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D&D 5E Starting Above 1st Level: Gear

I made this table from the Basic Rules of common/uncommon items to roll on for starting PCs:

Starting Magic Items for High Level PCs - roll d20:

1. Bag of Holding
Wondrous item, uncommon
This bag has an interior space considerably larger
than its outside dimensions, roughly 2 feet in diameter
at the mouth and 4 feet deep. The bag can hold up to
500 pounds, not exceeding a volume of 64 cubic feet.
The bag weighs 15 pounds, regardless of its contents.
Retrieving an item from the bag requires an action.
If the bag is overloaded, pierced, or torn, it ruptures
and is destroyed, and its contents are scattered in the
Astral Plane. If the bag is turned inside out, its contents
spill forth, unharmed, but the bag must be put right
before it can be used again. Breathing creatures inside
the bag can survive up to a number of minutes equal
to 10 divided by the number of creatures (minimum 1
minute), after which time they begin to suffocate.
Placing a bag of holding inside an extradimensional
space created by a Heward’s handy haversack, portable
hole, or similar item instantly destroys both items and
opens a gate to the Astral Plane. The gate originates
where the one item was placed inside the other. Any
creature within 10 feet of the gate is sucked through it
to a random location on the Astral Plane. The gate then
closes. The gate is one-way only and can’t be reopened.

2. Boots of Striding and Springing
Wondrous item, uncommon (requires attunement)
While you wear these boots, your walking speed
becomes 30 feet, unless your walking speed is higher,
and your speed isn’t reduced if you are encumbered
or wearing heavy armor. In addition, you can jump
three times the normal distance, though you can’t jump
farther than your remaining movement would allow.

3. Cloak of Elvenkind
Wondrous item, uncommon (requires attunement)
While you wear this cloak with its hood up, Wisdom
(Perception) checks made to see you have disadvantage,
and you have advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks
made to hide, as the cloak’s color shifts to camouflage
you. Pulling the hood up or down requires an action.

4. Gauntlets of Ogre Power
Wondrous item, uncommon (requires attunement)
Your Strength score is 19 while you wear these
gauntlets. They have no effect on you if your Strength is
already 19 or higher.

5. Gloves of Swimming and Climbing
Wondrous item, uncommon (requires attunement)
While wearing these gloves, climbing and swimming
don’t cost you extra movement, and you gain a +5 bonus
to Strength (Athletics) checks made to climb or swim.

6. Goggles of Night
Wondrous item, uncommon
While wearing these dark lenses, you have darkvision
out to a range of 60 feet. If you already have darkvision,
wearing the goggles increases its range by 60 feet.

7. Headband of Intellect
Wondrous item, uncommon (requires attunement)
Your Intelligence score is 19 while you wear this
headband. It has no effect on you if your Intelligence is
already 19 or higher.

8. Keoghtom’s Ointment
Wondrous item, uncommon
This glass jar, 3 inches in diameter, contains 1d4 + 1
doses of a thick mixture that smells faintly of aloe. The
jar and its contents weigh 1/2 pound.
As an action, one dose of the ointment can be
swallowed or applied to the skin. The creature that
receives it regains 2d8 + 2 hit points, ceases to be
poisoned, and is cured of any disease.

9-10. 1d4+4 potions of healing
A character who drinks the magical red fluid in this vial regains 2d4 + 2 hit points. Drinking or administering a potion takes an action. Each potion weighs 1/2 pound.

11-13. Spell Scroll of (50%) 1 2nd or 3rd level Spell, (40%) 2 1st level Spells, or (10%) d4+4 cantrips
Spell Level Rarity Save DC Attack Bonus
Cantrip Common 13 +5
1st Common 13 +5
2nd Uncommon 13 +5
3rd Uncommon 15 +7

14. Wand of Magic Detection
Wand, uncommon
This wand has 3 charges. While holding it, you can
expend 1 charge as an action to cast the detect magic
spell from it. The wand regains 1d3 expended charges
daily at dawn.

15. Wand of Magic Missiles
Wand, uncommon
While you hold this wand, you can use an action to
expend 1 to 3 of its 7 charges to cast the magic missile
spell without using any components. For 1 charge, you
cast the spell as if you used a 1st-level spell slot, and you
increase the spell slot level by one for each additional
charge you spend.
The wand regains 1d6 + 1 expended charges each day
at dawn. However, if you expend the wand’s last charge,
roll a d20. On a 1, the wand crumbles into ashes and
is destroyed.

