Artificer v Cleric for Healer ?
Obryn
Hero
Artificers are strong healers, absolutely.
Their main perk is their ability to share healing surges among the party, and provide surgeless healing to people who are out of them. Additionally, they can provide an absolutely sick number of temporary HPs to the party with Resistive Formula and a few choice feats.
Now, nobody is as good at healing as the Cleric. Pretty much ever. Artificers hold their own, however, and are up there in the second tier, IMO.
Warlords are a tough comparison. Generally, Artificers are better healers, but Warlords have a few feats which put them about on par with Clerics for healing. Shamans, I still haven't seen in play... However, shamans tend to spread out their healing, which can be good or bad, depending.
-O
Their main perk is their ability to share healing surges among the party, and provide surgeless healing to people who are out of them. Additionally, they can provide an absolutely sick number of temporary HPs to the party with Resistive Formula and a few choice feats.
Now, nobody is as good at healing as the Cleric. Pretty much ever. Artificers hold their own, however, and are up there in the second tier, IMO.
Warlords are a tough comparison. Generally, Artificers are better healers, but Warlords have a few feats which put them about on par with Clerics for healing. Shamans, I still haven't seen in play... However, shamans tend to spread out their healing, which can be good or bad, depending.
-O
Shin Okada
Explorer
Basically, some of the cleric builds are the best healers in the entire game.
Still, Artificer has an edge as they can manage healing surges per day amongst party members well. Also note that they have, basically, 2 free healing infusions per day.
And, the new update rule for magic items' daily powers may benefit Artificer, depend on how many magic items with dailies a DM will handle to the party.
I agree with Obryn that Artificer is at least in the second tier.
Warlord is, basically, not a good healer, maybe only Runesmith is the worse healer amongst leader classes. But Warlords have their own edges. No other leaders are better at granting extra attacks and moves to one's allies.
Regarding shaman, IME they are average healers. And at higher level, a shaman can be a great healer with various healing spirit related feats. But at Paragon and Epic Tier, Healing Spirit power has some trouble regarding it's range (unlike other leaders' main healing powers, that is close 5 forever). Still, Shaman is one of the most versatile leader class thanks to it's spirit companion.
Still, Artificer has an edge as they can manage healing surges per day amongst party members well. Also note that they have, basically, 2 free healing infusions per day.
And, the new update rule for magic items' daily powers may benefit Artificer, depend on how many magic items with dailies a DM will handle to the party.
I agree with Obryn that Artificer is at least in the second tier.
Warlord is, basically, not a good healer, maybe only Runesmith is the worse healer amongst leader classes. But Warlords have their own edges. No other leaders are better at granting extra attacks and moves to one's allies.
Regarding shaman, IME they are average healers. And at higher level, a shaman can be a great healer with various healing spirit related feats. But at Paragon and Epic Tier, Healing Spirit power has some trouble regarding it's range (unlike other leaders' main healing powers, that is close 5 forever). Still, Shaman is one of the most versatile leader class thanks to it's spirit companion.
Prestidigitalis
First Post
In my last game session, my level 5 Tactical Warlord ran out of healing very quickly, and even with only three party members it doesn't go very far. Oh well, the extra damage makes up for it.
I agree with Shin that the Runepriest (he called it a runesmith) is not a particulary good healer (at least at lower levels). The Warpriest on the other hand is much better at it (regular laser cleric is even better). The Warprist does not seem to do as much damage as the Runeprist (at least it seams that way to me).
Aulirophile
First Post
Inspiring Warlords have the second total highest healing in-game, behind Clerics. At Paragon with Fight On any Warlord is the only class that ends up with 4 healing words/encounter, and like all the well supported healers at Epic each one target two targets (which is 8 surges/encounter before any other methods of healing).
Realistically most Leaders have roughly the same healing till Paragon (2 words/encounter, a utility here or there, and a daily that usually has some method of healing the whole party). If you don't take any of the utilities/dailies/encounters that also heal you might run into issues on a really hard fight.
Roughly the order is, in terms of healing/damage prevention (Chord of Resilience etc.,)
Pacifist Cleric
Non-Pacifist Cleric
Inspiring Warlord
Artificer
CHA based Warlord
Sun Warpriest
Non-CHA based Warlord
Sentinel
Bear Shaman
Bard (barring Tiefling/Flaming Weapon/Stirring Song)
Ardent
Runepriest
If it isn't listed it is because I haven't run numbers on it. The reason everyone loves Warlords is the rank so high on the healing and they add a ton of enabling (extra attacks on the striker and etc).
If you're running low on healing as a mid-Heroic Warlord consider Rousing Words (level 6 utility) and Stand the Fallen (level 5 daily attack power). You can retrain either later when you find you don't need it (which should be around level 11).
Ardent and Runepriest get worse as you level, because they have so little support. At Epic they won't be able to grab the 2 targets per Word feat, for instance (because it doesn't exist /cough) putting them at 1/2 the healing any other Leader should have.
To answer the OP's question, Artificers are great. You can move surges around for free (every other healer needs the ritual Comrade's Succor), you get 2 extra surges/day for the party, you can use Magic Weapon as your Standard every single round while taking Immediates as your Encounter powers, and there are other fiddly benefits. They aren't the powerhouse that Clerics are in terms of healing, but they are very good.
Cyronax
Explorer
Artificers also have a lot of secondary advantages, especially they're versatility in damage types. Clerics rely a lot on radiant. Artificer powers (despite its painful lack of support outside of Eberron Player's Guide and 1-2 articles in Dragon) can really spread out across the spectrum.
I also like the multiple support roles artificers can reliably take on. Depending on how you build them, I think they can work reasonably sell as a poor man's controller. Con-artificers with good armor and buffing powers could also play the defender, though they wouldn't have the 'lock down' capability.
They also have a great range of skill choices, as well as they're probably gain the most rituals out there for free.
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Aulirophile
First Post
Artificers get 4 free rituals. Wizards get 3 at level 1, and then 2 every five levels up to 25 (total of 13). Compared to other leaders (who basically get a fixed one based on class and then can choose one) it is certainly better.
Aulirophile
First Post
Linked you the Healic guide in your other thread.
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