Crafting

To create magic items, follow the rules below. In these rules, “you” refers to the character crafting the magic item. Arcana Proficiency To craft a magic item, you and any assistants must have proficiency in the Arcana skill. Tools The Magic Item Tools table lists which tool is required to make a magic item of each category. You must use the required tool to make an item and have proficiency with that tool. Any assistants must also have proficiency with it. Magic Item Tools Item Category Required Tool Armor Leatherworker’s Tools, Smith’s Tools, or Weaver’s Tools depending on the kind of armor as noted in the tools’ descriptions Potion Alchemist’s Supplies or Herbalism Kit Ring Jeweler’s Tools Rod Woodcarver’s Tools Scroll Calligrapher’s Supplies Staff Woodcarver’s Tools Wand Woodcarver’s Tools Weapon Leatherworker’s Tools, Smith’s Tools, or Woodcarver’s Tools depending on the kind of weapon as noted in the tools’ descriptions Wondrous Item Tinker’s Tools or the tool required to make the nonmagical item on which the magic item is based Spells If a magic item allows its user to cast any spells from it, you must have all those spells prepared every day you spend crafting the item. Time and Cost Crafting a magic item takes an amount of time and money based on the item’s rarity as shown in the Magic Item Crafting Time and Cost table. Work per Day. For each day of crafting, you must work for 8 hours. If an item requires multiple days, those days needn’t be consecutive. Assistants. Characters can combine their efforts to shorten the crafting time. Divide the time needed to create an item by the number of characters working on it. Normally, only one other character can assist you, but the DM might allow more assistants. Raw Materials. The cost in the table represents the raw materials needed to make a magic item. The DM determines whether appropriate raw materials are available. In a city, there is a 75 percent chance that the materials are available, and in any other settlement, that chance is 25 percent. If materials aren’t available, you must wait at least 7 days before checking on the availability again. If a magic item incorporates an item that has a purchase cost (such as a weapon or a suit of armor), you must also pay that entire cost or craft that item using the rules in the Player’s Handbook. For example, to make +1 Armor (Plate Armor) , you must pay 3,500 GP or pay 2,000 GP and craft the armor. Magic Item Crafting Time and Cost Item Rarity Time Cost Common 5 days 50 GP Uncommon 10 days 200 GP Rare 50 days 2,000 GP Very Rare 125 days 20,000 GP Legendary 250 days 100,000 GP *The time and cost are halved for a consumable item other than a Spell Scroll , whose crafting time and cost are given in the Player’s Handbook. Magic Item Special Features You can add distinctiveness to a magic item by thinking about its backstory. Who made the item? Is anything unusual about its construction? Why was it made, and how was it used originally? What minor magical quirks set it apart from other items of its kind? Answering these questions can help turn a generic magic item, such as a +1 Longsword, into a more flavorful discovery. Use the following tables to fill in details about a magic item’s history. Some table entries make more sense for certain items than for others. If you roll something that doesn’t make sense, roll again, choose a more appropriate entry, or use the rolled detail as inspiration to make up your own special feature. On the Magic Item’s Minor Property table and the Magic Item’s Quirk table, “you” refers to the item’s bearer. Magic Item’s Creator or Intended User 1d20 Creator or Intended User 1 Aberration. The item is ancient. At a glance, it seems to be covered with mucus. 2 Celestial. The item is half the normal weight and inscribed with feathered wings, suns, and stars. Fiends find it repulsive. 3 Devotees of Lolth. The item is half the normal weight. It is inscribed with spiders and webs in honor of Lolth. 4 Dragon. This item incorporates precious metals and gems from a dragon’s hoard. It grows warm when within 120 feet of a Dragon. 5-6 Dwarf. The item is durable and has Dwarvish runes worked into its design. It might be associated with a clan that would like to see it returned to their ancestral halls. 7 Elemental Air. The item is half the normal weight and feels hollow. If it’s made of fabric, it is diaphanous. 8 Elemental Earth. This item might be crafted from stone. Any cloth or leather elements are studded with finely polished rock. 9 Elemental Fire. This item is warm to the touch, and any metal parts are crafted from black iron. Flame imagery covers its surface. 10 Elemental Water. Lustrous fish scales replace leather or cloth on this item, and seashells and worked coral (as hard as any metal) replace metal portions. 