The recent editions of Dungeons & Dragons have downplayed the importance of magic items. The reason for this is in order to give the player characters more abilities in combat, rather than forcing them to rely on items that are doled out by the dungeon master. This was due to the fact that some classes had few options during the early levels of play (most notably spellcasters) and often became spectators in battle.

The shift away from magic items has been an unpopular move with the fans, as slaying enemies and taking their stuff is one the most popular motivations for the average adventuring party.

The best magic items in Dungeons & Dragons are either the most well-hidden or kept in the possession of monsters and NPCs that you don't want to mess with. This is due to game balance reasons, as a first level party is going to annihilate everything in their path if they stumble across any +5 weapons during their first adventure.

We are here today to pinpoint the locations of the most powerful magical items that are hidden across the Dungeons & Dragons multiverse - from the deck of cards that can destroy a campaign with a single draw to the blade that was once responsible for maiming a god.

Spoiler warning: for those of you who are playing (or planning to play) in games based on published adventures: we will be revealing secrets about certain campaigns. The adventures in questions are Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil, Night Below, Tomb of Horrors, Axe of the Dwarvish Lords, Vecna Lives, Expedition to the Barrier Peaks, Talons of Night, Bastion of Broken Souls, Expedition to the Demonweb Pits, Feast of Goblyns, Egg of the Phoenix, The Gauntlet, Hall of the Fire Giant King, Return to White Plume Mountain, The Temple of Elemental Evil, and Vortex of Madness.

With that said, here are the 20 Powerful Items In Dungeons & Dragons That Are Impossible To Find (And Where To Find Them)

20. The Deck Of Many Things

Only the bravest or most foolish dungeon masters would add a Deck of Many Things to one of their adventures. This deck of cards has the potential to give the players godlike powers or wipe them out of existence, all with a few draws of the deck.

The ability of the Deck of Many Things to derail a campaign means that they rarely show up in homebrew adventures and almost never show up in published adventures.

One of the few adventures that contain a Deck of Many Things is Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil. You can find one in the hands of a skeleton in the Black Spike, which is a tower filled with powerful worshipers of Tharizdun. The skeleton deals the cards to the players, as a representation of the chaotic aspect of Tharizun. The cult of Tharizdun created a new temple in Mount Stalagos and used the mines that surrounded it as a testing ground for new recruits, which is where the Black Spike can be found.

19. The Sphere Of Annihilation

The Sphere of Annihilation is essentially a ball made up of the void. If you touch the Sphere of Annihilation, then your character will be wiped from existence. It's possible for those with a powerful will to control the Sphere of Annihilation, but failure means that it will start moving towards you...

Those adventurers who are brave enough to challenge the Tomb of Horrors adventure will likely become acquainted with the Sphere of Annihilation, as there is the mouth of a wall fixture that possesses a black void that acts as a Sphere of Annihilation. It's possible to encounter a custom Sphere of Annihilation in Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil, as an item known as the Black Sun can be found in Mount Stalagos that has the same properties as the infamous sphere.

18. Axe Of The Dwarvish Lords

The Axe of the Dwarvish Lords is one of the most fearsome weapons in Dungeons & Dragons. It acts like a Sword of Sharpness, which means that it has a chance of automatically severing an opponents appendage with each roll, potentially removing their head from their neck in a single swing. The Axe of the Dwarvish Lords also allows its to conjure an Earth Elemental and cast earthquake, wall, and stone to flesh each day.

One of the side effects of using the Axe of the Dwarvish Lords is that it will turn all non-dwarven wielders into dwarves over time. This was the fate of a goblin maiden named Qamhuul, who was given the axe by her human lover, a wizard named Tairo, who was unaware that the axe would transform Qamhuul into a dwarven woman. Qamhuul and the Axe of the Dwarvish Lords can be found in the abandoned dwarven stronghold of Radruundar, which can be found in the Spine of the World mountains (in Faerun) or in the Yatil mountains (in Oerth.)

17. Futuristic Weapons (Blasters, Lasers, And Powered Armor)

All of the magic swords in the realm would go out of the window as soon as someone in the Dungeons & Dragons world learns how to make gunpowder. All of the attacks-per-round with a spear in the world won't mean much as soon as regular soldiers can be given pistols and rifles.

