D&D 5E Artificers, Vehicles, and Vehicle Infusions

[doctorbadwolf]

I made a similar thread a long time ago, but this one is not quite the same set of questions.

What I'm curious about is what y'all think of :

• An Artificer specialization focused on a personal vehicles
  • said vehicle starting with a hover speed of 40ft and altitude limit 10ft, speed affected by wind and/or terrain?
  • Eventually being able to have a vehicle that can also serve as a home base, basically a small airship
  • Vehicles with specific upgrade traits listed in the subclass vs bonus infusions that have to be used on the vehicle
• regardless of above, a set of vehicle specific infusions, and maybe a "infusion limit by vehicle size" table?
• What do you give a subclass with a vehicle, assuming the vehicle is large and can't go some places. Also it just feels better to have some of your subclass be about the character directly. Maybe a special weapon or other device? Oh! Maybe it's the main weapon on the vehicle, and you can detach it to use personally?
• How punny or silly can you stand a subclass to be?
  • eg, in the draft of an aeronaut i'm working on, the two attack actions are named weaponized abjurant beam (WAM) and ballistic accelerated attack manuever (BAAM), and the vehicle itself is a Dynamic Accelerated Aetherlocution Machine (DAAM)
• what sort of customizations would you expect from such a thing? I figure 2 at level 3, with the base stats being similar to a steel defender except it trades having it's own actions for having a hover speed and a ranged attack. Those number could drop a little more in some places, subject to a "prototype trait", which opens up room for roughly 3 offensive, 3 defensive, and 3 movement/utility, traits to choose from.
  • I'd love to hear ideas for vehicle traits, infusions, customizations, that don't assume an artificer subclass, and thoughts that do
  • My basic ideas are a SLAM module that increases base speed or speed when you dash significantly, a Force Multiplier that increases weapons damage, an abjuration based shielding, level 5 could have an option that gives full flight, advanced manuevering side repulsors that let you "juke" as a reaction when attacked, a silent engine system and obscuring paint job that helps with stealth

I also have vague ideas for vehicle infusions, including custom vehicle statblocks with infusion limits basically based on Star Wars Saga Edition, maybe even including ditching cargo space to fit some of the bigger upgrades to airships and the like. Stuff like the items in Ghosts of Saltmarsh for upgrading ships, plus stuff like magic shields and automaton crew.

Anyway, I hope im not the ony weirdo around here in love with fantasy crystal and aether powered vehicles!

 

[Stormonu]

I'd riff from "modern" customized vehicles - The Millenium Falcon, The General Lee, James Bond's Austin Martin, KITT, Back to the Future's DeLorean, Firefly, The Enterprise NCC-1701, etc. Mecha suits too would let you pull from Battletech, Robotech, Gundam and a host of other anime.

For D&D, for maximum cross-compatibility, I'd consider carts, carriages, coaches, wagons, rickshaws, "automated" palanquins, figurines of wondrous power, swan boat feather tokens, folding boats, gliders, kites, balloon airships, Eberron skyships, Spelljamming ships, seaborne vessels (and possible submersibles*, considering the number of undersea races) and so on.


Mecha suits might be out there for most D&D campaigns, but there is precedents with the Mighty Servant of Luke-O and the Wicker Juggernauts of the Knorric of Jakandor.

Personally, I wouldn't limit on size. If the group is playing Spelljammer and they're given a vessel of their own, as a player I'd want my Vehicular Artificer to be able to personalize and/or modify the ship to some degree even at low levels. In such a case, a special "Attuning" slot would be acceptable, and a representation of the "customized to hell" and "that's my ship!" trope seen in various fiction.

* Including Apparatus of Kwalish

 

[doctorbadwolf]

I'd riff from "modern" customized vehicles - The Millenium Falcon, The General Lee, James Bond's Austin Martin, KITT, Back to the Future's DeLorean, Firefly, The Enterprise NCC-1701, etc. Mecha suits too would let you pull from Battletech, Robotech, Gundam and a host of other anime.

Solid idea.

