So i was wondering. How much would you charge for someone to identify an Item? My entire party does not have the ability to ID an item so they would have to find someone who does that for them. They are currently in a City where they would definitly find such a someone so i, as a DM am wondering how much i should charge them for each item.
Daium. 10 GP. Well on the other Hand they have some pretty neat items and some are stolen so were basically free. Thx for the quick reply my session starts in an hour XD
Optionally, you can just take a Short Rest with the item and that will reveal what it is. No spellcasting needed.
It's one of the rules, but I've never liked it. The thought of anyone, arcane background or not just snuggling up with an item for an hour and communing with it or something seems silly to me. But maybe in a game where the party isn't accruing much wealth it's the better alternative. Just my opinion. :)
Optionally, you can just take a Short Rest with the item and that will reveal what it is. No spellcasting needed.
I find this rule absurd and I don't allow it, but to each their own.
My joke on this is, you can take a nap with the item under your pillow and wake up knowing everything about it.... I just find the whole idea completely preposterous.
As for charging... my NPC wizard charged 5 gp per item to ID things for the party, until one of the casters got Identify to cast as a ritual spell.
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** (wizard takes the 5 gp and looks the item over) **
Wizard to party: "Yup. That's an item."
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Tayn of Darkwood. Lvl 10 human Life Cleric of Lathander. Retired.
Ikram Sahir ibn Malik al-Sayyid Ra'ad, Second Son of the House of Ra'ad, Defender of the Burning Sands. Lvl 9 Brass Dragonborn Sorcerer + Greater Fire Elemental Devil.
Viktor Gavriil. Lvl 20 White Dragonborn Grave Cleric, of Kurgan the God of Death.
We charge 10 to 50 gp depending on location and the person doing the identifying.
We treat identify differently based on who's dm'ing (3 dm's), but usually identify is just hold or touch the item, magic flashes in the eyes, and there you go. As for short rests, you can identify an item, but you're really open to curses then. My group likes throwing zany curses and side effects on stuff. Even the identify spell is open to a curse in our group, depending on wording.
When I dm, I treat the identify spell as above. Identify (short rest) is allowed, as above, but you only get a vague idea of what the item can do, and don't know about a curse, except for the effects.
The only exception is +1 weapons. I tried to describe a +1 sword as being unusually sharp and unblemished. Problem is my players started treating as some god-slaying sword. Would've been funny, but I really didn't feel like keeping track of the extra damage for them. "Dude, it's just a +1. Nothing else."
Optionally, you can just take a Short Rest with the item and that will reveal what it is. No spellcasting needed.
Yeah, meaning that anyone can do the effect of Identify for free. Just take a short rest.
It seems like the Identify spell is an obsolete vestige from an earlier era of D&D.
Similarly, the Legend Lore spell is obsolete, because in 5e anyone can make a History skill check. The spell comes from an era before skills existed, but now is obsolete.
There's always the option to cast Identify as a ritual.
But I don't consider taking an hour to discover what an item is as an attunement. Taking the time to attune to it is something else.
Hmmm.
I treated the Short Rest to identify a magic item to be a form of attunement − but different from maintaining the attunement as a slot for special magic items. But you might be right.
"The character learns the item's properties", includes the fact that the item uses charges and how many charges are left.
However, focusing on, touching, and tasting the item, implies some form of bonding with the item, thus exposure to a cursed item seems a risk.
With regard to spell effects, such as a Glyph, an Arcana skill check replaces the obsolete Identify spell.
Maybe one could argue that there are corner cases where Identify remains useful, but even then, barely. D&D 5e simply has new mechanics to deal with such things, including a system of skills that didnt exist in early editions of D&D when Identity was the way to do such a thing.
Maybe one could argue that there are corner cases where Identify remains useful, but even then, barely. D&D 5e simply has new mechanics to deal with such things, including a system of skills that didnt exist in early editions of D&D when Identity was the way to do such a thing.
Actually, D&D has had skills ever since AD&D, so not, I don't think it's justified to say this. What 5e has that was not exit before is attunement, and this new ways of identifying items that I still use, but make sure has its RAW limitations. And Identify gets quite a lot of use in my campaigns, in particular because it's simply a ritual, and much more efficient than Detect Magic when dealing with unknown magic, places rituals, objects, etc.
Not until 1st edition Dungeoneer's Survival Guide which came out quite late in the cycle of AD&D 1st edition books. Even then, they weren't widely used by most DMs for established campaigns. They were mostly tacked on optional rules added when TSR saw that a lot of new RPGs were coming out with skills and they were falling behind the curve.
