That's because the Battlesmith is the Intelligence version of the Hexblade for that Great Weapon+Elven Accuracy melee Gish goodness. I have a player currently playing an Eldritch Knight/Battlesmith and it's been pretty impressive.
Artificer was such a great addition imo. Adding INT instead of STR to infused weapon attacks meant that it wouldn't suffer the same issues of being spread too thin like the Paladin. Plus it's a other INT based class which was badly needed.
@@snazzyfeathers Paladins are MAD, or Multi-attribute dependent. They need Str and Con to be a front line fighter, but are also a Cha based spell caster. Compare this to Rogues or Wizards who really only need one stat to be effective (Dex or Int) and can place the other stats however they want (still, never dump Con). I wouldn't personally say they are spread too thin, but understand the criticism. With the other classes, there is more choice available to have different stats and abilities, where the base stats of almost all Paladin builds tend to be very similar.
So you are talking about pixies, right? I appreciate that Gnomes and Halflings are classified as Small, but a Gnome can stand four feet tall. A character that size riding another small creature would be very awkward, like a clown on a monkey bike.
Agreed, one of the main reasons I will ban any Twilight Cleric. However, the protector cannon can be destroyed, and it doesn't scale for better or worse.
UN...DER ...RATED! Top 3 healers. In a single combat is likely to keep your entire party up through what would otherwise be a total party wipe while never burning a spell slot...
100% agreed, playing an artillerist and it is a bit annoying seeing the difference between me dealing extra damage and me adding to the partie's survaivility is so much heavily in favor of the later option
I made my first Artillerist build the classic "blow 'em up from range" type, but my next video (and final video of the No-Dip Artificer Build Series) is going to use the Protector Cannon... and man, it's wicked good.
I’m surprised they didn’t bring up the other Eldritch Cannon options. I played with an Artillerist Artificer who used the temp up option and it was absolutely busted. 1d8 + int mod of temp hp doesn’t seem like much, but the fact that you can use it every turn as a bonus action for an hour can make your party insanely tanky. The hit points don’t stack, but it’s still great for successive turns and it can even be used out of combat to give people temp hp before the combat even starts.
@@jtroxler8 They're very different... that's why I'm doing two different builds for my channel. Just released the Force Ballista video... next build out will be the Protector.
@@Bilbrons-and-Dragons I look forward to seeing your video. And yes very different and when you can just use a bonus action to give temp HP that makes it so much harder for your team to go down. (FYI RU-vid unsubscribed me Bil)
@@Bilbrons-and-Dragons you are fine even if I don’t always agree with some of your breakdowns you are 👍🏿 I just want to have RU-vid stop kicking me off smaller D&D voices. 😂
I like the idea of the alchemist more than the alchemist. We could’ve ( & should’ve) gotten more than 1D6 worth of options for potions. I was hoping for all sorts of different poisons and potions to brew. Sorta like how the wild mage gets a D100 table of options.
Agreed. The very limited selection of potions combined with the decoupling and nerfing of the alchemical homonculus make it much less interesting and useful both in and out of combat. Nevermind the fact that giving potions in combat will be dependent upon the DM.
I also think the elixir mechanic and how to prep and use them really screwed them over. It's just such a clunky and poorly implemented feature despite supposedly being the main flavor sell of the class.
@@jwall1646 It really is a shame because the idea of the potion brewmaster who can whip up powerful enhancements or poisons or whatever is a cool one. Even the subclasses idea of a weaker more utility kit focused potion maker isn't awful. They weren't even too far off making it at least solid. But I think they either didn't think through some of the practicalities of potion delivery or they just didn't want to change the baseline potion mechanics.
I wouldn't say that the D100 table belongs to the wild magic sorcerer, it really belongs to the DM. Wild mage has to live with the results! Speaking on behalf of my wizard that just returned his Wand of Wonder to the magick shoppe, I'll go with a little consistency when the chips are on the table.
I did this with my gnome artillerist. I was allowed to create a seat an ride behind the head of the party barbarian, so I spent all my infusions turning him into a Gundam with flight, shields, weapons, and two cannons on his shoulders. Then I would “fly” him around the battlefield firing my magic gun like a really large back rail gun at anything that got in our way.
@@BrandonNeedles Thanks, it was one of the most fun character interaction builds I’ve ever had. DM even allowed me to “fuel” the gundam with a modified alchemy jug that would 2x per day would bestow a random minor magical benefit at the loss of being able to create mayonnaise. (I derailed an encounter too much by doing that once)
I thought they got weirdly fixated on the artillerist force ballista and forgot that the protector can throw out 1d8 + INT temp HP TO YOUR WHOLE PARTY! EVERY ROUND! AS A BONUS ACTION! Seriously, the only limit is that they have to be within 10 feet, there's no limit to the number of creatures.
I am running a game where one of my players is playing a Armoror and another is playing and Ancestral Guardian Barb. They have the combo of both hitting an enemy making them have disadvantage on all attacks due to the interaction between Thunder Gauntlets and Ancestral Protectors. I have learned not to throw single big enemies at the party lol
The only other subclass or class with a "true taunt" like that is the Cavalier Fighter. Extra Attacks means that any combo that has two or more PCs with a hard taunt mechanic lets them basically disable 2 or more foes.
@@benjoffe948 There is also the classic combo of sentinel and polearm master. If you hit with the bonus reaction you can end an enemies turn before he gets to attack. Then on your turn attack and back up 5 feet. Great Weapon Master is also good with this setup as you can get the +10 damage on all attacks even the bonus action attack, though you might not want to use GWM for the sentinel hit.
