I'm working on a campaign and decided to add a few 'custom' items to each PC.
Taking the DMG with a grain of salt, it recommends;
un/common is for 1st+, Rare for 5th+, Very Rare for 11th+ & Legendary for 17th+
But for example I wanted to give the cleric the staff of healing & the necklace of prayer beads.
I was thinking about giving the staff around 7-8 and the prayer beads at around 10 but the staff has Mass healing, a 5th level spell which is first learned at level 9 & the prayer beads have wind walk & planar ally, both 6th level spells learned at level 11.. taking into account that they're both rare & can technically be given out as early as level 5 how does this work?
Should I allow the higher level spells to be cast? Should I just tell him to hold off on the higher spells (and upcasting) until he can innately cast spells of the same level? Should i just push it off until he can properly cast those spells? (Though I did set to give specific items at specific points so itll mess things up a bit).
Speaking of the prayer beads, you're only supposed to have 1d4+2 spells/beads.. & they can also be duplicates but when adding the item to the dndbeyond builder it adds ALL those spells. Has anyone worked with that? Again, I can go over it with the player but for my OCD it annoys me having it on the sheet if it cant be used.
I wish there was a sort of drop down to add the specific sets like when making a character.. also for items like the moon blade where its customizable (or even legendary weapons with major/minor benefits/detriments)
As long as they can attune to the item, they can channel its power to cast the spells through it. A level 1 cleric can use a staff of healing to cast mass cure wounds without issue.
Oh wow thanks. So I'll need to take that into consideration with what spells they know unlock.
Any suggestions or work arounds for the prayer beads granting all the spells instead of only a specific few? Does it matter and just allow (one use of) all?
It’s your campaign. If you want the magic items to start out nerfed and come to full power as the characters advance then maybe tie some of the powers to the characters’ proficiency bonus or something.
In my campaign on of the PCs is about to acquire a magic shield with a simple +1 bonus. The character is only a 3rd level Cleric. As that character progresses they will discover that the shield is actually a powerful artifact of their pantheon with the bonus = 1/2 the character’s proficiency bonus rounded down, and when it hits +2 they will be able to use it to cast Shield or Divine Favor 1ce/long rest. When it hits +3 they will be able to cast Crusader’s Mantle 1ce/long rest.
Oh wow thanks. So I'll need to take that into consideration with what spells they know unlock.
Any suggestions or work arounds for the prayer beads granting all the spells instead of only a specific few? Does it matter and just allow (one use of) all?
When it comes to the necklace of prayer beads, you the DM gets to decide what beads/spells are on it. At your discretion, you can also make the particular version you give to your party as being consumable. Just make sure your players know that once a bead is used, it is gone.
Oh wow thanks. So I'll need to take that into consideration with what spells they know unlock.
Any suggestions or work arounds for the prayer beads granting all the spells instead of only a specific few? Does it matter and just allow (one use of) all?
A necklace of prayer beads has some number of beads on it which can cast some spells. It can be determined randomly both number and effects or the DM can just decide what is on the item that the players find. There can be multiples of any one bead so, for example, there could be two bless beads allowing for two uses of the spell/day from the necklace.
"This necklace has 1d4 + 2 magic beads made from aquamarine, black pearl, or topaz. It also has many nonmagical beads made from stones such as amber, bloodstone, citrine, coral, jade, pearl, or quartz. If a magic bead is removed from the necklace, that bead loses its magic. Six types of magic beads exist. The DM decides the type of each bead on the necklace or determines it randomly. A necklace can have more than one bead of the same type."
So what comes on the necklace is entirely up to you.
Most magic items do not have level requirements for attunement so even a 1st level character of the appropriate class could attune to the magic item and use its abilities for either the Staff of Healing or the Necklace of Prayer Beads. Spells cast using the magic item are cast at the lowest level of the spell and can't be cast with spell slots unless the magic item description states otherwise. The items don't give the characters the spells, it gives them the ability to cast a specific spell usually a specific number of times/day depending on the item.
P.S. Giving characters the ability to cast a spell like Mass Healing Word a level or two early a limited number of times/day won't be a big deal. If you give it out at level 1 then that might be a concern (or it might not depending on the campaign).
