Be careful when you drink from the Chalice of Venom…
For some reason I always struggle with coming up with cool and thematic magic items on the spot. I actually find it much easier to invent a whole faction, complete with their heraldry and name on the fly, than I have inventing a new magic item. I’m not sure why that is but I can’t be alone. To work around this I always prepare lists of magic items ahead of time, so that whenever I start a session, be it a new campaign, a one-shot or just another session in a long running campaign, I always have at least 5-10 magic items prepared. I don’t plan on handing them all out, but I know I need to have a few that feel “just right” for the occation, and I also don’t want to risk running out of them, so a few more than I actually need feels best.
This post isn’t about making your own magic items, no it’s sort of the opposite. It’s a list of 10 poison themed magic items, so that you don’t have to make up your own. Whenever you are prepping a hag, black dragon or village of venomous fish-folk, feel free to use these to inject som thematic venom.
10 Poison themed magic items
To make these as useful as possible I haven’t statted them out, because then they would only work for one system. So instead I’ve made sure the item descriptions are evocative, interesting and inspiring. Just reading them should give you a good idea of what they can do.
| Item Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Venomfang Dagger | A sleek, blackened steel dagger with a serpentine hilt. It grants the wielder the ability to inject a deadly venom once per day, causing paralysis or extreme pain to the target on a successful hit. |
| Cloak of Toxic Mists | A dark green cloak that shimmers with a faint, eerie light. When worn, the user can release a cloud of poisonous gas around them once per day, creating a hazard for nearby enemies. |
| Ring of the Serpent's Whisper | A silver ring with a snake design coiled around a small, green gem. It allows the wearer to communicate with and control venomous creatures within a certain radius. |
| Amulet of Antivenom | An amulet made of bright, amber-colored crystal. It provides immunity to all forms of natural poisons and toxins when worn. |
| Poisonheart Bow | A bow carved from darkwood, with a spiderweb design along its limbs. Arrows shot from this bow can be imbued with a toxic effect, causing additional poison damage to targets. |
| Gloves of the Toxic Touch | Gloves made from the hide of a poisonous creature, adorned with runes. They give the wearer the ability to imbue their touch with poison, harmful to anyone they make direct contact with. |
| Chalice of Venom | An ornate chalice encrusted with emeralds, which can turn any liquid poured into it into a potent poison without altering its appearance or taste. |
| Shield of Sporeguard | A sturdy shield that emits spores when defending against attacks. These spores can cause hallucinations or sickness in attackers, offering both defense and a counter-attack mechanism. |
| Boots of the Silent Step | Soft, leather boots that leave no trace and make no sound when worn. They also release a faint, toxic trail that can disorient or incapacitate pursuers. |
| Belt of the Scorpion | A leather belt with a scorpion-shaped buckle. It grants the user the ability to deliver a poisonous sting-like blow once per day, using a retractable stinger hidden in the buckle. |
Closing thoughts on these poisonous artifacts
Hopefully you get some good mileage out of these items. If you want to tweak something, go right ahead, I created them to help you lower your workload as a GM, so do whatever you need to achieve that.
If you like these poison themed magic items, don’t miss our other lists of fire themed magic items and lightning magic items. Also check out our ultimate NPC generator and of course, our game system: Adventurous!
