The infusions/replicate magic items take up a large part of the power budget for Artificers.
What if the artificer did not get the ability to replicate magic items, but instead crafts small items to cast their spells? Elixers/poisons/reagent mixtures, runes/glyphs, trapped elemental energies, or resonance crystals. It's flavor, but much of the casting is flavor already. Going deep on this would be assigning a gold cost to spell levels and requiring spending gold and downtime to produce said items. 1st lvl is 5gp, 2nd is 25gp, 3rd is 125gp, 4th is 625gp, and 5th lvl at 3125gp per spell item. Could become lots of book-keeping that could bog down table fun.
Still half-casters in that spells mostly top out at 5th lvl. So still dependent on class features for power.
Magic Tinker similar to TCoE version, but limit is gold cost, time and duration. Too accessible and then there's the question of why go adventuring.
All Artificer spells would require material and somatic components but not require any verbal components. Some of the first part is already a class requirement, the second part would be new. You need the thing and you need to active the thing. You don't need to talk to the thing. "Please work this time" evokes a lack of confidence in one's work. And snappy one-liners should not be required for casting.
All Artificer spells could last the full duration unless dispelled or nullified without concentration but can't be modified after cast. Can't change an Illusion or what a Dominated person would do or change the target of Hunter's Mark, but things like Fairey Fire and Heat Metal have fairly straightforward effects. Using Magic Weapon on two different weapons before a fight also becomes an option.
Immunity to Counterspell when casting an Artificer spell. They don't have much in the way of spells, but they always get to cast what they've got.
Crafting Magical items in a reduced time/cost would still be part of the class, but that's more of the retirement plan, not a large part of the adventuring career. Also a class specific creation: Artificer's Staff (hammer, axe, pick, shovel, saw, immovable brace/boom, or any other oddly useful tool).
Players get to select spells to add to the artificer list at certain levels, making the class very customizable. 2nd lvl - add a cantrip or 1st lvl spell, one free cast of a 1st lvl Artificer spell per long rest. 4th lvl - add a 1st or 2nd lvl spell, one free cast of a 2nd lvl Artificer spell per long rest. 7th lvl - add a 2nd or 3rd lvl spell, one free cast of a 3rd lvl Artificer spell per long rest. 10th lvl - add a 3rd or 4th lvl spell, one free cast of a 4th lvl Artificer spell per long rest. 13th lvl - add a 4th or 5th lvl spell, one free cast of a 5th lvl Artificer spell per long rest. select subclasses 15th lvl option, add a 6th lvl spell, one free cast of a 6th lvl Artificer spell per long rest.
Draining magic items for spell slots could still be a thing, but it's any magic item that is not an Artifact/Sentient.
I'm not really sure what you're trying to accomplish per se. If you don't want infusions, you can just be a wizard and flavor all your spells as magic items too.
Having to pay gold for every spell seems like a significant new limitation, and I'm not clear what benefits you'd get in return? What am I overlooking?
I think you could get what you want by just making a wizard with one level dip of Artificer.
The infusions/replicate magic items take up a large part of the power budget for Artificers.
What if the artificer did not get the ability to replicate magic items, but instead crafts small items to cast their spells? Elixers/poisons/reagent mixtures, runes/glyphs, trapped elemental energies, or resonance crystals. It's flavor, but much of the casting is flavor already. Going deep on this would be assigning a gold cost to spell levels and requiring spending gold and downtime to produce said items. 1st lvl is 5gp, 2nd is 25gp, 3rd is 125gp, 4th is 625gp, and 5th lvl at 3125gp per spell item. Could become lots of book-keeping that could bog down table fun.
That doesn't sound fun at all. That's an insane amount of gold expenditure per day just to function as a class plus you are taking away one of the remnants of their original magic item crafting abilities. Imagine that instead of just buying your standard gear (Artificer gear is already expensive), you also have to reserve enough money to be able to cast anything above a cantrip. Add to that, any time you cast a spell, it drains GP that you would use for upgrades and crafting that you claim is preserved. Artificers will either be useless in combat or too broke to ever upgrade.
Magic Tinker similar to TCoE version, but limit is gold cost, time and duration. Too accessible and then there's the question of why go adventuring.
What? The effects can be used creatively, but they are on par with Minor Illusion, Light, and similar cantrips. How exactly do you think these effects invalidate adventuring?
Draining magic items for spell slots could still be a thing, but it's any magic item that is not an Artifact/Sentient.
Permanently drain a magic item (one that costs gold and time to create) for one spell slot that you then are going to charge gold to use? That's absurdly bad.
I feel like you watched a video on how cool an Artificer was and thought up a way to nerf the class because you perceived it to be OP. It's not and this isn't a nerf, it's a complete invalidation. If you think the Artificer is overpowered, most sources consider full casters or the Fighters/Barbarians, depending on the source, to be at the top. I've seen the Artificer ranked at the bottom, but usually it's considered mid-high compared to other classes. The Artificer as written is different than other classes. It deserves to exist in D&D as it is, not as a crippled Wizard crushed by student load debt.
