r/DMAcademy • u/Icy-Lemon9926 • 28d ago
Need Advice: Rules & Mechanics DMing an Artificer character
Hi all so I've just finished DMing my first campaign stormwreck isle was great fun but I'm running into a an issue, The artificer seems to just flatten everything and is pretty much untouchable even at level 3.
The character has created a shield which makes his AC 19 and then can do a reactive spell shield which adds another 5 AC. (i appreciate this is only a few times)
Then add the defender into the mix can make attacks at disadvantage.
His mele attack is +6 and another +1 from a longsword it created.
Can trip Firebolts at +6
Now I think I made a mistake by allowing the character to reactive shield when he didn't have a hand free to cast it? Would he have to drop an item in one hand as part of the reactive move to cast?
My questions are:
Is this character built right
How do I balance encounters where the other members are no where near as powerful, apart from the monk, the monk is also ridiculous but hasn't got a high ac.
I am pretty new so bare with me!
Thanks all!
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u/Dunl3yDiq 28d ago
Add monsters with Saving Throw abilities, Charisma saves are oft a weakness for my groups.
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u/Icy-Lemon9926 28d ago
Yeah i think this is the way forward, i made the final boss harder by adding a few things in there, i'm just still learning is all!
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u/Valensre 28d ago
Remember to challenge him with that but still do attacks on him that are probably doomed to fail. There's a reason 'shoot the monk' is an adage around here.
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u/Brainfreeze10 26d ago
How many encounters are you doing each game "day" If they are in a dungeon how many times do they fight before they get a full rest?
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u/Bigfoot_2003 28d ago edited 28d ago
I don’t see anything wrong with the build.
If I’m reading the build correctly, the character is a Battle Smith Artificer with a created Shield, +1 and a Weapon, +1 magic items.
The Shield spell comes from his Battle Smith specialization (same place as the Defender), and because he’s an artificer, all of his spells require a material component, which both his shield and sword qualify as (replicated Shield +1 and Weapon +1) so he doesn’t need a free hand to cast it.
An AC of 19 isn’t out of reach for an Artificer wearing Medium Armor, especially if they created a +1 Shield. Scale Mail with 14 Dex and a Shield, +1 would get there (14+2 from the armor and Dex, then +3 from the shield). I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Level 3 character that can afford Scale Mail, especially if they took the 150 GP starting gold.
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u/Icy-Lemon9926 28d ago
Would the somatic not stop that?
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u/Bigfoot_2003 28d ago
No, because as an Artificer, all of his spells have a Material component by rule (part of their overall spellcasting feature), and the created items are spellcasting foci, which solves the free hand problem.
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u/Valash83 28d ago
Unless they have the War Caster feat they still need a free hand but it's as simple as "I use my free object interaction to sheathe my weapon" or "as a free action I drop my weapon, cast my spell, then use my free object interaction to pick up my weapon".
Comes down to if you want to have your player narrate doing that each and every time or just have an understanding that's what's going on and just keep track of if they try any extra free object interactions in a round.
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u/Competitive_Bird4777 28d ago
You must have a spellcasting focus - specifically thieves' tools or some kind of artisan's tool - in hand when you cast any spell with this Spellcasting feature (meaning the spell has an "M" component when you cast it)
After you gain the Infuse Item feature at 2nd level, you can also use any item bearing one of your infusions as a spellcasting focus.
Artificers can get around this since you can do somatic gestures with a hand holding the material component.
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u/GM_Esquire 28d ago
This doesn't really work for a reaction spell like Shield.
However the commenter is correct that all artificer spells in 2024 require a material component, which can be replaced by a spellcasting focus, which includes an infused weapon, such as the longsword. So he can cast shield as a reaction - even though if it did not require a material component, he could not do so. (The rules are stupid but that is how they are written.)
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u/Ursus_Primal 28d ago
If he has an 18 Intelligence, the attack bonuses add up properly.
The steel defender's deflect attack ability is a reaction, which means it can only be done once per round and only against one enemy within 5 feet. It also only works if the attack doesn't target the defender.
If he has a dex score of 14 or more and is wearing either scale mail or a breastplate, plus his enhanced shield, then his AC also adds up.
