Artificer: Battle Smith - DND 5th Edition (2024)

Armies require protection, and someone has to put things back together if defenses fail. A combination of protector and medic, a Battle Smith is an expert at defending others and repairing both materiel and personnel. To aid in their work, Battle Smiths are accompanied by a steel defender, a protective companion of their own creation. Many soldiers tell stories of nearly dying before being saved by a Battle Smith and a steel defender.

In the world of Eberron, Battle Smiths played a key role in House Cannith's work on battle constructs and the original warforged, and after the Last War, these artificers led efforts to aid those who were injured in the war's horrific battles.

Source: Tasha's Cauldron of Everything/Eberron: Rising from the Last War

Tool Proficiency

When you adopt this specialization at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with smith's tools. If you already have this proficiency, you gain proficiency with one other type of artisan's tools of your choice.

Battle Smith Spells

Starting at 3rd level, you always have certain spells prepared after you reach particular levels in this class, as shown in the Battle Smith Spells table. These spells count as artificer spells for you, but they don’t count against the number of artificer spells you prepare.

Battle Smith Spells
Artificer LevelBattle Smith Spells
3rdHeroism, Shield
5thBranding Smite, Warding Bond
9thAura of Vitality, Conjure Barrage
13thAura of Purity, Fire Shield
17thBanishing Smite, Mass Cure Wounds

Battle Ready

When you reach 3rd level, your combat training and your experiments with magic have paid off in two ways:

  • You gain proficiency with martial weapons.
  • When you attack with a magic weapon, you can use your Intelligence modifier, instead of Strength or Dexterity modifier, for the attack and damage rolls.

Steel Defender

By 3rd level, your tinkering has borne you a faithful companion, a steel defender. It's friendly to you and your companions, and it obeys your commands. See its game statistics in the Steel Defender stat block, which uses your proficiency bonus (PB) in several places. You determine the creature's appearance and whether it has two legs or four; your choice has no effect on its game statistics.

In combat, the defender shares your initiative count, but it takes its turn immediately after yours. It can move and use its reaction on its own, but the only action it takes on its turn is the Dodge action, unless you take a bonus action on your turn to command it to take another action. That action can be one in its stat block or some other action. If you are incapacitated, the defender can take any action of its choice, not just Dodge.

If the Mending spell is cast on it, it regains 2d6 hit points. If it has died within the last hour, you can use your smith's tools as an action to revive it, provided you are within 5 feet of it and you expend a spell slot of 1st level or higher. The steel defender returns to life after 1 minute with all its hit points restored.

At the end of a long rest, you can create a new steel defender if you have smith's tools with you. If you already have a defender from this feature, the first one immediately perishes. The defender also perishes if you die.

Steel Defender
Medium construct
Armor Class: 15 (natural armor)
Hit Points: 2 + your Intelligence modifier + 5 times your artificer level (the defender has a number of Hit Dice [d8s] equal to your artificer level)
Speed: 40 ft.
STRDEXCONINTWISCHA
14 (+2)12 (+1)14 (+2)4 (−3)10 (+0)6 (−2)
Saving Throws: Dex +1 plus PB, Con +2 plus PB
Skills: Athletics +2 plus PB, Perception +0 plus PB x 2
Damage Immunities: poison
Condition Immunities: charmed, exhaustion, poisoned
Senses: darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 10 + (PB x 2)
Languages: understands the languages you speak
Challenge:
Proficiency Bonus (PB): equals your bonus
Vigilant. The defender can't be surprised.
Actions
Force-Empowered Rend. Melee Weapon Attack: your spell attack modifier to hit, reach 5 ft., one target you can see. Hit: 1d8 + PB force damage.
Repair (3/Day). The magical mechanisms inside the defender restore 2d8 + PB hit points to itself or to one construct or object within 5 feet of it.
Reactions
Deflect Attack. The defender imposes disadvantage on the attack roll of one creature it can see that is within 5 feet of it, provided the attack roll is against a creature other than the defender.

Extra Attack

Starting at 5th level, you can attack twice, rather than once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Arcane Jolt

At 9th level, you've learn new ways to channel arcane energy to harm or heal. When either you hit a target with a magic weapon attack or your steel defender hits a target, you can channel magical energy through the strike to create one of the following effects:

  • The target takes an extra 2d6 force damage.
  • Choose one creature or object you can see within 30 feet of the target. Healing energy flows into the chosen recipient, restoring 2d6 hit points to it.

