The artificer class prides itself on crafting its own items. Their Infuse Item feature allows them to enchant nonmagical objects, at times replicating existing magical effects. But with so many options, how do you choose which infusions are best for the artificer? This article lists out our 10 favorite infusions for the artificer. To see which magic items may be best for this class, and that can't be replicated by an infusion or an infusion's ability, check out our article on the best magic items for artificers.

1. Replicate magic item
2. Arcane propulsion armor
3. Item enhancements
4. Helm of awareness
5. Homunculus
6. Mind sharpener
7. Radiant weapon
8. Repeating shot
9. Repulsion shield
10. Spell-refueling ring 

Dungeon Masters’ Discretion

While all of these abilities are inherent to the class itself, talk to your DM about what types of items or abilities they prefer to stay out of the game when you decide to play an artificer. It’s understandable that any DM who wanted to exclude a specific item would be frustrated if a player could simply create an item exactly like it, and a cooperative relationship behooves both parties. This could be a great opportunity to create new infusions together.

What Are Artificer Infusions?

Artificers gain the ability to bestow items with magical properties at the 2nd level. These magical properties are called "infusions" and range from providing small mechanical benefits to existing items to creating your own mechanical servant. At 2nd level, artificers learn four infusions and continue to add more to their collection as they level up, culminating at 12 known infusions at 18th level.

The best part about these infusions is that they're meant to be shared! Whether you're buffing your barbarian's greataxe so they can continue to stand between you and danger or you want to help your wizard maintain concentration on their spells, the artificer has an infusion for that!

Top 10 Infusions for Artificers

1. Replicate Magic Item

With the Replicate Magic Item infusion, you can create an identical copy of certain existing magic items at the cost of an infusion slot. Though, don't go off thinking you can recreate any magical item, as there are significant restrictions on replicating these items.

First, there is a set list of items that have the potential to be replicated. It's important to note that any common magic item can also be replicated with this feature (excluding potions and scrolls). Second, more powerful items are locked behind level requirements.

This infusion is unique in that it can be taken multiple times. Each time you take this infusion, you can learn to replicate another magic item. 

2. Arcane Propulsion Armor

Arcane Propulsion Armor is one of the artificer's more powerful infusions, as evidenced by its high prerequisite of 14th level. The armor comes with gauntlets, which deal 1d8 force damage as a melee attack or act as a thrown weapon that immediately returns to your hand. In addition, your walking speed increases by 5 feet, your armor cannot be removed against your will, and the armor replaces any missing limbs. 

If you are an Armorer artificer, you can apply infusions to your Arcane Armor by the time you have access to this infusion. These infusions will transfer over even if you change your armor's model. 

3. Item Enhancements

While maybe not the most exciting use for an infusion, the ability to add a bonus to your spellcasting focus, weapon, or armor is tempting. The bonus granted at 2nd level is +1 and increases to +2 at 10th level, allowing for effective scaling that keeps your infused items relevant.

The least exciting of these options is the Enhanced Arcane Focus, which only adds +1 to your spell attack rolls, not your spell save DC nor damage from spell attacks. On the plus side, it allows you to ignore half cover, benefiting artificers reliant on fire bolt for damage output.

The Enhanced Weapon infusion essentially makes the infused weapon a +1 weapon, which, despite its straightforwardness, is an effective tool. This is best used when your melee damage dealer doesn't have access to a magic weapon to get around damage resistances. For example, if your party has trouble dispatching ghosts and your fighter's mundane sword is to blame, this infusion can make all the difference.

Last, and probably the most powerful, is Enhanced Defense. Getting a flat +1 bonus to your AC is always a solid buff. This is supported by the fact that +1 armor is classified as a rare item, while a +1 weapon is only uncommon.

4. Helm of Awareness

If you like the Alert feat but would rather spend your Ability Score Improvement on something else, the Helm of Awareness infusion is the next best thing. This enhancement grants you advantage on Initiative (mathematically similar to the Alert feat's bonus of +5), and you cannot be surprised while wearing this helm as long as you are not incapacitated.

Though this infusion is neither evocative nor flashy, it could very well save your life.