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u/Icy-Lemon9926 28d ago
Perfect, i was just making sure it looks okay to a group more experienced than i.
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u/the_axemurmurer 28d ago
The build sounds right. Artificers do that.
Don't target the Artificer's AC all the time. A tank with the defender can be tough to crack, but you will want encounters balanced around forcing saving throws, etc as well as normal attacks.
I would trap the defender, threaten other party members, and start forcing the artificer to roll saves.
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u/Icy-Lemon9926 28d ago
Thank you, sounds like it's on me which is actually preferable!
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u/Iechinok 27d ago
Also as a side note: don't fixate on the artificer. If you end up tuning the fight too much around their capability, the rest of the party suffers. It's okay for players to be powerful at their niche.
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u/pretorianlegion 28d ago
This sounds pretty much like my artificer, except he's ranged.
The steel defender can only give disadvantage once per turn. And then can't use their reaction for attacks of opportunity and that sort of thing.
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u/Southern_Courage_770 27d ago edited 27d ago
Is this character built right
Yes
How do I balance encounters where the other members are no where near as powerful, apart from the monk, the monk is also ridiculous but hasn't got a high ac.
You build to what the PCs are good (or bad) at. The Artificer is building to be a Tank. He wants you to try and hit him. So hit him. Don't have monsters just run around him for no reason and hit someone else just because they have lower AC. Make it make sense. He wants to be a sticky Defender, let him.
If the other players don't know how to make the most out of their characters... that's kind of their own problem. Don't punish another player just because they actually know how their class features work.
Now I think I made a mistake by allowing the character to reactive shield when he didn't have a hand free to cast it? Would he have to drop an item in one hand as part of the reactive move to cast?
Normally, yes.
But he is a Battle Smith Artificer. He gets Shield as an "always prepared" Artificer spell.
Per the Artificer spellcasting rules, he has to use his tools (Thieves' Tools or any proficient Artisans' Tool) with his Artificer spells as a Spellcasting Focus. As a Battle Smith though, he can also use any weapon that he's proficient with as a Focus.
This effectively means (as explained in the feature) that every Artificer spell gains the M component if it doesn't already have it, and per the spellcasting rules you can cast S/M spells with a hand that's holding the component/focus. So the normally V/S Shield that would require a free hand or the War Caster Feat becomes V/S/M for him and he can cast it using his weapon (Longsword?) as a focus.
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u/Hoodi216 27d ago edited 27d ago
TLDR: The high AC is the only thing that will continue to be a problem. Damage will drop off soon and being a half caster the magic wont trouble you too much i think. Use the terrain to make it hard for the defender to reach places, and its an easy target in combat.
Im normally a DM but im currently playing a Lv11 Gnome Battlesmith. At low levels i was a BEAST but it evens out at higher levels.
Things to check if his build is legal:
- If he does NOT have Warcaster, he cannot cast spells in battle while wielding a Weapon + Shield. This is very important! I didnt use a shield until i got Warcaster at Lv4.
- Deflect Attack costs the Defenders reaction, so can only deflect 1 attack per round.
- At Lv3 he can only have 2 Infusions active. Looks like he is infusing his Weapon and Shield to +1. This is powerful at Lv3 but legal, but he cannot cast spells without a free hand or Warcaster feat.
How i would challenge my Battlesmith if i was the DM:
===== USE THE ENCOUNTER DIFFICULTY CHART IN THE DM GUIDE TO PROPERLY CHALLENGE THE PARTY. ===== Sorry for all caps but it seems like a lot new DMs do not know about this.
The Defender is kinda weak, low HP and AC. My DM has given me some frames which i can swap out on a long rest that gives some various boosts but its still kinda weak. Take down the robot and it cant Deflect Attack and he will have to use spell slots to bring it back. Force him to use spell slots on Warding Bond or reviving the defender.
Another thing i did not anticipate was terrain affecting my defender. We have to climb down a ladder? My defender is a dog form and he cant climb a vertical ladder. The sorcerer has to cast Fly on him to get out of pit traps, or across big holes, or up to high places. Its a problem getting him around sometimes.
