5e This Artificer did it

[BerzerkerUnit]

Aloha,

I hope you're all having a great day!

A few years ago I created an Artificer subclass called the Lifecrafter that focused on creating Aberrations and Oozes as temporary pets. In the wake of Tasha's and various summon spells I thought I'd revisit the subclass with some of what's been learned. Here we go in a very rough format. Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks!


Artificer Archetype: Lifecrafter

Bonus Spells
1. Grease, Heroism
2. Aid, Warding Bond
3. Life Transference, Water Breathing
4. Summon Aberration, Polymorph
5. Awaken, Modify Memory

Bonus Proficiencies
At third level after selecting this Archetype you gain proficiency in the Medicine or Nature skill and with Herbalism Kit or Alchemist's Tools.

Brood Chamber
Beginning at 3rd level you create a container that holds an alchemical or herbal concoction that incubates Arcane Abominations. You can use this feature to cause an incubating ooze or aberration to exit the container as an action. The maximum CR of the creature is equal to your Artificer level divided by 2 rounded down. The creature is charmed by you and uses the statistics of an average creature of its type like those found in the Monster Manual or other rules supplements with the following exceptions.

- The creature has a number of hit points equal to your Artificer level x 5 + its constitution bonus + your proficiency.
- The creature cannot cast spells other than Cantrips or use Multiattack
- The creature loses any Mythic or Legendary traits, saves, and actions
- The creature cannot recover hit points
- It is possible to restore hit points to an Abomination by performing 1 hour of work with an Alchemist's tools or Herbalism Kit. Each hour restores 5 hit points. You can expedite this restoration by expending an Artificer spell slot, restoring 5 hit points per level of the slot instantly.
- If the creature has the ability to create, summon, or spawn other creatures, neither you nor it have any control over them

The creature shares your initiative but takes its turn immediately after your own. It can move and use its reaction as you direct, no action required by you. It takes the dodge action unless you use a bonus action to direct it to do something else.
Your Abomination remains in your service until it is reduced to 0 hit points or you use this feature again. In either case it rapidly dissolves into a foul smelling paste or greasy puddle.
You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Proficiency bonus and regain all uses after a long rest.

Unleash Savagery
Beginning at 5th level, you can use your action to direct an Abomination with a Spellcasting, Innate Spellcasting, or Psionics trait to cast a spell it knows of 1st level or higher. You must expend a spell slot of the appropriate level to do so. Alternatively you can use your action to direct your Abomination to use a multiattack action.

Plasmic Infusions
Beginning at 9th level, when you create an Abomination with your Brood Chamber, you can incorporate a piece of equipment that bears any Infusion other than Replicate Magic Item. Armor and Weapons used for this purpose provide their benefits as Natural Armor or add the infusion's effects to the creature's natural weapons. The item otherwise confers its benefits and can be used by the Abomination normally.

Death Spawn
At 15th level you develop the ability to implant a delicate
regenerative matrix in your Arcane Abominations that
triggers upon their death. When this
Abomination is reduced to 0 hit points, it dies as normal. At
the beginning of your next turn a duplicate of the
Abomination will boil up and tear itself free from the sticky remnant's of its predecessor. This
spawn has half the original’s maximum hit points and lacks the ability to regenerate in this way but is
otherwise identical.

[KittenMagician]

i think this is actually pretty decent. i think cleaning up some of the word choice to fit in with WotC stuff would be best but thats kind of unimportant. i wonder if size might be a concern for this as most oozes are large or bigger but i dont know if that is a big concern or not.

[Formion]

Ooh, a mad scientist!!!

I never thought of that! Great idea!

Mechanically I think it is good. Nothing pops out as problematic.

[Kuulvheysoon]

I presume that Brood Chamber refreshes on a long rest? If so, you'll need to add text specifying that. Not going to lie, though, that the fact that it only costs an action feels a little weird, considering that as low as 4th level you can pump out Huge oozes (CR 2 Huge Ochre Jelly, TftYP). Considering the strength of the summoned creature, I might suggest being able to use the ability after a SR for free? It's a halfway point between the Artillerist and the Battlesmith's pets, and at higher levels your pet is much scarier than the Steel Defender, but it's also the entire point of the subclass, so that should probably be okay. And it's a little less jarring than pumping out a mind flayer in 6 seconds.

I'd also probably allow for healing spells on your summoned creature, but keep the stipulation that it dissolves at 0 hit points, to prevent the Groundhog Effect on it.

I'm a little worried by the CR cap on that ability. Moon Druid is 1/3 of your level, and that's generally considered strong early on. I'm also worried by the non-spellcasting abilities of certain aberrations as you reach higher levels. How are you handling spells cast without spell slots, like Mind Flayers? Also worth thinking about is Recharge abilities. They're (theoretically) not every round, but they're designed to be able to stand as a valid option against Multiattack.