5. Homunculus

Never make your own lunch again! With the Homunculus artificer infusion, you can create a miniature butler to serve your needs. This infusion presents an excellent opportunity for creativity: Will your homunculus look like a raven, a dancing quill, or perhaps an animated paperclip that helps you write letters? The homunculus is relatively durable, too, with more hit points than most familiars, while also boasting the Evasion trait.

In combat, the homunculus functions similarly to a spellcaster's familiar. It can take the Dodge action, or you can use your bonus action to instruct it to take another action, such as the Help action. You can also channel your magic through the homunculus; as long as it is within 120 feet of you, the homunculus can use its reaction to deliver a spell that you cast with a range of touch.

If you want to take their potential shenanigans to the max, your homunculus can even use a Spell-Storing Item when you're able to create one!

6. Mind Sharpener

A failed save to maintain concentration can dramatically alter the course of an encounter. With the Mind Sharpener infusion, you can imbue your robes or armor with mental defenses that can protect your—or an ally's—concentration.

The mind sharpener infusion grants its corresponding item 4 charges. When its wielder fails a Constitution saving throw to maintain concentration on a spell, they can use their reaction to choose to succeed instead. This is a potent ability. Normally, items might give you advantage or perhaps a bonus, but very few items allow you to decide to succeed on a saving throw. Typically, these types of abilities are saved for high CR monsters with Legendary Resistances. 

The infused item regains 1d4 charges daily at dawn, allowing you to take your mental fortress from one adventure to the next.

7. Radiant Weapon

If you're at 6th level and your party still carries torches or uses the light cantrip to navigate dark places, you may want to look to the Radiant Weapon infusion for help. The weapon you infuse with this ability receives a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls, and as a bonus action, you can cause it to illuminate and shed stronger light than the light cantrip. Further, it's undoubtedly more tactical for your party as you don't need to dedicate a hand to a torch.

The radiant weapon can also attempt to blind opponents. As a reaction after being hit by an attack, you can cause the weapon to flash with brilliance. The opponent must succeed on a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC or become blinded until the end of its next turn. Using this ability after the first strike in a Multiattack is best, as it could save you from the rest of that turn's attacks. 

8. Repeating Shot

Tracking ammunition? How mundane. With the Repeating Shot infusion, you will no longer need to worry about trivial things like arrows, bolts, or bullets. 

With this infusion, you can imbue any weapon with the ammunition property, granting it a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls. In addition, this infusion causes a weapon to ignore its loading property, allowing you to attack more than once with a weapon with this property per turn. This is a solid choice if your Battle Smith wants to run with a heavy crossbow but doesn't want to waste Ability Score Improvements on both the Crossbow Expert and Sharpshooter feats. Instead, you can infuse your crossbow, choose Sharpshooter, and get blasting!

9. Repulsion Shield

Turn your ordinary slab of metal into a powerful defensive device with the Repulsion Shield infusion. While a passive bonus to AC is valuable enough, many of us also want an item that does something.

When you are hit with a melee attack while wielding the infused item, you can use a reaction to expend one of the shield's 4 charges to push the attacker up to 15 feet away. Compare this ability to many other class features (such as the Armorer artificer's Perfected Armor: Guardian ability) or spells that force an enemy's movement (such as lightning lure, thorn whip, gust of wind, or gravity sinkhole). All of these require a saving throw or a successful attack, contain a stipulation about the maximum size of the creature being moved, or both. The repulsion shield, available to your artificer at 6th level, has none of these stipulations. 

10. Spell-Refueling Ring

If you want a pearl of power but are finding it a little hard to find, you need only wait until 6th level to make your own (arguably more stylish) version. This ring requires attunement and allows you to recover a spell slot of up to 3rd level as an action once daily. 

Though the item regains only one spell slot, the artificer benefits more than most classes because they have fewer spell slots than full spellcasters and cannot recover any spell slots during a short rest.

Building an Artificer

With your armor and weapons infused, and perhaps a cute little homunculus floating nearby, you're ready to adventure. Jump into the D&D Beyond character builder and equip your handcrafted items!

Damen Cook (@damen_joseph) is a lifelong fantasy reader, writer, and gamer. If he woke up tomorrow in Faerun, he would bolt through the nearest fey crossing and drink from every stream and eat fruit from every tree in the Feywild until he found that sweet, sweet wild magic.