Battalion Bowyer

Creating a bow or crossbow may not seem terribly difficult to those with even enough knowledge to use such tools, but creating a truly excellent iteration of these weapons takes a knowledge few can even fathom. Battalion Bowyers are specialists who are fully aware of how to create these astonishing weapons, and how to even create improved versions built with subtle nuances that can make an incredible difference in their capability, such as extra power and range. They also learn the techniques required to make and enchant ammunition which can also provide exceptional advantages in combat, such as elementally-charged arrows and stunning bolts. Aside from being quite capable as craftspersons, Battalion Bowyers are also highly capable on the battlefield, learning unique archery skills which make them formidable in war, also.

Bonus Proficiencies
3rd-level Battalion Bowyer feature

When you choose this Specialization at 3rd level, you gain proficiency in Hand Crossbows, Crossbows, Longbows and Shortbows, in the Survival skill and with Woodcarver's Tools.

Battalion Bowyer Spells
3rd-level Battalion Bowyer feature

Starting at 3rd level, you always have certain spells prepared after you reach particular levels in this class, as shown in the Battalion Bowyer Spells table. These spells count as artificer spells for you, but they don’t count against the number of artificer spells you prepare.

Battalion Bowyer Spells
Artificer Level	Battalion Bowyer Spells
3rd	Hail of Thorns, Hunter's Mark
5th	Acid Arrow, Cordon of Arrows
9th	Conjure Barrage, Flame Arrows
13th	Dimension Door, Freedom of Movement
17th	Far Step, Swift Quiver

 

Fletching Flights

3rd level Battalion Bowyer feature

When you choose this Specialization at 3rd level, you learn how to craft your own supply of ammunition for ranged weapons that fire arrows and bolts. This requires having some base materials such as flint or other semi-malleable stone, wood, and feathers. To acquire these, spend 1 hour in a non-desert, non-tundra, dry land environment and make a Survival check DC 12. If successful, you can then spend 1 hour crafting 50 pieces of ammunition, either arrows or bolts.

Additionally, you may use Woodcarver's Tools, or any crossbow, longbow, or shortbow as an arcane spell focus when you cast your Artificer spells.

Better Bowmaking

5th-level Battalion Bowyer feature

At 5th level, you have gained a knowledge of how to add cam reels to crossbows, or also recurve arches into bows, which causes these weapons to launch their ammunition more powerfully than ever before. With your Woodcarver's Tools in hand and appropriate raw materials, you spend 1 hour building any type of crossbow, longbow, or shortbow and modify it with skill and magic to become a compound heavy or light crossbow, compound hand crossbow, composite longbow or composite shortbow. These weapons have half again their normal range increments (rounded down) and deal +1 damage to any target you hit within their short range increment.

Additionally, you may modify any non-thrown ranged weapon with one of the following magical benefits by spending 1 hour with the weapon:
- Barreled Shaft Groove: you modify the weapon to hold barrel-shafted ammunition, which is exceptionally sturdy ammunition that can almost always be recovered when sought after firing, and each arrow or bolt is so wide-gauge and well-reinforced that it deals an additional die of damage on a successful critical hit. You can craft this special ammunition in the normal way for your Fletching Flights feature, and even though normal ammunition may be fired from this weapon, normal ammunition does not deal this bonus damage when fired from the weapon.
- Folding Form (hand or light crossbow or shortbow only): you craft the weapon in such a way that it can be folded up and hidden away in a pocket, taking up only inches of space, but springing back into form on demand rather quickly. The weapon can be easily hidden as a tiny object, and other peoples not proficient in History are unaware of the function of the device. As part of the action used to draw the weapon, you cause it to spring back into its full and readied shape.
- Loading Cartridge (heavy or light crossbow only): you add a magical loading cartridge to the top of the crossbow, which carries 6 pieces of ammunition. While there is ammunition in the cartridge, whenever you make an attack with the weapon, you ignore the loading property of the weapon and then immediately make an additional attack with that weapon as part of that action. You may create up to two additional loaded cartridges that you can switch out with an empty one when you use an action to exchange them. Crafting these takes an additional hour each with the ammunition and raw materials in reach. These weapons cannot be reloaded normally, and it takes 1 minute to fill each cartridge with ammunition.
- Poison Reservior: you add a poison reservoir which automatically coats the arrowheads of ammunition with a dose of poison as you fire the weapon. The poison cannot be spilled or lost from the weapon until the ammunition is fired. The reservoir holds 3 doses of poison before you must refill it as an action to gain this benefit again.
- Reticle Sight: you add a sight with a targeting reticle that can be sighted down for additional accuracy. If you use a bonus action to use this sight prior to a ranged attack with the weapon, you gain advantage on the next ranged attack made with the weapon.