16-20. Weapon, Rune Weapon +1
Weapon (any), uncommon (+1)
You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with
this rune-carved magic weapon.

You could do the same with Rare items.

Today I did a Rare+ table likewise:

RARE+ ITEMS - GM rolls d20

1-8. +1 armour (any) or +1 shield

9. 2d4 Potions of Flying
When you drink this potion, you gain a flying speed equal to your walking speed for 1 hour and can hover. If you’re in the air when the potion wears off, you fall unless you have some other means of staying aloft. This potion’s clear liquid floats at the top of its container and has cloudy white impurities drifting in it.

10. 2d4 Potions of Invisibility
This potion’s container looks empty but feels as though it holds liquid. When you drink it, you become invisible for 1 hour. Anything you wear or carry is invisible with you. The effect ends early if you attack or cast a spell.

11. 2d4 Potions of Vitality
When you drink this potion, it removes any exhaustion you are suffering and cures any disease or poison affecting you. For the next 24 hours, you regain the maximum number of hit points for any Hit Die you spend. The potion’s crimson liquid regularly pulses with dull light, calling to mind a heartbeat.

12. Ring of Evasion
Ring, rare (requires attunement)
This ring has 3 charges, and it regains 1d3 expended charges daily at dawn. When you fail a Dexterity saving throw while wearing it, you can use your reaction to expend 1 of its charges to succeed on that saving throw instead.

13-14. Ring of Protection
Ring, rare (requires attunement)
You gain a +1 bonus to AC and saving throws while wearing this ring.

15. Ring of Resistance
Ring, rare (requires attunement)
You have resistance to one damage type while wearing this ring. The gem in the ring indicates the type, which the DM chooses or determines randomly.
d10 Damage Type Gem
1 Acid Pearl
2 Cold Tourmaline
3 Fire Garnet
4 Force Sapphire
5 Lightning Citrine
6 Necrotic Jet
7 Poison Amethyst
8 Psychic Jade
9 Radiant Topaz
10 Thunder Spinel

16-20. Spell Scroll
A spell scroll bears the words of a single spell, written in a mystical cipher. If the spell is on your class’s spell list, you can use an action to read the scroll and cast its spell without having to provide any of the spell’s components. Otherwise, the scroll is unintelligible. If the spell is on your class’s spell list, you can read the scroll and cast its spell without providing any material components. Otherwise, the scroll is . Casting the spell by reading the scroll requires the spell’s normal casting time. Once the spell is cast, the words on the scroll fade, and it crumbles to dust. If the casting is interrupted, the scroll is not lost.

If the spell is on your class’s spell list but of a higher level than you can normally cast, you must make an ability check using your spellcasting ability to determine whether you cast it successfully. The DC equals 10 + the spell’s level. On a failed check, the spell disappears from the scroll with no other effect.

Once the spell is cast, the words on the scroll fade, and the scroll itself crumbles to dust.

The level of the spell on the scroll determines the spell’s saving throw DC and attack bonus, as well as the scroll’s rarity, as shown in the Spell Scroll table.

Spell Scroll
d20. Spell Level Rarity Save DC Attack Bonus
1-5 4th Rare 15 +7
6-10. 5th Rare 17 +9
11-14. 6th Very rare 17 +9
15-17. 7th Very rare 18 +10
18-19. 8th Very rare 18 +10
20. 9th Legendary 19 +11
A wizard spell on a spell scroll can be copied just as spells in spellbooks can be copied. When a spell is copied from a spell scroll, the copier must succeed on an Intelligence (Arcana) check with a DC equal to 10 + the spell’s level. If the check succeeds, the spell is successfully copied. Whether the check succeeds or fails, the spell scroll is destroyed.
 

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So they are! Thank you. I didn't read the lower halves of that chart since I was only running lower level games.
Doesn't it make more sense to only read the lower halves of charts for low-level games, and only the higher halves for high-level games...? ;)
 

If you are going to hand out free magic items, restrict them to ones that the players have already obtained in your low-level games. That way, you will all know what to expect in terms of the effect they have on the game.
 


I would give them a couple choices on potions and scrolls and minor things, but restrict things like weapons and armor. Maybe give them a choice on a weapon. +1 basic dagger or +0 that returns when thrown and 1/day can teleport 30ft as a move action. This gives the player a bit of choice and allows you to limit some things.

Also look at the thread on banned magic items in your campaign.
 

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