It might be exactly the same power as the sacrificed item or one that is reminiscent of the old item. If the item was Awakened by sacrificing another item, it takes on some of the qualities of that item: perhaps its appearance changes somewhat, and its Attuned power is influenced by the sacrificed item. An Attuned item sometimes, though not always, becomes an intelligent item. Whether or not there is a better version available, the item will also gain some extra, non-standard power or property, called its Attuned power. For instance, if a Flameburst axe is sacrificed to Awaken a Thundering sword, it may require the eye of a phoenix and of a thunderhawk to be set like gems in its pommel.Ĭompleting the Attuning quest will cause the item to become the next better type of item, if one is available (example: a +3 weapon becomes a +4 weapon a heroic-level wondrous item becomes a paragon-level wondrous item). If the Awakening was bought by spending a magic item, the quest may involve finding a way to complete the process of merging the souls of the two items. Occasionally, the Awakening quest may have been fulfilled by the last encounter – if a holy symbol is used to destroy a powerful undead monster, its Awakening quest may have been retrospectively assigned and fulfulled. For example, after a fight in the Sealed Fane, the paladin’s shield Awakens and whispers to its bearer that it can feel the nearby presence of the sacred hammer that forged it. If the Awakening was given as treasure, the Awakening quest might be related to the last encounter or to something in the treasure or in the current location. It may be finishable right away, or require a few adventures or levels before an opportunity arises. The quest may be related to the item’s history or purpose, or to finding a means to perfect the item. When an item is Awakened, it gains sentience or semi-sentience: it can provide information to its user, either through telepathy, speech or mentally transmitted images, about its history, and bestow an Attuning quest (a minor quest) on the owner. The item to be sacrificed must be at least the same level as the item to be awakened, and the same slot (eg arm slot, implement, wondrous item). The player uses the Enchant Magic Item ritual to pour magical essence from an unwanted item into the item to be Awakened. This may replace a treasure packet consisting of an item 5 levels higher than the original item. There are two ways for an item to become Awakened: If such a quest is completed, the item becomes attuned to its owner, and is more powerful in their hands. This has a salutary effect on other example characters, I think.Įvery magic item has the potential to become awakened: it becomes dimly conscious of its owner, and requires the owner to prove his or her worthiness. Not since the sample dungeon adventure in the 1st edition DMG, where the halfling is paralyzed and forced to watch as ghouls eat his innards, has there been such an example-character bloodbath. The things from Jeff’s article I wish I’d thought of are a) the importance of names for magic items and b) illustrating your rules with example characters who don’t make it through the example alive. a plain ordinary sword +1, axe+2, etc.) is a dormant weapon.” This is the assumption behind my houserule too, although I descend further into absurdity: every item is dormant, even if it already has a special property. Jeff says: “First start out by assuming that any magic weapon found in play with just a bonus (i.e.

His implementation is not specifically for 4th edition, but he expresses some of the same concerns I do about previous attempts (Weapons of Legacy, etc) and both our ideas involve the concept of “awakening” the item. I’d written up ideas for levelling up magic items, Weapons of Legacy-style, for 4th edition, but I see that Jeff Rients beat me to the punch by a day or two.

Uses for awaken 5e