Help making a artificer.

[DrewVolker]

I have played dnd for years, but I have never had the option to play a character I have always wanted to until now. A warforged artificer.

I have always wanted to give it a try, but alas the DM I played under normally had to move away, and since its been hard to just get into a DnD game, let alone a good one.

Anyway, I am not so great at building optimized characters, as I rarely spend the time to make that one perfect build that just takes the character to the next level.

I am not going for the super dps blaster using wands (I have found thats a popular choice from searching the web), nor do I want to play the meleeficer (another popular option I've found). I am thinking of being a support character mainly, as my goal will be to buff/heal the party while maybe shooting off a crossbow if needed. I also plan on having atlest one of each of the different types of homuculi, maybe even more than one of the kind that can make magic items for you while you are away. I also plan on having the kind that attaches itself to a crossbow and can fire/reload itself by itself, and have that perched on my back or something firing away in combat, while having maybe a few iron defenders (gonna try to let the DM let me upgrade them to different types of metals) to stay back and protect me and the other non-melee combatants.

I am debating if I want to take the warforged substitution levels for artificer, as I donno if I want to give up the features I have to do gain the new ones.

I am also a little wet behind the ears when it comes to crafting in dnd, especially magical items.

So I would like help with a general build idea, what infusions to focus on, advice on making items and what skills to pick up.. etc.

I appreciate any help anyone gives me, so thanks in advance.

[Godskook]

1.Custom non-magical items are going to be a huge part of changing how you play your setup. A wagon with your homunculi on it is one thing, but a mobile battle carriage with murder holes from which your archer constructs can shoot out arrows of death is quite another. Get creative, get imaginative, and see what your DM will allow as far as things not actually published in books.

2.Custom magical items are another great place for you to get inventive. Now, I'm not talking about breaking the game with a custom item of true-strike, but rather more 'balanced' but useful ideas like upgraded healing belts that are relevant to higher level combat or a belt of battle with more than 3 charges. Also see if you can make potions/oils of infusions. Again, see what your DM is willing to allow, and be willing to work with him here; CL, XP, and GP are your bargaining chips on this one.

3.As for actual RAW tricks, here's a few:
-The Bane weapon enhancement is the singularly best function for the cost. Abuse this with archery. A swift-hunter in particular will *LOVE* you for it.
-Vicious is quite potent as well, but make sure you have a way of undoing the backlash from it.
-Effigies make some of the best customizable constructs out there. Effigy Varags make great skirmishers with innate spring attack for example, especially early on before their HD becomes a liability.
-Effigy Master is a great artificer prestige class, except its not....talk to your DM about an Artificer being allowed in, as it just makes sense.
-Heroics(SP?) grants a fighter feat. Iirc, the spell self-stacks, allowing you to grant any touched target a rather large number of feats for a nova situation.
-Artificers craft False Life wands at CL1 naturally. Such a wand can be used to grant a form of cheap pseudo DR, as all castings persist until discharged, but only one applies to any given swing.
-Wands of repair light wounds are going to be your own bread&butter healing while wands of cure light wounds are for the party and/or diplomacy. Remember: Everyone remembers and loves the guy who healed half the town and left an emergency heal-stick in case something happened in his absence.