50 modern magic items

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 50 modern magic items

Gear for the Modern Hero

Contained in this PDF is a list of 50 modern items with supernatural properties. Each item has a brief description, hopefully
enough to make you think about it but not so much that it pushes any particular backstory or narrative onto you. I wanted
this list to be as system agnostic as possible, so none of the items are like “+2 to Attack” or whatever--each one has its
own power, property, or ability. No flat bonuses, no numeric statistics, just things that do stuff. There’s plenty of resources
out there for running a medieval fantasy style game, from monsters to dungeon layouts to enchanted relics, but I see
substantially less for modern-ish games. I personally run a lot of campaigns in fairly modern settings (albeit with a lot of
fantastic elements), so I want to try and pitch in where I can.

Then again, maybe I’m crazy and there’s no demand for this kind of thing. Who knows? We’ll see. Feel free to use any of
these items for whatever game, campaign, system, or setting you want. Modify them, reword them, make them psychic or
holy instead of magic, do whatever. I’m just yelling ideas into the void at this point.

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50 modern magic items
1. Abandoned Dog Tags: The information on this set
of military identification tags has long since worn off.
When the tags are worn around someone’s neck, they
gain the training, instincts, and muscle memory of a
military veteran with decades of combat experience.
This knowledge disappears from the wearer when the
tags are taken off.
2. Bobblehead Coyote: This bobblehead figure depicts
a coyote standing upright and wearing a top hat. As
long as it’s fixed to the dashboard of a vehicle, that
vehicle is completely protected from the effects of fire
or extreme heat. The engine will never overheat, and
the inside temperature will never rise above a certain
comfortable level. The vehicle can tread through lava
like it’s water, and fire will simply roll off the surface.
3. Bobblehead Polar Bear: This bobbleheaded figure
depicts a polar bear standing upright and wearing
sunglasses. As long as it’s fixed to the dashboard of
a vehicle, that vehicle is completely protected from
the effects of ice or the cold. The windows will never
frost over, the inside temperature will never dip below
a certain comfortable level, and the tires will never slip
on icy surfaces.
4. Bountiful Bottle Opener: Though it resembles
a normal bottle opener, it is surprisingly heavy and
features a fancy design across its surface. Any bottle
first opened with this enchanted bottle opener produces
an infinite amount of the contents within.
5. Brilliant Lab Coat: While wearing this nice but
conventional looking lab coat, the wearer can
remember everything they’ve ever seen, read, heard,
or experienced as though it were right in front of
them. While this greatly aids the wearer in efforts
of intelligence or memory, it can also easily lead to
the wearer getting sidetracked or distracted--every
embarrassing thing you’ve ever been through, and
every choice you’ve ever made, is now perfectly fresh
in your mind.
6. Bullseye Cufflinks: True to their name, these golden
cufflinks look like small bullseyes. When both are worn
and the user does a “fingergun” motion, jerking back
abruptly with the hand (as if to simulate recoil) causes
an actual 9x19mm Parabellum round to fire from the
index finger. The bullet launches as though it were
discharged from a real gun. Bullets can be fired with
either hand, the wearer does not feel the effects of the
bullet manifesting, nor does the wearer ever need to
reload their hands.
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7. Campfire Flashlight: This flashlight is fairly small,
as though sized for a child’s hand. It is solid orange,
but otherwise indistinct in its appearance. It only
demonstrates unusual properties when its light is cast
on a human face. As long as a face is bathed in its
light, that face gains a shifting, ghastly, almost skeletal
sort of visage. This doesn’t affect the individual in any
tangible way besides producing an illusion over their
face.
8. Champion’s Gloves: These boxing gloves are dyed a
deep, blood red, and are stitched and patched in various
places from decades of abuse. While both gloves are
worn, the wearer cannot be rendered unconscious by
blunt force trauma. They can be hurt and injured, and
are afforded no real increased protection--they simply
cannot be forced into unconsciousness by dull impact.
9. Clown Mask: Though its effects are subtle, this
slightly damaged rubber clown mask is an incredibly
effective disguise. While worn, the wearer’s voice
completely changes, shifting in pitch and sounding
more comical. The wearer’s gait and mannerisms
subtly alter, and they appear to gain several pounds.
Most strikingly, any footprints the wearer leaves behind
are elongated, and any fingerprints they leave match
those of Russell Newman, also known as Marbles the
Clown--a professional entertainer that passed away in
1988. When the mask is removed, the wearer returns
to normal.
10. Constant Vacation: This tropical shirt smells strongly
of the beach and never gets dirty. While worn, it
changes the environment around its wearer to be more
tropical. Sand begins to build at the wearer’s feet, the
air lights up around them as though it were sunny in
their vicinity, and seagulls are drawn to their location
(even if the area normally bears no seagulls).
11. Cook’s Cleaver: When the finishing blow is struck on
a living creature with this silver cleaver, the defeated
instantly transforms into a fully cooked and prepared
meal appropriate for what they were in life. For example,
a pig slain with the cleaver will poof into a plate of
delicious sausage and bacon, or perhaps a collection of
pork chops and ham. Even difficult to prepare animals
(like a blowfish) will become safe and edible.
 50 modern magic items
12. CreatureDex: A most unusual application indeed, the
CreatureDex will install itself on your phone if you wander
into one of the world’s stranger places. Whenever you
use your phone to take a picture of an animal, monster,
ghost, or other entity, the CreatureDex will update with
stats and information about that creature... even with
info that no one could feasibly know, about creatures
that have never been seen before.
13. Detonator: This sleek, silver remote has only a single
big, red button on it. If the remote is pointed at a single
unattended inanimate object and the button is pressed,
that object explodes. If the remote is ever used on an
object with a reflective surface on any part of it (such
as a window), the remote explodes instead.