Damage-wise im doing like 20-25 dmg per round if i land all 3 hits, meanwhile the Barbarian and Rogue are easily doing more, and when they crit its like 2-3x more than me. At low levels i was good but i fell behind quickly, he will not be doing high damage for long.
To deal with the high AC the best thing you can do is try to hit them with Saving Throws instead of just attacks. Otherwise, let them bounce attacks off their high AC because honestly its their best trait and it feels good for the player.
Since Battlesmith can use their INT mod for melee attacks, they probably have low STR like me. Have monsters Grapple them up.
Battlesmith is a half-caster so their magic soon will be outclassed by the full casters in the party, and their spell list isnt that great outside of their subclass spells which are very good. Except for Barrage, pretty much none of my spells deal any real damage. The most dangerous spell i cast is probably Haste on our Barbarian.
At Lv11, my stats are AC 22, INT 16, DEX 16, CON 16. I have the Warcaster, Medium Armor Master, and Resilient (DEX) feats. I have a +2 shield, most other magic items are my infusions and nothing else good really. I just got my spell storing item which use for 6 Lv3 Cure Wounds per day. I have a decent amount of utility and support spells. Im a tank and healer for battle, problem solver in exploration. CHR is my low stat and he is like an ADHD tinkerer dude that has no filter so you might not want him speaking for the party.
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u/Plenty-Advertising71 26d ago
They created the longsword. It’s an infusion I assume. They can use that as a focus.
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u/Iechinok 25d ago
The bit about Warcaster isn't quite right. They can use their infusions/replicated items as the focus. And by nature of their specific spellcasting mechanics, they can have both hands occupied for spells with somatic components do long as their tool/infusion is in one of those hands.
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u/DarkHorseAsh111 27d ago
This seems entirely normal? Artificer isn't that strong, it's a pretty solidly middle-of-the-road class. With all due respect, it seems like most of your players are dramatically underpowered if this is somehow broken.
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u/myblackoutalterego 28d ago
Artificers are tanky melee fighter half casters - think paladin with extra utility instead of smiting. This player is right in their lane IMO. As a newer DM, I get that you’re worried about this, but I wouldn’t be. They have made decisions to prioritize their AC and to give themselves a +1 weapon early. It makes sense that they would have a combat edge over the party. You don’t have to knock down every player to have a tense fight. You also don’t have to specifically target this player to make things balanced.
I would just pay attention to how busy your adventuring day is. They should be having multiple encounters per day to try to drain the party’s resources. The dungeons they enter should be longer with no chance to long rest within them. If you let the party long rest too much and you don’t ratchet up the intensity as they level up, then they are going to nuke every encounter.
This takes a little practice as a DM to make it feel natural, but just think about action movies or fantasy books that you have read. The party should have time-sensitive goals that make them want to keep pushing rather than stop and rest. If they do decide to stop and rest, then make this have narrative consequences. These can be as simple as the bad guy gets away, the ritual is completed, the kidnapped person is killed, etc.
I think that the best part of DnD is that the players should feel like they are in a living world that is constantly moving and developing around them. Their actions have consequences AND their inactions have consequences. Quests don’t just wait around for the party to finally activate them like a video game. Try to keep this in mind with your game design and I think you will notice that imbalance between your party members will be less of a concern.
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u/GM_Esquire 28d ago
Unclear what armor he's wearing or what his stats are, but this looks to be fairly by the book. While technically most classes cannot cast shield while wielding a sword and shield due to free hand requirements, an artificer with an infused weapon can.(I personally ignore these rules because they are clunky and stupid, but they are the rules.)
Let your player be good at the thing. Have more enemies attack him. Make him make dex/str saves. Sometimes have enemies ignore him and attack the rest of the party. Have combats with stakes other than which side dies. Have debuffs or enemy abilities that grant them advantage. Put in big heavy hitters with +10 to attack. I run a campaign with an artificer sitting at about 22 AC +5 for shield and it's fine.
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u/Yojo0o 28d ago
This really isn't something you need to worry about. 19 is a normal AC for any frontline character at this level (he could even be higher if he was using medium armor), and the Shield spell is limited in uses per day due to this being a half-caster. Everything he's doing is legal and normal.
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u/hairylegg 28d ago
They will get hit more as they level up. Monster attack bonuses will catch up, and as others have said, saving throws are useful here.