Quote from David42 P.S. Giving characters the ability to cast a spell like Mass Healing Word a level or two early a limited number of times/day won't be a big deal. If you give it out at level 1 then that might be a concern (or it might not depending on the campaign).
Giving them that much healing that quickly just means you can throw beholders at them sooner. 😉
Hey,
I'm working on a campaign and decided to add a few 'custom' items to each PC.
Taking the DMG with a grain of salt, it recommends;
un/common is for 1st+, Rare for 5th+, Very Rare for 11th+ & Legendary for 17th+
But for example I wanted to give the cleric the staff of healing & the necklace of prayer beads.
I was thinking about giving the staff around 7-8 and the prayer beads at around 10 but the staff has Mass healing, a 5th level spell which is first learned at level 9 & the prayer beads have wind walk & planar ally, both 6th level spells learned at level 11.. taking into account that they're both rare & can technically be given out as early as level 5 how does this work?
Should I allow the higher level spells to be cast? Should I just tell him to hold off on the higher spells (and upcasting) until he can innately cast spells of the same level? Should i just push it off until he can properly cast those spells? (Though I did set to give specific items at specific points so itll mess things up a bit).
Speaking of the prayer beads, you're only supposed to have 1d4+2 spells/beads.. & they can also be duplicates but when adding the item to the dndbeyond builder it adds ALL those spells. Has anyone worked with that? Again, I can go over it with the player but for my OCD it annoys me having it on the sheet if it cant be used.
I wish there was a sort of drop down to add the specific sets like when making a character.. also for items like the moon blade where its customizable (or even legendary weapons with major/minor benefits/detriments)
As long as they can attune to the item, they can channel its power to cast the spells through it. A level 1 cleric can use a staff of healing to cast mass cure wounds without issue.
Oh wow thanks. So I'll need to take that into consideration with what spells they know unlock.
Any suggestions or work arounds for the prayer beads granting all the spells instead of only a specific few? Does it matter and just allow (one use of) all?
It’s your campaign. If you want the magic items to start out nerfed and come to full power as the characters advance then maybe tie some of the powers to the characters’ proficiency bonus or something.
In my campaign on of the PCs is about to acquire a magic shield with a simple +1 bonus. The character is only a 3rd level Cleric. As that character progresses they will discover that the shield is actually a powerful artifact of their pantheon with the bonus = 1/2 the character’s proficiency bonus rounded down, and when it hits +2 they will be able to use it to cast Shield or Divine Favor 1ce/long rest. When it hits +3 they will be able to cast Crusader’s Mantle 1ce/long rest.
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting
When it comes to the necklace of prayer beads, you the DM gets to decide what beads/spells are on it. At your discretion, you can also make the particular version you give to your party as being consumable. Just make sure your players know that once a bead is used, it is gone.
A necklace of prayer beads has some number of beads on it which can cast some spells. It can be determined randomly both number and effects or the DM can just decide what is on the item that the players find. There can be multiples of any one bead so, for example, there could be two bless beads allowing for two uses of the spell/day from the necklace.
"This necklace has 1d4 + 2 magic beads made from aquamarine, black pearl, or topaz. It also has many nonmagical beads made from stones such as amber, bloodstone, citrine, coral, jade, pearl, or quartz. If a magic bead is removed from the necklace, that bead loses its magic. Six types of magic beads exist. The DM decides the type of each bead on the necklace or determines it randomly. A necklace can have more than one bead of the same type."
So what comes on the necklace is entirely up to you.
Most magic items do not have level requirements for attunement so even a 1st level character of the appropriate class could attune to the magic item and use its abilities for either the Staff of Healing or the Necklace of Prayer Beads. Spells cast using the magic item are cast at the lowest level of the spell and can't be cast with spell slots unless the magic item description states otherwise. The items don't give the characters the spells, it gives them the ability to cast a specific spell usually a specific number of times/day depending on the item.
P.S. Giving characters the ability to cast a spell like Mass Healing Word a level or two early a limited number of times/day won't be a big deal. If you give it out at level 1 then that might be a concern (or it might not depending on the campaign).
Giving them that much healing that quickly just means you can throw beholders at them sooner. 😉
Creating Epic Boons on DDB
DDB Buyers' Guide
Hardcovers, DDB & You
Content Troubleshooting