Think this mentioned somewhere in the DMG, but that's just a guideline. If you want to drown the party in magic items, go ahead. Try to not give the party magic items that does something they can't do themselves though, like a necklace of fireballs at lvl 3.
This depends on whether, in the game, magic items are common but weak, or are rare and powerful. On the former end of the spectrum, it doesn’t matter so much. But when the team starts collecting lots of potentially game breaking stuff, then there might need to be some restraint.
Think this mentioned somewhere in the DMG, but that's just a guideline. If you want to drown the party in magic items, go ahead. Try to not give the party magic items that does something they can't do themselves though, like a necklace of fireballs at lvl 3.
DMG page 135
When I created my world I had to debate magic, and its influence. The first piece of the debate was: the world is young, the gods have recently moved on from its creation. The second point was: I like keeping magical items a rarity. Using those two points I made this decision: I want magical items to feel special, I want them to be hard earned, I want my players to covet them, and I want magic to feel like it's an untamed thing which is being learned about. The result: my players are level 5 and they are in possession of exactly one magical item that they can use. It is also a non-combat item. They will hit level 6 soon, at that time the party of 6 players will be given three magical items, this time with combat potential. The players are not upset, they have not complained, they have not died. I have been questioned about it, and through lore I explained it, and when they looked at the way magic has been presented in my world, they moved on.
One of my other campaigns I had magical items more accessible. I used the curve provided in the DMG to dole out rewards, I let the party earn and purchase magical items. The players had an easier time of it, until they hit a plateau where the creatures started to match their challenge. They would then go and find a way to enhance their gear, and the see-saw would tilt again. It was a very fun game, but the thing I felt was missing was how special the magical items were to the players.
I've never played a magical item heavy game. I don't want to put the time into it if I'm completely honest. I simply feel that it takes the unique quality of magical items and dilutes it. I feel that it would end up becoming more of a hack-n-slash game rather than story driven. That doesn't appeal to me as a DM.
Not a limit on the number they can have but I do typically impose a limit on the types of things they get. For instance, I tend to give out wands that have a finite number of charges instead of constantly recharging. For items that are very useful and potent, I make sure they require attunement so they're limited to what they can use and they must make decisions on who carries what. I'm less concerned about the number of items and more concerned about a balance of power between the players (and these tools) vs. the challenges they can take on. I see magic items as a way to scale them up for specific fun encounters and situations.
I typically try to make it so these items are very specifically found as part of a boss-like creature's hoard. Certain items, the ones that are more powerful, are potentially woven into the story for a specific purpose (and maybe it's gone once that purpose is fulfilled). To avoid the whole trading one magic weapon for another magic weapon I usually set some guidelines on scaling. Like once a character becomes a certain level that +1 bonus turns into a +2 bonus. Or through investing their time and effort with the weapon it becomes a flame/frost brand so it makes it a personal weapon and not something to toss away the second a new thing comes around.
The only magic items they can purchase for themselves are typically healing potions and low level scrolls. Unique gear is unique so I try to make sure it's from some sort of fun or memorable challenge/battle.
I run a very high-magic setting so I tend to dole out items quite a bit (mainly as I enjoy creating them, there was precisely one vanilla magic item in the campaign thus far and it never even got Identified), but it really does depend on the setting. If you find your players are struggling with the power curve due to a lack of items, you might want to give them some more, if they're bossing everything you throw at them, just beef up your enemies a bit until it levels out.
An interesting compromise if you want to beef up your players' power without saturating the world with magic is to reskin magical items as non-magical equivalents. Instead of giving out a magical +1 Crossbow, use an 'Enhanced Crossbow' that has the same +1 Hit/Damage property but lacks the Magical trait (be sure to make it cheaper, Magical is a big buff as it cuts through a lot of Resistances), accounted for by an improved mechanism or an adjusted sight or a simple scope. Instead of a Scroll of Fireball, use the same stats for an alchemical grenade. Give your Bard a Master-Crafted Lute, which gives them Advantage on Performance checks ect. It's a bit gamey if you're too heavy handed (don't call the item a 'Sword of Not Really +1 But Kinda) but if your players buy into your setting, they should understand the decision to keep magic limited if that's appropriate.
