D&D 5E When should our warriors see their first +1 longswords?

[Ed_Laprade]

Another point about magic items, which has nothing to do with weapons, is that they really, Really, really need to stress non-combat items. I've seen a LOT of magic items in my day, but the one that I really remember is the guardian teddy bear that someone long ago had made to keep his child safe. Now there was something that said 'I'm MAGIC!", but didn't give the PCs any benefit unless they pretty much gave it away.

 

[Mistwell]

Another point about magic items, which has nothing to do with weapons, is that they really, Really, really need to stress non-combat items. I've seen a LOT of magic items in my day, but the one that I really remember is the guardian teddy bear that someone long ago had made to keep his child safe. Now there was something that said 'I'm MAGIC!", but didn't give the PCs any benefit unless they pretty much gave it away.

I love that. Cool idea!

 

[Li Shenron]

My take on it for 5th will be pretty much unchanged from previous editions: when other classes start seeing minor magic items for them; also, an adventure or two before they NEED them.

I often think they don't really ever need them at all.

Especially because the vast majority of magic items in D&D either grant bonuses or replicate the effect of a spell. If you really "need" bonuses or more spells, the same can be achieved by gaining a couple of more class levels (or equivalently, let them meet monsters of a slightly lower level).

 

[jasper]

as it going into their guts bring them down to -10.

 

[JRRNeiklot]

Whenever they can find one and pry it from the owner's cold, dead, hands.

 

[Salamandyr]

Keep in mind, I tend to run old school style games, so levels last longer, and the world is generally lower level, but in my games, PC's will start seeing magic weapons at first level, and by 3rd or 4th level, everyone will have one, or a piece of magic armor, or a majic wand or something similar for the arcane types.

 

[Grydan]

I don't particularly care how other people handle it in their own campaigns, so I don't have an answer to the "when should" part of the question.

Were I to be running a campaign in the system (I'm currently playing in one that uses the final public playtest rules), my answer to when would my players get their first +1 longswords is "never".

I've never been fond of +n items, and given that the system is apparently designed so that their inclusion isn't expected or required, I see no particular reason to include them.

That's not to say that there wouldn't be magic items, even magic longswords. It's just that none of them would be +n. All those little quirks you can randomly generate to make a +1 sword less boring? If I want to use those, I can simply use them, without mucking about with the math.

A sword made of flame, which provides illumination, heat, fire damage, and the ability to start fires is magical with or without a number attached to it. The number is superfluous.

When would the characters get their hands on magical weapons or items? It's something that's going to vary, depending on what seems interesting and fun to me and my players at the time.

I might start one campaign with each of the PCs having a magic item at level 1. Or getting them might take most of the campaign.

Or I might make it so that each magic item in the world is already known and famous, and if you want one of them you have to go seek it out.

Maybe each item needs to be earned. Or maybe they're a dime a dozen, found under every rock, in every treasure hoard, in every enemy's hand.

There's no blanket approach that would work for me all if the time.