Wastelander

Not all genius comes from white lab coats and so called "humane practices" or "scientific process". At times, embracing chaos is the answer to how problems are solved; the deeper you sink, the more you seek your salvation, after all. Wastelanders are the scrapmancers of the twilight, using their instinct combined with their knowledge to scrap together unhinged, unsightly creations. 

Level 3: Scrap Proficiency

You gain access to a new item, purchasable as if it were a normal tool: the Scrap Box, along with proficiency in the use of the scrap box. This box is the basis for your new inventions, allowing you to craft common firearms or melee weapons using any two crafting materials of different types, which is then reflected in the weapon's design (for example, using two different crafting materials, one a kind of dust, and the other, a kind of heat resistant metal, might make a gun that shoots superheated sand as it's ammunition). 

 

Level 3: Wastelander Magic

Once you have made your scrapped weapons, you can begin to modify them in a variety of ways. Each (IRL) day, you can permanently destroy one item of common rarity or higher that you own, scrapping it down to modify your custom weapons with a compatible modifier. The base weapon's rarity (or tier) becomes equal to the highest weapon fed into it. This stays active as long as you are wielding the weapon, and a weapon can have a number of modifiers equal to your proficiency bonus minus the amount of non-artificer levels you have. A modifier might also list the minimum rarity needed to scrap into it's effect. The first two modifiers you learn are listed below:

Whirl Axe (Common, Melee): Your weapon has a rotating chain haphazardly attached to the hilt. Whenever you roll a 1 to attack with it (even if the 1 is rerolled, or not used, such as with advantage), you hit yourself, causing you to lose an amount of hit points equal to a roll of your hit die plus your constitution modifier (not expended). However, the weapon may deal slashing damage in addition to it's usual type, and can have a damage die of 3d4. If damage would be added onto it's attacks from other sources, it can be converted slashing (magical, if the weapon is magical). These conversions to slashing damage can be done partially; for example, 30 damage can be 15 slashing, and 15 cold. 

Underbarrel (Common, Ranged Firearm): Your weapon has a second barrel attached at the bottom, with it's own special ammunition that costs 10 GP per firing, and can only be fired once a minute. When fired, the target of the attack makes a dexterity saving throw against your spell save DC, or takes an amount of d6s equal to your artificer level in a damage type of your choice, appropriate to the ammunition purchased (Ex. A flamethrower doing fire damage, A grenade doing bludgeoning and fire damage, or a laser doing radiant damage). Each d6 can be customized with it's own damage type, assuming it makes logical sense. So, a grenade may do 1d6 fire, and 2d6 bludgeoning for example).  

 

Level 3: Chaotic Brew

When you deal greater than zero damage of a below type, roll a d6. On a 6, you also apply a condition, based on the damage done. If one source of damage has multiple types, you may pick one (do not roll for all of them separately). 

Cold (Cryo Freeze): Restrained until the start of your turn, and you take 10 additional damage from bludgeoning sources (also until start). 

Fire (Burning Flesh): At the start of your turn, you take fire damage equal to the amount dealt that triggered this ability until you are extinguished by water or an action (by any creature within 5ft). If you are wearing armor (including wielding a shield), you take half this amount of damage. 

Acid (Armor Corrosion): Your armor class and constitution saving throws are reduced by the artificer's proficiency bonus, and you take 10 additional damage from all acid sources. If you are wearing armor (including wielding a shield), you also have vulnerability to acid damage. lasts until the beginning of the next round. 

Level 5: Scrap Savant

When modifying a new firearm, you may also apply a manufacturing style to them. These have distinct effects on what the gun looks like, fires, and what it is capable of doing. However, when using these styles, you must reload the weapon after a listed amount of attacks, regardless of features that say otherwise. 

Jakob (Reload 4): your firearm can only deal piercing, slashing and bludgeoning damage. Any other types of damage being added on simply cannot apply (besides magical variants of these types). However, up to three times per combat, they can be reloaded as a free action, and when you land a critical hit with them, another creature within 10ft of the one hit has a normal, non critical attack of the same kind bounce to them, automatically hitting them. Jakobs guns are traditions, old school firearms a cowboy might use, such as revolvers, bolt actions snipers, and low magazine shotguns often made partially of wooden finish. 

Hyperion (Reload 10): Your firearm has an advertisement built into it, whenever it's a voice speaking, a video displaying, or stickers on the sides. This makes it stand out, giving you disadvantage on stealth checks, and certain charisma checks at a DM's discretion. However, each consecutive miss you have with this firearm gives you a +1 to hit, to a maximum of +5. Once you reload with the weapon, this bonus returns to zero. 

Bandit (Reload 25): Your firearm has incorporated the body parts of your enemies, and the marks of tribalistic savages. it has a blade attacked, allowing it to be used as if it were a longsword. in addition, you can make one additional attack with this firearm after missing two times in a row. However, if you hit a critical hit with this weapon, it expends 5 ammo, instead of 1.