You can use this energy a number of times equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of once), but you can do so no more than once on a turn. You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Improved Defender

At 15th level, your Arcane Jolt and steel defender become more powerful:

  • The extra damage and the healing of your Arcane Jolt both increase to 4d6.
  • Your steel defender gains a +2 bonus to Armor Class.
  • Whenever your steel defender uses its Deflect Attack, the attacker takes force damage equal to 1d4 + your Intelligence modifier.
Artificer: Battle Smith - DND 5th Edition (2024)

FAQs

What race is best for Artificer 5e Battle Smith? ›

The Best Races for a Battle Smith Artificer

High Elves are another great choice, especially if the character's build leans more in favor of a higher Dexterity and armor class, rather than higher Constitution. High Elves get bonuses in both Dexterity and Intelligence and start with proficiency in some martial weapons.

What does a Battle Smith do in Artificer? ›

A combination of protector and medic, a Battle Smith is an expert at defending others and repairing both materiel and personnel. To aid in their work, Battle Smiths are accompanied by a steel defender, a protective companion of their own creation.

What is the best armor for Battle Smith Artificer? ›

Battle Smith Armor

Medium armor with 14 Dexterity is good enough, especially with Infusions. An additional +2 (or more with even more Infusions) is also great, depending on what kind of weapon you might prefer to use.

Is Battle Smith or Artillerist better? ›

You could fight at range with a bow or crossbow, and that would work fine, but if you want to fight at range the Artillerist is typically a better fit. The Battlesmith is intended to wade into melee with a weapon in hand and clad in so many Infusions that you're basically untouchable.

Which Artificer subclass is best? ›

What is the best Artificer subclass? Battle Smith is the best Artificer subclass, though Artillerist is just behind it. The overall subclass feature quality and multiclass opportunities of the Battle Smith are profound.

Is playing an artificer hard? ›

With the right infusions and spells, they can fill nearly any role in the party, making the Artificer's versatility rival that of the Bard. However, the Artificer is complicated. This is not a class I would recommend for new players or for players who suffer from analysis paralysis.

Do artificers make guns? ›

Given its thematic context, an Artificer can acquire a Pistol from the nearby blacksmith, or even craft one themselves. Artificers can infuse the Pistol with Repeating Shot, grab a Shield, and they can become a potent long-ranged combatant.

Is artificer a hard class to play? ›

Yes, an artificer can be a challenging class to play, especially for a new player. A deep understanding of how D&D works is beneficial as artificers rely on creating magic items as a core component of their class. Artificers are also spellcasters which can be another complex game mechanic.

What is the strongest Armour in D&D? ›

Plate armor is the best armor you can get, it's heavy, you clank when you walk, but there's no better AC. It just costs a fortune. Plate is what you build towards, wear it if you can get it.

What is the strongest armor in DND? ›

Because Plate Mail is the best armor in the game. Offering a huge 18 AC without any magic or Dexterity, Plate Mail is the most AC that non-Light Armor (with high Dexterity) can give. Once you can get Plate Mail, you're going to be happy with it! As long as you're proficient, of course.

Is Oseram Artificer armor worth it? ›

The Oseram Artificer is the best armor in Horizon Forbidden West that takes advantage of Aloy's revamped spear. The armor has the highest melee stats in the game when fully upgraded and skills that boost melee and power attacks while buffing resonator buildup and how long enemies stay energized.

What races make the best Artificer? ›

Best Race for Artificer
  • Mark of Warding Dwarf (Stuff like AoA and many tools from Tashas)
  • Lotusden Halfling (Brave and Lucky, Gets Spike Growth (and Entangle) for more Hazards)
  • MMOTM Bugbear (If he goes before an enemy, he can have a hot nova round with Scorching Ray)
  • M. ...
  • Verdan/Vedalken (great Mind Saves)
Mar 24, 2023

What dwarf is best for Artificer? ›

Hill Dwarf is a great choice for front-line artificers because the additional hit points bring you more in line with martial classes like the Fighter, but Mark of Warding's access to Armor of Agathys can solve the same problem.

What race is best for Artificer DDO? ›

Both half-elves and humans have access to the Human Versatility enhancement that can grant up to 25% damage boost. Humans also have access to the Cannith dragonmark, making them the best crafters in DDO.

Can artificers make explosives? ›

Starting at level 2 artificers can make black hole bombs for 4gp.

What is the best race for an armorer Artificer? ›

The Best Race For An Armorer Artificer

A few great options for Armorer races include Gnomes (who have a natural +2 to Intelligence), Gith (who have a +1), and Vedalken (who have a +2 to Intelligence). If the Dungeon Master doesn't allow content from other sourcebooks, Variant Human is also a good choice.

What combat stat is best for Artillerist? ›

In terms of stats, you want to focus on Swiftness and Crit. It really complements the Firepower Enhancement Engraving to go with so much crit rate. Swiftness is just a well-recommended stat for Raids, and it's even better on the Artillerist because he's so chunky and slow.