If you just thought "oh he's making things, it should cost GP". Remember that the "items" don't persist after the spell is cast and the Wizard is shooting off Fireballs all day, every day without replenishing his supply of Bat Poop and Sulfur. Ever.
The infusions/replicate magic items take up a large part of the power budget for Artificers.
What if the artificer did not get the ability to replicate magic items, but instead crafts small items to cast their spells? Elixers/poisons/reagent mixtures, runes/glyphs, trapped elemental energies, or resonance crystals. It's flavor, but much of the casting is flavor already. Going deep on this would be assigning a gold cost to spell levels and requiring spending gold and downtime to produce said items. 1st lvl is 5gp, 2nd is 25gp, 3rd is 125gp, 4th is 625gp, and 5th lvl at 3125gp per spell item. Could become lots of book-keeping that could bog down table fun.
Still half-casters in that spells mostly top out at 5th lvl. So still dependent on class features for power.
Magic Tinker similar to TCoE version, but limit is gold cost, time and duration. Too accessible and then there's the question of why go adventuring.
All Artificer spells would require material and somatic components but not require any verbal components. Some of the first part is already a class requirement, the second part would be new. You need the thing and you need to active the thing. You don't need to talk to the thing. "Please work this time" evokes a lack of confidence in one's work. And snappy one-liners should not be required for casting.
All Artificer spells could last the full duration unless dispelled or nullified without concentration but can't be modified after cast. Can't change an Illusion or what a Dominated person would do or change the target of Hunter's Mark, but things like Fairey Fire and Heat Metal have fairly straightforward effects. Using Magic Weapon on two different weapons before a fight also becomes an option.
Immunity to Counterspell when casting an Artificer spell. They don't have much in the way of spells, but they always get to cast what they've got.
Crafting Magical items in a reduced time/cost would still be part of the class, but that's more of the retirement plan, not a large part of the adventuring career. Also a class specific creation: Artificer's Staff (hammer, axe, pick, shovel, saw, immovable brace/boom, or any other oddly useful tool).
Players get to select spells to add to the artificer list at certain levels, making the class very customizable.
2nd lvl - add a cantrip or 1st lvl spell, one free cast of a 1st lvl Artificer spell per long rest.
4th lvl - add a 1st or 2nd lvl spell, one free cast of a 2nd lvl Artificer spell per long rest.
7th lvl - add a 2nd or 3rd lvl spell, one free cast of a 3rd lvl Artificer spell per long rest.
10th lvl - add a 3rd or 4th lvl spell, one free cast of a 4th lvl Artificer spell per long rest.
13th lvl - add a 4th or 5th lvl spell, one free cast of a 5th lvl Artificer spell per long rest.
select subclasses 15th lvl option, add a 6th lvl spell, one free cast of a 6th lvl Artificer spell per long rest.
Draining magic items for spell slots could still be a thing, but it's any magic item that is not an Artifact/Sentient.
I'm not really sure what you're trying to accomplish per se. If you don't want infusions, you can just be a wizard and flavor all your spells as magic items too.
Having to pay gold for every spell seems like a significant new limitation, and I'm not clear what benefits you'd get in return? What am I overlooking?
I think you could get what you want by just making a wizard with one level dip of Artificer.
Yeah, that it usually the entire point of playing artificers. A wizard might just be a better choice.
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That doesn't sound fun at all. That's an insane amount of gold expenditure per day just to function as a class plus you are taking away one of the remnants of their original magic item crafting abilities. Imagine that instead of just buying your standard gear (Artificer gear is already expensive), you also have to reserve enough money to be able to cast anything above a cantrip. Add to that, any time you cast a spell, it drains GP that you would use for upgrades and crafting that you claim is preserved. Artificers will either be useless in combat or too broke to ever upgrade.
What? The effects can be used creatively, but they are on par with Minor Illusion, Light, and similar cantrips. How exactly do you think these effects invalidate adventuring?
Permanently drain a magic item (one that costs gold and time to create) for one spell slot that you then are going to charge gold to use? That's absurdly bad.
I feel like you watched a video on how cool an Artificer was and thought up a way to nerf the class because you perceived it to be OP. It's not and this isn't a nerf, it's a complete invalidation. If you think the Artificer is overpowered, most sources consider full casters or the Fighters/Barbarians, depending on the source, to be at the top. I've seen the Artificer ranked at the bottom, but usually it's considered mid-high compared to other classes. The Artificer as written is different than other classes. It deserves to exist in D&D as it is, not as a crippled Wizard crushed by student load debt.
If you just thought "oh he's making things, it should cost GP". Remember that the "items" don't persist after the spell is cast and the Wizard is shooting off Fireballs all day, every day without replenishing his supply of Bat Poop and Sulfur. Ever.
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My houserulings.