First off, this entire class is stupidly unbalanced. The grammar on this pdf is horrible and easily broken.

I would call this a loss of $2, however, I now plan on using this for a BBEG in my 7 deadly sins Ravnica game as it will work for several ideas I had. Izzet an Artificer? Izzet Overpowered? Izzet Lust?

Really cool concept, but completely unbalanced. This concept for the Artificer is just way too powerful, it can create high-calibre magic items, and do many of the things that rogues, fighters, and wizards can do with little control over how powerful it becomes.

An important thing to keep in mind when coming out with content is the dynamic of the character. Each character should have skills pertaining to their class, and versatility is cool, but if one particular class has too many advanced capabilities and becomes the "ultimate adventurer" as it were, it leaves all of the other players running different classes without any moments to shine, and makes things way too easy for the one with all the capabilities. The cost of infusions doesn't come remotely close to enough to actually level out all of the fantastic things that a character of this class can decide to do every single day.

I thoroughly enjoy the concept of the Artificer, so when I saw one appear in DMG, I decided to snag it up. Bards This concept of the artificer has a lot of cool ideas; creating, enhancing, and using magical weapons and items is definitely enticing. The layout of the PDF is standard; it's clean and what you would expect from a class guide, with some exceptions:

Most notably, there are references to Action Points in the main blocks of text. I understand some alternate rule sets may allow the use of action points, but it is strange to see them suddenly appear in one section, and no where else. Their inclusion in how they are written is messy and a little convoluted; they'd fit much better in their own section of alternate rules.

Similarly, there are a number of grammatical and typo issues. The wording of various things is convoluted at times, feeling jumbled and unclear. This is compounded by the fact that the artificer has A LOT going on for it: infusions, spell scrolls, spell slots, spell formulae and pets - and this is without the sub-classes - that it simply becomes hard to follow along. The variants get meta-magic, combat pets, wands/staves, and an ability to reduce a ton of damage from a single attack, and throw the absorbed damage back out as bonus damage on the next attack. (The example given in the book is absorbing 9 damage from a Fireball spell (no save needed) and then doing 27 bonus damage on the next attack if it hits.)

This leads to the biggest issue: Balance. Having not really had an opportunity to playtest the class, it's hard to be perfectly certain, but the class seems incredibly powerful. Many classes have some form of unique feature: Rogues get sneak attack, Bards get Inspiration, Fighters can get Superiority dice, Sorcerers get metamagic, barbarians get rage. The artificers main class feature are Infusions, which are a fun idea with a lot of versatility, which generally speaking, allow the artificer to infuse some aspect of his action with power. Add ontop of that spellcasting up to 5th level spells, the ability to cast any scroll regardless of race/level limitations, the ability to create spell scrolls simply by watching the spell be cast, double proficiency bonuses to skills, and more and the class can just do too much.

As it is, it's a class that surely looks fun to play; it reminds me of a Pathfinder character, in a sense. There's a lot happening, which essentially forsakes the Simplified nature of 5th Edition. Yes, I would like to play the class, but my I doubt my group would be happy with the capabilities of the characther.

I've been in love with Eberron for ages, running a 4th edition campaign, while having access to 3.5E source materials. The Artificer has been a key staple of the setting from the beginning.

Useing Mathew's Class Guide, I think I've got a balanced fun character that contributes meaningfully to every session. The guide offers a variety of build varients in the form of "Vocations" which range from Elemental Binder to Combat Engineer. I'm playing a Wand Adept, currently at level 13. I'm really enjoying the flexibility that the class provides me. I can empower other players by creating needed magic items, I can provide some depth by infusing potions of various kinds from healing to utility. I can recharge a wand on the fly, and best of all, I can cast just about anything I've seen and studied. This is all held in check by limiting the number of infusions I can cast after each long rest.

Additionally I get an assortment of Artificer spells, which take a cue from the books and are limited to "materials manipulation", so think "Create Item", "Repair" and the various Wall spells.

As I say, I'm enjoying the Wand Adept vocation because I can create my own wand and charge it with spells of my choosing. The spells I can choose from don't need to be Artificer spells, but can be from anything I've derived the schema for. Mage, Sorcerer, Cleric etc. all are fair game for the Artificer to know. This gives me the versatility to be what the party needs me to be, from a healer to a damage-dealer. I've always liked the Wizard type classes for thier flexibilty, however, this class has wider range. Pick the Gunsmith Vocation, and now your rivaling the Ranger for distance dealing damage! The Alchemist vocation may be the simplest vocation, as through it you can ceati multi-faceted bombs, which you can augment with different properties.

The options are considerable and can be overwhelming for the un-initiated. Not because of complexity, but because of the variety of choice, which speaks to the amount of content in the Guide. There is a lot here, in 20 well-laid out pages

I'd encourage anyone looking to play an artificer in Eberron, or simply trying to play a tinkerer type in Fearun to consider this class. The vocations range in complexity and will support a wide range of play-styles, all the while giving you a unique feeling that you truly understand the raw simple truth of how to manipulate magic.