Magic items are one of the most exciting parts of D&D. Whether you're a DM looking to surprise and delight your party, or a player testing out new abilities and powers, items are a staple of the game. However, there are a lot of items to choose from. In this guide we'll suggest some of the best items to bequeath upon your party (or ask your DM for) early into a campaign, so you can get a taste of that sweet magic item goodness without breaking every encounter.
What makes an item good for early in a campaign?
The hardest part of picking magic items for a party is making sure they don't unbalance combat encounters. That said, loading up your party with items that don't feel useful just creates unnecessary bloat on their character sheets. Here's a quick list of some parts of magic items that make them fun to use early, without unbalancing combat. If you don't want to use the items on the list lower down, look out for (or create) items with the these values:
- Useful: DnD items don't need to be focused on combat to be useful, but they do need to have a purpose.
- Party focused: Lots of items have pre-requisites based on class, make sure your party fills those requirements. Also, don't give an item to a party that won't use it, such as a magical dagger to a party without anyone that uses melee Dex weapons.
- Cool as hell: Perhaps the most important part of magic DnD items is that they're fun, so keep them that way! Give the people stuff that makes them excited.
Our Magic Items Suggestions
Here's a quick list of some great DnD magic items to give your party early into a campaign. Some of these are also great in the middle to late part of a campaign as well, it's never too late for a cool sword or new magic wand after all. Anyways, here's the list.
1. Bag of Holding
This is always our first suggestion for a DnD magic item. It removes any worries about tracking encumbrance, it creates the potential for chaos if you ever give them a second bag of holding, and it's useful for the whole party.
2. +1 Weapons
The beauty of giving out a +1 weapon or two is that they're customizable. You can give one to any party member that uses a physical weapon. These obviously mean you need to consider that party member being stronger in combat, but +1 isn't enough to destabilize the whole system, while still making someone feel stronger. Plus you can make+1 weapons really cool with a little flavor text.
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3. Cloak of Elvenkind or Boots of Elvenkind
These items are similar enough to be interchangeable for the purposes of this list. Both give a massive boost to stealth, which for a Rogue or Ranger is an infinitely useful addition to their kit. It gives the party an implicit leg up because they can scout and hide far better, providing more options for choice when it comes to challenges without forcing you to pick entirely new monsters for encounters.
4. Ring of Jumping
Similar to the Cloak an Boots of Elvenkind, the Ring of Jumping is limited only by a player's creativity of how to use it. It's useful for positioning in combat, and makes adventuring that much easier. The ability to get somewhere quickly, especially high places, is always undervalued until you have it (or lose it).
5. Gloves of Missile Snaring
While this isn't an item that has many different opportunities to use it, the beauty of these gloves is that they make the wearer feel like a total badass. Even if they only get a genuine once every session or two, when a player catches an arrow meant for their head it causes such a rush that these will feel like the best item ever.
6. Immovable Rod
Another item that's as good as a user is creative. It may not seem like it has very many purposes, but when applied correctly it can in fact me extremely powerful, without ever directly effecting combat. It can be used to help climb sheer walls, pin down prisoners, or bar doors.
7. Javelin of Lightning
The beauty of the Javelin of Lightning is that it can only be used once per day, which offers your player the choice of when to best utilize it, without putting you in a position where they can just blast their way through every monster you throw at them. Plus, visually, it's very cool to use.
8. Sending Stones
Trying to reconcile what each party member knows when they're split up is always a pain, an easy pathway to accidental metagaming, and easily fixable by giving your party Sending Stones. It allows for easy communication, as well as various hijinks by your party.
9. Anything from Guillman's Guide to Speed
It's a perfect book! Everything in it is fun, cool, useful, and perfectly balanced. Pick up a copy today, in digital or hardcover, and start doling out magic items from that bad boy left and right, don't worry there won't be any consequences.
Well there you go, a comprehensive list of magic items to give your players early into your campaign. That's not to say these are necessarily the best DnD items for you party, and they're certainly not the only options for good DnD items, but they are solid choices regardless of what your players are planning on getting up to.
Disagree? Have better suggestions for DnD items? Let us know! Don't hesitate to follow us on social media, send us an email, or comment directly on this post! We love hearing from you, and feedback always helps us grow.