Comparison

Magwa's Magic Item Compendium vs DnD 5e Encounter Keep

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Magwa's Magic Item Compendium

Discover and create thousands of unique magic items for your tabletop RPG adventures. This app offers a vast collection of hand-drawn items, random generation, and the ability to save your favorites. Perfect for dungeon masters and players seeking inspiration.

Highlights
  • Thousands of random magic item generation
  • Create custom magic items
  • Save favorite items
  • Over 30 free hand-drawn sketches
  • Reference ready-to-use items
  • Compatible with D&D 5e SRD
Features
Read full description

Magwa, the most prestigious scholar of arcane antiquities, has spent his life traveling the Vast Kingdom in search of powerful and fascinating magic items. He has explored the darkest dungeons and braved the dens of dragons to bring you a magic item collection like you've never seen. He has finally published a portion of his discoveries in this mobile application for you to use in your next RPG adventure. His work includes over 30 free hand-drawn sketches and the option to buy many more. It even includes the ability to randomly generate items, create your own, and save them for later use. Magic, right? While the compendium is simple to use, it is more than just a random magic item generator. As a dungeon master, you will have the power to generate thousands of random magic items with a single tap. You will also be able to create your own custom magic items or adapt random magic items to fit your game setting. Once you find an item you love, the magic item compendium lets you save it to your phone so you can pull it up quickly the next time you play. To top it all off, the compendium includes a handful of wondrous items that are ready for you to reference and use in your game. The app is compatible with 5e materials and even pulls some of your favorite magic items straight from the D&D Systems Reference Document (SRD) via the Open Gaming License. End User License Agreement: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

DnD 5e Encounter Keep

This app helps Dungeon Masters manage Dungeons and Dragons 5e encounters in real-time. It allows for pre-planning battles, inviting players to see stats, and automating combat actions. Features include monster management, encounter generation, and built-in cheatsheets for easier gameplay.

Highlights
  • Real-time encounter management
  • Player and enemy stat tracking
  • Automated attack rolls
  • Built-in monster sheets
  • Custom monster creation
  • Encounter generation
Features
Read full description

Welcome to Encounter Keep, your real-time battle tracker for Dungeons and Dragons 5e. As a Dungeon Master, you can plan your encounters and invite your players to join, enabling you to see each other's stats. With the built-in cheatsheets, monster sheets, and automatic attack system, running encounters has never been easier. Leave the battle management to Encounter Keep, so you can focus on having fun. DESIGN YOUR BATTLES: - Prepare for your next session by creating encounters in advance. - Select a difficulty and add monsters from a vast list of enemies. - Create custom monsters for your epic boss battles. GENERATE ENCOUNTERS: - Automatically generate encounters for different player levels and difficulties. - Support different encounter types: boss fight, boss with minions, horde of monsters etc... - Specify environment and enemy type for a better monster match. INVITE YOUR PLAYERS: - You and your players can see each other's characters in real time. - Roll for initiative and control the encounter as you want. - Check your players' character sheets as they update their HP and other stats. MANAGE ENEMIES: - Streamline the encounter with automated enemy attack rolls. - Access built-in detailed info sheets for hundreds of monsters. - Quickly manage the enemies, tracking their hit points, armour class, and other stats during the fight. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula

Screenshots

Magwa's Magic Item Compendium4 screens
DnD 5e Encounter Keep4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: DnD 5e Encounter Keep at none against Magwa's Magic Item Compendium's 11. DnD 5e Encounter Keep also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 77%). Magwa's Magic Item Compendium's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (73 vs 2). On price, rating, update cadence and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Magwa's Magic Item Compendium sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. DnD 5e Encounter Keep asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

DnD 5e Encounter Keep holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Magwa's Magic Item Compendium has 73 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 77% of Magwa's Magic Item Compendium's written reviews are positive against 100% of DnD 5e Encounter Keep's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Magwa's Magic Item Compendium versus DnD 5e Encounter Keep: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMagwa's Magic Item CompendiumDnD 5e Encounter Keep
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (73 ratings)4.5 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews77.1% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings73 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesAd-supported — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS13.012.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size31 MB26 MB
Age rating9+9+
DeveloperKnights of Vasteel LLCFanni Putnoczki

Customer experience

Magwa's Magic Item Compendium

All ratings71 ratings
Positive83.1%
Neutral7.0%
Negative9.9%
Written reviews48 reviews
Positive77.1%
Neutral12.5%
Negative10.4%

DnD 5e Encounter Keep

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Magwa's Magic Item Compendium

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • Subscription information missing
  • Purchased images/data not downloading
  • Un-named magic item groups cannot be deleted/edited
  • Saved items lost after updates
  • App crashes
Show 4 more
  • Cannot open on computer or copy-paste text
  • Darkwood wand image not selectable/visible on iOS
  • Download issues after purchase
  • Purchased content inaccessible after update

Requested features

10 requests
  • Add landscape mode for iPad
  • Improve scrolling between items
  • Add a back button for easier navigation
  • Include a 'common' rarity selection
  • Allow users to choose from personal pictures
Show 5 more
  • Add curses as a feature
  • Create a bestiary/creature generator
  • Add more weapon types
  • Discounted option to buy all packs
  • Christmas-themed pack

DnD 5e Encounter Keep

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

11 purchases

Magwa's Magic Item Compendium

Subscriptions1
  • Monthly Subscription$1.991 Month
One-time10
  • The Master Collection$0.99
  • Elves of Ilfelin$0.99
  • Mines of Dimlodir$0.99
Show 7 more
  • Gafan's Workshop$0.99
  • The Red Ravens$0.99
  • The Shadow Index$0.99
  • Seas of the Viamaros$0.99
  • Magic Item Hunters$0.99
  • Swords of Vasteel$0.99
  • The Alchemist Shop$0.99
None

DnD 5e Encounter Keep

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Magwa's Magic Item Compendium free?
Magwa's Magic Item Compendium is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is DnD 5e Encounter Keep free?
DnD 5e Encounter Keep is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Magwa's Magic Item Compendium or DnD 5e Encounter Keep?
DnD 5e Encounter Keep is rated higher. Magwa's Magic Item Compendium averages 4.3 out of 5 from 73 ratings, while DnD 5e Encounter Keep averages 4.5 from 2 ratings.
Do Magwa's Magic Item Compendium or DnD 5e Encounter Keep have ads?
DnD 5e Encounter Keep shows ads; Magwa's Magic Item Compendium does not.
Which is updated more often, Magwa's Magic Item Compendium or DnD 5e Encounter Keep?
Magwa's Magic Item Compendium ships an update every 2 months, and DnD 5e Encounter Keep every 2 months. Most recently, Magwa's Magic Item Compendium was updated on October 24, 2026 and DnD 5e Encounter Keep on October 27, 2026.

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