I would talk to them and tell them you treat that like sentinel, their abilities do not overlap. Sentinel explicitly has langue to prevent actions like this, and it isn't unreasonable for this abilities to have this over lap. If you as the dm are still having fun though, than go for it. Remember DMs are players too and your fun should not be discounted.
Alchemist feels like a sidekick class. Warforged armorer is a story in and of itself. Kobold battlesmith riding a steel defender? Tiefling with flames of phlegethos artilerist? Don't forget guys that the artilerist can use the spell storing item for shatters or scorching rays and 10/day use that AND two cannons
Idea for supreme tanking with the battle smith: 1 be a small race 2 take the mounted combatant feat 3 give your steel defender your spell storing item with warding bond 4 have your steel defender cast warding bond on you 5 ride your steel defender into battle Now you have a bonus to AC and saves and only take half damage from all sources. Your defender takes half the damage you do but can heal itself. And enemies can’t target your mount because of the feat.
Am I the only one that feels we need something like a ¾ caster that caps out at 7th level spells? I think artificer would have been a great candidate for something like this. Being a ½ caster really feels like it hampers the class and leaves it below par at later levels. Having access to level 7 spells would close that gap while still limiting it's maximum end game power
Armorer basically, depending on the campaign, can have a level 3 character with 18 AC. With a shield you get 20, and with Magic Initiate and taking shield you can easily get 25. The class is bonkers and I really wanna play this.
Magic Initiate is a good idea. My Armorer multiclassed into War Wizard for the extra defensive options and spell slots. I infuriate my DM by being next to impossible to tag with my Cloak of Distortion.
You're forgetting the enchanted defense infusion, which you can add to an armor or shield for +1 or +2, that then doubles at level 10. Battlesmith with 14 dex and half plate is just one AC should and you can choose a much wider variety of weapons, including ones that you find in the campaign. With mythril half plate you also lose the disadvantage and can take boots or cloak of elven kind to get advantage on stealth. Imo, battlesmith is way better.
@@xySuperManxy I took magic initiate for my variant human battlesmith, but I kind of wish I just had Artificer initiate instead since they already get great cantrips and a free fairy fire every day would be sweet. An extra tool to have expertise in at level 6 is nice, too.
@Brian, a respectful disagree on the Battlesmith being way better. You get a very good taunt mechanic with Armorer and can attack with int (just like Battle smith) also a +1 ac is huge in 5e the reason warforged are one of the best races.bonus action temp hp and extra infusions and a superb spell list as compared to a (admittedly pretty good) robot battle dog. I would take Armorer in most cases except multi classing into Bladesinger or EK
Not to mention the flexibility of switching between different cannon types with a spell slot, which, by the mid and late game, is almost certainly a more valuable use of a 1st level slot than any 1st level spell would be. Give everybody the temporary hit points at the beginning of the day (and potentially again immediately after a fight if you want) and then switch to whichever offensive option you expect will be most appropriate before you start a fight. Really helps to make up that difference from the fact that a half caster needs to bring something to the table besides their spellcasting in order to remain relevant, especially as the campaign progresses. The Alchemist just doesn't do much in or out of combat, other than contribute half as well as any full caster.
@@dylandugan76 the fact there is no limit to the number of creatures that can receive those temp hp shouldn’t be understated either. You can buff a small freaking army with this ability.
@@logancuster8035 a small army of 8 creatures since the range is 10’, and all character player options eat up 5’ of space in squares, and RAW states creatures *cannot* share space on the battle field.
Giving your main tank character a Protector to carry can negate a huge amount of damage in a fight, which always stays with them - even if you have to split the party.
I'm playing a warforged alchemist now who's one of my favourite characters ever. His lab is built into his body, with a potions dispenser in his abdomen (I named him Keurig). Each of his elixirs, aside from the mechanical effect, delivers some random emotional effect too - no mechanical impact, it's just for roleplay hooks. So you could get an AC bump and a dose of paranoia, or a 10' fly speed and a hefty case of the munchies. (Mostly I used the DMG madness table, toned down a bit.) He himself is a jittery wreck thanks to years of having caffeine, alcohol and who knows what else pumping through his system. It's not the most powerful option, but it's great fun to role-play, and with the right group, great for everyone else's role-play as well.
Love the content, very clean and thorough. Started getting into DnD in January, started DM'ing in February. My favorite channel hands down, you guys are great
Agreed it definitely is lacking at later levels. I mean between levels 1 to 6 its okay, but after that it kind of falls flat. You would think your Alchemist would improve their elixirs to be more potent and have more elixirs available to them later on
@@snazzyfeathers maybe they should have gone a similar rout to the spirits bard, where you unlock new potion options as you level up, so they could be more powerful without having balance issues
@@ariagrumpy8254 interestingly I commented essentially exactly the same thing re the comparison to spirits bard on a different thread in this video. If lots of people are coming to that conclusion, it is surprising wotc didn’t think of it
kobold with mounted combatant riding on his steel defender. always having pack tactics and with mounted combatant you can force attacks on to you and with deflect attack can force disadvantage while the attacker is within 5ft of you
@@MyRegularNameWasTaken well, you still have sunlight sensitivity and steel defender has only 1 reaction so only 1 roll is at disatvantage and only on attacks within 5ft of the steel defender which is 99% melee attacks. so not quite foresight but a budget version of it
and you can play a close combat lance without the disadvantage. and since dungeons are mostly not in bare sunlight, you should be good with the sunlight sensitivity
@@SwissStrawberry i would prefer a javelin with returning weapon so i have a ranged option and also you are immune to disadvantage because pack tactics cancels it out
@@kelvinvoorneveld7265 but the lance gives you that sweet sweet d12 to roll. and also if you have a small or tiny enemy you gain advantage because of the feat. if you need advantage against medium creatures, just use enlarge on the steel defender and enjoy the extra dmg and fun to show them the fearsomeness of a kobold :D
Oh, and as a separate comment I just wanna say that Artificer is actually the best half caster in the game. Here's why: - Spells prepared instead of spells known. - Casting at level 1. - Player decided magic items. - A subclass for every role. (And if you like smite or sneak attack, be battle smith for arcane jolt) - Spell Storing item. (If you get there, its 10 free casts of cure wounds, invisibility, see invisibility, like, literally everything 2nd or lower, sure lvl 11 to get it but so good. - More attunement slots than EVERY other class.