If you do find your players getting too powerful, remember that you can take magic items away as well as give them out. If you stick your +2 Sword you really shouldn't have yet in an Ogre and that Ogre falls into a chasm, that sword is gone unless you make the effort to go and get it back. If you cross a powerful Wizard, he might shatter your wand as a display of his own arcane mastery. And your Boots of Speed are no good if you're forced to run through corrosive acid that shreds their soles. It doesn't even have to be permanent, you could make recovering the item a quest, or charge the character to have a suitably talented Enchanter repair it. Obviously this is not something to overuse as players do tend to get attached to their items, but equally, it can be a nice dramatic tool that also helps balance an over-powered character.
All the above are good thoughts. I just wanted to add a reminder that you can only be attuned to 3 magic items at one time. So that is an in-game mechanic set to make sure your players can't be using too many really good magic items at the same time.
If you're trying to find your own "magic balance" - perhaps concentrate on giving the party mostly consumable magic items, or -- as SquigsTheTruth suggested - attuneable magic items.
Then when you get a feel for how much magic you feel the party should have, throw in a few permanent magic items.
That balance, however, is entirely dependent on your world setting.
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
Another way of looking at this is mimics and cursed magic items. If they are used to getting magic items make them think twice before just grabbing and looting everything; maybe in this way you can still give a few more items but it still has risks behind it. Maybe have the magic item come to life casting level 3 fireballs as a previous poster said. Another scenario could be that you just love giving them a wide variety of items but they run into Black Oozes and Rust Monsters more than the average group; make the magic items swap out every few weeks so they never know what they are going to be using?
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I'm liking this website more and more; currently playing a Blood Hunter! Roll20 is where I play DnD 5E.
My world is littered with magic items. I balance it by making most of them exceptionally weak or for mundane things such as a self cleaning broom Fantasia style. For the good stuff though I keep those on the attuned system.
As an ecample: if someone needs a pair of scholarly bifociles I give them glasses with +1 arcane and write it off as the glasses with special lenses to help see the ethereal plane. But if need a permanent fix to actually let them see that plane, it's attuned.
Just wondering if anyone places a limit on the amount of magic items a party should have at certain times.
Think this mentioned somewhere in the DMG, but that's just a guideline. If you want to drown the party in magic items, go ahead. Try to not give the party magic items that does something they can't do themselves though, like a necklace of fireballs at lvl 3.
This depends on whether, in the game, magic items are common but weak, or are rare and powerful. On the former end of the spectrum, it doesn’t matter so much. But when the team starts collecting lots of potentially game breaking stuff, then there might need to be some restraint.
When I created my world I had to debate magic, and its influence. The first piece of the debate was: the world is young, the gods have recently moved on from its creation. The second point was: I like keeping magical items a rarity. Using those two points I made this decision: I want magical items to feel special, I want them to be hard earned, I want my players to covet them, and I want magic to feel like it's an untamed thing which is being learned about. The result: my players are level 5 and they are in possession of exactly one magical item that they can use. It is also a non-combat item. They will hit level 6 soon, at that time the party of 6 players will be given three magical items, this time with combat potential. The players are not upset, they have not complained, they have not died. I have been questioned about it, and through lore I explained it, and when they looked at the way magic has been presented in my world, they moved on.
One of my other campaigns I had magical items more accessible. I used the curve provided in the DMG to dole out rewards, I let the party earn and purchase magical items. The players had an easier time of it, until they hit a plateau where the creatures started to match their challenge. They would then go and find a way to enhance their gear, and the see-saw would tilt again. It was a very fun game, but the thing I felt was missing was how special the magical items were to the players.
I've never played a magical item heavy game. I don't want to put the time into it if I'm completely honest. I simply feel that it takes the unique quality of magical items and dilutes it. I feel that it would end up becoming more of a hack-n-slash game rather than story driven. That doesn't appeal to me as a DM.