14. Detox Mop: This mop looks perpetually clean, with
faint sparkles drifting off its head. Any creature struck
with the mop loses its toxic, venomous, or poisonous
abilities and attributes for one hour.
15. Extinguisher S: Anything caught in the otherwise
innocuous looking spray of this fire extinguisher is
encased in thick, solid ice in a matter of seconds. The
extinuisher itself looks pretty standard until touched--
the holder will feel a strange, cold tingling running up
their fingertips.
16. Fleischer’s Fishbowl: This glass fishbowl is large
enough to fit over a human head. While worn, the
user is safe from any detrimental effects that being
underwater or in outerspace would produce, including
oxygen deprivation, temperature, and pressure.
17. Fliphone ex Mortis: If this old, decayed looking flip
phone is used to dial the number of a normal, active
phone belonging to a living person, the call won’t go
through. If the phone is used to dial the number of
someone who has passed on, they will answer the
phone. The deceased’s phone in this world won’t ring--
it seems to connect to some otherworld iteration of the
phone number.
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18. Footbrawl Helmet: This American-style football
helmet is bright red with lightly chipped paint.
Emblazoned on both sides of the helmet is the symbol
of an ancient war god. When someone wearing the
helmet gains momentum, they cannot be stopped by
outside forces. They can continue to charge forward
no matter how much weight or restraint is applied to
them, and they can plow straight through walls and
other barriers.
19. Gravity Sticker: Usually coming in packs of three,
these stickers show a cartoonish image of an unknown
plantoid, with the words “GRAVITY FREE ZONE”
encircling it. When one of these stickers is peeled off
and stuck to an object, localized gravity will begin to
lose its grip on that object. Over the course of several
minutes, the item will become progressively lighter;
after several hours, the object is likely to drift off into
the stratosphere. Gravity returns to normal for the
object immediately if the sticker is removed.
20. Helpful Hammer: This small hammer has a golden
head and an ornate wooden handle. When the
hammer taps an object with just enough force, that
object becomes “upgraded” or “improved,” instantly, in
a burst of colorful stars. However, the hammer’s idea
of an improvement varies wildly--for example, it may
make a car go faster, or it may turn the car to solid
silver, making it worth far more money but rendering
it undriveable.
21. Hiding Hoodie: When the hood of this faded, navy
blue hoodie is pulled up, the wearer’s face becomes
distorted and dark. Those outside can only see a
shadow where the person’s face should be.
22. Infiltrator’s Lenses: These narrow, rectangular
glasses distort the wearer’s perspective ever so slightly.
Laser tripwires, the field of vision of any surveillance
cameras, and other methods of digital detection
become highlighted a vibrant green color, letting the
wearer see exactly where not to step to avoid being
seen or setting off an alarm.
23. Kid Gloves: These smooth white gloves feel like plastic
to the touch. When the wearer of both gloves handles
a doll, action figure, or other children’s toy, said toy
springs to life. It gains mobility and speech, and can
communicate anything it would know or would have
witnessed in its existence as a toy. This effect lasts
for about ten minutes, but the time can be reset with
further use of the gloves.
50 modern magic items
24. Larry’s Luminous Bulbs: These incandescent bulbs
always appear in either four packs of small bulbs, or
single packs of large bulbs. The screw threads of these
bulbs appear to be made of gold, and there’s a semi-
transparent image of a smiling face on the top of the
bulb’s glass. When placed against a solid surface and
turned, the bulb will phase into said surface, as though
it were being “screwed in.” Once sufficiently screwed
into a surface in this fashion, the bulb will light up,
whether or not it is actually receiving electricity. The
bulb can be removed as easily as a normal bulb, and
has a similar lifespan. Living beings that have one of
these bulbs screwed into them inexplicably feel no pain
from the event.
25. Lazarus Cables: These gold and white jumper cables
are permanently attached to a portable power station.
Despite the power station looking like it’s made of
wood, it functions perfectly well and is safe to use.
When used to jump start a dead car battery, the car
comes back to life with artificial intelligence. It can
drive on its own, understand speech, and may try to
communicate to the best of its physical ability. Different
vehicles have different personalities depending on their
make, model, and history.
26. Lockroach Box: This old wooden box contains copper
colored roaches, which frequently and loudly click at
each other. When the box is opened the roaches will
escape, rushing toward the nearest non-electronic lock.
The roaches will disable the lock in seconds, unlocking
and dismantling it, but several roaches will die in the
process. One box typically contains enough roaches to
handle three whole locks in this fashion.
27. Magnificent Medical Bracelet: This steel medical
ID bracelet is a distinct shade of teal, and has a
slight warmth coming off of it. Whenever its wearer is
severely injured or hurt to the point of nearing death,
they are instantly teleported to the lobby of the nearest
hospital.
28. More Fun Shotgun: Though it resembles a normal
pump action shotgun at first glance, on closer inspection
it has no mechanism for ejecting spent rounds or
loading new ones. The shotgun’s ammunition is infinite;
however, preparing the shotgun to fire anew requires
its wielder to imitate a shotgun pumping sound with
their mouth.
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29. Official Hat: This hat bears a vague resemblance to
a standard police officer’s cap, a stereotypical captain’s
hat, or some other hat of rank and importance. It
features a generic insignia on the front; however,
neither the hat nor its emblem are traceable to any
specific occupation. While the hat is worn, its wearer
has an undeniable aura of authority. People will treat
the wearer as though they are a manager, significant
member of law enforcement, or otherwise “in charge”
of things. No one will question the wearer’s credentials;
the hat alone will be as good as any tangible
identification.
30. Orcimwave: This sleek, white microwave has a
futuristic look. Objects placed in the orcimwave aren’t
heated up; rather, their personal timeline is reversed
based on how the orcimwave is set. If an item is
orcimwaved for 15 minutes, it will come exactly as it
