Shillelagh + Battle Smith = INT-based Shillelagh

[Greywander]

I've found a bit of an odd, but not very useful interaction.

Shillelagh is a spell that makes a club or quarterstaff magical, changes the weapon die to d8, and lets you use your spellcasting modifier instead of STR for the attack and damage rolls. Typically, "spellcasting modifier" means Wisdom (druid, Nature cleric, Magic Initiate), or sometimes Charisma (bard's Magical Secrets, warlock's Pact of the Tome), but never Intelligence (so far).

The Battle Smith artificer's Battle Ready feature allows them to use INT instead of STR or DEX for the attack and damage rolls of magic weapons. Shillelagh makes the weapon a magic weapon. Ergo, Shillelagh on a Battle Smith acts as if it were an INT-based Shillelagh, even though it isn't.

This doesn't end up being that useful, though, because you don't get Battle Ready (or an artificer subclass) until 3rd level, but you get infusions at 2nd level. You could much more easily get the Enhanced Weapon infusion and just make your weapon an always +1 magical weapon, no need for Shillelagh. Now, maybe you want to give your Enhanced Weapon to a party member, but is this really worth a level dip or feat just to grab Shillelagh? And unless your campaign simply doesn't have magic items, you'll probably get a magic weapon eventually (and if it doesn't have magic items, then artificer is probably an even stronger class).

Still, I thought it was interesting.

[RogueJK]

"Spellcasting modifier" means the modifier for the stat used to cast the spell.

There are no INT-based casters with Shillelagh on their spell list, only WIS. So if you dip a level into Druid or Nature Cleric, or spend a feat to get it from Magic Initiate Druid, it will use your WIS mod.

The only ways to get a non-WIS Shillelagh is to be a Level 3+ Tome Warlock who takes it as one of their three additional cantrips, in which case it will use your CHA mod, or to be a level 6+ Lore Bard or 10+ other Bard, and take it as a Magical Secret, which would also use your CHA mod.

[nickl_2000]

"Spellcasting modifier" means the modifier for the stat used to cast the spell.

There are no INT-based casters with Shillelagh on their spell list, only WIS. So if you dip a level into Druid or Nature Cleric, or spend a feat to get it from Magic Initiate Druid, it will use your WIS mod.

The only ways to get a non-WIS Shillelagh is to be a Level 3+ Tome Warlock who takes it as one of their three additional cantrips, in which case it will use your CHA mod, or to be a level 6+ Lore Bard or 10+ other Bard, and take it as a Magical Secret, which would also use your CHA mod.


It's not directly from Shillelagh, it's an indirect cause of the spell.

When you cast Shillelagh you make a club/staff so you can attack with staff using Wisdom or Strength. More importantly though, the staff is now considered magical.
Now that your staff is magical it is elgible for the Battle Ready 3rd level artificer ability.

Battle Ready says that when you attack with a magic weapon you can use intelligence. Since Shillelagh made it magic, it works.



Generally not the way I would go, especially since you can make any weapon magical as a Artificer. However, it works.

[RogueJK]

Ok, I see what you're saying now. I misread your OP initially.

Yeah, it seems to work RAW. However, I think this is just one of those unintentional synergies, that is so niche/suboptimal as to be inconsequential. I think the intent of Shillelagh was for it to be like the Monk/Moon Druid 6th level abilities, where their attacks count as magic weapons but specifically only for the purpose of bypassing damage resistance/immunity. But as written, the cantrip description doesn't have that qualifier.

If all you want is an extra magic weapon to hand off to party members, you can do that with a 1 level Forge Cleric dip, and have +1 to attack/damage, and it doesn't require a bonus action to activate like Shillelagh.

[stoutstien]

I don't see a problem with adding it to the class spell list really. I could see it being used at low levels along with magic Stones for battle Smiths.