Equipment FAQ

How much does equipment cost?

Mundane equipment has listed prices in the relevant 2014 equipment tables, but there is no single universal equipment price. Different weapons, armor, tools, packs, services, mounts, and adventuring items have different costs. Starting characters either receive their class/background equipment or use the starting-gold option when allowed. A listed price is a rules reference, not a guarantee that every item is available for sale in every settlement.

Equipment prices are denominated in D&D's coin system. The 2014 baseline uses: cp = copper pieces sp = silver pieces ep = electrum pieces gp = gold pieces pp = platinum pieces Most adventuring equipment is commonly priced in silver or gold.

Every item has its own listed cost

There is no formula such as:

all martial weapons = 20 gp all armor = 100 gp

The equipment table lists the price for each item.

For example, in the 2014 Basic Rules:

Leather armor 10 gp Studded leather 45 gp Chain mail 75 gp Breastplate 400 gp Half plate 750 gp Plate 1,500 gp Shield 10 gp

Those prices illustrate how dramatically items within the same broad category can differ.

Starting equipment can avoid purchasing everything manually

At character creation, a class and background normally provide a starting equipment package.

That package is not necessarily converted into its gold value during ordinary character creation.

The player chooses from the listed starting options.

Starting gold is an alternative

The 2014 rules allow characters to use class-based starting wealth instead of taking the provided equipment package where the option applies.

The class specifies or references the amount.

The character then buys gear from the equipment lists.

Do not combine the full default starting package with the full alternative starting-gold budget unless the campaign explicitly allows that.

Different classes have different needs

A Fighter may need:

  • armor;
  • martial weapon;
  • shield or secondary weapon;
  • ammunition;
  • adventuring pack.

A Wizard may spend much less on armor and weapons but may care about:

  • spellbook;
  • focus or component pouch;
  • adventuring gear.

An Artificer may care about tools.

A Rogue may prioritize thieves' tools and light armor.

The “cost to equip a character” therefore depends heavily on the build.

Better AC can become expensive

Armor is one of the clearest examples of non-linear pricing.

A small improvement in Armor Class can cost hundreds of gold pieces at the high end.

Plate armor's 1,500 gp cost means obtaining maximum ordinary heavy-armor AC can be a meaningful campaign milestone.

Adventuring gear is often cheap but important

Rope, torches, crowbars, rations, waterskins, ball bearings, caltrops, hunting traps, healer's kits and other mundane gear may cost far less than armor.

Their usefulness depends on whether the player actively uses them.

A low-cost item can solve a problem that would otherwise consume a spell slot.

Tools can be character investments

Tool kits have their own costs.

A character may need a specific set for a proficiency to be useful in practice.

Examples can include:

  • thieves' tools;
  • artisan's tools;
  • gaming sets;
  • musical instruments;
  • healer's kits or other specialized gear depending on the task.

Do not assume proficiency creates the physical tool out of nowhere.

Ammunition and consumables have ongoing cost

Some equipment is spent when used.

Examples include:

  • arrows;
  • bolts;
  • food;
  • oil;
  • acid;
  • holy water;
  • components;
  • other consumables.

The campaign can decide how closely mundane replenishment is tracked.

Expensive spell components are separate

Some spells require material components with a listed monetary value.

If the spell says the component is consumed, it must normally be supplied again for each casting.

These components are not replaced by a component pouch or spellcasting focus.

Their market availability is also a campaign-world question.

Magic-item prices are not ordinary mundane-equipment prices

Magic items follow the activation and usage rules in their own item descriptions.

The 2014 game does not treat every magic item as though it has a universally available shop price equivalent to a longsword.

Campaigns can use:

  • treasure;
  • crafting;
  • special merchants;
  • downtime;
  • rarity-based prices;
  • auctions;
  • quests;
  • another rule.

Magic-item availability and pricing depend on the campaign's treasure, crafting, downtime, or marketplace rules rather than on one universal shop price.

Availability can override simple price logic

Even when an item has a printed mundane price, the DM can decide it is unavailable in a location.

A small village may not have:

  • plate armor;
  • siege equipment;
  • unusual mounts;
  • specialized tools;
  • expensive poisons;
  • rare spell components.

Finding the seller can be part of play.

Selling equipment is not always at full price

Purchase value and resale value are not always the same, and campaigns can handle recovered or used equipment differently.

Used weapons, armor recovered from monsters, trade goods, gems and art objects can all be handled differently.

Do not assume “listed price” means a merchant always buys the item back for the same amount.