3.P - Pondering a Vehicle Themed Artificer

[unseenmage]

The character (https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=411684) is an Artificer, Windwright Captain (EH70) focused on vehicles... somehow.
Starting level undecided, probably either 3 or 7.
3rd party allowed with permission.
Custom spells, magic items, and traps are allowed with permission, but I try to avoid them. I swear I really do try. Really!
Game could go into epic, maybe even with mythic on top.
Might be gestalt too, the original game was. I dislike gestalt for personal reasons, the other player loves it, the GM is ambivalent. It'll be a coin toss.
Game was originally in Faerun, we'll likely at least start there.

This will be a legacy game, this character is the artificially created first son of an old character of mine who Sacred Guardian ed an Effigy of himself then Incarnate Construct ed that and dubbed it his heir.

I'm looking for neat ideas and advice to make a vehicle or travel themed artificer.

Some ideas that have come to mind already:
- Leadership + the Aquire Ship ability of the Windwright Captain.

- spelljammjng maybe?

- no Stringhold Builder's Guide. Am looking for more a hot wheels vibe than a Howl's Moving Castle thing.

- That said i DO really enjoy the flavor of the stuff from DragonMech.

- maybe PF's Numeria could be looted for a space shuttle?

- I always usually play a Hordificer so if I could keep the minionmancy and action economy breaking to a minimum it'd be a nice change of pace.


If he's gonna have an airship, he'll need a crew.

The character's dad magically introduced whole new races of spell created Constructs and Incarnate Constructs of those to our shared Faerun gameworld. The core airship crew will consist of these folk, at least to start.

Obdurium statues with appendages of every possible natural weapon animated via Minor Servitor. Did you know obdurium is purple? I didn't until I had to research what color the Incarnate Constructs of these thing's skin was.

Awaken Sand on Shapesand could theoretically reshape themselves one itty bitty section at a time. Incarnate Constructs of them have coarse skin and soft Odo from Star Trek DS9 like features.

If you force a swarm of Crawling Claws into a Humanoid shaped mold could you hit it with Incarnate Construct?
Probably not, but it's the kind of weird idea my artificers love to try.

EDIT
Game is
- level 6
- 3.P
- gestalt
- mythic
- no epic, gate, wish, miracle, genesis, binding, simulacrum, or custom resetting magic traps
- 3rd party with permission
- PF tech allowed
- cheese allowed with permission

[unseenmage]

I always forget that this apparatus of not-a-crab man even exists.

But re reading it made me wonder about the magic item combining rules when applied to vehicle type magic items.
Which had me imagining an airship with slam attacks.
Which reminded me of the anime Outlaw Star and its grappler ships (https://outlawstar.fandom.com/wiki/Grappler_arms).

So now I'm wondering how to make grappler arm enabled airships in 3.P?

[Buddy76]

Oh man, check out Dragon Magazine 333 if you can. Page 76 lists a Gargantuan construct called a Guardian Ship, it's a construct shaped like a caravel and it has a figurehead with slam attacks and a grapple modifier of +41. It needs to be crewed by at least 15 people to function properly and each Guardian Ship serves a family and it becomes unconfortable if there isn't at least one blood relative of that family crewing it (so it should fit really well with your legacy character).

Since it's an intelligent construct, I'm sure an Artificer can customize it to Baator and back (make magic items for the figurehead to wear!). They can also advance by HD to Colossal

[weckar]

You're probably aware already, but A&EG has a sizable section on vehicles and vehicle upgrades.

[Vizzerdrix]

Consider the effigy siege crab.

[unseenmage]

Oh man, check out Dragon Magazine 333 if you can. Page 76 lists a Gargantuan construct called a Guardian Ship, it's a construct shaped like a caravel and it has a figurehead with slam attacks and a grapple modifier of +41. It needs to be crewed by at least 15 people to function properly and each Guardian Ship serves a family and it becomes unconfortable if there isn't at least one blood relative of that family crewing it (so it should fit really well with your legacy character).