11-12 Elf. The item is half the normal weight. It is adorned with symbols of nature: leaves, vines, stars, and the like. 13 Fey. The item is exquisitely crafted from the finest materials and glows with a pale radiance in moonlight, shedding Dim Light in a 5-foot radius. Any metal in the item is silver or mithral rather than iron or steel. 14 Fiend. The item is made of iron or horn, and any cloth or leather components are crafted from the hide of Fiends. Leering faces or vile runes are engraved on its surface. Celestials find it repulsive. 15 Giant. The item is larger than normal and was crafted by Giants for use by their smaller allies. 16 Gnome. The item is crafted to appear ordinary and well used. It could also incorporate gears and mechanical components, even if these aren’t essential to its function. 17-19 Human. The item was created during the heyday of a fallen human kingdom, or it is tied to a human of legend. It might hold writing in a forgotten language or symbols whose significance is lost to the ages. 20 Undead. The item incorporates symbols of death, such as bones and skulls, and it might be crafted from parts of corpses. It feels cold to the touch. Magic item's History 1d8 History 1 Arcane. This item was created for an ancient order of spellcasters and bears the order’s symbol. 2 Bane. This item was created to oppose creatures of a particular type, such as Aberrations or Dragons. 3 Heroic. A great hero once wielded this item. Anyone who knows the item’s history expects great deeds from the new owner. 4 Ornament. The item honors a special event. Inset gemstones, gold or platinum inlays, and gold or silver filigree adorn its surface. 5 Prophecy. The item features in a prophecy: its bearer is destined to play a key role in future events. 6 Religious. This item was used in religious ceremonies dedicated to a particular deity. It has religious symbols worked into it. 7 Sinister. This item is linked to a deed of great evil, such as a massacre or an assassination. It might have a name or be closely associated with a villain who used it. 8 Symbol of Power. This item was once used as part of royal regalia or as a badge of high office. Magic Item's Minor Property 1d20 Minor Property 1-2 Beacon. You can take a Bonus Action to cause the item to shed Bright Light in a 10-foot radius and Dim Light for an additional 10 feet, or to extinguish the light. 3 Compass. You can take a Magic action to learn which way is magnetic north. Nothing happens if this property is used in a location that has no magnetic north. 4 Delver. While underground, you always know the item’s depth below the surface and the direction to the nearest staircase, ramp, or other path leading upward. 5-6 Guardian. The item warns you, granting a +2 bonus to your Initiative rolls if you don’t have the Incapacitated condition. 7-8 Harmonious. Attuning to this item takes only 1 minute. 9 Key. The item is used to unlock a container, chamber, vault, or door. 10 Secret Message . A message is hidden somewhere on the item. It might be visible only at a certain time, under the light of one phase of the moon, or in a specific location. 11-12 Sentinel. The DM chooses a kind of creature, such as mind flayers or trolls. This item glows faintly when such creatures are within 120 feet of it. 13 Songcraft. Whenever this item is struck or is used to strike a foe, you hear a fragment of an ancient song. 14-15 Strange Material. The item was created from a material that is bizarre given its purpose. Its durability is unaffected. 16 Temperate. You are unharmed by temperatures of 0 degrees Fahrenheit or lower, and 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. 17 Unbreakable. The item can’t be broken. Special means must be used to destroy it. 18 War Leader. You can take a Magic action to cause your voice or signal to carry clearly for up to 600 feet until the end of your next turn. 19 Waterborne. This item floats on water and other liquids. You have Advantage on Strength (Athletics) checks to swim. 20 Roll twice, rerolling any additional 20s. Magic Item's Quirk 1d8 Quirk 1 Blissful. You feel fortunate and optimistic about what the future holds. Butterflies and other harmless creatures might frolic in the item’s presence. 2 Confident. The item helps you feel self-assured. 3 Covetous. You become obsessed with material wealth. 4 Fragile. The item crumbles, frays, chips, or cracks slightly when wielded, worn, or activated. This quirk has no effect on its properties. 5 Loud. The item makes a loud noise—such as a clang, a shout, or a resonating gong—when used. 6 Metamorphic. The item periodically alters its appearance in slight ways. You have no control over these minor alterations, which have no effect on the item’s use. 7 Painful. You experience a harmless flash of pain when using the item. 8 Repulsive. You feel a sense of distaste when in contact with the item and continue to experience discomfort while bearing it.