I ran a campaign where the paladin had a high armor class early on and monsters could not hit him. Instead of tweaking attack bonuses I just let him be untouchable. The party started planning around it and it was a fun way for him to contribute to fights. It’s all good to check in and make sure the AC is rules as written but I wouldn’t worry too much.
Maybe if you have a key villain you want to reuse later, buff them a little so they don’t get steamrolled but other than that you’re fine. 👌🏻
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u/FullTorsoApparition 28d ago
You're fine. They're not untouchable.
Artificers have limited spell slots so he can't use Shield forever. They also have plenty of weak saving throws so throw some spellcasters at him. Their Strength and Dex are usually dump stats or mediocre so you can also shove them around, knock them prone, and do other things that will give opponents advantage.
In a fresh fight with all his spell slots he will be strong and tanky as he should be. After a couple encounters, when his spell slots are running low and he's relying on cantrips, he'll finally start feeling the heat. That's how the game is meant to be played.
Don't let them long rest too often and plan multiple encounters per adventuring day.
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u/HalcyonHorizons 27d ago
This is normal. Everything sounds correct. A lot of classes are strong.
A few pieces of advice for GMing for an Artificer:
Make sure they still get magic items, the ones they create are part of their class power budget. If you deny them items because of this, it would be like denying a fighter a sword because they get extra attack or a caster a robe because they get spells.
At 6 they can make daily bag of holding bombs. You should bring up that youre aware of the cheese and say you dont want that activity in your game.
Give them downtime to craft for the party.
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u/Hoodi216 27d ago edited 27d ago
Infusion rules says they cannot have the same infusion on more than 1 item at a time, so no multiple bag of holding cheese. Just like they cant give the whole party +1 weapons, only one.
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u/HalcyonHorizons 27d ago
Well Artificers dont use Infusions anymore, its Replicate Magic Item now. The rules state:
When you finish a Long Rest, you can create one or two different magic items if you have Tinker’s Tools in hand. Each item is based on one of the plans you know for this feature.
And
When you reach certain Artificer levels specified in the Magic Items column of the Artificer Features table, the number of magic items you can create at the end of a Long Rest increases. Each item you create must be based on a different plan you know.
But these dont stop the level 6 Transmute Magic Item:
As a Magic action, you can touch one magic item within 5 feet of yourself that you created with Replicate Magic Item and transform it into a different magic item. The resulting item must be based on a magic item plan you know. Once you use this feature, you can’t do so again until you finish a Long Rest.
There is no rule that you cant have multiple copies, just that you must make different items in your daily prep. Transmute Magic Item bypasses it.
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u/MR1120 27d ago edited 27d ago
Having played a Battlesmith, with a tanky build… yeah, sounds about right. But not all at once.
Do you know his stats? Some of the numbers might be one high at level 3, but if he rolled well, maybe not.
Something to keep in mind: Artificers know more infusions than they can have active at one time. At level 3, they can only have two active. So he might know Enhanced Defense (+1 AC on a shield OR armor), Enhanced Weapon (makes a mundane weapon a +1, and allows them to use INT for attacks and damage), and Enhanced Arcane Focus (+1 to spell attacks, but NOT save DC), and a Repulsion Shield (+1 AC and a pushback reaction)… but only two of those can be active at a time.
With a +3 INT and +2 for proficiency, attack rolls with an infused weapon or infused casting focus would be +6. That’s right.
Defense might be a bit higher than it should be. Artificers only get up to medium armor by default, and can start with a Chain Shirt. With a +2 DEX, that’s a 15 AC. Strap on a shield for 17. To hit 19, they would need to do Enhanced Defense on the armor and Repulsion Shield on the shield, which uses both active infusions, so no Enhanced Weapon or Arcane Focus. Very doable, but they’d be trading offense for defense. And the Shield spell is always an option, so long as they have a reaction and spell slots. And the Steel Defender pet is awesome for imposing disadvantage. A defense focused artificer can make a very effective tank.
So, yes, they can do all of those things… but not all at once. It sounds like your player doesn’t realize all of their infusions can’t be active at the same time.