This is really handy if your DM arms your nemesis with Sword of Sharpness. Those things lop off limbs daily. Armorer: Oh, that's alright, I'll just have a new weapon in there for the next time we meet!
What I love about the artificer is that it doesn’t need to be as high-tech as it first seems. I am planning on playing a gnome battle smith, who is basically a druid. He knows healing spells, and enchants items. Best of all, his steal defender can be flavored as a cute earth elemental or treant, that lets him ride on its back. An artillerist could be a wizard, who has floating glass-balls around them. The balls can shoot fire or project an aura of protection, and I always liked the idea of floating balls of destruction under your control. (I know they can’t technically fly, but ask your DM if you can make them float 3-6 ft above the ground) An alchemist could be a witch, or a sage that brews potions and enchants weapons (you could basically play Deckard Cain from Diablo) With the armorer I had a bit of trouble coming up with what it could be in a fantasy world, probably because I’m getting such an Iron Man vibe from it. But you could be a shaman that protects its body covering it in an armor made of stones and rocks, maybe barks. You can’t be iron man, but you can be stone man. All in all, the Artificer is an awesome class with even more awesome subclasses. The flavor and gameplay possibilities are just glorious.
Love these ideas! I played a Lizardfolk Artillerist whose inventions and arcane turrets were mostly made by weaving copper wire around the bones thematically appropriate creatures (a cobra, a pseudodragon, and a turtle for the turrets). He also cast Cure Wounds by injecting his allies with a healing salve from a viper's fanged skull. He was a TON of fun to play!
This step away from the "arcano-punk" Eberron-ish aesthetic (which I do like) the Artificer has always seemed to have in my mind is refreshing, particularly with your Artillerist example. I'm imagining a wizard who blurs science and magic together so effectively it's difficult to tell one from another, and so you get to RP both simultaneously. Brilliant.
For a fantasy based armorer, I loved the idea of replacing limbs, so I made an artificer armorer who lost his legs, but got fused (against his will) with a magical armor that can replace his legs, but also serve as a funnel for his magical ability.
I love the idea of a warforged armorer, flavour it as some sort of rock golem or living tree and just whack people, or use the magical gems on your chest or arms to shoot lightning
Alchemist as a combat medic works really well with the Homunculus Servant infusion since they can use it to deliver important Touch spells from up to 120 feet away.
Just finished a Curse of Strahd campaign as an Alchemist. One of the things I found was that the Alchemical Savant feature is surprisingly powerful in the context of Healing Word specifically. It was a guaranteed 9 HP restored on a roll of 1 with 18 INT because it basically allowed you to add double your ability modifier to the roll. Then, being able to follow that up with an Experimental Elixir that grants 2d4+INT healing and an additional 2d6+INT temp HP from Restorative Reagents, all without falling afoul of spellcasting restrictions, I was often a stronger healer than the cleric... With the limitation that as a partial caster I couldn't keep my spell slots free to be 100% reliable. But I'll keep as bragging rights that our party did manage to kill Strahd and I left the room with more HP than I entered it with. I do think that the Experimental Elixir is not quite enough to balance against the benefits that the other subclasses get, though. It doesn't even make thematic sense. What, am I just blindly dumping ingredients into a pot and hoping for the best? They do become very strong when they start adding Temp HP, but the Alchemist's strong spellcasting focus would probably have been better served with either more spell slots, or some way to recover spell slots, because I always felt like I was the one forcing the party to rest so I wasn't completely out of gas all the time.
Elixirs would be fine if they lasted for 24 hours instead of to the next long rest and scaled with the spell slot used so they're essentially something you do with all your remaining spell slots right before you take a long rest.
I think that they missed a trick with the Artillerist. You can have your tiny cannon ride on the shoulder of the party tank and be a flamethrower! Still an A subclass :).
Recently strapped my tiny flamethrower to a teafling druid, that had wild changed to a rat to help scout some sewers. I'm playing a wood elf artificer. I had to be just far enough behind with some disguise self or no trace, and boom. I keep my druid safe, and get to burn some nosy whiskers if they don't give us the info we need.
My gut reaction to the artificer was disappointment and I never thought I'd play one. But after watching this video I took another look at the class and now I'm incredibly hyped about it. Thanks for the new perspective!
I felt the same way! Then I did my No-Dip Artificer Build Series for my own channel, and having run the numbers, it turns out the base chassis is frickin' eye-popping. Some people have called my Infiltrator build the strongest ranged martial out there, and the Artillerist I just did BLOWS AWAY my Elite DPR Baseline (of Fighter + Fighting Style: Archery + XBE + SS)! Bottom Line: Artificer is SO GOOD.
