I'm a newer player to D&D that has been lucky to be playing with some really amazing people since 2015. Within the last year or so, I've started DMing with the support of the group. I recently started a new campaign with them and a few more close friends. One of my players approached me before the start of the campaign asking about playing an Artificer.
My player decided to go the route of the Battle Smith for their Artificer. They recently reached their third level and we were able to work into the story time and a work space for them to create their Iron Defender. They will be soon entering very cold climate. Also, they will be encountering water in the form of high rivers and/or underwater story plot. The players are aware that they may in future travel somewhere cold and when the Artificer built their Iron Defender, the NPC loaning their workspace encouraged using metals that were less likely to be effected by the cold. That said, I am uncertain about how effected their Iron Defender would be by the cold and water (especially being exposed to it by falling in). I wondered what the thoughts of other DMs would be on this.
If following the RAW, as with all constructs, his Iron Defender wouldn't be affected by falling into water. It doesn't have any vulnerabilities to cold either.
That said, there are rules around cold weather on page 110 of the DMG:
EXTREME COLD
Whenever the temperature is at or below 0 degrees Fahrenheit, a creature exposed to the cold must succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving throw at the end of each hour or gain one level of exhaustion. Creatures with resistance or immunity to cold damage automatically succeed on the saving throw, as do creatures wearing cold weather gear (thick coats, gloves, and the like) and creatures naturally adapted to cold climates."
If you wanted water to be a hazard to the Iron Defender - which I think is a cool idea - you could adapt the above rules, theming exhaustion as seizing mechanisms, gears, etc. That gives your players an additional challenge to fording an icy river, which could result in some really creative outcomes.
I thought that might be the case, but I wanted to confirm with others since I'm newer to this. Thank you for getting back to me and giving me some more ideas for challenges faced by the Iron Defender.
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I'm a newer player to D&D that has been lucky to be playing with some really amazing people since 2015. Within the last year or so, I've started DMing with the support of the group. I recently started a new campaign with them and a few more close friends. One of my players approached me before the start of the campaign asking about playing an Artificer.
My player decided to go the route of the Battle Smith for their Artificer. They recently reached their third level and we were able to work into the story time and a work space for them to create their Iron Defender. They will be soon entering very cold climate. Also, they will be encountering water in the form of high rivers and/or underwater story plot. The players are aware that they may in future travel somewhere cold and when the Artificer built their Iron Defender, the NPC loaning their workspace encouraged using metals that were less likely to be effected by the cold. That said, I am uncertain about how effected their Iron Defender would be by the cold and water (especially being exposed to it by falling in). I wondered what the thoughts of other DMs would be on this.
Thank you.
Hi ccsneiko,
If following the RAW, as with all constructs, his Iron Defender wouldn't be affected by falling into water. It doesn't have any vulnerabilities to cold either.
That said, there are rules around cold weather on page 110 of the DMG:
If you wanted water to be a hazard to the Iron Defender - which I think is a cool idea - you could adapt the above rules, theming exhaustion as seizing mechanisms, gears, etc. That gives your players an additional challenge to fording an icy river, which could result in some really creative outcomes.
Hi Chequers,
I thought that might be the case, but I wanted to confirm with others since I'm newer to this. Thank you for getting back to me and giving me some more ideas for challenges faced by the Iron Defender.