was 15 minutes before it entered the orcimwave. This
can even re-assemble broken objects, if they can be
orcimwaved to back before they were broken.
31. People’s Elbow Pad: This black athletic elbow pad
appears mundane, but an incredible power can be felt
eminating from it. When worn for at least five minutes,
it imbues a sample of its power to the wearer that only
activates when the pad is subsequently removed. The
next attack made with the formerly protected elbow
hits with the force of a speeding truck.
32. Phantom Bus Ticket: When raised toward the sky,
this ticket will summon a phantom bus driven by a
skeleton in a proper bus driver’s uniform. The bus will
take you anywhere you wish to go, crossing the barrier
between life and death to take you there. The bus will
then vanish into the dark, the ticket dissolving into
nothing.
33. Po-Ki-Go Cards: This deck of collectable cards each
depicts some strange looking monster. When a card is
tossed out of the deck, it transforms into the monster
pictured. The monster will fight at the behest of its
owner until it has worn itself out or taken too much
damage, at which point it--and the card it came from--
will turn to dust. Only one monster can be active from
a single user’s deck at a time.
34. Politician’s Tie: While this sleek red necktie is worn,
any lie the wearer tells is instantly believed by all who
hear it. However, each time the wearer lies, the tie
tightens around their neck. This item is cursed, and
cannot be removed once the first lie is told.
 50 modern magic items
35. Power Seed: These heavy orange seeds are usually
acquired in bags of three or four. When planted in dirt
or soil, watered and exposed to light (not just sunlight-
-any light will do), the seed will grow into a seven foot
tall rectangular cement pillar over the course of several
minutes. This pillar will have a functioning electrical
socket on its four vertical sides. If the pillar doesn’t
have room to grow, it will either burst through the
ceiling or fail to properly sprout its sockets.
36. Practical Pest Pouch: This small, silk bag bears a
number of strange glyphs on it, and is kept shut with a
golden string. Inside is a variety of rodent teeth. While
a person possesses the pouch, they can speak with-
-and understand--rats, pigeons, raccoons, flies, and
roaches.
37. Quaint Snowglobe: Contained in this charming,
faintly glowing snowglobe is a tiny house. Like a normal
snowglobe, fake snow will whip around inside it if you
shake it. If a person touches all of their fingertips to the
glass while the snowglobe is on a flat surface, they will
be sent to a pocket dimension resembling the inside
of the snowglobe--complete with real snow and a two
story house. The home is well equipped and furnished,
with a refrigerator and cabinets that are always full of
food. It has numerous bedrooms with multiple beds in
each, and functioning plumbing and electricity (despite
being in a different dimension). When a person walks
to the edge of the “yard,” where the globe’s walls would
be, they are returned to their original dimension.
38. Red Deck: Though the cards in this deck look and
feel normal to the untrained, they are subtly weighted
to make them better for throwing. The edges are safe
when stationary but can easily break skin with enough
speed. Each suit in the deck has different properties-
-the diamonds, for instance, are the sharpest, and
can slice straight through steel. The clubs explode on
contact when thrown hard enough. The hearts will
home in on whoever or whatever the thrower was
aiming for. The spades turn invisible after leaving the
thrower’s hands. The images on the cards--like the
depiction of the Kings and Queens--are all grotesque
and cartoonish.
39. Reloaded Die: This six sided die is a slight gray color
and feels heavy, as though it contains metal. When
rolled, it refills the ammunition of any firearm the roller
has on their person, based on the final facing of the
die. If the number of bullets a gun gains would exceed
its normal capacity, however, the gun explodes.
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40. Reverse Bug Spray: This metal can is labeled as
generic Bug Spray, with crude silhouttes of a roach and
a mosquito decorating the otherwise bland appearance.
When the nozzle is pressed, it unleashes a high
pressure spray of bugs of all kinds--wasps, centipedes,
scorpions, caterpillars, etc. All bugs sprayed in this
fashion come out aggressive, and will attack anyone
they’re sprayed on.
41. Self-Making Money: When cut in half, the two halves
of this one dollar bill will grow into whole dollars over
the course of 24 hours. The subsequent bills can also be
cut in half with the same effect. The dollar bills all look
like perfectly normal dollar bills, but if left unattended
end up in strange places.
42. Stasis Bag: This four foot long duffel bag is a faded
brown with gear-shaped patterns stitched into it. When
the bag is completely zipped up, its contents are sealed
in stasis. Nothing ages or progresses inside the bag--
it’s as though time is stopped within until it is unzipped
again.
43. Sub-Level Headphones: While wearing these sleek
looking but bulky violet headphones, you can hear
the surface thoughts of anyone in a 30 foot radius. If
there are multiple people in range, you hear all of their
thoughts simultaneously.
44. Superior Soaker: Though it resembles a normal
water gun, with bright yellow trim and light green,
spherical containers for holding water, this is no
children’s toy. The superior soaker fires concentrated
blasts of pressurized water in a thin stream, putting out
about 3,000 PSI of force. Despite the amount of water
rushing out of it, the water drains from its plastic tank
as slowly as it would if this were a normal super soaker
shooting water at a conventional pace.
45. Tactical Guess: This piece of gunmetal gray armor
is composed of a strong fiber weave and interlocking,
chemically enhanced metal plates. It is flexible and
comfortable to wear while being nigh impenetrable.
Every 24 hours, it turns into a different piece of armor-
-maybe a helmet, or a vest, or a pauldron, or a glove,
or something else entirely. Generally, you do not want
to be wearing it when it transforms.
50 modern magic items
46. Teriffic Tattoo Gun: Anyone possessing a tattoo
drawn by this gun can bring their tattoo to life. The
tattoo animates and rises from the skin, looking just
like a realistic version of whatever was depicted. It
will follow the commands of the tattoo owner while
moving and behaving like its image depicts. However,
the construct is the same size as its tattoo was--so, a
tattoo of a tiger becomes a very small but otherwise
normal, commandable tiger. The animated tattoo can
be willed to return to its owner’s body.