I wwas disappointed with the full release artificer because I had planned a character with the UA artificer alchemist that focussed on the many handed pouch and the homunculus servant. Unfortunately the many handed pouch was removed and the homunculus servant is now a feature of a different subclass. But the class is still bomb.
I was trying to resist saying that. I watch these guys for the content, and I'm reluctant to disrespect these guys by focusing on appearance, but I got a kick out of that gorgeous hair when it finally came out from under the hats!
@@elizabethrowe5960 I recall Kelly being grateful when he got some nice comments about the beautiful moustache he had for a bit, so it should be all good
I think it could be an interesting thing to watch them collect all the D tier subclasses and do a 'Here is an idea to make it not suck" I know that the Beast Master Ranger got a wonderful revisit in Tasha's.
An underestimated feature of the Artillerist is the Protector subtype for the cannon. 1d8 + Intelligence modifier can really help everyone out. It can do this an infinite number of times and it can just give the frontliners additional durability and basically lets them shrug off any lower damage and prevents wear down. Personally, with that, I find the Artillerist to be a strong A and not a weak one.
Yeah, randomness is never good. Not being able to choose which potion you produce by default is not tactically advantageous or strategically reliable. It might be forgiveable if the potions had overwhelmingly powerful effects for the level, but they're honestly pretty mediocre to begin with and don't scale up at all.
@@dylandugan76 I agree. Maybe at first it would be okay to be random but at a later level like say level 6 you improve as an Alchemist and can make more stable better potions
My all time favorite character build in 5e has been, by far, my Warforged Artificer Armorer. Having every infusion and armor feature be flavored as being incorporated into my warforged's body as this self-improving sentient terminator is just endlessly enjoyable on every level.
How so? Plate armor (18) + shield (2) + Enhanced Defense/Repulsion Shield (2)... what else contributes? Besides Cloak/Ring of Protection, which aren’t in the Artificer infusion list at level 10
There's a common misread that I think you're using for that calculation. The Armour Modifications ability doesn't allow you to increase the number of times you can use a particular infusion, it increases the number of your known infusions that you can have active at the same time. You are still locked to each infusion only being able to be used once. So no, you can't have 3 Enhanced Defence infusions running.
While alchemist isnt the most powerful, getting greater restoration or heal (a 6th level spell for a half caster) for free is great for a half caster. Granted it is a late game ability, but it's great in a pinch.
It isn't "very good" in a generalist sense. I'm not a big fan of Alchemist but the Artificer is my second most played class, and I can say that the subclass will shine best under a certain type of campaign and a certain type of DM. It's not the subclass feats that fail it but the weaknesses in the 5e gameplay mechanic, IMO. Incorporating a crafter archetype with crafting-related feats as part of its core but lacking a dedicated crafting system and a rather tedious material search and collection system throws half of what makes the subclass down into the abyss. Couple that with what's left of its feats just being mediocre on its own without the crafting-centric half of the subclass and you're left with subpar performance in non-homebrew campaigns.
In terms of flavor the Artificer is definitely my favorite especially a Warforged Artificer and with Tasha's changes being able to take their +2 to con and add it to intelligence instead its really great. An armorer or artillerist warforged being able to basically build a cannon directly into their arm is great for flavor ahaha
@@Revoltine I think that the main potions mechanic is a bit lacking. I would’ve really liked to have seen a mechanic like the spirits bard, where at higher levels you’ve got access to a larger table of potions. The fact that you are an alchemist and you can’t learn to create more/different potions just feels odd. I don’t think the crafting mechanics are great and they don’t help, but I think the subclass just lacks the extra little bit of something. Definitely agree that artificers are pretty great though!
@@maybevoldemort8995 Maybe there are revised alchemist UA builds out there that have an expanded potion list. It is definitely lacking at later levels.
Interesting. I had alchemist rated higher, specifically when using the Homunculus to apply your potions. The action economy + concentration economy is impressive.
@@matthewmiller1847 good question. The answer is DM discretion because there is a ton of contradictory sage advice. The confusion is mainly around the idea drinking a potion isn't "use an object" to avoid "fast hands" allowing bonus action potions. Technically there is no "use a potion" action in the PHB, it's only described in the DMG, and then sage advice has said it's it own thing. Since it isn't listed for players, it obviously wont be listed for a Homunculus, hence DM discretion. My DM, and most DMs I've met with, allow it. I would sell it in two parts. 1. Is the creature capable? The Homunculus can provide the help action, which means they are capable of assisting on complicated tasks. 2. Is it appropriate? If your artificer is an alchemist, wouldn't they design their intelligent creation to deliver potions? Tasha's literally describes some Homunculus as a floating cauldron, which I think fits the idea thematically.
@@Valwryn00 I definitely think my DM would allow it. My homunculus is definitely capable too. It is shaped like a hummingbird with a propeller instead of wings and the bottom of it carries vials while the "beak" is a syringe used for injections. Whenever I cast a spell through it I flavor it as the homunculus injected the spell through the syringe so I don't see why I can't deliver elixirs the same way
@@matthewmiller1847 I am very confused by Valwryn's response, but the truth of the matter there is nothing stopping your summons from administering potions. An artificer using a Bonus Action refers to giving the Homunculus a specific order that the summon can perform with their own Action, rather than using the Bonus Action to administer the potion themselves as per Fast Hands. That means that the actual administration of a potion happens with your summon's Action, and can be applied the exact same way as it would with a player using their main Action to administer the potion to another creature, so it works in accordance with DMG rules. More shenanigans like that allow your pets to attune to equipment and use magical items, and can benefit from the Spell-Storing Item feature at level 11. You can literally give your Homunculus a Spell-Storing ring of Cure Wounds, Melf's Acid Arrow or Shatter to cast in combat for you.
