So there a about q handful of things in the Artificer class that don’t make much sense to me and since it came out i have been brainstorming ways to fix it and i think i have come up with some:
Tools Acquired (1st-level enhances spellcasting)
As an action you can grant a creature you can touch the ability to cast a spell of any level which you have prepared. They can cast the spell a number of times equal up to your Intelligence modifier, or less, before the magic fades. This can end early if you take another action to take away this ability from, if you give up your knowledge of the spell or if you die. For the duration of this ability you lose the ability to cast the spell which you have “given” to another person. If it is a spell of first level or higher it consumes one of your spell slots, for each time they cast it.
(This is my fix to the idea that if you have created an item that produces/imitates the effects of a spell you would be able to give said item to another person for them to use it as well. It ends up being like a much weaker Spell-Storing Item, but still uses spell slots)
Enhanced Tools (6th-level enhances Right Tool for the Job)
Whenever you produce a tool with the “Right Tool for the Job” feature, you gain a +1 to all ability checks that are made with the tools.
(Pretty self explanatory. I understand why they don't what you to have a +1 item super early on but i feel like it should happen at some point)
Dragonblaster (3rd-level Artillerist, replaces Flamethrower [just the flamethrower])
The turret exhales magical energy an adjacent 15-foot cone that you designate. When you summon it choose; acid, cold, fire, lightning or poison damage. Each creature in that area must make a Dexterity saving throw against your spell save DC, taking 1d8 of the chosen damage on a failed save or half as much damage on a successful one.
(It took me awhile to figure out what irked me about this class, and i think its that my least favorite thing is when a non-elemental based class forces specific damage types on the character. So i added choice while keeping a lot of the same imagery that the original invokes.)
New Infusion Option: Wand Prototype
6th-level, Item: A Wand (requires attunment)
While holding this wand, a creature gains a +1 bonus to spell attack rolls. Additionally when you infuse this item, you invest it with one artificer cantrip of your choice—even one you don’t know that has a casting time of 1 action. As an action, an attuned creature can cause the magic wand to produce the cantrip, using your spellcasting ability modifier.
(I always thought that this was a cool idea, but gad too many restrictions and felt kinda out of place in the original UA for this version of the Artificer. However i think its a really cool infusion so here we are)
Tools Acquired: Absolutely not. In no way should handing your spell to someone else be better than casting it yourself. Your feature, as proposed, means that when you cast a spell directly it consumes one slot for one spell, whereas just handing your entire spell list off to your allies allows them to cast up to five spells for each spell slot you have. This is immensely punitive to artificers that want to cast THEIR OWN spells, instead of being the party *****boi magic-mule who exists purely to let other people have fun.
Everybody needs to just forget that the 3.5e version of SSI ever existed, please.
Enhanced Tools: I can see the logic behind it, but isn't Tool Expertise supposed to be our 'Good With Tools' thing? A +1 to checks made with tools feels a lot less impactful than Expertise with tools. At sixth level, that's a +3 instead of a +1. I get that this is a boost to tools you aren't proficient in as well, which is nice, but I'm not sure it's enough of one to really matter in the end.
Dragon Blaster: Sure. An artificer should be able to figure out a [What]thrower as well as just a flamethrower. I'd honestly consider just letting the 'thrower' blast be force as well, but some folks like their elemental damage. Gotta cook dem trolls.
Wand Prototype: I'm not sure about letting any yaybo in the squad use it, but then again I'm apparently super bizarre in my thought that the artificer should be able to be a useful adventurer in her own right rather than just a magical vending machine best left at the entrance of the dungeon. Otherwise I could see this, if perhaps reinvented as a 'Wand of Blasting' that stores damage cantrips only. Let the artificer offload their magical combat to their infusions as well as their weapon combat. You'd have to change the wording to "cast the cantrip" though, in order to properly interact with the Alchemist and Artificer bonus-damage features.
It does say that it consumes a spell slot, its not a free cast of the spell. And since when is MORE options equated to “forcing PCs to be a slave to a party”??? If thats how the people you play with act then you have a bad party my dude. (Although i do see where my rewording before i posted it accidentally removed the slot consuming i shall edit)
Also, i kinda forget about the expertise but its in addition to it for added bonus. Idk its just a thought.
The wand prototype would be another to give yourself more cantrips as well which is almost necessary, in your own words. And thanks for the tip on wording!
Heh. Your original wording of the feature came off as "the artificer expends the spell slot once, then the Other Guy can cast the spell freely up to INT times." That is blatantly unacceptable for the reasons I stated - the artificer should never feel like using their class features themselves is the suboptimal choice.