Since it's an intelligent construct, I'm sure an Artificer can customize it to Baator and back (make magic items for the figurehead to wear!). They can also advance by HD to Colossal
Havnt perused it myself yet but I'm told it looks a lot like animated object stats with some stuff tacked on.



Was just considering artificer transhumanism and 3.x gives us the Half-Golem template while PF enables the Artificial Intelligence template, though IIRC you need a tech artifact to download yourself with first.

An AI vehicles artificer could go full Borg real quick. Or Replicators. Etc Etc.
Not that that's a bad thing. Might be pretty great.

I also considered spell combo custom magic item siege ammunition.
Fire a ballista bolt loaded with War Magic Study spells at enemy crew.
Fire CL boosted Minor Servitor bolts at enemy airships.
Could be a lot of fun.
Expensive, but fun.

[unseenmage]

The character sheet linked in the OP is illegal.
While playing an Incarnate Construct of a normally non playable Construct is fine putting a dragon marked elf only PrC on a Incarnate Construct gnome Effigy is not.

So, while I'm unsure how I still would.like to get that Windwright Captain feel even though he doesnt qualify for the class.

Thoughts?

[PoeticallyPsyco]

Stormwrack also has a lot of lovely ship-specific magic items. Figureheads that come to life and attack, sails that cast displacement or plane shift on the vehicle, and a few more niche items that I can't remember off the top of my head. One of my favorite combinations (in theory, never had a chance to try it yet) is a Stormship (Eberron Campaign Setting) with a Lightning Turbine (Arms & Equipment Guide) and maybe some Lightning Ballistae (Heroes of Battle). The A&EG also has the Earth Keel and Sky Keel for sailing on land and on the winds respectively.

You could probably use the Landlord feat to pay for upgrades to the ship.

[unseenmage]

So gestalt confirmed. Artificer // Archivist -> Runecaster

I've been fishing through 3rd party books for Warforged analogues. Basically humanoid shaped free-willed Constructs that I can assemble, but not control with PF's Build by CR rules.
- Warforged (3.5, Eberron)
- Android (Pathfinder, Golarion)
- Soulmech (Dragonstar)
- Maug (3.5)
- Ironborn (Book of Iron Might)
- Vessel of Cyriss (Iron Kingdoms, Liber Mechanica)
- Phalanx (Aethera Campaign Setting)

Am planning to have built and trained each and to take then as either Leadership minions or hirelings.
More Warforged-esque type Construct suggestions would be welcome.

[Morof Stonehands]

Dragon mag 331 has an article on magical vehicles with stat blocks to build them as well. And they are more reasonably priced as far as magical vehicles go

[unseenmage]

On the advice of the resident rules guru of our IRL group I'm looking at either Vizier // Archivist -> Runecaster OR Artificer // Helmsman.

The idea is that this character is the child of an artificer, but also a big damn adventurer.
So I went him to be able to make stuff but also ride around the world in style.

There's this neat template that has also caught my eye for potentially adding to a Construct vehicle.. the Transforming Construct template. It is 3rd party but basically it gives different movement speeds and limbs for such.

from our group chat,


So, yes, you could still go Artificer | Archivist / Runecaster, take the Craft Companion Vehicle feat, and have the best of both worlds without having to learn about veilweaving.

[SangoProduction]

Take SoP's Technician, who has Independent Invention as a class feature...specifically Vehicles (http://spheresofpower.wikidot.com/technician#toc158) with customization.

Alternatively, you can use Conjuration sphere, create a mount with Ooze base form (... Or Quadrupedal, if you want to be more "conventional," with the "legs" being wheels ...). From there, you can customize it to your heart's desire. I have a little guide to using the sphere right here (https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?621559-Making-a-Friend-(Spheres-in-Review-Conjuration)).

[Rynjin]

There is also the Thunderscout, from Thunderscape: World of Aden, if a more Steampunk-y flair is allowed in the campaign. It's all about vehicles, and it's from quite a good book, albeit a lesser known 3rd party than the ubiquitous Dreamscarred and Spheres options. They get a vehicle for free, and the ability to craft more.