@@Deltajugg I knew about the spell-storing item with the homunculus but I haven't reached that level yet (if I do at all). Weird I thought of that interaction and not my elixirs. I definitely plan on using Melf's Acid Arrows or Cure Wounds for spell storing though.
Imagine talking about the Battle Smith getting Smite spells, Aura spells, Extra Attack, a free Steed, and mini Divine Smite, only to then describe it as a new take on the Beastmaster Ranger
It’s more akin to Beastmaster in that it is baked into the subclass rather than a spell any artificer can take and is more useful than the mounts from Find Steed. Rangers get spells like Zephyr Strike and Lightning Arrow which are smite adjacent. Any Paladin can be played without a steed/mount, but Beast Master and Battlesmith can’t (not effectively).
The Armorer is my personal favorite Artificer subclass, but I feel like it’s worth pointing out for the Battle Smith that it gains proficiency with martial weapons which mends really well with the Artificers ability to ignore requirements when attuning to magical items.
The best part about the artillerist’s cannon is that you can serve as a mount for it when it’s tiny, especially if you just say you built a shoulder perch for it! Go full predator from AvP with their shoulder cannon
13:46 In Fallout 4 there is a Brotherhood of Steel npc who is basically the head engineer that is in charge of power armour maintenance and upgrades etc. She is actually missing her legs from the mid-thighs down so she is almost always in a power armour frame for mobility and such. Could be a cool idea to steal for your Armourer, provided you are starting at level 3 upwards.
Such a great base class, hard to go wrong. I played an Alchemist and dear lord the sheer amount of utility combined with a beefy healing word is A+. Btw, don't think that feature was given enough credit. Adding your int as flat numbers to your healing on a healing word will regularly be the difference between ally taking a hit and going right back down and ally being able to tank their next hit. The bonus damage on your cantrips and such is nice but it's the bonus healing that is really really good in practice.
I think one of the successes of artificers and what the developers should take with them is how the artificer's subclasses change so much compared to many of the other subclasses. For artificers it's your subclass that define your identity more than the baseclass itself, while many subclasses, especially the weaker ones, just add a little cool trick here and there that you can do.
I loved playing a Battlesmith. Loads of versatility and probably the best with a firearm. The steel defender friend is so useful, especially if your character is small and you have it as a mount.
Can you please do a “How to play” for the artificer class as whole? Make one from the ground up to level 5 and show how everything is used and what to take. The class is so confusing and as a new DM, I need to know this class better
Artificers are super cool and can get really bonkers. For me, personally, though, I just get hung up on the, like logistics of it, I guess? For example: the cantrip acid splash. I immediately think of throwing a bottle of acid at someone, but that raises some questions. For a wizard or whatever, they just conure it out of the aether, it's functionally unlimited. But where am I getting all the glass bottles, where am I keeping them, surely they must cost something, and have a non-negligible weight to them. That sort of thing. This isn't really complaining about the artificer or anything, more complaining about my own thought process.
I love the Artificer, so versatile. This is the true jack-of-all-trades class. Each subclass is so different from the others. No other class is so well defined by it's subclass.
By the time you have say 20 in intelligence (in order to get that +5 bonus twice) any enemy that hits you or a party member is probably going to be doing at least 14 damage per hit. That little bit of extra healing is not going to make much difference.
@@dnddetective Not everyone plays completely Point buy, and builds with a maxed stat from lvl 3-4 are not unnusual based on tables I play/DM. Even so, it's consistency. By that logic no healing is ever worth it, but trying to play with no healers/support is a nightmare.
@@dnddetective okay, but at 5th level your healing word is better than any clerics outside of maybe life domain. You're really saying that you don't like healing word at all, which is a pretty controversial take.
Fun fact: Technically, you and your steel defender have separate turns, so you could apply the Arcane Jolt feature twice in a round at the very minimum, more if you land attacks as reactions. It does burn through them rather quickly though, so moderation is still advised.
Artificer is one of my favorite classes in the game. It has so much utility and variety that I never feel restricted about what role I can play in the party. My favorite is the Armorer specifically because of its 9th level ability, but a close second is the Battle Smith, because let's be honest who doesn't love a robot dog sidekick
The iron defender RAW can grapple or shove as a bonus action( as long as you made it with hands) the fact that it is a rebuildable construct makes this playstyle one of the strangest and maybe one of the strongest of the wildly diverse grappling builds availible in 5e.
Ya'll missed a bit with arcane jolt, you and your defender can both use it on hit as the defender isnt running on your turn it has its own turn immediately after you. So at 15 you hit once and heal someone for 4d6 attack again then command defender with ba. Defenders turn it walks up and hits letting you heal for another 4d6.
Omg, I didn't even realize this and I've been playing a Battle Smith for over a year now. This totally changes how I'm going to use my Arcane Jolt from now on. I guess I didn't think of it, because my DM lets me intertwine my steel defender's turn with my own. So all along I've sort of just been thinking of her as my bonus action, and not my bonus action to activate something that has its own action.
