Optimization Alchemist Artificer as part of a Tank build? [Archive]

Citadel97501

2020-08-13, 07:07 AM

Hello all, I am just wondering if anyone else has thought of multi-classing Artificer Alchemist with another class to make a tank? I was just thinking it has so many support elements that can help out a tank, I wonder if its good enough to buff itself into one with proper multi-class support. Especially if you can use something like Warlock to get some extra benefits such as a ridiculous number of elixers of your choice?

Really its just looking over the benefits to see if its worth it.

Elixers: Always should have 3 on you, at least 1 is random and the other 2 are Warlock generated.
-Choices: Boldness, Resilience, and Healing are all good choices. Basically +1 AC, 2d4+4 health or +1d4 to all attacks.

Infusions:
-19 AC base at level 2...very easy to get higher if necessary.

-Healing Word for extra healing for you as a bonus action which is about 1/2 the effectiveness of your healing elixers but is cheaper than a full action.

-Thorn Whip...This spell usually does great for me, and as a tank it would be damn fun.

-Absorb Elements: Another good option that a lot of tanks miss out on.

-Grease: A very good area denial spell especially with Thorn Whip, as they would take the check on entry, or moving through it.

Well this is definitely going to be a good combination, and this could definitely lead to a Witcher alchemy style of play to achieve some great tricks.

Your going to have at least as many elixers as a Warlock due to Arcane Recovery, and the ward is very nice, but you are definitely cutting into your health and melee capability. So your less sticky, but likely even more controlling.

-Armor of Agathys: Great as always, hit me and freeze...
-Hellish Rebuke: Catch 22, hit me and burn...

Hex Blade
-Shield, always extremely good for defense...but can put you in danger of crit smashing you.

Fey Pact
-Fey Presence Fear bonuses: Shield from Hexblade is going to be much better I think, but this is a very interesting idea as well.

Relevant Invocations
Pact of the Blade: Improved Pact Weapon & Thirsting Blade? More melee attacks is always good...
Pact of the Chain: Gift of the Everliving Ones, Cloak of Flies? More tanking and punishments...

Well oddly enough this works although your primary effect is weaker due to not having the extra warlock spell slots, and needing actions for elixers which means no rages.

HPisBS

2020-08-13, 02:46 PM

The big hurdle is action economy. If the EE could be consumed with any thing other than a standard action and/or they can be administered by somebody else even if the target wasn't incapacitated this concept a lot easier to work with.

Really, Tiny Servant + Cure Wounds Storing Item is king there.

Here's one that just doesn't get hurt in the first place - a literal walking tank - complete with multiple "guns:"

T-44: Tank

Level 20 split: Artillerist Artificer 20

Race: Warforged

Stats: Str 12, Dex 14, Con 10 (12) →19 via infusion, Int 15 (16) → 20, Wis 11→12, Cha 10

Background: Sailor Pirate (Athletics + Perception + Navigator's Tools)

As a warforged, we are the archetypal terminator. We don't eat, drink, sleep, or even breathe. We resist all poisons, and are immune to disease. We have a built-in +1 AC, as well as an extra skill and tool of our choice.

We're making a literal walking tank, so we'll grab Smith's & Alchemist's Tools so we can make our own arms and armor.

- cantrips - Mending, Frostbite
- 1st - Absorb Elements, Alarm, Catapult, Cure Wounds, Faerie Fire, Feather Fall, Sanctuary

Our main survival feature will be our infusions. We start with two active at a time, meaning we'll use Enhanced Defense for +1 AC either Enhanced Arcane Focus for +1 on spell attacks, or Goggles of Night.

We become an Artillerist at level 3, gaining us the Shield spell (+ Thunderwave) and our Eldritch Cannon (Protector), which lets us spend a bonus action for some thp every round.

ASI: +2 Int.

Finally, our tank's main gun comes online. We learn to carve arcane sigils into our staff (we'll use the one we already infused) to make our Arcane Firearm, boosting all our spells' damage. Now, we're shooting out 2d6+1d8 Frostbitess left and right -- at level 5. (At lvl 10, this will become even more firearm-like as we use it to shoot Fire Bolts.)

- 2nd - Blur, Darkvision, Heat Metal, Invisibility, Lesser Restoration, See Invisibility, Web, + Scorching Ray & Shatter

The little tank is growing up. We've made ourselves some half plate (+1 AC), and the Enhanced Defense we infused into it grew to a +2. Since we're focused on survival, we traded our Enhanced Arcane Focus in for a Repulsion Shield, giving us an extra +1 AC and a push-back reaction. 3rd, we're replicating a Cloak of Protection, bringing our AC up to 24, and boosting all our saves by +1. 4th will be a Brooch of Shielding so we can resist force damage.

Speaking of our saves, we react to rough situations with a Flash of Genius to add our Int (+5) to a save 5 times / day.