Not a limit on the number they can have but I do typically impose a limit on the types of things they get. For instance, I tend to give out wands that have a finite number of charges instead of constantly recharging. For items that are very useful and potent, I make sure they require attunement so they're limited to what they can use and they must make decisions on who carries what. I'm less concerned about the number of items and more concerned about a balance of power between the players (and these tools) vs. the challenges they can take on. I see magic items as a way to scale them up for specific fun encounters and situations.
I typically try to make it so these items are very specifically found as part of a boss-like creature's hoard. Certain items, the ones that are more powerful, are potentially woven into the story for a specific purpose (and maybe it's gone once that purpose is fulfilled). To avoid the whole trading one magic weapon for another magic weapon I usually set some guidelines on scaling. Like once a character becomes a certain level that +1 bonus turns into a +2 bonus. Or through investing their time and effort with the weapon it becomes a flame/frost brand so it makes it a personal weapon and not something to toss away the second a new thing comes around.
The only magic items they can purchase for themselves are typically healing potions and low level scrolls. Unique gear is unique so I try to make sure it's from some sort of fun or memorable challenge/battle.
I run a very high-magic setting so I tend to dole out items quite a bit (mainly as I enjoy creating them, there was precisely one vanilla magic item in the campaign thus far and it never even got Identified), but it really does depend on the setting. If you find your players are struggling with the power curve due to a lack of items, you might want to give them some more, if they're bossing everything you throw at them, just beef up your enemies a bit until it levels out.
An interesting compromise if you want to beef up your players' power without saturating the world with magic is to reskin magical items as non-magical equivalents. Instead of giving out a magical +1 Crossbow, use an 'Enhanced Crossbow' that has the same +1 Hit/Damage property but lacks the Magical trait (be sure to make it cheaper, Magical is a big buff as it cuts through a lot of Resistances), accounted for by an improved mechanism or an adjusted sight or a simple scope. Instead of a Scroll of Fireball, use the same stats for an alchemical grenade. Give your Bard a Master-Crafted Lute, which gives them Advantage on Performance checks ect. It's a bit gamey if you're too heavy handed (don't call the item a 'Sword of Not Really +1 But Kinda) but if your players buy into your setting, they should understand the decision to keep magic limited if that's appropriate.
If you do find your players getting too powerful, remember that you can take magic items away as well as give them out. If you stick your +2 Sword you really shouldn't have yet in an Ogre and that Ogre falls into a chasm, that sword is gone unless you make the effort to go and get it back. If you cross a powerful Wizard, he might shatter your wand as a display of his own arcane mastery. And your Boots of Speed are no good if you're forced to run through corrosive acid that shreds their soles. It doesn't even have to be permanent, you could make recovering the item a quest, or charge the character to have a suitably talented Enchanter repair it. Obviously this is not something to overuse as players do tend to get attached to their items, but equally, it can be a nice dramatic tool that also helps balance an over-powered character.
All the above are good thoughts. I just wanted to add a reminder that you can only be attuned to 3 magic items at one time. So that is an in-game mechanic set to make sure your players can't be using too many really good magic items at the same time.
Published Subclasses
If you're trying to find your own "magic balance" - perhaps concentrate on giving the party mostly consumable magic items, or -- as SquigsTheTruth suggested - attuneable magic items.
Then when you get a feel for how much magic you feel the party should have, throw in a few permanent magic items.
That balance, however, is entirely dependent on your world setting.
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
Another way of looking at this is mimics and cursed magic items. If they are used to getting magic items make them think twice before just grabbing and looting everything; maybe in this way you can still give a few more items but it still has risks behind it. Maybe have the magic item come to life casting level 3 fireballs as a previous poster said. Another scenario could be that you just love giving them a wide variety of items but they run into Black Oozes and Rust Monsters more than the average group; make the magic items swap out every few weeks so they never know what they are going to be using?
I'm liking this website more and more; currently playing a Blood Hunter! Roll20 is where I play DnD 5E.
My world is littered with magic items. I balance it by making most of them exceptionally weak or for mundane things such as a self cleaning broom Fantasia style. For the good stuff though I keep those on the attuned system.
As an ecample: if someone needs a pair of scholarly bifociles I give them glasses with +1 arcane and write it off as the glasses with special lenses to help see the ethereal plane. But if need a permanent fix to actually let them see that plane, it's attuned.