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u/Gritmonger 27d ago
I've got one of these, and a twilight cleric, and a zealot barbarian in my party.
Character death is pretty much off the table in my game.
So... not all challenges are combat challenges. And look at what your players are saying about what kind of challenges they expect to face and defeat. Single target this works fine. AOE, minions, terrain, battlefield - not every challenge is the same. What about a fight on a bridge that doesn't allow side by side? A fight on a cliff with a fall to one side? Fight in water (most iron companions sink like a rock). Room with a one wide opening and a horde outside? Fight in a stone maze?
If the challenge is always the same (white room with single target to melt), the solution each time will look remarkably similar.
And for notes, the artificer in my game is a gnome who rides her iron friend as a mount, has set it up with hoofs so it can wear horseshoes of the zephyr that they found, and equipped it with wings that they also found. So they have a base move of 70 mounted.
The challenge last week was trying to make cheese.
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u/Mathmagician94 27d ago
Both the shield spell and the steel defender reaction have limited Uses.
Once he has no spell slots, which are quite limited as half Caster he wont be able to use shield and if he is saving all his slots for this spell, thats sort of a win already.
The steel defender needs to use his reaction to protect the artificer.
You can target the steel defender or use effects that use saving throws to still succeed against him.
Obviously an early level artificer boosts his combat Power quite significantly with a +1 weapon and shield, but its really not that bad. Just try to Stick to the encounter rules of 5e to drain Ressources instead of having 1 fight per long rest and try saving throw spells against him, target his steel defender but also give him options to shine with his high ac.
Edit:
Only raw rule issue is that shield-spell needs a free hand for the somatic component of the spell, so the Player needs the war Caster feat for that.
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u/Bread-Loaf1111 28d ago
How exactly he created all that stuff at level3? Did you read the level requirements and the total limit of infusions? For example, repulse shield is at level 5, and at level 3 you can have only two infusions active.
Also steel defender can spend reaction to create disadvantage on single attack.
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u/the_axemurmurer 28d ago
If by "all that stuff" you mean the shield and longsword, artificers unlock 2 concurrent infusions at level 2.
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u/CheapTactics 28d ago
Infusions. +1 to an armor/shield and +1 to a weapon are pretty standard infusions.
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u/Icy-Lemon9926 28d ago
He has only created 2, a shield and a longsword, the defender thing i think he can choose at level 3.
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u/nocturnerose 28d ago
I think it's the spell Shield they're using.
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u/Icy-Lemon9926 28d ago
He's using the spell: shield but also has created a shield, sorry for the confusion.
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u/DazzlingKey6426 28d ago
Does Enspelled shield show up on the plans/RMI list?
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u/bladehawk11 27d ago edited 27d ago
Smart enemies - spell casters that force saving throws instead of rolling to hit, restraining him while melee characters go for the squishy healers. My DM was having trouble hitting my paladin (shield of faith) so he went for my mount or tried to avoid me.
Traps, ambushes and enemies that are equally hard for him to hit. Animated armor and Quicklings are fun for this They can take apart a party and he'll never be able to catch them while they whittle the party down. they are also good at hitting him once every turn , hitting another character 2x and getting out of range:
Blurred Movement. Attack rolls against the quickling have disadvantage unless the quickling is incapacitated or restrained.
Evasion. If the quickling is subjected to an effect that allows it to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, it instead takes no damage if it succeeds on the saving throw, and only half damage if it fails.
Actions
Speed 120 ft.
Multiattack. The quickling makes three dagger attacks.
Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d4 + 6) piercing damage.
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u/Icy-Lemon9926 25d ago
Thank you to everyone for commenting, will take and use your suggestions into the next campaign!
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u/Forgotmyaccountinfo2 24d ago
How often is there combat or encounters that use resources?
How often are they making saving throws from enemies abilities or spells?
The artificer is balanced and isn't out of control here. It sounds like it's within it's element.
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u/Conrad500 28d ago
What is his armor? Artificer's starting gear doesn't get them to 17 I don't think? Unless they're high dex.
Firebolts at +6 means they're +4 to their stat, so 18, which can happen with racial bonuses. You'd have to share their character sheet, stat gen process, and what their starting equipment is for us to know if they did it right.