- Cantrip - + Fire Bolt (or maybe Resistance)
- 3rd - Blink, Dispel Magic, Fly, Glyph, Haste, Protection From Energy, Tiny Servant + Fireball & Wind Wall

Spell Storing Item gives us 10 extra castings of a 1st or 2nd level spell. We could store Blur for free-ish disadvantage to our enemies, but we're probably better off storing Shatter so we can spam that instead of Fire Bolt. After all, we probably don't need to cast our concentration spell all that often, anyways. (Though Blur would help a ton if we actually had allies.)

- Bonus: make a Tiny Servant and give it a dart storing Shatters! Let it hang out on a shoulder and we have a shoulder-mounted sonic cannon! ... Or, if we're still worried about survival, we can store Cure Wounds instead and let the Servant hang out on the inside of our shield, with standing orders to cast it on us whenever we get hurt. The point is, Spell Storing Item + Tiny Servant gives us a bunch of free castings and nearly doubles our action economy as a solo terminator with just one 3rd level slot.

ASIs: Resilient - Wis, then Lucky. It's almost cliché, but there's just nothing better for boosting one's defenses.

Infusions: We'll replicate a Ring of Protection, and temporarily trade in our Brooch for an Amulet of Health.

Fortified Position lets us use two Eldritch Cannons simultaneously, and adds a little half-cover force field to them. So now, we can go around with one dealing a 3d8 blast each turn, while the other refreshes our thp. (Any allies we have would also gain the +2 AC, as well as the thp.)

All of this together brings our total up to a whopping 27 AC while we have an Eldritch Cannon online. Meaning, an enemy's +11 only has a 25% chance to hit... unless we have Blur up. Which means we only have to bother to Shield ourselves when they roll a 16 or better on both dice. So ultimately, nothing short of a crit will hit us. (Although Bless, etc can still close that gap a little.)

- Cantrip - + Thunderclap, Shocking Grasp or Resistance,
- 4th - Elemental Bane, Freedom of Movement, Resilient Sphere + Ice Storm & Wall of Fire
- 5th - Animate Objects + Cone of Cold & Wall of Force

ASI: We can do whatever we want with our last ASI, but we probably either want Elemental Adept, since we rely on fire so much, Shield Master to strengthen our Dex saves, or just Tough to help soak the damage we actually take. Crits can still happen regardless of how high one's AC is, after all.

Speaking of which, we get our last infusion, so we can re-infuse our Brooch of Shielding for that force resistance and Magic Missile nullification. That last part is actually kinda valuable for us, since not even DC-based spells and abilities are likely to be very effective against us.

That's because, we've gained the Soul of Artifice, boosting our saves according to how many items we're attuned to -- meaning we add at least +5 to all of our saves! And since we can customize our infusion loadout based on what we're hunting that day, we can trade the Enhanced Defense on our armor for Resistant Armor of whatever element we're concerned about. That drops our AC back down to 25 in exchange for a passive resistance and an extra +1 to all saves. (Really though, we should have acquired at least one attunement item by level 20, so we ought to assume we have the full +6 to all saves anyway.)

With such high AC and saves, we usually won't even need to spam our thp anymore. Most of the time, we'd probably be better served letting them both blast our quarry for us instead.

That capstone also lets us break attunement to drop to 1 hp instead of 0 -- not that we'll ever need to with our crazy AC and Saves.

The bottom line is: we have incredibly high AC, even better saves than a Paladin, tons of hp, and can spam thp and even real healing without using our own action... even though we really don't need to.

TLDR: Summary of Defenses

HP: 183 (223 if Tough)
Saves: Str +9, Dex +10 (+12 if Shield Master), Con +18, Int +19, Wis +15, Cha +8. (+6 from capstone, +2 from replicated items)
- Reaction to add yet another +5 to any save, 5 times (so even Cha save = +13)
25 / 27 AC → max 32 AC w/ Shield (15 half plate + 2 shield + 2 Dex + 1 Warforged +2 Enhanced Defense armor +1 Repulsion Shield +1 Cloak of Protection +1 Ring of Protection +2 half cover from Eldritch Cannons)
-- optional Resistant Armor infusion (add any 1 resistance)
Resistance to force damage and immunity to Magic Missile
Advantage / resistance against poisons
Immunity to disease and sleep
Spammable 4d6+1d8 Frostbites impose disadvantage on an enemy's next weapon attack
Spammable 1d8+5 thp with a bonus action (from Eldritch Cannon)
Option to give Cure Wounds Storing Item to a Tiny Servant
Resistance, Blur, Absorb Elements, Haste, Blink, Web, Globe of Invulnerability Resilient Sphere, Wall of Force, etc
Resilient - Wis
Lucky
Optional Feat: Shield Master for better Dex saves or Tough for extra hp
Reaction to drop to 1 hp instead of 0
Option to spread thp spam, half cover, and even Blur to any nearby allies if not a solo terminator

Assuming lower levels, I guess it depends on which you value more - the Alchemist's encounter-long +1 AC and/or Bless potions alongside a bonus action Healing Word, or the Artillerist's Shield reaction and spammable thp bonus action.