That is, however, how a subset of artificer players (primarily older 3.5e players for whom 'the party artificer' was very much nothing but a magic item factory and general NPC someone was unfairly saddled with) feel the artificer should be played - they should exist solely to give things to other party members, never keeping their items, abilities, or resources for their own use. I am violently opposed to this notion on fundamental levels and disagree strongly with anything that encourages it.
Heh. Your original wording of the feature came off as "the artificer expends the spell slot once, then the Other Guy can cast the spell freely up to INT times." That is blatantly unacceptable for the reasons I stated - the artificer should never feel like using their class features themselves is the suboptimal choice.
That is, however, how a subset of artificer players (primarily older 3.5e players for whom 'the party artificer' was very much nothing but a magic item factory and general NPC someone was unfairly saddled with) feel the artificer should be played - they should exist solely to give things to other party members, never keeping their items, abilities, or resources for their own use. I am violently opposed to this notion on fundamental levels and disagree strongly with anything that encourages it.
Yeah no i 100% agree with you. Any class thats doesn't feel like it can stand on its own, or even appears like it cant, has no place in this game. Especially in 5e.
I just like the option of being able to share, but at a cost so its not necessarily better to do so, its just an option
If we're taking suggestions on changing class features...
Make both Magical Tinkering and Right Tool for the Job able to work via Tinker tools or Thieves tools. That way you always have one or the other, and the issues with starting the game without a tinker tool disappears.
Right tool for the job, I'd change in two ways. You get two options with it. These two optiosn can not exist at the same time. 1: make the tool in 1 action-but gain no proriency it lasts 1 hour. This is made of briefly existing magic given form through your knowledge of schematics and bits and bobs scrapped together from the enviroment. 2: Spend 1 hour to create a tool, this is a nonmagical item (as per the current form) and you gain profiency in those tools for as long as they exist.
These two changes would allow the Alchemist the peverabial ability to "scrape together from nothing" as so much of its class features require tools inherently which makes some game structures extre punatiive such as the Jail scenario, or lost at sea scenario-though the same happens ot wizards and spell books I ssuppose only more expensive. Except the requirement for the spell focus Tools for any spells. I.e. if you have no tools you cant even use a cantrip-or any class ability. While a wizard (I believe?) can still retain access to cantrips until they find their spellbook again. It also allows the artificer to actually "in the moment" produce a solution-even without profiency they could try with the tool, or hand it off to someone who does know. As opposed to waiting an hour. Its their form of "fix the problem with a spell" that full casters have.
(Well also I'd personally replace Alchemist's Elixirs with the old Alchemist bag- with a few adjustments but I just really want a character that way. I'm well aware I'm biased)
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So there a about q handful of things in the Artificer class that don’t make much sense to me and since it came out i have been brainstorming ways to fix it and i think i have come up with some:
Tools Acquired (1st-level enhances spellcasting)
As an action you can grant a creature you can touch the ability to cast a spell of any level which you have prepared. They can cast the spell a number of times equal up to your Intelligence modifier, or less, before the magic fades. This can end early if you take another action to take away this ability from, if you give up your knowledge of the spell or if you die. For the duration of this ability you lose the ability to cast the spell which you have “given” to another person. If it is a spell of first level or higher it consumes one of your spell slots, for each time they cast it.
(This is my fix to the idea that if you have created an item that produces/imitates the effects of a spell you would be able to give said item to another person for them to use it as well. It ends up being like a much weaker Spell-Storing Item, but still uses spell slots)
Enhanced Tools (6th-level enhances Right Tool for the Job)
Whenever you produce a tool with the “Right Tool for the Job” feature, you gain a +1 to all ability checks that are made with the tools.
(Pretty self explanatory. I understand why they don't what you to have a +1 item super early on but i feel like it should happen at some point)
Dragonblaster (3rd-level Artillerist, replaces Flamethrower [just the flamethrower])
The turret exhales magical energy an adjacent 15-foot cone that you designate. When you summon it choose; acid, cold, fire, lightning or poison damage. Each creature in that area must make a Dexterity saving throw against your spell save DC, taking 1d8 of the chosen damage on a failed save or half as much damage on a successful one.
(It took me awhile to figure out what irked me about this class, and i think its that my least favorite thing is when a non-elemental based class forces specific damage types on the character. So i added choice while keeping a lot of the same imagery that the original invokes.)
New Infusion Option: Wand Prototype
6th-level, Item: A Wand (requires attunment)
While holding this wand, a creature gains a +1
bonus to spell attack rolls.
Additionally when you infuse this item, you invest it with one artificer cantrip of your choice—even one you don’t know that has a casting time of 1 action. As an action, an attuned creature can cause the magic wand to produce the cantrip, using your spellcasting ability modifier.
(I always thought that this was a cool idea, but gad too many restrictions and felt kinda out of place in the original UA for this version of the Artificer. However i think its a really cool infusion so here we are)
Thoughts? Additions? Subtractions?
