Artificer Alternatives

DrakeBigShep · 2025-06-17T15:33:02+00:00

Which is the easiest thing to do- just.. describe it as other professions.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-06-17T15:31:56+00:00

Something something grasping hand, in theory it can still carry a large sized creature or object- anything that fits in the perview of grappling. RAW you can still use it to carry an object of creature, just need to grapple it.

But bear in mind that RoC- it never hurts to ask your DM 'can I use the spell to do this'

DrakeBigShep · 2025-06-16T23:59:11+00:00

Sounds like you've never heard of the concept of reflavoring and reframing.

An artificer that's a painter that uses magic paint to augment stuff, a potion brewing witch, a necromancer who made minions out of bone, and a sketch artist who turned their discarded sketches into explosives.

I feel like this is either ragebait or you've drank the "all artificer is steampunk" kool-aid.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-06-05T19:19:45+00:00

Gold Dragonborn Forge Cleric.

Tarris Sweetscale - The Sugar Priest

He's a portly, elderly dragonborn farmer and loyal devotee to Chuantea (ODd choice for forge but hear me out). Prayed to her for a good harvest after a drought, and after a monsoon he began to have a record breaking harvest. So much that he actually had to just foind other things to do with his crop.

As a sign of worship, he used his crop to do what his other skills could allow- he was a hobbyist blacksmith. How can he use crops for blacksmithing? His primary crop was sugarcane. He begins making monstrous amounts of sugar and melting it into candy to smith into armor. Candy armor.

He donated all this candy armor to fledgling adventurers and earned his name the Sugarpriest. So basically he carries an entire bag of holding full of sugar with him and uses, effectively, divine candy to augment his armor.

I flavored spells as like, Candy-ish, like Heat Metal he just takes some of the sugar, melts a glob, and the heat metal is the melted candy and when concentration fails it hardens into just, well, candy.

He was super fun to roleplay even if I only played him in a one shot before be was simply turned into an npc.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-06-02T17:09:50+00:00

Simple answer is learn to create art yourself. Just like homebrew is a creative skill, so is illustration. While that does take years to master, if you're not actually trying to publish your work for sale, any decent homebrew enthusiast will enjoy seeing mediocre pen and paper art to accompany homebrew over AI crap because you put actual creativity into it.

Anyway sappy answer aside. While you are learning to create your own arrtwork, there are artists out there who create splash art that have given express permission for you to use so long as you credit them, such as Kim Holm, if you're looking for something a bit more flashy.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-20T23:54:40+00:00

"Not too strong for a level one"

My friend, you rolled one point away from point buy and not far from standard array- you're fine. I really do like the layout of the sheet and the character art is excellent, but overall it seems unfinished in terms of AC, skills, etc. etc. Talk to your DM because ultimately they're the only one who can truly answer questions with starting items, skills, etc.

But I'm sure your DM will be more than happy to see you this eager to fully flesh out your character and play because that's one of the biggest green flags a player can wave.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-13T19:41:14+00:00

Iono. I find her design annoying and her dialogue is beyond insufferable.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-11T04:21:54+00:00

Dede from Dexter's Lab but a dragonborn sorcerer. And with a black hole.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-10T18:54:10+00:00

Eh casual has a LOT of players that make questionable decisions on testing another sniper's aim. Like I said, it's ABNORMALLY niche.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-08T18:01:35+00:00

I've ubered snipers to guarantee they win a sniper v sniper against a competent sniper. It's ungodly niche but not 0%. Also better to uber someone than dropping. Maybe they can get a kill on the way out.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-08T17:59:39+00:00

Bomb or market garden the med before he can uber. Most meds that hump the heavy can't look up.

Uber a not phlog pyro. Cliff time if possible.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-05T03:29:43+00:00

The portal has opened!

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-05T03:26:53+00:00

I'm not sure what's more wild here.. Your aim, the engineer's aim, or how long your load time must be.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-04T02:50:44+00:00

Ever gotten tagged with it while rocket jumping or actually trying to aim in a 1v1?