Love my Alchemist! The extra spell list isn't all that exciting, but making all the spells and elixirs based on recipes is a load of fun and lends a LOT to interacting with the campaign setting: writing a menu for my elixirs is always a blast. It gets to the point that when my DM needs to slow down the pacing, all he needs is to ask what I'm doing, and out comes the pots and pans!
You can sleep in a moving cart over a bumpy fantasy road? Yeah, yeah, I would probably allow it too if I were the DM. If I were the player and the DM objected, I would totally understand.
@@lordzaboem i can barely sleep in my bed with no sound. But ive had friends fall asleep in concerts where i could FEEL the sound waves. So i guess some people just buily different
I think that the idea of the alchemist throwing fireballs and explosive concoctions could be its own subclass for the artificer, named suitably as the demolitionist
I have an idea for an artificier focused on magical scrolls/runes. He'd be an alchemist making magical ink that would channel his magic, and runes written with it could direct it to create specific effects, which are just spells. Flavor can do anything.
B or not, Alchemist is my favorite still. I really enjoy the theme of fancy and somewhat random potion shenanigans. Also shooting out potion "spells" out of my custom "revolver gauntlet" (reskinned magic crossbow since all Artificers want/need a magic weapon of their own creation for some base class features).
I'm sorry. Mechanically Alchemist SUCKS. Which other subclass has to spend spell slots to activate their primary ability? Now if you're enjoying it then it is awesome! You do you friend
@@khyron96 if players are creative Alchemists can be very fun to play. Just because they're not a tank or does a ton of damage doesn't make them a great class. The humonculos alone is damn useful, especially if you use the ring of spell storing to deal damage to enemies and your elixers to to tip onto other players to give them a boon or a top up heal (or if you bought greater healing potions those are handy too) with your bonus action is extremely versatile, something the beatmaster & familiars can't do. Ring of spell storing might not be worth it for a battle smith but the option is there, especially when you can make that ring so early in the game without having to hunt for it in a dungeon praying your DM gives it to you.
Spell storing item + homunculus does work for giving your homunculus one spell of 1st or 2nd level that has a casting time of 1 action. Cure wounds makes it a literal healbot. Concentration free invisibility, faerie fire or heat metal.. It also works with steel defender
I had a blast with the Alchemist with a small modification approved by my DM. Your potion creation is NOT random, you choose what you’re making. And they scale with your level.
It's about time we got another INT based caster. And it's interesting to see what you can do with it. I'm curious to see what would be a great Wiz./Art. multiclass looks like, whether its a dip into Wizard, or a dip into Artificer. Here are some of my rough ideas: 1. A divination/armorer (infiltrator) hybrid seems fairly intriguing, although a transmuter/armorer hybrid seems a bit more thematic. Those portent rolls + attack bonuses seem really decent together. Make yourself a Halfling and go ham with the portent rolls. 2. An artillerist/evoker hybrid seems like a slam dunk. By dipping into Wizard, Sculpt Spells seems like it can take the guesswork out of accidental friendly fire. 3. If your Dex is good, a battlesmith/Rogue (assassin) dip could possibly be decent, by granting advantage on melee combat, thus granting Sneak Attack. On the other hand, sniping via an Armorer (Infiltrator) seems really funny too, as that grants Sneak Attack too (as well as granting crits on surprised enemies, since those attacks are considered weapon attacks). My only "real" gripe is that the Artificer is a half-caster. But given what it can do, it can definitely make you a powerhouse, if you know what you're doing. The Armorer has got to be the best of the four. The idea of giving a Wizard access to heavy armor, without the need for a strength requirement, is fantastic for an otherwise squishy PC. The fact that you can switch between Infiltrator or Guardian, however, is what pushes this over the top for me. I'm on board with this class. Either way it looks good.
Fun fact, the lighting launcher from the Armorer can be used with rogue's sneak attack, and since Artificer is not very BA heavy, a mastermind rogue would work really well (also flavour wise) for giving adv to your friends. With sharpshooter you have quite a decent damage dealer with a lot of support coming from your infusions and artificer spells
@@buckhunt6832 hard to say but the pack tactics for a player race was deemed a tad broken (much like the Mystic class from UA). Ultimately it is up to the players and DM as there really aren’t rules, but merely guidelines.
@@donalddouds6033 anything can be broken if you try hard enough I feel like. Like the players that want to break the game, WILL break the game eventually. If it's their goal, they will accomplish it
my favorite part about the class is how much it encourages flavoring, like everything from how the form the spells take are left somewhat vague to the different subclasses, like how the steel defender can take any form you want it to
I am currently DM'ing for an Armorer Artificer. I've added some flavor in some of the items available to my player in that she is able to create items for her party. She just recently gained the ability to create magically infused ammunition for the use of our parties gunslinger and I think I will eventually incorporate the ability to infuse and enhance the gear of our other party members. I am looking to foster a sense of team work among my players by providing them each with items and abilities that help to bolster each others abilities and I've been enjoying watching them discuss how to use these items. Just an idea for any DMs of artificers out there!
Battlesmith is my favorite subclass in the entire game. It really lets me feel a bit like a spellblade but with a techno/steampunk theme, and with the Repeating Shot infusion on my heavy crossbow I can reflavor it into a rifle that all of my spells come out of.
Playing a Battlesmith is great fun, especially if you are playing as a small sized character and use the Steel Defender as a mount also. Combine with being a Kobold and you have many opportunities for rolling with advantage on your attacks
I think the alchemist has great roleplaying and problem-solving potential, which makes it hard to rate as it can really help a party, but it depends a lot on the player imo
My party has a Satyr Artificer! Each week we look forward to what idiot plans he can come up with and honestly, having a creative Artificer (or just player) has been some of the most fun I've had DMing.
