Attuning Fork (or I Almost Started Loving Myself Again)

But, nah, so probably the most significant 5th edition rule that grates on my OSR sensibilities is magic item attunement. 

The idea that certain magic items and their wielder to "form a bond" before the creature can use the item's magical properties is just a little to cozy. I can close my eyes and see Cyberpunk cybertech. (Should there be magic attunement psychosis?) And, as others have noted, the rules are pretty vague on what actually happens during the 1-hour short rest required to bond with such items - the time must be spent "focused on only that item while being in physical contact with it..." This takes away an opportunity to secure a magic item requiring attunement and using it during the battle during which the item is acquired. A total buzz kill.

The universal rule of a 3-item limit, for all creatures (except Artificers), seems inherently meta pox. Ugh. I understand that the 3-item rule only applies to certain magic items and for particular reasons unrelated to an items power, multiplicity of effects, or how interesting the item is (See Sword of Spirit's exhaustive look into the 2014 5e attunement, Reverse Engineering the Real Rules of Attunement, on EN World). 

The 2024 revision Dungeon Master's Guide no longer deigns to disclose a basis for when a particular magic item should require attunement. We can look back at the original 2015 Dungeon Master's Guide which informs (DMG, 2014, pg. 285):

Decide whether the item requires a character to be attuned to it to use its properties. Use these rules of thumb to help you decide:

1. If having all the characters in a party pass an item around to gain its lasting benefits would be disruptive, the item should require attunement.
2. If the item grants a bonus that other items also grant, it's a good idea to require attunement so that characters don't try to collect too many of those items.

Number 1 can be dealt with in other ways such as limits on the number of uses or the time between uses, or having the item be restricted to certain classes, species, etc. This is kind of silly as a reason because even with attunement items granting "lasting benefits" could be passed around.

That makes the reason that makes sense is to prevent stacking which we all know was quite out of control in 3rd edition. Which means keep attunement, but without being needlessly cumbersome.

Here are what I've culled as modified rules of attunement:

Attuning to a magic item may be by an Action that is not automatically successful.

The consequence for failure is you can perform attunement via a short rest. (You may always perform attunement via a short rest.)

When an attempt is made to attune to an item, you must make a difficulty check according to the item type where bonuses to that roll correspond to your character attribute most closely related to the item's function and the check adds your proficiency bonus.

The DC is 10 for common items, 12 uncommon, 14 rare, 16 very rare, 18 legendary, and 20 artifact.

If the check succeeds, you attune to the item. However, if you fail, you must perform attunement via a short rest. Some magic items (e.g. Artifacts) may present unique consequences for failure. 

NOTE: If you have already attuned to 3 items or more there is disadvantage on the check. Your successful check with 3 existing attuned items results that a random pre-existing attunement (that is not a cursed item) ends.

Ending attunement is as standard from the Dungeon Master's Guide.

Attunement ends if:

• You no longer satisfy the prerequisites for attunement.
• The item has been more than 100 feet away from you for at least 24 hours.
• If you die.
• If another creature attunes to the item.
• Or if you voluntarily end attunement by spending another short rest focused on the item unless the item is cursed.