I am running my first campaign since a little over half a year now and the ranger in the group still has a basic heavy crossbow at this point (almost level 5). Which is why I want to present them with the opportunity of finding a magical crossbow.
Finding the crossbow itself will not super easy and I intended it to be maybe a bit too strong for their current level, but for it to last them for a long time (up to level 12-15). Since this is the first magical item that I've ever homebrewed I am looking for some balancing feedback before dropping it into the game.
Aurel‘s Adaptive Crossbow
Requires attunement by a ranger of good alignment
Appearance Very finely crafted out of dark wood, the main wooden part looks like some sort of twisted root of a tree, reminiscent of the twisting of a rope coming to a pointed stop at the end of the guide for the bolt. Burnt into the bottom of it in elven „Shall this prove as versatile as my beloved“
Crossbow, light +1 to attack and damage rolls made with this magical weapon
Elemental forces unleashed (Maximum of 4 charges) You can spend charges as a bonus action to imbue the next bolt fired from this weapon with one of the following force of nature:
- Frost (1 charge) The tip of the bolt freezes over with solid ice. On
a hit the creature takes an additional 1d4 frost damage. It
has to make a Constitution saving throw (Spell DC) or have its
movement speed halved until the end of its turn. - Fire (2 charges) The metal tip of the bolt begins to glare in an
arcane orange glow. On impact the tip explodes, dealing an additional
2d8 fire damage to anything within a 10 foot radius of the impact
location. Any creature inside the radius, except creature directly
hit by the bolt, get to make a Dexterity saving throw (Spell DC) and
take half damage on a success. - Poison (2 charges) Poisonous green purpleish energies begin to
coalesce around the tip of the bolt. On a hit, the creature has to
make a Wisdom saving throw (Spell DC). If it fails, it has
disadvantage on Wisdom and Intelligence saving throws until the start
of your next turn. If it succeeds it takes 1d6 additional psychic
damage. - Lightning (4 charges) The tip of the bolt begins to cackle with
lightning. On a hit the creature takes an additional 4d8 lightning
damage. The lightning energy then arcs off to two creatures of the
wielders choice, within 30 feet of the initial target. These creature
have to make a Dexterity saving throw (Spell DC) and take 4d6
lightning damage on a fail, half on a success.
Every day after completing a long rest 1d4 charges can be restored up to the maximum of 4 charges. Upon finding the crossbow, it is fully charged.
Best Answer
The very idea of a versatile elemental weapon is nice, but the implementation needs work.
I'd say it forces players/DM to care about many minuscule details for an inadequate profit. It also has a couple of specific requirements, which makes the gameplay tedious rather than interesting:
Rechargeable magic items recover their charges at dawn. This item becomes an exception. "A new day comes, all your magic items recharge... oh, wait, except the crossbow".
In its current state the crossbow also looks "underpowered", but the exact appraisal is impossible without knowing the item's rarity. It is definitely better than an uncommon +1 light crossbow, but not much better:
The crossbow has its full potential only when fully charged, but charges can be restored only by 1d4 per game day. If the Ranger gets 1, only 1 charge is restored. The imbued bolt can miss, and then they need to wait for the next day. Until then, it's just a +1 crossbow, and a light crossbow is not a perfect weapon for a 5-12 lvl Ranger.
A few edge cases are also worth mentioning:
The "Finding the crossbow" event is ambiguous. One can argue that if other PC finds the crossbow in the ranger's backpack, it becomes fully charged. I believe this line can be safely removed. Less text is better.
What if I don't fire the crossbow? Can I imbue the bolt with additional effect next turn? Can I do this before the long rest and then restore the charges?
The proposed effects are not very powerful, but the cost is quite high:
Basically it's a worse version of the Ray of Frost cantrip, but can be used only ~2.5 times per day. 1d4 damage becomes neglectable on higher levels. The target also has to make an additional dice roll, thus spending everyone's time and decreasing chances of success. The effect is linked to the target's turns, not the caster's, which is harder to track.
"On impact" is not defined in 5e. There is no way to determine "the impact location" on miss within the current set of rules. You should probably not make this effect an exception, and instead make it be triggered "on hit", like the others.
A very counterintuitive damaging effect which works if the enemy succeeds. For all my shots I want the target to fail, except for this one. This effect is now linked with the shooter's turn. I suggest making this more consistent (see above).
Looks like an improved Ice Knife spell, but the Ice Knife has better chances to trigger. The description is also a little ambiguous. Do I have to see additional targets, or at least know about them? Can I choose the initial target itself as the "creatures of the wielders choice, within 30 feet of the initial target"?
In general, traits should either have a limited number of uses, or they should have a limited chance of success, but not both. In this case, too many things are needed for success:
If any link of this chain breaks, the effect is lost. It'd be understandable for a really severe effect, but not for insignificant things like "make the target slower for a round". In its current state, the crossbow isn't much better than an uncommon +1 magic crossbow, but it adds more bookkeeping for players.