A few potentially problematic Aberrations (and Oozes) include:

CR 1/2: Grey Ooze (MM) and the ability to corrode metal (eating through 2 inches of nonmagical metal in 6 seconds has a lot of utility).
CR 2: Intellect Devourer (MM) and just... everything about it. It's criminally under CR'd in the first place, and this doesn't help when it's available as soon as 4th level.
CR 2: Nothic (MM) and their Weird Insight action.
CR 3: Spectator (MM) and their Eye Rays action.
CR 3: Neogi (VGtM) and their Enslave action.
CR 5: Adult Ooblex (MToF) and their Sulfurous Impersonation ability.
CR 5: Gnome Ceremorph (Rime of the Frostmaiden) and their Illithid!lite abilities
CR 5: Star Spawn Mangler (MToF) and their Flurry of Claws action.
CR 6: Gauth (VGtM) and their Eye Rays action.
CR 7: Mind Flayer (MM) and their abilities, particularly their Mind Blast and dominate person ability.
CR 7: Tsucora Quori (E:RftLW) and their Possession action.
CR 9: Hashalaq Quori (E:RftLW) and their slightly higher DC Possession action.
CR 9: Lorthuun (OotA) and its Legendary Actions, in addition to their Eye Rays action.
CR 9: Ulitharid (VGtM) which has the normal Illithid goodies at a higher DC, plus a whole host of per day spells and Creature Sense.
CR 10: Aboleth (MM) and their Enslave action, in addition to their Legendary Actions/Lair Actions/Regional Effects.
CR 10: Elder Ooblex (MToF) in addition to Sulfurous Impersonation, a whole suite of 3/day spells.

Mind you, this isn't me saying that this is a terribad idea. On the contrary, I love the idea of it. Just playing Devil's Advocate for you. A lot of the issues with the aforementioned monsters stems from either Recharge abilities or Innate Spellcasting, which doesn't follow the same rules as regular Spellcasting.

As for the rest of the class...

Artificer subclasses typically hand out a bonus tool proficiency at 3rd level along with their other features.

I like the subclass spells, with the exception of awaken - given the valid targets for the spell (beasts and plants only), I find it a little misplaced with the theme of the Lifecrafter.

I'd probably toss some sort of limiter on Unleash Savagery in regards to allowing Multiattack; maybe gating it behind spell slots by CR; like "must expend a spell equal to 1/3 of their CR to allow Multiattack (rounding down, minimum 1st level slot)" or the like. As it stands, it's a much, much better deal to summon a melee brute than a specialist because this can double or triple their damage output for free.

A few monsters (Illithid are the only ones off hand that come to mind) are wearing armor by default in their stat block; would you count that as their base AC, or would the player have to recalculate it?

Death Spawn is very cool and thematic, but you should probably specify for things like Innate Spellcasting and Recharge abilities if it's considered to be the same creature, or if the uses are refreshed.

Sorry for the long post, but I actually really like the idea and just had a Lot of Thoughts? :smallredface:

[BerzerkerUnit]

i think this is actually pretty decent. i think cleaning up some of the word choice to fit in with WotC stuff would be best but thats kind of unimportant. i wonder if size might be a concern for this as most oozes are large or bigger but i dont know if that is a big concern or not.

Thank you so much for your feedback!

I look a lot at Moon Druid and see they can freely become large at 2 and huge at 6. Mounts can be purchased on the cheap, so I’m not worried about it.

More on this in a later response.

[BerzerkerUnit]

I presume that Brood Chamber refreshes on a long rest? If so, you'll need to add text specifying that. Not going to lie, though, that the fact that it only costs an action feels a little weird, considering that as low as 4th level you can pump out Huge oozes (CR 2 Huge Ochre Jelly, TftYP). Considering the strength of the summoned creature, I might suggest being able to use the ability after a SR for free? It's a halfway point between the Artillerist and the Battlesmith's pets, and at higher levels your pet is much scarier than the Steel Defender, but it's also the entire point of the subclass, so that should probably be okay. And it's a little less jarring than pumping out a mind flayer in 6 seconds.

I'd also probably allow for healing spells on your summoned creature, but keep the stipulation that it dissolves at 0 hit points, to prevent the Groundhog Effect on it.

I'm a little worried by the CR cap on that ability. Moon Druid is 1/3 of your level, and that's generally considered strong early on. I'm also worried by the non-spellcasting abilities of certain aberrations as you reach higher levels. How are you handling spells cast without spell slots, like Mind Flayers? Also worth thinking about is Recharge abilities. They're (theoretically) not every round, but they're designed to be able to stand as a valid option against Multiattack.

