I adore homebrewing, I love the framework that 5E provides and how easy it is to create something within that space. I also enjoy high magic item settings. I would rather overflow my players with magic items than be stingy with them. Feast rather than famine. I want magic items to be something the player choses depending on their goal, their surrounding or the foe they are expecting to fight, something that is part of the strategic layer.

I also really enjoy ‘powerful’ items, of course balance and all that, but that’s in your hands at the end of the day. As long as all players have at least one item that makes them go ‘Holy Shit this is amazing’ and makes them shine (preferably in a way that is similar enough to avoid jealousy but unique enough to provide identity) everything is balanced.

The Tome of Farbalv is one of those corner items. The, everyone-gets-at-least-one kind of special magic item that borders on requiring the Legendary rarity. I like these corner items to have a measure of growth within them. They should be cool when the players receive them but should evolve… either through plot (as is the case with this item) or through certain (semi-hidden) milestones. It does involve the transformation into a tiefling so it pays to know your player, if they are very attached to their race… maybe skip this one. (Unrequested transformations should be a session 0 topic!)

The Tome of Farbalv started out looking like this:


Lesser Book of Darkness

This dark leather-bound tome with gold trim and inlay displays a fiend’s skull on the cover.

Book, Rare, Dormant (requires attunement)

To attune to this book you must spend eight hours total reading and studying it. Once fully attuned you receive a fiendish rune branded upon the inside of your palm which allows you to summon and dismiss the book at will and enable the use of the following boons.

Dark Lore: When carrying the book you have advantage on history checks related to demons, fiends and aspects of evil.

Dark Speech: As an action you can read from the book, recounting one of its indecipherable pages. You take 1d12 psychic damage and up to the three creatures of your choosing that are within 40 feet of you suffer 3d8 psychic damage.

It’s important to stick in that ‘dormant’ part as it hints the player that there might be more to this book. This is where the fun starts. The player has the book and every morning you make them roll a D20. If it’s low… mention nothing. If it strays into the 10+ territory, describe a change in their body that heads towards tiefling. In example; “As you awaken you stretch out, scratch through your hair and find that… the skin around the book’s brand starts to shift in hue. It looks… (insert colour). It doesn’t hurt or feel irritated. It feels fresh and healthy… odd.”

As the days go on, and they start rolling higher, describe subtle changes. Growing stubby horns, their skin continuing to change in hue. If the character is near a source of heat, off handily comment that they are not bothered by it as much.

In case the player figures out they are turning into a tiefling, say “You’re unsure,” at the table, but contact them after the game and tell them that they are absolutely right. Either they will be excited or they may want to unattune the book next session. If they are excited, allow them agency! Allow them to describe their next steps into the transformation, allow them a vision of their character as a tiefling.

Once the character is indistinguishable from a tiefling, the book changes:

Tmy Balv (The Bond)

This dark leather-bound tome with gold trim and inlay displays a fiend’s skull on the cover.

Book, Rare, Awakened (requires attunement)

Dark Lore: When carrying the book you have advantage on history checks related to demons, fiends and aspects of evil.

Dark Speech: As an action you can read from the book, recounting one of its indecipherable pages. Up to the three creatures of your choosing that are within 40 feet of you suffer 3d8 psychic damage. This feature can be used once, recharging on a short or long rest.

Boon of the Fiend: As you further your connection to the bond you become a tiefling and gain the following traits in addition to the traits you have from your original race.
Hellish Resistance: You have resistance to fire damage.
Languages: You can speak, read and write Infernal.
Devil’s Guile: You can cast the Hellish Rebuke spell once as a 2nd level spell and you can cast the Disguise Self spell once . You must finish a long rest to cast these spells again with this trait.

If you unattune from this book you will revert to your original race over the span of two days and will lose the traits granted.

And this is where you could probably stop it. It’s a good item with lots of features. It has damage capability, utility. This’ll likely always be attuned. But if you’re running high power campaigns like I do (and have such cursed yourself to homebrewing and hand balancing every encounter…) you might take it up a notch.

Tmy Balv (The Bond)

This dark leather-bound tome with gold trim and inlay displays a fiend’s skull on the cover.

Book, Rare, Realised (no longer requires attunement)

Dark Lore: When carrying the book you have advantage on history checks related to demons, fiends and aspects of evil.

Dark Speech: As an action you can read from the book, recounting one of its indecipherable pages. Up to the three creatures of your choosing that are within 40 feet of you suffer 3d8 psychic damage. This feature can be used once, recharging on a short or long rest.

Boon of the Fiend: As you further your connection to the bond you become a tiefling and gain the following traits in addition to the traits you have from your original race.
Hellish Resistance: You have resistance to fire damage.
Languages: You can speak, read and write Infernal.
Devil’s Guile: You can cast the Hellish Rebuke spell once as a 2nd level spell and you can cast the Disguise Self spell once . You must finish a long rest to cast these spells again with this trait.
Dark Boon: Whenever you hit with a weapon or damaging spell, you may add 1d6 psychic damage.

It no longer requires attunement, signifying that this book has become a part of the character permanently and they can now copy the traits onto their character sheet. It is a bold power-up to the character and a mid to high level treat.

Further customisation can be applied as well. Obviously the name should be changed if you decide to copy it into your game. If the damage bonus is too steep change it to a D4 or remove it all together. None of the players like tieflings? Perhaps an aasimar transformation instead.

If all goes well, you’ve created an item that contributes to the growth of the character, changes them and compliments their arc. Perhaps even becoming a pillar, a measure of identity that they did not start out with.