Optionally, you can just take a Short Rest with the item and that will reveal what it is. No spellcasting needed.
I find this rule absurd and I don't allow it, but to each their own.
My joke on this is, you can take a nap with the item under your pillow and wake up knowing everything about it.... I just find the whole idea completely preposterous.
As for charging... my NPC wizard charged 5 gp per item to ID things for the party, until one of the casters got Identify to cast as a ritual spell.
My crew has what for all intents and purposes is an artifact. One of the players has attuned to it, has been using it for months, and STILL does not know all the things it can do. They know the item is powerful, but have never bothered to truly find out all it can do. Until they actually do the in-game research with the appropriate NPC Sages and the like, certain powers triggered by a command word will remain unknown.
Actually in some of the official modules there are things that can only be Identified with Legend Lore. Like a Lich's phylactery that could only be destroyed by it sitting in the stomach of a mimic for three days.
So many things that used to be spells, are now skill checks today.
Legend Lore → History skill Find the Path → Survival skill (navigation) Locate Animals or Plants → Survival skill or Nature skill Detect Poison and Disease → Medicine skill Animal Friendship → Animal Handling skill Find Traps → Perception skill or Investigation skill
etcetera
The skills only replace spells if you allow them to, as a DM.
For example, history != legend lore. With Legend Lore, you could pick up an item you had no knowledge of IC, such as an item from a distant culture your character never heard of, that washed up on the beach, and find out if there is a legend about it. History would not allow you to do that unless the DM allows skills to be OOC "I win" buttons.
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WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
So many things that used to be spells, are now skill checks today.
Legend Lore → History skill Find the Path → Survival skill (navigation) Locate Animals or Plants → Survival skill or Nature skill Detect Poison and Disease → Medicine skill Animal Friendship → Animal Handling skill Find Traps → Perception skill or Investigation skill
etcetera
The skills only replace spells if you allow them to, as a DM.
For example, history != legend lore. With Legend Lore, you could pick up an item you had no knowledge of IC, such as an item from a distant culture your character never heard of, that washed up on the beach, and find out if there is a legend about it. History would not allow you to do that unless the DM allows skills to be OOC "I win" buttons.
All of that difficulty has more to do with the DC of the skill check. It is all still a skill check.
Also, even with the Legend Lore spell, if the DM doesnt want players to know something, the spell wont work anyway.
Also, I am less interested in a "magic always wins" approach to interpreting the rules, and more interested in a Fighters-can-do-cool-stuff-too approach. So, interpreting the rules to make the nonmagical skills more useful, is good for the game balance anyway.
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he / him
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Hello Guys!
So i was wondering. How much would you charge for someone to identify an Item? My entire party does not have the ability to ID an item so they would have to find someone who does that for them. They are currently in a City where they would definitly find such a someone so i, as a DM am wondering how much i should charge them for each item.
Is one GP too much?
They are all level 4 fyi.
Daium. 10 GP. Well on the other Hand they have some pretty neat items and some are stolen so were basically free.
Thx for the quick reply my session starts in an hour XD
Optionally, you can just take a Short Rest with the item and that will reveal what it is. No spellcasting needed.
It's one of the rules, but I've never liked it. The thought of anyone, arcane background or not just snuggling up with an item for an hour and communing with it or something seems silly to me. But maybe in a game where the party isn't accruing much wealth it's the better alternative. Just my opinion. :)
Attuning to an item you know nothing about seems like a great way to get cursed.
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There's always the option to cast Identify as a ritual.
But I don't consider taking an hour to discover what an item is as an attunement. Taking the time to attune to it is something else.
I find this rule absurd and I don't allow it, but to each their own.
My joke on this is, you can take a nap with the item under your pillow and wake up knowing everything about it.... I just find the whole idea completely preposterous.
As for charging... my NPC wizard charged 5 gp per item to ID things for the party, until one of the casters got Identify to cast as a ritual spell.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
Wow, I've been ripping my party off then. I charged them 25 g. The wizard was quick to pick up the spell after that.
The funny thing is, I've never heard of any PCs charging NPCs for spells.
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Party to wizard: "Could you identify this item?"
** (wizard takes the 5 gp and looks the item over) **
Wizard to party: "Yup. That's an item."
Tayn of Darkwood. Lvl 10 human Life Cleric of Lathander. Retired.