For D&D, for maximum cross-compatibility, I'd consider carts, carriages, coaches, wagons, rickshaws, "automated" palanquins, figurines of wondrous power, swan boat feather tokens, folding boats, gliders, kites, balloon airships, Eberron skyships, Spelljamming ships, seaborne vessels (and possible submersibles*, considering the number of undersea races) and so on.

Hell yeah, and spells related to vehicles (and mounts!) should be a thing.

Mecha suits might be out there for most D&D campaigns, but there is precedents with the Mighty Servant of Luke-O and the Wicker Juggernauts of the Knorric of Jakandor.

Yeah and in a space opera game, they’d fit right in. In my homebrew space opera setting, there is a Borderworlds region between the The Promised Dominion of Humanity (evil empire) and the Commonwealth of Free Worlds (Federation). In these Borderworlds, there are knights in mech suits. The big beefy hard hitters are called Angels, and the smaller and more nimble and stealthy mechs are called Night Hawks. Very anime.

Personally, I wouldn't limit on size. If the group is playing Spelljammer and they're given a vessel of their own, as a player I'd want my Vehicular Artificer to be able to personalize and/or modify the ship to some degree even at low levels. In such a case, a special "Attuning" slot would be acceptable, and a representation of the "customized to hell" and "that's my ship!" trope seen in various fiction.

* Including Apparatus of Kwalish

Excellent points. Yeah you’d want to be able to make a few modifications yourself, as it were.

Hmmm. Much to think about, I have…

 

[doctorbadwolf]

@Stormonu One thing you touched on is really making me think about the general topic and my aeronaut artificer subclass.

The current build gets basically a magitech speederbike (Star Wars), and can customize it a bit, and can upgrade it at later levels. But, focusing on that makes it hard to put things in that are focused on the artficer themselves.

One idea I had was that you could detach the main gun and use it as a personal power rifle.

What other stuff should the “airship artificer” be able to do? Repair airships faster, give ship systems a boost or THP, cast “self” spells on the ship, like absorb elements?

I feel like I’m just plain overlooking obvious stuff. Perhaps I need to refamiliarise myself with the wotc Star Wars games and how they handled outlaw tech/engineer characters, and think about how to simplify and make it more fantasy.

 

[bedir than]

@Stormonu One thing you touched on is really making me think about the general topic and my aeronaut artificer subclass.

The current build gets basically a magitech speederbike (Star Wars), and can customize it a bit, and can upgrade it at later levels. But, focusing on that makes it hard to put things in that are focused on the artficer themselves.

One idea I had was that you could detach the main gun and use it as a personal power rifle.

What other stuff should the “airship artificer” be able to do? Repair airships faster, give ship systems a boost or THP, cast “self” spells on the ship, like absorb elements?

I feel like I’m just plain overlooking obvious stuff. Perhaps I need to refamiliarise myself with the wotc Star Wars games and how they handled outlaw tech/engineer characters, and think about how to simplify and make it more fantasy.

A detachable scout (find familiar ish) that they can send out.

 

[Parmandur]

Sounds interesting.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

A detachable scout (find familiar ish) that they can send out.

Dude. Yes. Also, wouldn’t that imply some degree of intelligence in the vehicle?

Sounds interesting.
View attachment 282494

I’ve been thinking about having different choices of movement, rather than just “you have a fly speed with an altitude limit of 10ft”, each with benefits and opportunity cost, bc the above image is rad as hell. That’s the master cycle, yeah?

 

[Parmandur]

Dude. Yes. Also, wouldn’t that imply some degree of intelligence in the vehicle?

I’ve been thinking about having different choices of movement, rather than just “you have a fly speed with an altitude limit of 10ft”, each with benefits and opportunity cost, bc the above image is rad as hell. That’s the master cycle, yeah?

Correct.

 

[bedir than]

Dude. Yes. Also, wouldn’t that imply some degree of intelligence in the vehicle?

Like an INT 3 kind of thing, maybe.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Like an INT 3 kind of thing, maybe.

I see no reason it should be dumber than a wolf. Still, and advanced [dumb name for vehicle ai] unit could be an upgrade option, rather than baseline.