Crafting Magic Items


 * NOTE: this page is unfinished***

Imbuing an object with a permanent weave of magic, or the ongoing blessing of a deity, is no easy feat. Scrolls, potions, and vain magical items, however, are craftable by most casters, and even mundanes talented in alchemy or herbalism.

In order to craft a magical item, including consumables (eg. scrolls and potions), the requirements of each of the following must be met.

While many classes can create magical items, wizard is used as the example on this page.

Spellcasting level
The higher the rarity of the magical item created, the higher the level of spell that is required to create it, as shown on the table below. For example, a 3rd level wizard, capable of casting 2nd level spells, can craft magical items of both 'common' and 'vain' rarity.

Vain - 1st (1st level wizard)

Common - 2nd (3rd level wizard)

Uncommon - 3rd (5th level wizard)

Rare - 5th (9th level wizard)

Very Rare - 6th (11th level wizard)

Legendary - 9th (17th level wizard)

Required Spell
To make an item that replicates a spell, the imbuer must both have that spell on their spell list, and to themselves cast the spell. Casting the spell using a different magic item may be valid instead, though the DM has the final say.

In addition, the creator must expend one spell slot per day, whose level equals the required caster level above.

GOLD COST

See 'Sane Magical Item Prices.pdf' - this lists the creation cost. Purchase costs might be double this.

The cost to enchant an item assumes that the item is being especially crafted for enchantment, and the cost of crafting is incorporated into the overall enchanement cost.

An existing weapon can generally only be enchanted if it is of exceptional quality or of great destiny (ie. a character's beloved sword). In this case, the full enchantment cost is still paid.

It is possible to enchant an item beyond level cap, but requires additional expenditures of time and/or money. For every level bracket higher than your own, double the cost, and increase the time (see below) by one step.

GATHER THE COMPONENTS

1 = the component comes from a monster of the indicated CR, and will typically involve slaying that monster.

0.5 = the component is a trace amount/easier to acquire. overdelivering (say, a giant's finger when only breath is required) allows other lesser components to be ignored.

0 = typically requires no/trivial components.

~Consumable~

Basic  - Easy to come by

Common - 1/0 CR 0-7 (Note: alchemists/herbalists require no special components to make common potions.)

Uncommon - 1/0.5 CR 9-10

Rare - 1/0.5 CR 13-17

Very Rare - 1/0.5	CR 16-20

Legendary - 1/1/0.5	CR 22-24

~Permanent~

Common - 1/1		CR 0-7

Uncommon - 1/1/1	CR 9-10

Rare - 1/1/1		CR 13-17

Very Rare - 2/1/1	CR 16-20

Legendary - 3/2/1	CR 22-24

If the item replicates a spell's effect, the spell's material components must also be at hand throughout the process. If the spell normally consumes those components, they are consumed by the creation process. If the item will be able to produce the spell only once, as with a spell scroll, the components are consumed only once by the process. Otherwise, the components are consumed once each day of the item's creation.

Alchemists tools are required to craft a potion (or, in the case of healing potions, herbalists' kits may be used), parchment and special inks of the sort required for spellbook copying are required to craft a scroll. If a character is proficient in alchemist's/caligripher's supplies and has the tools on hand, the cost to craft goes down by 2% for every +1 the character gets to their skill checks.

With time and an adequete market, it may be possible to outright purchase an item's components. The average price for these rare materials generally equals the crafting cost of the item.

TIME

Permanent

+4 - 100 years

+3 - 10 years

+2 - 1 year

+1 - 6 months

Current spell level - 1 month

-1 - 15 days

-2 - 1 week

-3 - 3 days

-4 - 1 day

Consumable

+4 - 1 year

+3 - 6 months

+2 - 1 month

+1 - 1 week

Sufficient caster level - 3 days

-1 - 1 day

-2 - half a day

-3 - an hour

-4 - half an hour

Cost to modify:

To hasten the work, increase cost by 50% for every point shifted down.

To reduce cost, decrease cost by 25% for every point shifted up.

WORKSHOPS, LABORATORIES, SKILLS & TOOLS

Several factors will influence the cost and time involved in the crafting of magical itmes:

- Skill in Alchemists' Tools, and having the tools on hand, reduces the cost and time of potion brewing by 2% for every +1 to skills checks they would recieve. Proficiency in Herbalists', Brewers' and Cooks' tools can be used as substitutes.

- Skill in Caligraphers' Tools, and having the tools on hand, reduces the cost and time of scroll scribing by 2% for every +1 to skills checks they would recieve.

- Characters with a class dedicated to crafting magic items reduce the cost and time of all magic item crafting by 2% for every class level. This does not stack with the above bonuses.

Additionally, have access to a dedicated workshop, laboratory or similar reduces the cost and time further - generally 10%. This stacks with all above bonuses.

*** ONLINE RULES:***

You can brew potions and oils found in the DMG or by using spells on your spell list. Minimum caster level is the level of the spell, or by minimum level via rarity. Costs for brewing potions are 50 gp × the level of the spell × the caster level, or by 50% of rarity costs, minimum cost 100gp. Potions not listed in the DMG cannot have spells above 3rd level. Potions must have a range of self, touch, or be able to affect a target within sight. The spell cannot require concentration. Spells that require attack rolls, saving throws, or otherwise harm others cannot be made into potions. Any costs incurred in casting the spell need to be added to the cost of the potion during creation. Potions take at least 1 day to make. You can scribe scrolls using spells on your spell list. Minimum caster level is the level of the spell, or by 50% of rarity costs. Costs for scribing scrolls are 25 gp × the level of the spell × the caster level. Any costs incurred in casting the spell need to be added to the cost of the scroll during creation. Scrolls take at least 1 day to scribe.

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https://www.reddit.com/r/DnD/comments/30zt9a/how_often_do_you_give_out_magic_items_5e/

Over the course of a typical campaign, the party is expected to find:

18 common consumables

20 uncommon consumables

19 rare consumables

18 very rare consumables

3 or 4 legendary consumables

9 or 10 uncommon permanent items

5 or 6 rare permanent items

5 very rare permanent items

4 legendary permanent items

Assuming a party of four PCs, each PC should obtain:

4 or 5 common consumables

5 uncommon consumables

5 rare consumables

4 or 5 very rare consumables

1 legendary consumable

2 or 3 uncommon permanent items

1 or 2 rare permanent items

1 very rare permanent item

1 legendary permanent item

"To translate this into a very even distribution of magic items over all 20 levels, I would probably go with the following approach:"

1 common consumable every level from 1 to 5.

1 uncommon consumable every level from 6 to 10.

1 rare consumable every level from 11 to 15.

1 very rare consumable every level from 16 to 19.

1 legendary consumable at level 20.

1 uncommon permanent item at level 4, and another at level 7.

1 rare permanent item at level 10 and another at level 13.

1 very rare permanent item at level 16.

1 legendary permanent item at level 19.

750

+1 SHIELD, eminates light, made of cold armour

1 rare ingredeitn, 1 uncommon, common

common - shell from a flail snail

uncommon - an abjuration scroll of at least 3rd level

rare - the hair of a great warrior