A few potentially problematic Aberrations (and Oozes) include:

CR 1/2: Grey Ooze (MM) and the ability to corrode metal (eating through 2 inches of nonmagical metal in 6 seconds has a lot of utility).
CR 2: Intellect Devourer (MM) and just... everything about it. It's criminally under CR'd in the first place, and this doesn't help when it's available as soon as 4th level.
CR 2: Nothic (MM) and their Weird Insight action.
CR 3: Spectator (MM) and their Eye Rays action.
CR 3: Neogi (VGtM) and their Enslave action.
CR 5: Adult Ooblex (MToF) and their Sulfurous Impersonation ability.
CR 5: Gnome Ceremorph (Rime of the Frostmaiden) and their Illithid!lite abilities
CR 5: Star Spawn Mangler (MToF) and their Flurry of Claws action.
CR 6: Gauth (VGtM) and their Eye Rays action.
CR 7: Mind Flayer (MM) and their abilities, particularly their Mind Blast and dominate person ability.
CR 7: Tsucora Quori (E:RftLW) and their Possession action.
CR 9: Hashalaq Quori (E:RftLW) and their slightly higher DC Possession action.
CR 9: Lorthuun (OotA) and its Legendary Actions, in addition to their Eye Rays action.
CR 9: Ulitharid (VGtM) which has the normal Illithid goodies at a higher DC, plus a whole host of per day spells and Creature Sense.
CR 10: Aboleth (MM) and their Enslave action, in addition to their Legendary Actions/Lair Actions/Regional Effects.
CR 10: Elder Ooblex (MToF) in addition to Sulfurous Impersonation, a whole suite of 3/day spells.

Mind you, this isn't me saying that this is a terribad idea. On the contrary, I love the idea of it. Just playing Devil's Advocate for you. A lot of the issues with the aforementioned monsters stems from either Recharge abilities or Innate Spellcasting, which doesn't follow the same rules as regular Spellcasting.

As for the rest of the class...

Artificer subclasses typically hand out a bonus tool proficiency at 3rd level along with their other features.

I like the subclass spells, with the exception of awaken - given the valid targets for the spell (beasts and plants only), I find it a little misplaced with the theme of the Lifecrafter.

I'd probably toss some sort of limiter on Unleash Savagery in regards to allowing Multiattack; maybe gating it behind spell slots by CR; like "must expend a spell equal to 1/3 of their CR to allow Multiattack (rounding down, minimum 1st level slot)" or the like. As it stands, it's a much, much better deal to summon a melee brute than a specialist because this can double or triple their damage output for free.

A few monsters (Illithid are the only ones off hand that come to mind) are wearing armor by default in their stat block; would you count that as their base AC, or would the player have to recalculate it?

Death Spawn is very cool and thematic, but you should probably specify for things like Innate Spellcasting and Recharge abilities if it's considered to be the same creature, or if the uses are refreshed.

Sorry for the long post, but I actually really like the idea and just had a Lot of Thoughts? :smallredface:

Thank you so much for your feedback! I’m glad it received so many positive responses (or responses in general)!

First Moon Druid power vs these pets-
Moon Druids are considered overtuned bc of [number of uses, duration, and short rest recharge] x [mobility, multiattack at level 2, and hit points]. Brood Chamber Abominations have all those issues addressed with more finite uses, delayed access to multiattack, and far more limited HP (though relevance is retained somewhat better since hp scale better).

I have retooled Multiattack as requiring your action. That’s freeing up a bonus action for something like flaming sphere or a Homunculus pet. I definitely wouldn't make it cost a slot, even at CR 1/2 your level a lot multiattacks won’t keep up and the major offset with having it attack in melee is having it charge into combat where healing is expensive. Spectator at 6 is your major upgrade explicitly bc its flight and rays can keep it out of danger, but even then ~36 hp isn't a lot (though it can become 92 if you pour Aid and Warding Bond on it).

Huge Pets- I regularly use battle maps and have never felt greater size to be an extreme advantage. Often it's a disadvantage since it can limit an ally’s mobility and creates more spaces from which enemies can attack. Further, size tends to scale HP up but that’s not the case for these creatures since HP is fixed by level.

Creature list- thanks for this! It did remind me to add a bullet about losing legendary traits. I’ve tweaked the wording for the Level 5 feature so it’s clear any non Cantrip spell costs you a spell slot whether the creep uses slots or not. I've considered requiring a piece of the creature so you're essentially cloning it, but that opened the door to too many questions for me. I'd rather the DM just get comfortable saying "no" to some stuff if they need to.

Notably, when the original was playtested years ago, the player did use the Intellect Devourer on a bad guy and it was really great. He just asked a few questions and the creature divulged like 2 sessions worth of advance knowledge on the party which they used to great effect. He also made a Huge Flying Gelatinous Cube. It was a solid gold at my table but I can see how some DM's might have thought it was too much. The original subclass was really way too busy with another resource to manage etc. This feels a lot tighter.

Healing the pets... Since I eliminated multiplying the con bonus from the calculation they are a fair amount flimsier. I’ve stolen some inspiration from Simulacrum, pls have a look when you can.

[Kane0]

Neato! I might just save a copy for this if I ever get out of the DM seat, i've been wanting to play an artificer