 

You also learn two more modifiers:

Explosive (Uncommon, Firearms): When firing, your shots explode on contact, hitting all creatures within 5ft of the target (including the target itself) for an amount of damage equal to your artificer level. You may choose the damage type of this explosion. 

Shield (Uncommon, any weapon): As a bonus action, you may generate a shield to protect you. You gain temporary hit points equal to your artificer level, and while you have that temp, you also have half cover. Once you use this, it recharges only if you do not take damage for a full turn, at a rate of 5 hit points per round. You cannot re-activate it until you finish a long rest. 

Level 9: Ordinances

You learn to distill a firearms unique skills into a more temporary form: the grenade, or, the ordinance. This can take the form of any thrown consumable, and you can make up to 3 each IRL day, which only those with this feature can effectively use. These can be modified in any way your firearms are, and customized to either make an attack roll at one creature, or explode in a 20ft radius, effecting all creatures in the radius. Either way, they deal damage split in any way of your choice equal to an amount of d4s equal to your artificer level, or half on a successful save. When exploding, choose any saving throw type appropriate to your damage type and use your spell save DC, and when attacking, choose which stat is needed to attack with them. You can throw up to three ordinance before needing a long rest. For ordinance, throwing them is considered the same as making an attack, regardless of the mode (expends action economy in this way as well), but they can also be tossed as a bonus action. 

You also gain a new brew, 2 modifiers, and manufacturer option:

Radiant (Radiation Brew): If the creature failed a saving throw against this damage, it gains one exhaustion (once per turn maximum). if it was hit by an attack, it instead has a -1 to dexterity saving throws (can stack). Lasts until a spell that can cure disease is applied, or after a long rest. 

Torgue Manufacturer (2 or 10): Weapons are painted in black and white checkers, and only shoot explosives. Either you may fire one large explosive (2 reload) such as a rocket or a number of smaller, sticky ones (10 reload). The rocket explodes immediately in a 30ft radius (dexterity save against your spell save DC or take d8s equal to your artificer level in damage type(s) of your choice). The stick bombs must first hit (deals 1 bludgeoning damage). Then, at the end of the creatures turn, they explode, dealing 2d4 damage of your choice per bomb in a 5ft radius)

Bouncy Modifier (Rare, Firearms): Your firearm shots bounce harmlessly off objects until they hit a creature, even when missing. When fired inside a non finite space, such as outside, they have a 1 in 1d6 chance of bouncing and hitting the closest creature to the original target (if equal distance, roll for random target). When fired in a tight space, such as indoors, this is a 5 in 1d6 chance (Note: this can hit allies). 

Railgun Modifier (Rare, Firearms): Your firearm attacks travel in a straight line, allowing you to attack all creatures in a 5ft wide line, instead of just one. In addition, they can ignore half cover or lower. 

Level 15: Scrapland Mastery

you also gain two final manufacturers, modifiers, and brews

Lightning Brew (Shock): The creature's reactions are sluggish. the first time it would use it's reaction in a round, it fails, and the first legendary action it takes in a round fails. Ends at the beginning of the creature's turn. When dealing lightning damage to temporary hit points, treat that damage as vulnerability (if spilling over to normal hit points, the double damage no longer applies. ex. 10 temp against 20 damage would remove the temp, and deal 20 damage to their health, not 30.)

Slag Brew (Necrotic): The next time this creature takes damage, it is treated as that creature's vulnerability, as long as it is not necrotic damage. Is removed at the beginning of the next turn

 Tediore Manufacturer (Reload 6): When you reload this weapon, throw it as if it was throwing ordinance (ignoring the usual limit). It reappears in your hand. If you reload the weapon with shots left, it grows legs and/or flies around, firing it's remaining ammo in a general direction. treat it as an action skill, but with a -10 to hit. Once out of ammo, it explodes like an ordinance. After reloading, an exact copy of that gun appears in your hand as if it was never gone. Tediore guns are high tech, but often strange or silly, being very overengineered. 

Maliwan Manufacturer (Reload 8): Doubles your chance of applying a brew. Cannot be bludgeoning, piercing or slashing damage types. Maliwan guns fire elemental energies and lasers

Bloom Modifier (Very Rare, Firearm). When forcing a creature to make a saving throw with this weapon, if they pass, the saving throw happens again, but with half the amount of die and radius, rounded up to the nearest 5ft (min 5ft) in a location within 5ft of the initial. This can only trigger once per attack made, and only if all affected creatures pass, if multiple. However, it can trigger off of the saving throw of bloom modifier itself. 

Bloodsplosion Modifier (Legendary, any weapon) When you kill a creature, they explode for any excess damage dealt beyond zero in the same type dealt, dealing damage to all creatures within 10ft of them equal to that damage. this damage can trigger this modifier again.