Tools Acquired:
Absolutely not. In no way should handing your spell to someone else be better than casting it yourself. Your feature, as proposed, means that when you cast a spell directly it consumes one slot for one spell, whereas just handing your entire spell list off to your allies allows them to cast up to five spells for each spell slot you have. This is immensely punitive to artificers that want to cast THEIR OWN spells, instead of being the party *****boi magic-mule who exists purely to let other people have fun.
Everybody needs to just forget that the 3.5e version of SSI ever existed, please.
Enhanced Tools:
I can see the logic behind it, but isn't Tool Expertise supposed to be our 'Good With Tools' thing? A +1 to checks made with tools feels a lot less impactful than Expertise with tools. At sixth level, that's a +3 instead of a +1. I get that this is a boost to tools you aren't proficient in as well, which is nice, but I'm not sure it's enough of one to really matter in the end.
Dragon Blaster:
Sure. An artificer should be able to figure out a [What]thrower as well as just a flamethrower. I'd honestly consider just letting the 'thrower' blast be force as well, but some folks like their elemental damage. Gotta cook dem trolls.
Wand Prototype:
I'm not sure about letting any yaybo in the squad use it, but then again I'm apparently super bizarre in my thought that the artificer should be able to be a useful adventurer in her own right rather than just a magical vending machine best left at the entrance of the dungeon. Otherwise I could see this, if perhaps reinvented as a 'Wand of Blasting' that stores damage cantrips only. Let the artificer offload their magical combat to their infusions as well as their weapon combat. You'd have to change the wording to "cast the cantrip" though, in order to properly interact with the Alchemist and Artificer bonus-damage features.
Please do not contact or message me.
It does say that it consumes a spell slot, its not a free cast of the spell. And since when is MORE options equated to “forcing PCs to be a slave to a party”??? If thats how the people you play with act then you have a bad party my dude. (Although i do see where my rewording before i posted it accidentally removed the slot consuming i shall edit)
Also, i kinda forget about the expertise but its in addition to it for added bonus. Idk its just a thought.
The wand prototype would be another to give yourself more cantrips as well which is almost necessary, in your own words. And thanks for the tip on wording!
Heh. Your original wording of the feature came off as "the artificer expends the spell slot once, then the Other Guy can cast the spell freely up to INT times." That is blatantly unacceptable for the reasons I stated - the artificer should never feel like using their class features themselves is the suboptimal choice.
That is, however, how a subset of artificer players (primarily older 3.5e players for whom 'the party artificer' was very much nothing but a magic item factory and general NPC someone was unfairly saddled with) feel the artificer should be played - they should exist solely to give things to other party members, never keeping their items, abilities, or resources for their own use. I am violently opposed to this notion on fundamental levels and disagree strongly with anything that encourages it.
Please do not contact or message me.
Yeah no i 100% agree with you. Any class thats doesn't feel like it can stand on its own, or even appears like it cant, has no place in this game. Especially in 5e.
I just like the option of being able to share, but at a cost so its not necessarily better to do so, its just an option
Right tool for the job: Enhanced existing feature. "you are considered "proficient" with any tool you produce using this feature".
Thats a good point! I forgot you aren’t necessarily proficient in what you make
If we're taking suggestions on changing class features...
Make both Magical Tinkering and Right Tool for the Job able to work via Tinker tools or Thieves tools. That way you always have one or the other, and the issues with starting the game without a tinker tool disappears.
Right tool for the job, I'd change in two ways. You get two options with it. These two optiosn can not exist at the same time.
1: make the tool in 1 action-but gain no proriency it lasts 1 hour. This is made of briefly existing magic given form through your knowledge of schematics and bits and bobs scrapped together from the enviroment.
2: Spend 1 hour to create a tool, this is a nonmagical item (as per the current form) and you gain profiency in those tools for as long as they exist.
These two changes would allow the Alchemist the peverabial ability to "scrape together from nothing" as so much of its class features require tools inherently which makes some game structures extre punatiive such as the Jail scenario, or lost at sea scenario-though the same happens ot wizards and spell books I ssuppose only more expensive. Except the requirement for the spell focus Tools for any spells. I.e. if you have no tools you cant even use a cantrip-or any class ability. While a wizard (I believe?) can still retain access to cantrips until they find their spellbook again.
It also allows the artificer to actually "in the moment" produce a solution-even without profiency they could try with the tool, or hand it off to someone who does know. As opposed to waiting an hour. Its their form of "fix the problem with a spell" that full casters have.
(Well also I'd personally replace Alchemist's Elixirs with the old Alchemist bag- with a few adjustments but I just really want a character that way. I'm well aware I'm biased)