Free tables Wild magic & potions
Magic Item Quirks — d20 Personality Table for 5e
A free d20 table of personality quirks for magic items in 5e: habits, tempers and small tells that make an item feel lived-in.
A +1 sword is a number on a character sheet. A +1 sword that trembles through every fight and steadies the moment it's won is something the player will talk about for the rest of the campaign. A quirk costs nothing in balance and gives an item a past.
Roll d20 when the item is identified, or hold the result back and let the quirk show itself a session or two later. Most of these change nothing mechanically. A few point at where the item has been, and those make good hooks.
The table
20 results. Roll d20.
| d20 | Result | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hums at Lies | The item gives a low hum whenever someone within 10 feet tells a deliberate lie. It can't say who. |
| 2 | Homesick | It grows warm when carried toward the place it was made and cool when carried away. |
| 3 | Vain | It likes to be seen. Left in a pack for more than a day, it rattles until someone wears it or holds it in plain view. |
| 4 | Early Riser | It warms at dawn every day, like a cat in a sunny window, and can wake its bearer at sunrise if they want it to. |
| 5 | Restless | It turns over on its own in the night, so in the morning it's never quite where it was left. |
| 6 | Tidy | It can't stand mess. Put down somewhere dirty, it slowly edges away toward the cleanest spot nearby. |
| 7 | Gossip | When people whisper near it, it repeats the last few words a moment later, in a small dry voice of its own. |
| 8 | Nervous | It trembles in its bearer's hand through every fight, and goes still the moment the fight is won. |
| 9 | Magpie | Once a week, a small object nobody remembers owning turns up beside it: a thimble, a button, a ring of rusty wire. |
| 10 | Old Loyalty | It still answers to the name its first owner gave it, and goes still for a moment whenever that name is spoken. |
| 11 | Music Lover | It vibrates gently in time with music played nearby, and goes stubbornly heavy whenever someone sings badly. |
| 12 | Weather Sense | It aches like an old knee before rain. Its bearer soon learns to tell when the weather is turning. |
| 13 | Sentimental | It remembers every bearer. Whoever sleeps beside it dreams a small moment from the life of the one before. |
| 14 | Squeamish | It goes cold and clammy at the sight of blood, and has to be wiped dry after every fight. |
| 15 | Competitive | It grows warm and eager whenever its bearer is challenged, and sulks, cold to the touch, for a day after they lose. |
| 16 | Superstitious | It wants to be picked up with the left hand. Picked up with the right, it stays cold and sullen for an hour. |
| 17 | Bad Memories | It won't go into one kind of place quietly — a temple, a crypt, a kitchen, the DM's choice. Taken there, it drags like lead. |
| 18 | Snob | It feels lighter in the hands of the well dressed and a little heavier for anyone muddy, ragged or poor. |
| 19 | Old Soldier | Whenever a horn or trumpet sounds, it snaps to attention: it stands on end, or straightens on its hook, until the note dies. |
| 20 | A Name Inside | A name is engraved on the inside where nobody looks, and it isn't the maker's. Say it aloud and the item gives one warm pulse. |
Questions
What is a magic item quirk?
A small habit or temper that makes an item feel as if it's been somewhere before the party found it. Quirks are flavour first: most of them change nothing at the table except how the players talk about the item. They work on any item, from a common trinket to a legendary weapon.
When should a magic item get a quirk?
For items a character will keep, such as a weapon, a cloak or a ring. A potion or a scroll doesn't need one. Roll when the item is identified, or let the quirk appear a few sessions later, once the player has got used to it.
Can a quirk be a plot hook?
Yes, and several here are built to be. Homesick points somewhere, Old Loyalty and A Name Inside point at someone, and Bad Memories points at something that happened. If the party starts asking questions, you have your next adventure.