D&D 5E Cursed Items and Identify

[Falling Icicle]

I just got my DMG today, and it's awesome. I was a bit surprised to find cursed items mixed in among the normal magic items. I was also surprised to discover that the identify spell can't reveal curses on magic items.

Now that they've made this rule, what is the point of the identify spell? It seems to me like everything that can be revealed about an item with that spell can be discovered for free simply by handling the item over a short rest.

Is there any way that characters can find out an item is cursed before using it? On the one hand, I can understand why they wouldn't want a 1st level spell to spoil every cursed item, but on the other hand, I don't think players should be powerless victims against such shenanigans.

Also, is there any way to remove a curse from a magic item? I'd be disappointed if my DM finally gave me a magic item only to find out that it's cursed and nothing could ever be done to make it usable.

 

[thalmin]

The rules don't say that short rest handling will reveal if the item can be attuned and what it can do once attuned, both covered by Identify.

 

[Riley37]

Who creates cursed magic items, and why?

 

[machineelf]

I believe in my game I'm going to call for an intelligence arcane check to identify the properties of a magical item over a short rest. So that will make the identify spell a bit more useful.

 

[thalmin]

Who creates cursed magic items, and why?

Either for revenge, or else by mistake.

 

[Anth]

Who creates cursed magic items, and why?

- an evil wizard
- a mad wizard
- an incompetent fumbling wizard

 

[Lanefan]

Were it me I'd immediately house-rule out the idea of learning anything about an item by just sitting with it for a few minutes. Field-testing and trying things, yes; if the item's properties can be so discovered, but not just sitting with it. And for that which can't be pulled by field-testing, there's Identify.

Also, I have it that casting Identify on an item always finds any curses because they auto-trigger against the Identify's caster. Magic has its risks, after all.

Remove Curse as written temporarily de-curses an item; I'd tweak it to make it both less powerful (there's a chance it doesn't work) and more powerful (there's a chance of permanently removing the curse which gets better with level).

Lan-"still haven't published my treatise on field-testing magic items"-efan

 

[Henrix]

Cursed items not being Identifiable has a long tradition in D&D. And if it were it'd basically make cursed items pointless.


The bit about learning the properties in a short rest is vague because different campaigns and DMs want to do it different ways.
You can do it the 4e way, getting full knowledge easily, or the old school way.

For my part I go with that you can learn basic stuff during a short rest. Like what bonus a weapon or armour has, how strong you are with that girdle on, and such.

Identify reveals deeper secrets, but not curses, artifacts or intelligence.

 

[wedgeski]

Who creates cursed magic items, and why?

The impulse to do harm for its own sake is alive and well in our own society. It's no stretch to believe that powerful arcanists with no moral checkpoint would do the same in a D&D campaign.

 

[Plaguescarred]

I'm good with Identify not revealing curses. I like how magic items identification is handled in D&D 5E personally;

Inspection: Short rest inspection may reveal base properties.
Usage: Specific usage handling may reveal some properties or cursed secrets
Magic: Spells such as Identify or Legends & Lore may reveal properties and attunement secrets.