Ikram Sahir ibn Malik al-Sayyid Ra'ad, Second Son of the House of Ra'ad, Defender of the Burning Sands. Lvl 9 Brass Dragonborn Sorcerer + Greater Fire Elemental Devil.
Viktor Gavriil. Lvl 20 White Dragonborn Grave Cleric, of Kurgan the God of Death.
Anzio Faro. Lvl 5 Prot. Aasimar Light Cleric.
We charge 10 to 50 gp depending on location and the person doing the identifying.
We treat identify differently based on who's dm'ing (3 dm's), but usually identify is just hold or touch the item, magic flashes in the eyes, and there you go. As for short rests, you can identify an item, but you're really open to curses then. My group likes throwing zany curses and side effects on stuff. Even the identify spell is open to a curse in our group, depending on wording.
When I dm, I treat the identify spell as above. Identify (short rest) is allowed, as above, but you only get a vague idea of what the item can do, and don't know about a curse, except for the effects.
The only exception is +1 weapons. I tried to describe a +1 sword as being unusually sharp and unblemished. Problem is my players started treating as some god-slaying sword. Would've been funny, but I really didn't feel like keeping track of the extra damage for them. "Dude, it's just a +1. Nothing else."
Yeah, meaning that anyone can do the effect of Identify for free. Just take a short rest.
It seems like the Identify spell is an obsolete vestige from an earlier era of D&D.
Similarly, the Legend Lore spell is obsolete, because in 5e anyone can make a History skill check. The spell comes from an era before skills existed, but now is obsolete.
he / him
Hmmm.
I treated the Short Rest to identify a magic item to be a form of attunement − but different from maintaining the attunement as a slot for special magic items. But you might be right.
he / him
"The character learns the item's properties", includes the fact that the item uses charges and how many charges are left.
However, focusing on, touching, and tasting the item, implies some form of bonding with the item, thus exposure to a cursed item seems a risk.
With regard to spell effects, such as a Glyph, an Arcana skill check replaces the obsolete Identify spell.
Maybe one could argue that there are corner cases where Identify remains useful, but even then, barely. D&D 5e simply has new mechanics to deal with such things, including a system of skills that didnt exist in early editions of D&D when Identity was the way to do such a thing.
he / him
Not until 1st edition Dungeoneer's Survival Guide which came out quite late in the cycle of AD&D 1st edition books. Even then, they weren't widely used by most DMs for established campaigns.
They were mostly tacked on optional rules added when TSR saw that a lot of new RPGs were coming out with skills and they were falling behind the curve.
There were skills in AD&D, just not for every class. Pick pocket, hide in shadows, etc... those were skills that thieves and assassins had.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
My crew has what for all intents and purposes is an artifact. One of the players has attuned to it, has been using it for months, and STILL does not know all the things it can do. They know the item is powerful, but have never bothered to truly find out all it can do. Until they actually do the in-game research with the appropriate NPC Sages and the like, certain powers triggered by a command word will remain unknown.
So many things that used to be spells, are now skill checks today.
Legend Lore → History skill
Find the Path → Survival skill (navigation)
Locate Animals or Plants → Survival skill or Nature skill
Detect Poison and Disease → Medicine skill
Animal Friendship → Animal Handling skill
Find Traps → Perception skill or Investigation skill
etcetera
he / him
Actually in some of the official modules there are things that can only be Identified with Legend Lore. Like a Lich's phylactery that could only be destroyed by it sitting in the stomach of a mimic for three days.
So Legend Lore is still useful.
The skills only replace spells if you allow them to, as a DM.
For example, history != legend lore. With Legend Lore, you could pick up an item you had no knowledge of IC, such as an item from a distant culture your character never heard of, that washed up on the beach, and find out if there is a legend about it. History would not allow you to do that unless the DM allows skills to be OOC "I win" buttons.
WOTC lies. We know that WOTC lies. WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. We know that WOTC knows that we know that WOTC lies. And still they lie.
Because of the above (a paraphrase from Orwell) I no longer post to the forums -- PM me if you need help or anything.
All of that difficulty has more to do with the DC of the skill check. It is all still a skill check.
Also, even with the Legend Lore spell, if the DM doesnt want players to know something, the spell wont work anyway.
Also, I am less interested in a "magic always wins" approach to interpreting the rules, and more interested in a Fighters-can-do-cool-stuff-too approach. So, interpreting the rules to make the nonmagical skills more useful, is good for the game balance anyway.
he / him