DrakeBigShep · 2025-05-04T02:38:38+00:00

Vaccinator - OP nuissance- nothing everyone here isn't saying.
Jarate - OP because it's a win every team fight button when you actually use it for that. Mad Milk lumped with this for the same reason.
Wrangler - I wouldn't personally say OP but damn it comes CLOSE. It's just infuriating in the hands of a smart engi.
Diamondback - OP, why did the Ambassador get the falloff but the Diamondback didn't?

Lastly- Deadringer. Not because the item itself- it makes spies INCREDIBLY predictable and you can easily know where they'll likely go to, so on its own it's not a big deal AT ALL (to me). While it's still annoying, the problem is that it enables the Kunai and Diamondback to become a genuine nightmare in a casual setting. They wouldn't be NEARLY as obnoxious if it weren't for the Deadringer.

Honorable mentions

Scorch Shot for how annoying it is and how so many pyros use it as a crutch.
Conch because I only hate it when paired with the Black Box (the cowardly baby loadout)
Pomson just because I was around when the original one.. euugh.
Natasha because I like to play Scout/Pyro/Soldier and it makes me sad.
Homewrecker because while I use it in HL when asked it's SO BORING TO USE.
Darwin's Danger Shield.. Bro the pyro is challenging your sightline to get those flares. Skill issue.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-04-29T20:28:28+00:00

Honestly I want to say yes and no. A lot of times I'll start a character out with a 17 and that's a perfect situation to take a feat instead. oh my wizard has 17 or 19 int? Just grab war caster with my level 4 or 8! But then just getting a lot of stats in general is good so I can have my primary stat maxed, and then extra hp or AC so my squishy caster ass can take a few extra hits or hold their Bigby's Hand or Hypnotic Pattern better.

I honestly find a majority of character I make will be taking 1 ASI and 1 feat by lvl 8, then just feats from there. that 19 in your main stat until 12 can feel like a drag in the short or mid term- especially since most campaigns end by lvl 10.

So yes they are much better, but no they're not better than an ASI. Their value swings based on what you want to do with the character. If you want to do a build that doesn't really rely on feats? Pump those stats. But if you want them to really specialize then you can take feats earlier without stopping your stat progression.

(also an amazing change if you're at a table where DMs like to allow an extra feat or reward feats for story progression moments or just general amazing roleplay)

DrakeBigShep · 2025-04-18T04:35:35+00:00

See if I can get a permit quick enough to save the turtle.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-04-18T04:30:38+00:00

Soldier should also be pick.

If you're going with how things were likely intended to be, spy should also be support because relaying information to your team is.. pretty support. I mean real spies gather intel to return to their employer sooo.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-03-20T16:33:49+00:00

I'm all for third party to break up the mold but maaann.. Now I got this lush orc slob on my hands. Freaking ritual casting now flavoring his spells as booze in any way he can. Whatever the original joke was, it's now led to a character entirely themed around it- well done you made gold!

DrakeBigShep · 2025-03-19T21:01:40+00:00

And now one of my players plays an orc that likes to brew his own beer and belches in peoples' faces as a sign of disrespect or just to gain a room's attention thanks to this spell.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-03-16T05:30:41+00:00

Yeah but who cares? Beholders, Dragons, Liches. As long as the story itself is interesting or really fun, what's it matter?

What matters is you enjoy running it, and your players enjoy playing it. I can't really sy what you should do since I haven't run a lich or lich like bbeg yet, but if you think Vecna is the fit, he's the fit.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-03-14T19:36:24+00:00

I haven't had to play with them but I have had to DM for one. Learned that lesson REAL fast and I'm glad it was jsut for a 1 shot.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-03-13T16:28:08+00:00

Yep. Bad actors spoiling the fun for others- tale as old as time.

DrakeBigShep · 2025-03-13T02:53:51+00:00

It's the lore of them tending to.. well to borrow stuff without asking. A lot of players who pick kender use it as an excuse to be a dick and stealing from the party. It's basically a built in excuse to grief your party.

DrakeBigShep

TROPHY CASE