What is the best class to multiclass with Artificer? ›

Multiclassed Artificers and Wizards are the most common combination, and for good reason. You can fill out some of the magical abilities. Having ritual caster on top of Magic Item infusions means you have a ton of long-lasting power options both in and out of combat.

What class is closest to Artificer wow? ›

DnD Artificers are closest to enchanters, not engineers.

What is the hardest class to play in 5e? ›

The 10 Most Difficult Classes To Play In Dungeons And Dragons
  1. Wizard. Wizard is in my opinion the most difficult class in DnD, especially for new players.
  2. Bard. ...
  3. Druid. ...
  4. Monk. ...
  5. Sorcerer. ...
  6. Cleric. ...
  7. Warlock. ...
  8. Rogue. ...

Do artificers need Intelligence? ›

Artificer Ability Scores

As you're starting out creating your shiny new D&D artificer character, the ability score you need to prioritize is Intelligence. Int dictates your spellcasting, your "flash of genius" ability, and generally all of your relevant class features rely on Intelligence.

Are artificers good for beginners? ›

Building an Artificer

Starting at a low level also helps new players, because it's more opportunity to play to learn what works and what doesn't before making a lot of character creation choices or having too many options when in combat.

Can an artificer use a wand? ›

Artificers use their tools as spellcasting focuses at level one. Their options expand to using items with infusions as spellcasting focuses at level two. Artificers cannot imbue magical items (like wands). Since wands are not tools or imbued mundane items, Artificers cannot use magic wands as spellcasting focuses.

Can an artificer make a wand of magic missile? ›

For example, a 3rd-level character could create a wand of magic missiles (an uncommon item), as long as the character has spell slots and can cast magic missile.

Can an artificer make an all purpose tool? ›

As an action, artificer can touch the All-Purpose Tool and transform it into any type of artisan's tool of their choice (see Player's Handbook, p. 154).

What is the easiest class to play DND? ›

Dungeons and Dragons: Easiest Classes For New Players
  1. 1 Barbarian.
  2. 2 Fighter. ...
  3. 3 Paladin. ...
  4. 4 Ranger. ...
  5. 5 Bard. While Bard can be a little difficult to get started with, it's a great class for those that want to see some action during combat, but don't necessarily want to be on the front lines. ...
Sep 12, 2019

What is the hardest hitting D&D class? ›

The paladin is perhaps the most powerful combatant of all of D&D 5e's classes. It combines the best aspects of the fighter and cleric into a single character. Paladins get a fighter's weapons, spellcasting like a cleric, and several unique features.

What rank is artificer? ›

The specific term "artificer" for this function is typical of the armed forces of countries that are or have been in the British Commonwealth and refers to a Senior Non-Commissioned Officer. Artificer is a job title and not a rank.

What is the tankiest class in D&D? ›

What is the tankiest class in D&D? Barbarian is the tankiest, followed by paladin. They can easily keep up with Paladins and Fighters as a primary tank. d10 hit dice, same as the Fighter and Paladin.

What is the highest damage weapon in D&D? ›

If the DM decides the creature is too big to be decapitated, a Vorpal Sword still deals an astounding extra 6d8 slashing damage on a critical hit. No other weapon in D&D 5e can kill almost any foe on one attack out of 20.

What is the highest AC enemy in D&D? ›

The highest AC monster in DND is the Tarrasque with an AC of 25 and a challenge rating of 30. The Tarrasque is a gargantuan and legendary beast found in the Monster Manual.

What creature has the toughest armor? ›

#1 Crocodile

This reptile's skin has been compared to a suit of armor. The bony structures on a crocodile's back, tail, and head are called scutes. Scutes are made of a solid material called keratin. If you see an animal with horns, those horns are probably made of keratin.

What happens if you wear armor you are not proficient in 5e? ›

If you wear armor that you lack proficiency with, you have disadvantage on any ability check, saving throw, or attack roll that involves Strength or Dexterity, and you can't cast spells.

Why is Shield Weaver armor so good? ›

The Shield-Weaver, originally known as the UltraWeave Mk7. 1, is a very rare and very powerful outfit. The armor trades the ability to modify it for a highly durable, rechargeable force shield that absorbs all incoming damage, massively enhancing Aloy's combat capabilities.

How good is dung eater armor? ›

Dung Eater's armor offers superb protection but is on the rather heavy side. It's one of the best sets in the game but will only be useful to those with high and tanky stats. You can unlock it once his quest ends, either by feeding him 5 Seabed Curses, turning him into a puppet, or simply killing him in his cell.