47. Undying Ashtray: This ashtray appears to be made

of emerald, or some other impressive, green ore.
Cigarette butts left in this ashtray regenerate back
into full, unsmoked cigarettes over the course of eight
hours.

48. Unusable Umbrella: This tattered, hole-filled

umbrella is an odd shade of blue. If opened in the rain,
the rain will stop falling in a roughly half-mile radius
centered on the umbrella.

49. Vivien’s Advantageous Vending Device: This

colorful vending machine is slightly smaller than a mini
fridge, and has straps so that it can be hauled around
like a backpack. It has a self sustaining power supply
and doesn’t need to be plugged in. When a dollar’s
worth of any recognized currency is inserted into the
machine, it will expel a canned potion of some kind or
another. The potion is completely random but always
clearly labelled, ranging from the useless (“Potion
of Slightly Louder Voice”) to the helpful (“Potion of
Disease Removal”) to, rarely, the incredible (“Potion of
Eternal Beauty”). The number of drinks it can provide
per day is limited, but that number varies from day to
day; you’ll only know the machine is done for the day
when it takes a dollar but dispenses no product. It does
not provide refunds.

50. Wanderer’s Compass: Instead of pointing toward

north, the needle of this compass always points to
where its holder truly considers home. It is a round,
black compass, with a button to make the facing light
up. The lights will never run out of power.