The chosen benefit lasts for 24 hours, and then the weapon reverts to a normal weapon of its type. Alternately, you may attune yourself to the weapon to cause the chosen benefit to exist for as long as it remains attuned to you. A bow or crossbow can possess no more than two such enhancements, but you perform the process again to exchange one of these benefits for another at any time after the creation of the weapon. When it is no longer attuned to you, the weapon reverts to normal after 1 hour.

Adaptable Ammunition

9th-level Battlefield Boyer feature

At 9th level, you learn how to imbue a quiver of ammunition with damaging elemental magic. You touch a quiver full of non-magical ammunition as an action and imbue it with elemental power, choosing acid, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder. Whenever a hit with a ranged weapon occurs using one of these pieces of ammunition, it deals 1d4 bonus magic damage of the chosen type. This effect lasts for 12 hours. You may use this feature once before you must finish a long rest to use it again.

Additionally, if you are proficient with Smith's Tools and are working at a forge, you may now transform 1 pound of steel into a Stunning Arrowhead which can be fitted to any arrow shaft. When a creature is hit by one of these arrows, they take half damage from the normal weapon damage as bludgeoning damage, and they must succeed at a Constitution saving throw DC 12 or become stunned for 1 round. These projectiles are not as aerodynamic as a normal piece of ammunition, and when firing one, the weapon's range increments are treated as if they are half the normal distance (rounded down). Creating these arrowheads takes 10 minutes each.

Lastly, if you are proficient with Smith's Tools and are working at a forge, you may now transform 1 pound of steel into two Broadhead Arrowheads which can be fitted to any arrow shaft. Attack rolls with shots using Broadhead Arrowheads deal critical damage on an attack roll of 19 or 20. Creating these two arrowheads takes 1 hour.

Best-Built Bowyer

15th-level Battalion Boyer feature

At 15th level, you learn to create types of magical bows that are far above and beyond the normal pale of such weapons. You learn to craft the Brilliance Bows, the Hunter's Blessing, and the Wings of the Dragon bows. Each of these are specially formed with unique magic and materials, and each have unique abilities:

- Brilliance Bow: crafting this awesome weapon requires an angel's feather as a base component. This astonishing longbow or shortbow has a +3 magical enhancement bonus and needs never be loaded with a piece of ammunition. Merely drawing the string back causes the bow to manifest a magical arrow of light energy that you then launch at your enemies exactly as if the bow was nocked with an arrow. This arrow deals the base damage of the bow as radiant damage instead of piercing damage. If this bow is loaded with a piece of ammunition, it will fire the ammunition, and maintain any properties of that ammunition, but the piercing damage dealt by such an arrow will be radiant damage instead. Ethereal creatures you can see can be targeted and damaged as if they were physical when you attack with this weapon.
- Hunter's Blessing: there is a hunting spirit that oversees the wielder of this ranged weapon (any bow or crossbow) which confers several advantages. First, when you fire this +2 magical enhancement bonus weapon at the target of your Hunter's Mark, that target gains no benefit of any cover except full cover. Second, when you miss the target of your Hunter's Mark, you may immediately cause the ammunition to become a Trap Shot. Only one Trap Shot can exist at one time. If you later hit the target of your Hunter's Mark with this weapon, you may immediately make another attack roll. If this attack roll hits, the Trap Shot springs from its location and flies into the target, dealing half damage (rounded down). If the Trap Shot misses, the effect is lost and another shot must miss and be designated a Trap Shot to use this feature again. Lastly, when you make a Survival check to determine where to find food and water in your environment and this bow is on your person, you have advantage on all such checks.
- Wings of the Dragon: crafting this fearsome weapon requires a dragon's scale as a base component. This bow or crossbow must become attuned within one hour of its completion, or it falls apart completely. Once attuned, the weapon grants +1 bonus to your armor class when it is in you hands. Whenever you fire this +2 magical enhancement bonus weapon, the arrow or bolt roars as it flies through the air, causing creatures of your choice within 30 feet of you to make a Wisdom save DC 12 or become shaken. Additionally, the damage type of the bow is your choice of acid, cold, fire, lightning, or poison, chosen when you make the bow (usually dependent on the type of dragon scale used as a base component). Lastly, whenever you hit with this weapon, you may teleport to any open space within 10 feet of the target, and if you do, the next ranged attack you make against that target has advantage as long as you can see that creature. This last feature of the weapon may be used twice before it cannot be used again until the next dawn.

Each of these weapons takes 4 hours to create, and 500 gold worth of special materials in addition to the unique materials each may require as base components. The Brilliance Bow and Hunter's Blessing stay intact for 1d4 days after creation, or if they become attuned, they last for as long as they remain attuned. Once these weapons are no longer attuned, they tend to fall apart into their base materials in 1d4 hours thereafter.

Additionally, you learn a specially magically-balanced firing stance, and whenever you make a ranged attack roll, if the last ranged attack roll you made had advantage, the next ranged attack roll you make adds 1d4 to that roll.