spell. Not enough time to make it matter for me.

My approach goes back some 30ish years now in my campaigns, although it has been modified over time. One of the keys is that I wanted a way for wizards to cast spells they hadn't fully learned yet. The idea that they could attempt something, but not be assured of the results, just holds a lot of appeal to me.

So when you first start to learn the spell in my approach, it has a modified spell level of 2d4 above normal from a scroll or traveling spellbook, or 1d4 if from a primary set of spellbooks. Researching a spell without a copy to learn from is 3d4. After 8 non-consecutive hours of studying, you make an Arcana check (DC 20 + modified spell level), and have advantage on the check if you have access to your library/laboratory. 3 successes reduces the effect level by 1, 3 failures increases it by one. Some spells may just be out of your reach for now (instead of the old % chance to learn spell).

You can still cast the spell, although at the modified level. It works as if cast at the primary level (a 3rd level magic missile is still cast with the 1st level effects). You have to roll on a wild magic surge table, with a -2 penalty per modified spell level. Lower rolls on this table are more likely to fail with some detrimental effect.

Note that in my campaign, a party typically stops to make camp around dinner time, and it means that the wizard will probably have 2 to 4 hours each day to devote to studying and still get 8 hours of rest.

It costs whatever you spent for your blank spellbooks and ink, plus potentially material components.

It sounds really slow (and it is) but the intention is that most of the time they are learning new spells is during their downtime, and the characters have a lot of that since they have multiple characters and are playing one at any given time. In most campaigns, the in-game time is very, very fast. Our characters have adventuring careers that span years and even decades of in-game time. Some systems, like the 5e Adventures in Middle Earth have different approaches for time management. In that system, there is usually about one adventure during the year, and no adventuring during the winter. So after your adventure, it is assumed that you move into next spring before you start the next. While that does sort of happen in our campaigns (since travel is very difficult in winter in the north), it's a bit to restrictive and contrived for my liking. Instead, time passes based on what the characters are doing in their downtime.

 

[Eltab]

I'm writing an adventure that will probably turn into an AP-like structure when I finish cramming everything into it.

One feature: The characters can locate a 1000-year-old spellbook from a Master Of His Craft. (Set in FR, so probably Netherese.) The book will include some 3e-era spells that are not available to the 5e general world. The spells are of varying levels, both low- and high-end.
I want to create a way - or different ways for different classes - for everybody who is not the Wizard to learn thematically-appropriate spells from the book. Or 'borrow' somebody else's cool idea for how to do it.

I don't mind the idea of a Wizard copying the whole book into his own personal spellbook but having no idea (yet) how to make the top-end stuff work. But I cannot conceive of how the Sorcerer or Warlock is supposed to get the spells via 'welling up from within'.
And of course, if the PCs blab about their powerful cool rare spells, they get more and more nefarious personages following them around waiting for a good opportunity...

 

[cbwjm]

I will admit to being very lenient with captured spellbooks as I don't require the wizard to copy the spells, they can instead learn to read the notations in the captured spellbook and use it as one of their own.

 

[MechaPilot]

I require special components for magic item creation. I think it makes the process more flavorful. Also, going to get the materials gives players (and their characters) a sense of having accomplished something, and accumulating the materials gives them a sense of progress that is lacking when they're just waiting for the time to expire on a commissioned item.

 

[Yunru]

The starter kit has nothing to say about it.

To quote the president: "Wrong."

Thr main attraction for the area in which the adventure takes place is the Forge of Spells, because it waa a place where magic items could be crafted.

 

[cbwjm]

To quote the president: "Wrong."

Thr main attraction for the area in which the adventure takes place is the Forge of Spells, because it waa a place where magic items could be crafted.

That's actually quite interesting an idea. Items of mystical power require a place of power to be made. I can imagine that powerful wizards and lords of the realms would seek out these places of power to hold for themselves. Temples could be built on them to claim them for the faithful. It could make an interesting setting.