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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Shadowlore" data-source="post: 2628360" data-attributes="member: 9509">Why? Do any of these enhancements conflict? If not, let her rip. First, it'll take you nine minutes before you are able to do anything with it, unless you burn  (nearly) all of your action points.  At best it'll be nine rounds, spending an action point per round (only one per round per RAW). Even then, frost and icy burst require a standard action to activate, so now we are talking about 2 more rounds before the wielder can do anything.  If the wielder is not the artificer and is not holding the weapon you've got at least another round to exchange the weapon. If the wielder is not the artificer but is standing there holding the weapon you've got two party members out of combat for at least what, 10-12 rounds?Since to get +2 level enhancements an Artificer needs 4th level infusions, the artificer's level must be at least 8th level. To get four of them at 8th level would require an int of at least 34. If you have this then I say your game is broken despite any rules.  To use normal PC stat ranges at 8th level, perhaps say an int of 26 (minimum needed to get 2 bonus 4th level infusions) - this is theoretically possible by 8th I'll assume for the moment, without mass brokenage; but it is not "normal" IMO - you'd need to be an artificer of 9th level (2+2). Honestly, how many 9th level PCs have an int of 26? Without a high enough int  to get 2 bonus 4th level infusions you need to be 13th level artificer.Second, it is only for 10 minutes per level.Third, it requires the artificer to wade into melee, not something most would like to do. Or, it will add another 100GP to the cost to let someone else do it.Damagewise ...speed: no bonusbane: +2d6 if targetted corerectlyanarchic: +2d6 vs lawful onlydefending: useless unless the weapon actually has an enhancement bonus, no +dmg in either caseunholy: +2d6 to good creaturesvicious: +2d6 frost:  +1d6icy burst: only in event of critical hit an extra 1d10 (possibly 2-3d10 on the right weapons)keen: doubles crit range, no specific damageSo say this is applied to a normal heavy mace, or a longsword. What have you got?Well if you are fighting  a lawful good opponent of the needed bane type subject to critical hits and w/o any cold resistance ...1d8+9d6 for a minimum damage of 10 points +strto a maximum of2d8+9d6+1d10This leaves you with a minimum damage of 2+str+str + 10 = 12+str+stra maximum of 16+54+10= 80 + 2*str. Figuring worst case of a buffed strength to say 22 that's still under 100 points of damage, at least 10-12 rounds into the combat at a cost of 400-500GP and ALL of the artificer's action points (unless he has heroic whatever-it-is in which case he has 3 left), for a party at least at 9th level (lets at least try to be reasonable about stats <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f609.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)"  data-smilie="2"data-shortname=";)" /> ).This means he can not do it prior to 8th level at all using action points, and using action points he can only do it in less than 10 rounds one time per level.Pretty expensive to do more than very occasionally to pull the party's caboose out of the fire so to speak. especially given the high action point cost to do it in anything short of 9 minutes that resembles a combat encounter.Given the very high cost to do this, the scenario will happen once per level at a level where there are far better damage options available to a 9th level artificer (or party w/o one!).As a 9th level artificer, the PC could well have made a wand of say .. Cone of Cold for dealing out cone 9d6 of non-roll-to-hit damage per round. So by the time she has that dreaded weapon ready to go (assuming action points), whe could already have dealt a potential of 9d6 for 10 rounds, or a minimum of 40 (though with an int score like above I don't put much faith in enemies making their saves!) and a maximum of 540 points. If I've got access to 4th level infusions I've got access to Metamagic Spell Trigger, meaning I could have expended 4 charges per round and dealt a minimum of 270 points (assuming all saves were made). Assuming a single wand, one casting per. If Maximized was put in the wand to start with and I used Quicken on the wand I could get a lot more damage dealt before the would-be weapon buffmeister got a single attack off.Taking another route, how about a wand of Ray of Enfeeblement? Maximize that sucker, there's no save. Now, here you do strength damage.  So, each round not spent buffing a weapon can mean 1d6+4 str damage to a target. It only takes a few rounds  to drop most opponents at a minimum of 5 str damage per round. Maximize it and oh man it gets ugly fast. Quicken the thing for getting off two of them per round and your melee guys can make minced meat or scrap of most opponents. Sure, there is spell resistance but that can be overcome (no pun intended).How about a couple Ray of Exhaustions? So they make the first save, they become fatigued. The next one they become exhausted. makes combat far easier (for you and your party) when your opponents are fatigued and/or exhausted. Fatigued is a -2str -2dex. Exhausted is -6. Twin spell/split tray/repeate spell that sucker for hitting multiple targets or for all but guaranteeing an exhausted opponent by hitting them twice (if you hit - RoExhaustion does but they get fort save).if your artifcer is willing to wade into melee to make a touch attack, Bestow Curse. Good for sapping target's Con by 6 points (and a resulting -3HP per HD as well as making fort saves harder by three points). Or hit their wisdom first so they become more susceptible to further curses. Hit a few opponents with this in the 10 rounds it would take to amass that weapon buff and your party/encounter will be much more in your favor earlier on.other fun options for the artificer to make scrolls of at this level include:Defenstrating Sphere (CA). Man this spell is just cool. Lots of damage potential there, too. 4-11d6 per round if you keep hitting them. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> Or spread it around and cause serious chaos to your foes. At this level you've got it for 9 rounds.Burning Blood(CA). 2db8/round and reduce to a single action (unless fort save).... a lot more can go here, I think you get the picture. Sure you expend XP for this, but that's what Craft Reserve and Retain Essence are for! Dont' have these made up already? No problem, use Spell Storing Item. You'll need to use a AP to get it in combat but you get to use the spell effect in round 2 instead of 11+ and it only takes a single AP and some XP (36 in this case).This all reminds me of the phrase "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is". In this case, it most certainly is. The weapon buff you reference here is rather lame compared to what any normal wielder of spells at this level could do, or even the same artificer using a different set of methods could do. Or even to some extent a rogue with a good UMD and some nice wands.When you combine the sheer cost (remember action points don't get "recovered" until next level!), the options avaialable other than this, the weapon enhancement series you posit is actually rather weak. Now that I think about it, it wouldn't even make a decent Hail Mary attempt to save the PCs! After all we are talking at least 10 rounds AND a to-hit roll for a chance at a maximum damage of less than 100 points to a single target. A ninth level wizard with a twinned fireball can beat that in one round.And all of this is figured as a 9th level artificer. If you go the more sensible route regarding int for bonus infusions we are talking amore along the lines of a 13th level Artificer. At this point she's got staves as well as rods and access to 8th level spells. How much damage do you suppose an artificer with scrolls of various spells up to 8th level inclusive can do in the 11+ rounds it takes to buff that weapon? How does Maximized Orb of Acid for 90pts +chance at other affects sound? Waves of Fatigue followed by RoExhaustion? Summon Monster 8?Remember, the key aspect of Artificers (IMO) is their flexibility. Spending 9 action points to buff a weapon in 9 rounds is not exactly epitomizing flexibility when there are many less costly options. But hey if you can pay the costs and this turns out to be your best option ( though I find it difficult to imagine that possibility), why not? Being able to add weapon buffs is great at low level but not so much by comparison at the higher levels.Cheers,Bill</blockquote>

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