Expedition to the Barrier Peaks takes the idea of the players acquiring modern weapons and takes it even further, by allowing them to find a crashed spaceship. The spaceship is found in the mountains near the Grand Duchy of Geoff in Oerth. Those who can find the hidden ship will have access to blaster pistols, blaster rifles, powered armor, laser pistols, and laser rifles. All you need to do to acquire these items is to defeat the robots guarding them.

16. The Black Hammer

There are very few weapons in Dungeons & Dungeons that have a modifier above +5. The greatest weapons in the multiverse (like a Holy Avenger) will still max out at +5, though they will often possess other powers that they will grant to their wielder.

One of the few +6 weapons in the Dungeons & Dragons multiverse is the Black Hammer, which is a +6 war hammer that feeds upon the life force of those around it.

The Black Hammer was taken by a cult in the city of Raven's Bluff, many of whom sacrificed their lives in order to transport the weapon to a secret and secure location. Those who can track down the cult may be able to find the resting place of the Black Hammer.

15. The Periapt Of Pax

In the older editions of Dungeons & Dragons, clerics were pretty much forced to use maces in battle. The reason for this was due to a rule that clerics could only use blunt weapons, as edged and piercing weapons would draw blood from the enemy.

In the Talons of Night adventure, the players can find the Periapt of Pax, which not only grants access to lots of free cleric spells but also has a hole where a handle can be inserted, transforming the periapt into a +3 mace. The Periapt of Pax exists in the world of Mystara, where it is kept in the web of the Night Spider. In order to find this web, you need to be able to access the secret plane of the Night Spider and be prepared for a battle against a huge arachnid whose life force is tied to the periapt and who won't give it up without a fight.

14. Ring Of Fire Elemental Command

The Rings of Elemental Command are four of the most powerful magic items in all of Dungeons & Dragons and are considered to be just below the level of minor artifact. If you possess one of these rings, then you will gain access to a wide range of abilities and spells that are tied to each of the four elements.

It's possible for high-level characters to forge a Ring of Elemental Command, but there is at least one adventure where you can acquire one for free. In Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil, there are three powerful servants of Tharizdun who refer to themselves as the First, Second, and Third. The Second is an aboleth who floats around inside of a water elemental. If you can defeat this powerful priest of Tharizdun, then you can steal the Ring of Fire Elemental Command from his body.

13. Helltongue

In the very first iteration of Dungeons & Dragons, the game included creatures from The Lord of the Rings. This meant that you could play as a hobbit and fight against the Balrog, the Nazgul and have tea with ents. A lawsuit from the Tolkien estate meant that the Balrog became a balor, which is essentially the same creature with the serial numbers filed off.

There is a half dragon/balor in the Bastion of Unborn Souls that possesses a powerful whip called the Helltongue. This whip has three strands, all of which possess the ability to inflict negative levels on those they hit while transferring hit points to the wielder. The creature who wields Helltongue has a CR of 21, which means that the player will have an epic battle (one which they will likely lose) if they want to steal the mighty whip for themselves.

12. The Book Of Flesh & Mirrors

Spellbooks are the most treasured magical item that can be acquired by wizards, as it broadens the number of spells that they can cast per day. There are a few unique spellbooks that also possess special abilities, such as the Book of Flesh and Mirrors. This tome can teach a character a lot of different spells, as well as giving instructions on how to create a mirror mephit.

The Book of Flesh and Mirrors is also prized due to the fact that it can teach spells to bards and sorcerers, as well as being worth over one-hundred-thousand gold pieces on the open market.

The Book of Flesh and Mirrors is in the possession of a cambion named Rule-of-Three, who will trade it to the player if they agree to work with him. Rule-of-Three can be found in a tavern called the Styx Oarsman in the city of Sigil.

11. The Cauldron Of Doom

If you want to become a necromancer in a Dungeons & Dragons world, then you better be rich. The animate dead spell requires you to use a gem worth twenty-five gold pieces to create even the weakest undead, one which would barely pose a threat to a low-level party of adventurers.

There is a powerful magic item called the Cauldron of Doom which can help a budding necromancer save money, as it can create one zombie per day if you put a corpse inside of it. This would allow you to slowly create an army of undead without needing to use the animate dead spell. The Cauldron of Doom was last seen in the Castle of Skulls in Llyrath Forest on the island of Gwynneth, which is part of the Moonshae Isles in Faerun.