I played a changling alchemist who was an artist, all of their spells and infusions were created by him mixing paints and chemicals then literally painting them into existance
Haven't played it, but I love the idea of a single dip into wild magic sorcerer for an Alchemist and using spell slots to create potions which result in rolling on the wild magic table. Rules as written I don't think it quite works...but I love it. Also made a goblin Battle Smith entirely geared towards buffing their companion and piloting it like a junkyard Gundam. Great times.
Gonna ignore how stylin' Kelly's hair is and give an obligatory comment on the content: I've read up on the artificer after your first video and it seems so freaking kewl. After getting my copy of Tasha's, I've been looking forward to maybe playing one in a game. This video helped clear up a lot of questions I had. As usual thanks you two for taking the time to help break down the content in a way I can actually understand. 👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽
I’m just going to throw this out there, for the Armorer and Battle Smith, if you meet the minimum requirements to multiclass into Paladin, it might be worth taking 2 levels in it. For a few extra spells, a fighting style, and Divine Smite.
You need 13 STR and CHA to go into paladin, no? Thats 2 stats that an Arti would likely never focus (or even get to the MC point) because they do nothing for the arti.
Also adding to the versatility of the Artillerist is that the cannons (when you get two of them) don't have to be the same type. You can mix and match between the three options. Flame thrower and HP? Sure. Force blasts and setting things on fire? Covered. Longevity and long distance blasts? We got that too.
I feel like they dont go over the extra +5 on heals that much since you can expent a first leven healing word and heal for 1d4 + 10 which is crazy stronk
So I was one of the guys saying that the alchemist was S-tier, and here's what I have to say. For power, I would like to point out that the alchemist gets essentially 5 more good spells prepared per day and extra uses of them starting at level 3. Other artificers have 7-8 spells prepared at level 3, and this subclass has 12 to 13 prepared. To compare, clerics had the most spells prepared at 10-11. By level 9, most artificers have 15-16 spells prepared, alchemists have 21-22 spells prepared, and clerics have 23 to 24 spells prepared. This subclass keeps up with the cleric and land druid, which have a ridiculous number of spells prepared. By level 17, artificers have 23-24 spells prepared (which keeps up with the wizard, BTW), but this beast has 31-32 spells prepared. They are the artificer that focuses on casting and buffing. I think they're very potent. On top of that, their potions give out 11-12 THP with each use, plus another 9-10 HP if you're using the healing potion. This class is throwing out pre-healing equal to a level 1 or 2 spell, while buffing allies, and throwing the action economy into chaos. If you're intentionally healing someone with a healing potion, you're giving the equivalent health of a level 3 or 4 cure wounds using only a level 1 spell slot. As a chemical engineer, I severely disagree with the notion that a central component of the alchemist is about explosions. There's an enormous versatility to the world of chemistry that has nothing to do with explosions and acid. So I think their analysis that "it just doesn't cover the flavor of an alchemist" is a bit unfair. If I had to criticize it, I think this class suffers from not knowing what it wants to do with its magic. Its expanded spell list is half combat and half healing, when its flavor is aimed more at utility and support. It should have focused on that. However, by getting all of the healing and combat out of the way with the expanded list, it made room for preparing the utility and support spells from the artificer spell list, and ensured that it would always have a tool for the job at hand. If I could change one thing, I'd have the level 5 feature give this class more level 1 spell slots for elixirs and such. Heck, an extra number of level 1 slots equal to your proficiency bonus would have leaned into the utility caster theme. Or maybe something like "you have a stock of additional reagents that you use for casting spells. You have a number of uses of reagents equal to your proficiency bonus. When you would spend a spell slot, you may use a number reagents equal to level of the spell instead of spending the spell slot."
