Dungeons & Dragons Starter Set Magic Items Preview Released

[Rhykker]

Dungeons & Dragons Starter Set Magic Items Preview Released

Wizards of the Coast has released a magic item page from the D&D Starter Set rulebook.

The page, which is taken from an appendix in the starter set, includes a crash course on the rules that govern magic items, as well as a short list of the magic items to be found in the adventure,  Lost Mine of Phandelver.

The means of identifying a magic item is a hybrid system between 3.5 and 4e - you can either cast the identify spell, or you can spend a short rest studying the item to learn its properties. In the case of potions, a little taste is all that's required to know what it does.

For some items, you need to attune to them before you can use their magic properties, which requires a short rest. The item can only be attuned to one character at a time, and a character can have no more than three items attuned to her at a given time.

The page also lists five magic items, including your standard fare +1 Armor and +1 Weapon, as well as two old classics: Boots of Striding and Springing, which increase your speed to 30 feet and allow you to jump three times your normal distance, and Gauntlets of Ogre Power, which increase your Strength score to 19. Lastly, the Potion of Flying allows you to fly for one hour.

How do you feel about this hybrid 3.5/4e system for magic items, and the new limitations clearly intended to stop characters from becoming too powerful through items? My preliminary thoughts are that I'm a fan; I believe magic items should be important, and by limiting how many you can use at once, you lend the ones you have greater importance.

Source: Wizards of the Coast [http://wizards.com/dnd/Article.aspx?x=dnd/4ex/20140624]

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[Slycne]

Not bad, though I'd change a few things to suit personal preference. I was never a fan of easily identifiable magic items. It works fine if you're running what's essentially a miniatures game, but I think finding a magic item can be as much world building and role playing as it's a statistical advantage. There's potential lost when you just hand over a sheet of stats without any real work on the player's part.

But I'd need to experience the attunement system in practice, it seems fine albeit a little arbitrary.

 

[Pyrian]

I'm curious what sort of items require attunement, given that there are none listed.

 

[Slycne]

I'm curious what sort of items require attunement, given that there are none listed.

I suspect that attunement might be for major/minor artifacts, sentient weapons or other similarly powerful items. It could potentially combat things like passing a Ring of Regeneration around for 10 minutes to heal everyone up to full.

 

[lordmanticore]

I'm curious what sort of items require attunement, given that there are none listed.

I suspect that attunement might be for major/minor artifacts, sentient weapons or other similarly powerful items. It could potentially combat things like passing a Ring of Regeneration around for 10 minutes to heal everyone up to full.

From what it looks like, I would say that 3 magic items is the most that you can be 'attuned' to at any one time. If it were to apply only to artifacts and such, WoTC would have said it straight away, to keep it from being too vague. So, 1 armor, 1 weapon, and 1 'other' (As a guess, I would imagine that non-permanent items, like potions and scrolls, would not be affected by the 'attunement' process), does sound like they've gone from one extreme (can't have items greater than your level in 4Eech) to the other (only 3 items allowed in DnD Last Chance edition)

I'm of a split mind on this one. On the one hand, it's clear that WoTC is trying hard to recover from their 4th Eech Edition foul-ups (if for no other reason than to keep their jobs at Hasbeen Hasbro) with a 'back to basics' approach. On the other hand, it looks like they've taken away a lot of the fun (why bother grabbing treasure, if I can only have 3 magic items; what do you mean I only have 6-10 spells to choose from per spell level; you mean, I have to roll for a personality???) to please their Hasbeen masters and to bring the magic mcguffin up to a profitability status worthy of the corporation that has no idea what to do with this property. Sad as it is, I predict that Hasbeen will be locking up the IP within 2-3 years, and that will be it for Gygax/Arneson's legacy.

Just my 2cp.

 

[dynath]

Actually I bet Pyrian is right. DnD has always had level based loot tables and minor and major items are on it. I imagine that once you hit level 10 or 15 all the magic items (excluding potions/scrolls) you get will require attunement unless they are the generic +x type items.

So for instance, it makes logical sense that anyone could pickup a +2 long-sword and swing it. But you might have to attune to gain the benefits of a +1 Bane Long-sword. One of the things that was play tested was that items unattuned would simply act as basic magic items, IE your +1 Bane Long-sword acts just as a +1 long-sword if you don't attune to it.

And truthfully I'd rather see attunement required for more powerful items or stat altering items rather than another party spending hours figuring out the perfect combination of gear to overpower their enemies.

 

[funksobeefy]

I like the attunment system, makes you care more about the item just its stat increases and they can easily add flavor and adventure to the world.

but really this can all be easily changed with some house rules.