Highlights
- 10 Best Magic Items For Low-Level D&D Characters
- Bag Of Beans
- Wand Of Secrets
One of the best aspects of Dungeons & Dragons is the creativity and power that comes with the magic. Being able to strategically utilize spells and items is satisfying and challenging. D&D can be a complex game, however, and magic often doesn't reach its potential until players have leveled up their characters a bit and unlocked new abilities.
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Early on, players often work with a semi-limited move-set, streamlining their creativity and desire for chaos. Luckily, some unique items can be dished out relatively early in a campaign that will excite players and show them how magical the world they inhabit is. These items will allow them to begin incorporating magic, without making them overpowered too early.
Updated on June 28th, 2024, by Kristy Ambrose: Most players in D&D start at level one, and early table-top campaigns can have a lot of both heroic and devastating stories about level 1 characters learning the hard way what it takes to survive a lengthy story. A DM can choose certain items to make this learning process more productive than destructive, keeping in mind that certain objects are better suited to some campaigns, classes, and settings than others. With that in mind, this list has been updated with more early-game magic items that are ideal for DMs to give to low-level characters.
12 Bag Of Beans
D&D Player's Handbook
- Use it as an emergency weapon, and cause a truly random event
These beans can be a great item for a low-level party to use periodically if they need AoE powers or a distraction in a crowd. If dumped onto the ground, they can work as an explosive, causing substantial damage to any character in range, including the player and their teammates. A player has to roll a d100 to determine the exact effect.
Should the beans be planted and watered, many things can happen depending on what the DM rolls. It's worth limiting the number handed out, or players may plant repeatedly, just to see more results from the random table.
11 The Wand Of Secrets
D&D Player's Handbook
- Detects secret doors and hidden passages
As the name implies, this wand is used to reveal what's hidden, so it's very useful in dungeons, mansions, castles, or prisons. By itself, this item would probably be overpowered, but this is why it has a limited number of charges.
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How many is up to the DM, but the wand can only be used three or four times, and unlike some other magical items, it doesn't recharge at dawn. Not only does this item teach a fledgling adventuring party how to use a magical item, but also how to use one wisely.
10 Charlatan's Dice
Xanathar's Guide To Everything
- Great for Rogues or Bards, a fun accessory for CC, or a diversion
This simple item is a magic six-sided die. While it would be more useful in the hands of the literal player, this item can still help out in-game. Cheating at gambling or tricking anyone willing to put faith in a die is an easy success.
This item is perfect for dishing out early in a campaign because it is a low-stakes item that won't offer any game-breaking advantages. Additionally, the player who has it will likely need to carry it for some time before they find the opportunity to use it.
9 Shield Of Expression
Xanathar's Guide To Everything
- Works as a normal shield and adds flavor to early combat scenarios
This magic shield doesn't offer an immense boost to defense, but it does offer pure absurdity. The shield has a face on it, which can be used to intimidate or distract enemies, and the wielder can change the expression on the shield as a bonus action.
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Coming up with different expressions is a fun way to intimidate foes, communicate with party members, or just nail a comedic moment. The player that gets this item early on will be sad when they eventually get their hands on a better defensive item at a higher level.
8 Talking Doll
Xanathar's Guide To Everything
- Opens up some extra strategic options for crowd control
This item can be used carefully and strategically, or it can just be used to scare the pants off of nearly any normal NPC. A magic doll that looks, however, as the DM describes the first time the players encounter it, this doll can be set to talk or move based on extraneous circumstances.
Players can give it a phrase or action to watch for and have it say whatever they've ordered when that event sets it off. With some stealth, hiding the doll and waiting can lead to some chaotic situations.
7 Immovable Rod
Dungeon Master's Guide
- Requires some ingenuity to use and can protect a player from falling
This item is great for a low-level party because it takes some real thinking to use to great effect and doesn't offer a clear boost. The rod has a button the player can press to lock it into place. Once this is done, it can't be moved, even if it was in the air when the button was pressed.
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Players can find some truly memorable ways to use the rod or use it as an emergency save when falling from a great height. This item is just specific enough to make it the perfect superfluous item to let a party have — and likely forget about until the perfect moment.
6 Hat Of Vermin
Xanathar's Guide To Everything
- Funny and useful for an AoE ability, but doesn't summon allies, only vermin
This hat has three charges that do exactly what its title advertises: Summon Vermin. The wearer can summon rats, frogs, or bats, all of which come out of the hat and then do their best to scurry away. What makes this item so chaotic is that the animals are not inherently friendly and will act naturally.
Players can use the hat to cause a panic in a populated area, check for floor or motion-based traps, distract a hungry creature that loves tasty vermin, or in a true last-ditch effort during combat.
5 Prosthetic Limb
Tasha's Cauldron Of Everything
- Can undo a tragic moment and instantly make a character look unique
This magical item is one that most players hope they don't need. A magic limb that attaches itself to a character in place of any arm, leg, hand, or foot, and then functions like the real thing. Plus, even though the wearer can take it off, it can't be pulled off by an enemy.
Knowing this item exists allows DMs to get a touch crueler in any combat encounter. Giving one to their players early on is odd, and interesting, and guarantees they'll be okay if the unthinkable happens.
4 Robe Of Useful Items
Dungeon Master's Guide
- Can be carried long-term and easily customized by the DM
This robe looks ordinary, except for patches all over it that look like items. The wearer can rip off the patches and throw them to summon the pictured item. Typically, the robe has useful tools like a ladder or common dagger, but the DM can customize it however they see fit.
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What makes this item great to find early on is that it has a finite number of items. The longer the player has it, the more they have to think through their resource allocation. If players go through it quickly, it's no more impressive than an adventurer's kit, but if kept, every item can become a massive problem solver.
3 Glamerweave
Eberron: Rising From The Last War
- Mostly an aesthetic boost with few combat advantages, but it's nice for customization
This item is a magical fabric that can be used to create clothes, such as a robe. The clothing is imbued with harmless illusory magic that allows the wearer to change the exterior visually. Players can choose what pattern they want to show, make colorful imagery flow across it, or even use it as a wearable map.
This item is great for early on because it doesn't offer a player any advantages unless they get extremely creative. It does, however, offer a ton of fun roleplay options and will excite a player who finds it.
2 The Boots Of Elvenkind
D&D Player's Handbook
- Advantage on Stealth checks and total silence while walking over any surface
The Boots of Elvenkind are nice for a character that has Stealth in their repertoire already, but they're also handy for characters that wear heavy armor and need to move quietly. These boots won't make a character invisible or remove their scent, so the player still has to be careful when dealing with law enforcement agencies and their companion animals.
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These boots are an uncommon item, which makes sense for a low-level character. Creative players can find a use for these boots in any urban or rural adventuring situation, one of the factors that makes them a great addition to a beginner's campaign.
1 Cloak Of Billowing
Xanathar's Guide To Everything
- A fun cosmetic item with no major combat or exploration advantages
One of the newer items in D&D, this cloak is much like the Glamerweave in the sense that it mostly offers roleplaying options. It's cool, but it doesn't do anything that could be considered game-breaking or overpowering.
The cloak is almost entirely normal, except for the fact that the wearer can use magic to make it billow at their command. It won't help kill a monster, but being able to make their cloak dramatically blow in the breeze will be sure to thrill any player who gets lucky enough to receive this item.
Dungeons and Dragons
- Original Release Date
- 1974-00-00
- Publisher
- Wizards of the Coast
- Designer
- E. Gary Gygax , Dave Arneson
