Spell Research (5e Variant Rule)
Spell Research
This downtime activity is exclusive to wizards. Similarly to how you discover two new spells when you level up as a wizard, you can also research and experiment using time and materials to discover new spells.
Resources
To research a spell, your character needs a spellbook or equivalent to record their research and experimental results. They also require spellcasting materials and components, as well as time to experiment with them. The time and cost required to do so is listed on the Spell Research table below.
If you have access to a well-stocked library or other repository of arcane knowledge throughout the duration of your work, you can halve the time and cost requirements.
Not all spellcasting materials are consumed in the process of spell research—at least half of your spellcasting materials are not consumed, merely unsuitable for the current line of research, and can reused for other spell research.
| Spell Level | Time | Base Cost | Additional Expenditure |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 3 days | 50 gp | 10 gp |
| 2nd | 1 workweek | 250 gp | 50 gp |
| 3rd | 2 workweeks | 500 gp | 100 gp |
| 4th | 5 workweeks | 1,000 gp | 200 gp |
| 5th | 10 workweeks | 2,500 gp | 500 gp |
| 6th | 20 workweeks | 5,000 gp | 1,000 gp |
| 7th | 30 workweeks | 10,000 gp | 2,000 gp |
| 8th | 40 workweeks | 25,000 gp | 5,000 gp |
| 9th | 50 workweeks | 50,000 gp | 10,000 gp |
Resolution
At the end of the working period, the character must make an Intelligence (Arcana) ability check, with the DC equal to 10 + twice the researched spell's level. For each additional multiple of gp expended past the Base Cost according to the Additional Expenditure column, they gain a +1 bonus to this check, to a maximum bonus of +6.
If the character succeeds the check, they learn the spell and add it to their spellbook.
Complications
Every workweek spent in spell research brings a 10 percent chance of a complication, examples of which are on the Research Complications table.
| d8 | Complication |
|---|---|
| 1 | You accidentally fireball or unleash an uncontrolled magical effect of a similar caliber at a location involved in your research. |
| 2 | You accidentally polymorph yourself or someone else involved in your research into a frog for 4d8 x 4 hours. |
| 3 | You discover you require a material that's incredibly rare or dangerous to acquire to continue your research. |
| 4 | A more powerful being contacts you promising to grant you a piece of knowledge of the spell you seek in exchange for a favor. |
| 5 | Your spell research attracts undue suspicion from the local populace. |
| 6 | You realize that your research has brought you closer to understanding a different spell instead of the spell you were originally aiming for. |
| 7 | You become reclusive and hermitized in your research, isolating yourself from contact with others for extended periods of time and possibly even neglecting your own health. |
| 8 | The latest experiment in your research has left your mind or body fundamentally altered in some way. |
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