1) Having extra spells prepared in Elixir effects is a valid point. There's definitely no harm in having scuffed Fly spell, Longstrider, Cure Wounds and a couple of other effects always available. Alter Self elixir especially is pretty potent for shorter social encounters. There are however some drawbacks to these Elixirs: - Elixir effects do not grow in potency, and unlike spells they are not upcastable. That means that if you want a more efficient Cure Wounds or use Longstrider on multiple creatures, you'll have to prepare it as a spell anyway to cast it at higher level and gain the effects of it, or spend multiple spell slots which may not be entirely efficient spell-cost wise or economy wise. That also means that the effects might eventually become less and less relevant to utilize in combat as people get stronger spells and more value out of their Actions being spent on someone else. - The elixirs you gain at the end of a long rest are randomly determined, and not every day will require you to utilize Alter Self or some other Elixir. This randomness can sometimes be very discouraging. - The elixirs are only somewhat useful from action economy perspective if you prepare them in advance, since making a potion and applying it are two separate Actions. That means you have to expend spell slots for necessary elixirs before any combat occurs, and they might not be utilized at all at the end of the day. Even then, drinking a +1 AC potion might rarely be worth sacrificing your main Action you could spend applying a Sneak Attack, hitting the enemy multiple times as a Fighter/Paladin/Barbarian, casting Fireball/Eldritch Blast or anything else worth more than half the effect of Shield of Faith. Shield of Faith is mostly a useful spell because it is a Bonus Action spell. Unless you expect combat before it occurs, the Action you use the potion on is likely going to feel wasted and underutilized. The alternative is not using the potion at all, because "there was always something worth doing more on my turn". Not to mention that preparing specific potions ahead of time will take away your spell slots you could've used for other level 1 spells you've had prepared. - As I said before, the effects of your Elixirs do not grow in potency, therefore burning a 2nd or 3rd level spell slot on them may often feel less useful than casting actual spells of their appropriate level. That leaves you with up to 3 randomly determined potions and maximum of 4 elixirs you can choose for yourself by burning away your 1st level spell slots (locking you out of casting any normal spells at level 1 like Absorb Elements) before you start feeling like the value of the elixir isn't worth burning higher level spell slots. - Because the mechanic is either randomly dependent and has few free uses before it starts tapping into your spell slot economy, it might feel draining on what few spell slots you have to burn them away on Elixirs. After all, Artificers are only half-casters, so you only have so many spells before you run out. Other subclasses may have certain benefits from their main 3rd level feature using separate resources or being just permanent passive benefits, but for the most part a 3rd-8th level Alchemist without spell slots will feel like any other Artificer without a subclass at all. 2) It's 7-17 THP and 7-13 HP with each use of the Healing Elixir. Outside of that, there isn't much to argue here, it's definitely a nice feature. 3) Dungeon Dudes definitely have the tendency of being very narrow-minded when it comes to envisioning subclass concepts. I remember them criticizing a Conjuration Wizard for not being a summoner enough, despite the fact that the class is very much about portals and teleportation in a wider sense than summoning, which is strongly utilized in its mechanics (I'd also argue it is a pretty nice summoner, though). Interestingly enough, they've had very little to say about a Divination Wizard not feeling very strongly like a diviner in its mechanics, or about the Armorer, de facto the tank amongst Artificers with its Heavy Armor proficiency and the entire class focusing around upgrading one's armor and utilizing the Defensive Field feature, to not feel any more potent as a tank than Battle Smith or Artillerist with their Steel Defender disadvantage, Arcane Jolts, Protector Cannons and half-cover auras. I also agree Alchemists don't have to be all about explosions, although I wouldn't mind a more expansive and more potent list of effects available to them than the current one.
@@Deltajugg, I certainly appreciate the lengthy reply. You make a lot of good points. Artificers as a whole are definitely lacking in the number of spell slots that they have available, and basing a central subclass feature off of using spell slots makes this problem worse. Maybe if they had arcane recovery like the wizard or land druid, that would be something.
@@carsonrush3352 I do like going on tangents sometimes :P I don't necessarily think that spell slots are the issue, considering Artificers have many good things going for them outside of spellcasting like Infusions, larger Attunement Item capacity or Tool Expertise. But I think specifically because of them being half-casters, granting them subclass features with repeatable uses for minor benefits should take a separate resource rather than spell slots. Something like the amount of Elixirs being determined by Alchemist's INT modifier, INT+Proficiency Bonus, or double the Proficiency Bonus like Psi Points for Fighter/Rogue, so that Elixirs could serve as an alternative to casting spells without compromising spellcasting capability afterwards. Though to be honest if it were up to me I'd just scrap the feature and re-write it from the ground up so that it's more versatile in usage and more potent on higher levels, likely akin to Battle Master Fighter or Monk of the Elements with unlockable Elixir recipes, or maybe just by increasing the Elixir Table to a d12 and then doing a separate d6 table with higher level, more potent potions.
@@Deltajugg That would certainly be interesting. I like the idea of making more elixir ideas. However, I feel like the greatest amount of variety and flavor could have been achieved by changing the way that they do spell lists for this class. For instance, they could scale back the core artificer spell list from its current 60 spells down to around 40 like the other half casters. The main list would be selected such that it could apply to several different kinds of inventer archetypes. After that, they could scale up the subclass spell lists. Instead of the current design, they get 6 spells added to their spell list for each spell level, like the warlock expanded spell lists. Additionally, they choose two spells from each level that are always prepared. This would allow for tons of flavor for each subclass, and the size of their spell list and the number of prepared spells would remain almost unchanged. I've been thinking about this idea for a while, and I think it could do some interesting things for subclass design while adding a minimal amount of power to the class.
I recently used my Battle Smith with a ranged weapon to turn my party into Weebles during a particularly tough battle. Aura of Vitality to bring one ally back from 0hp as a bonus action per turn, Arcane Jolt to bring *another* one back as a free action after hitting an enemy (limited uses, but only needed to use it if two allies were down), two attacks to make the Arcane Jolt more likely to be usable. Steel Defender + Shield + War Caster + Mind Sharpener to refuse to let Aura of Vitality be interrupted.
I feel like alchemists tend to get overlooked in discussion when it comes to artificer subclasses. Sure, they're maybe not as blast-y as the other subclasses, but potions not requiring concentration is HUGE. Our paladin took down a whole Aboleth in one turn because we'd juiced him up with every potion we had and then cast Haste on him. You don't have to be a big damage-dealer to contribute significantly to your team's damage output :)
Thanks guys, great as usual. Two quick things though: 1) The flamethrower cannon for the artillerist is a lot stronger than you give it credit for; it's guaranteed damage as anyone who saves takes half. 2) Alchemical savant also applies to healing spells. My alchemist is level 6 and being able to do 9-12hp with a 1st level healing word is massive; allies I bring back from being downed are able to still take a hit instead of bouncing back to being unconscious. A massive plus for the alchemist is consistency, adding +INT to cantrips like Acid Splash and +2INT to healing word and cure wounds means that the damage/healing isn't massive but is always reliable.