Identifying Magic Items (D&D)

Unofficial rules compendium

There are several ways to identify magic items; this is an attempt to gather and encode there in one place.

Spells and Powers

First, there are specific spells and abilities, like identify, that are specifically designed to allow identification, but generally have a cost.

Experimentation

A character can experiment and use his skills to try an identify an item. This takes ten minutes and exposes you to all the risks of using the item, such as curses. It cannot be attempted again until you increase your skill bonus somehow. The DM will often give only an approximate description, enough for everyday use item but with a few key facts withheld.

Circumstance	Example	DC
Use-activated abilities	Ring of spider climb, boots of striding and springing	15
Generic or common item	Ring of protection, Wand of magic missile	20
General item	Chime of opening, Scroll of snare	30
Combination item or item using rare spells/powers	Staff, metamagic rod	40
Extraordinary items or items that bend the rules or limitations	Intelligent sword, potion of wish	50
Special cases
Item is legendary	Knowledge skills only	15
Item is famous or patterned after a legendary item	Knowledge skills only	25

If you have several relevant skills, you can roll all of them in the ten-minute experimentation period. Apply the best result.

Rings, Wands, Staffs, Rods, and Wondrous Items

Knowledge (Arcane) can be used to guess at the abilities of an arcane magic item; Knowledge (religion) does the same for a divine item. Spellcraft, Use Magic Device and Bardic Knowledge can be used for either. This method works for rings, wands, staffs, rods, and wondrous items.

Magic Arms and Armor

Magic arms and armor can be identified with Bardic Knowledge, Appraise, or the relevant Craft skill. You can also use a roll of Base Attack Bonus + Wisdom, adding in any attack bonuses or penalties due to feats or lack of proficiency but ignoring other attack bonus modifiers such as magic items, size, etc.

Potions

Potions can be identified using Bardic Knowledge, Craft (Alchemy) or Spellcraft.

Scrolls

Scrolls can be identified using Knowledge (Arcane) (arcane scrolls only), Knowledge (religion) (divine scrolls only), UseMagicDevice, or Deciper Script. Spellcraft has a specific function for this, with a DC of 20 + spell level.