#RPGaDAY – August 21, 2025 (UNEXPECTED)

#RPGaDAY – August 21, 2025 (UNEXPECTED)

Unexpected– Unexpected, makes me think of unexpected consequences, which for D&D, nothing is more unpredictable to a game than a Wild Magic Surge, unless you consider the ultimate wildcards, in the Deck of Many Things (pun intended.) Every time I play around with that, it has world ending/affecting results.  I bought a very cool 3^rd party Deck of Many Things card set from Hit Point Press.  They even do an animated version of it.  Excited with my new cards, I rolled them out during the Grim Dark campaign and of course, they played havoc with the game.  My group had accumulated a couple of luck coins, which they had to use to redraw after devastatingly bad card draws, but even still, one player ended up getting 50K experience which jumped him up 3 level higher than the other players, which was a pain.

Anyway, I found an alternate Wild Magic Surge table in The Game Master’s Book of Astonishing Random Tables, which is an awesome series, even if just for inspirational reading. Anyway, this now seems to be my go-to, when I cannot come up with anything else for the daily word. Here are two homebrew wild magic items – The Axe of Amazement and the Blade of Chaos.

 

Axe of Amazement.

This appears to be just a normal well-worn tool, a woodman’s felling axe (1D6 damage, slashing, 2 handed, heavy) and user must have a 12 or higher strength to use effectively as a weapon, otherwise they attack with disadvantage.

•Assuming the wielder has the strength to use it, the Axe of Amazement can be used unattuned or attuned. Either way, it is a +2 to hit and damage weapon.

•If the axe is used unattuned or if a Nat 1 is rolled during combat, a strength DC-14 check must be made afterwards or even during combat is there is a break in the fight longer than 2 rounds for the wielder.  If the strength check is missed, the user suffers a point of exhaustion for each required save that is failed.

•Additionally, on a Nat 20 or a Nat 1, a % roll is made on a wild magic table, with the results ultimately being good or bad for the wielder accordingly.  If being used attuned, the Nat 20 roll can be transposed depending on which effect is more beneficial, chosen by the player.  If being used unattuned, the Nat 1 is transposed, depending on which is worst, chosen by the DM.  For example, a % roll of 32 could be used as either that or a 23. Obviously, on doubles roll, only one result is available.

•Medium Magic Level –          Attunement required – Special

 

 Blade of Chaos

This appears to be a normal long sword and sheath of average quality. Any non-chaotic aligned user holding the sword will feel it is uncomfortable and unwieldly in combat.

•When the Blade of Chaos is drawn in combat, the wielder must roll on the following D6 table to confirm what power it has for that encounter:

1- +2 to hit only. 1 Time during the encounter, DM can force user to roll any one attack or save with disadvantage

2- +1 to hit only, plus gain +1 to AC

3- +1 to hit and damage

4- +1 to hit, damage, and all saves

5- +2 to hit and damage

6- +2 to hit, damage and all saves. 1 Time during encounter, user can make any one attack or save with advantage

•Any non-chaotic user rolls the D6 with disadvantage.

•If a Nat 20/Nat1 is rolled in combat, user rolls on the wild magic table D100. With a Nat 20, user can choose either result and a Nat 1, the DM chooses– for example – with a roll of 37, on a Nat 20 user can choose either 37 or 73 effect to happen, with results skewed in their favor. On a Nat 1, the results skew against them.

•The power the Blade of Chaos is enchanted with for the encounter lasts for one hour, even if sheathed during that time. If the user attempts to use another weapon to attack with during that time, all attacks made with the other weapon are with disadvantage.

•Medium magic level – no attunement required