Brett Reinheart wrote:
Peter Montgomery wrote:
Is this going to be for an offical publication or just homebrew?
Likely for home brew. Its based on an already published version.
Peter Montgomery wrote:
As I read your current rules a level 1 artificer with 18 on Int (+4 mod) can know 7 level 1 spells, and place all of them in 1 device and fire it off 4x a day (more if he wants to risk destroying the device) for a total of 28 spell effects a day.
The only limit on the number of spells per device is the time the GM allows him to make or repair the devices.
This is where the spells per day comes into effect. He can only have his spells per days worth of spells in a device. So at level 1 he has one spell in one device. Ill try to clarify that better. The idea is that he can know a lot of formula (spells) but like a wizard has limited uses. He pours his aura into his devices which is in a limited supply.
Bummer, I was hoping this would be for an offical publication
but I would rec you scrap the spells per day mechanic and use the spells per device x number of devices, x number of times device can be used to equal your spells per day.
It would enhance the "game play" for the player as he role plays the mad scientist trying to find the right balence of his devices.
The class feature that makes me want to play an artificer is the 2 or more spells at a time mechanic. But to balence it, he needs less uses per device per day to keep the number of spells per day on par with the socerer.
The Artificer is not a wizard fix, but a fix for the Socerer. I have play for years and rarely have a Socerer in the party, when I do, half way through the campaign they (and the rest of the party) wishes they had chosen druid or wizard or fighter/archer.
The artificer fixes the "glass cannon" by increasing the cannon output and making him less glass (d8 hit dice plus no penalty to wear medium armor and a sheild)
It would be interesting to see who does more damage and has a higher AC at level 10 between an artificer or a Fighter/archer
By then he should have a self buff device, healing device, some 1/2 priced magic items and a very powerful ranged weapon that does damage and debuffs enemy with each hit.
When out of spells he has weapons, 3/4 BAB, decent AC, and the buffs/debuff still working to help him deal non magic fighter damage from his crossbow or short bow. 2 or 3 bow feats should help out a lot.
The wizard will have slower spells per round but a wider range of spells, and more powerful spells to chose from and a spell list he can change with 8 hours of sleep and 1 hour of mediation
The artificer has a similar spells per day but goes through them faster and has a much more limted list to chose from
plus to change his power set for a different enemy he would have to dismantle his device and rebuild it at 4 hours per spell level
assuming 16 hours a day that 4 levels of spells per day. Making a device with 1 levl 4 spell will take all day, if not traveling or being attacked.
If yuor group still claims over powered, then agree to an even more limted spell list similar to the cleric domains.
Pick out spells that seem logical that they could be recreated from a scientifically derived source. Fire, ice, electric, acid, poison, grease, color spray, web, sheild, mage armor, heal, enfeeble, blind, defeafen, magic(seeking) missile, etc all seem reasonable
make a list for each level, allowing more of the wow spells at the higher levels,