Is Nora Sentinel armor good? ›

1 Nora Sentinel

While it doesn't have the same healing properties, the increased resistances as well as the buffs to Aloy's concentration and stamina makes this set a great one to use while attacking either machine or human enemies.

Which Artificer uses guns? ›

Gunslinger artificers are masters of engineering, forgers of firearms powered by a combination of science and magic. Brave, clever, and frequently foolhardy, they are often found where the fighting is fiercest.

What is the most popular race class in DND? ›

It's also worth noting that previous reports have suggested that Humans are the most popular race among D&D players. That also means that the most common character choice in D&D is…a Human Fighter.

Why is Artificer not a full caster? ›

The Artificer can cast spells as ritual. Neither of the other half casters are able to do this as part of their spellcasting kit. In fact, the only spellcasters that can inherently cast spells as rituals are bards, clerics, druids, and wizards (all full casters).

What skill proficiency is best for Artificer? ›

Every class has its own key skills; the four most useful for an artificer are perception, investigation, stealth, and arcana. Fortunately, perception, investigation, and arcana are all class skills; any player who chooses two of those from the artificer's list of skills is well on their way to a great build.

What is the strongest dwarf dwarf fortress? ›

Angels, and their variants, are the absolute strongest creatures in the game, acting as the "final bosses" of the game if playing in "Adventure Mode".

Are Gnomes good Artificer? ›

Rock Gnomes are fine for Wizards and Artificers. Deep Gnomes are arguably better due to Superior Darkvision, the Dex bonus is immaterial there.

What race is best for Battle Smith artificer 5e? ›

The Best Races for a Battle Smith Artificer

High Elves are another great choice, especially if the character's build leans more in favor of a higher Dexterity and armor class, rather than higher Constitution. High Elves get bonuses in both Dexterity and Intelligence and start with proficiency in some martial weapons.

What is the best character race in DND? ›

Half-orcs

Half-orcs might not be as bulky as their full-blooded orc brethren, but if you're looking to create a character who is stronger and hardier, then the half-orc is your best bet from the core D&D races/species.

Is war Caster good for Artificer? ›

Artificer: Artificers get access to shield proficiencies, so builds that want to wield a weapon with their shield will have a use for War Caster. That said, artificers need to have their spellcasting focus in hand to cast spells that require material components.

What Races to play Artificer? ›

First, the artificer will need to be one of the many races available in 5e. To help narrow down the long list of contenders, consider these few options above all others: high elves, forest gnomes, variant humans, and the yuan-ti pureblood all make for especially strong artificers.

What Races are good for Artificer armorer? ›

The Best Race For An Armorer Artificer

A few great options for Armorer races include Gnomes (who have a natural +2 to Intelligence), Gith (who have a +1), and Vedalken (who have a +2 to Intelligence). If the Dungeon Master doesn't allow content from other sourcebooks, Variant Human is also a good choice.

What is the most popular race class in DnD? ›

It's also worth noting that previous reports have suggested that Humans are the most popular race among D&D players. That also means that the most common character choice in D&D is…a Human Fighter.

What God would an Artificer follow? ›

Regardless of their race or origin, artificers were generally known to worship the god Gond. Though some were known to worship deities related to their pursuits of crafting or knowledge, such as Moradin, Oghma, or Torm. Others were known to worship gods of magic, such as Corellon or Mystra.

Do artificers get firearms? ›

Given its thematic context, an Artificer can acquire a Pistol from the nearby blacksmith, or even craft one themselves.

What is the best character race in DnD? ›

Half-orcs

Half-orcs might not be as bulky as their full-blooded orc brethren, but if you're looking to create a character who is stronger and hardier, then the half-orc is your best bet from the core D&D races/species.

Is Artificer a real DnD class? ›

The artificer is a playable character class in the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) fantasy role-playing game. The Artificer first appeared as a full class in the 3.5 edition of D&D and was introduced in the Eberron campaign setting. The artificer is a unique base class that reflects many of the core themes of Eberron.

Can an Artificer use a holy avenger? ›

You don't need proficiency to wield a martial weapon or any other weapon for that matter. You just wouldn't add your proficiency to your rolls. So yes, you can wield the holy Avenger, but you don't add proficiency, just STR.

Can an Artificer use a wand as a focus? ›

Artificers use their tools as spellcasting focuses at level one. Their options expand to using items with infusions as spellcasting focuses at level two. Artificers cannot imbue magical items (like wands). Since wands are not tools or imbued mundane items, Artificers cannot use magic wands as spellcasting focuses.

Does spell sniper work for Artificer? ›

Artificer: Artificers have limited spell slots and are sometimes forced to use cantrips or ranged weapons. If you're going for a cantrip build and will be using fire bolt as your main source of damage, Spell Sniper is an alright feat.

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