Artificers in Strongholds & Followers and Kingdoms & Warfare

by JayPea

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Artificers

Alcazars, Allies, Associations, & Armies

Strongholds

Stronghold

Rules for Strongholds appear in the “Stronghold” section of Strongholds & Followers (page 8). Using those rules, you can add the following Artificer stronghold to your game!

The Artificer's Workshop

The artificer's workshop is a place of invention, creativity, and innovation, creating one or more of the following effects at the GM's discression

Desmesne Effects

  • Locals in the artificer's desmanse seem to become proficient in artisans tools more easily than others, and those that are already proficient create higher quality wares.
  • Metals in the artificer's desmanse never rust or oxidize.
  • Ordinary objects in the artificer's desmanse often gain minor magical qualities. An ink pen may take longer to run out, or a mug may always keep it's contents warm. They loose these properties if taken out of the desmanse.

Stronghold Actions

On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the artificer can take a stronghold action to cause one of the following effects. The artificer must be in the same hex or province as their stronghold, and can’t use the same effect until after a short or long rest:

  • You summon 2 shield guardians who fight for you for a minute, before disappearing
  • You cast a spell who's name contains the phrase 'wall of' and who's level is no higher than 5 without expending a spell slot. If a spell is of a lower level than 5, it's upcast to 5th level. The spell lasts for its maximum duration, or until you dispel it.
  • You and all your allies gain a +2 to attack and damage rolls made with melee weapon attacks until initiative count 20 next round.

Class Feature Improvement: Arcane Imbuement

You gain a number of artificer infusions equal to your stronghold level, these infusions don't require attunement if they normally would. You can change these infusions on a short rest, though you must take an extended rest before you can change infusions again in this way.

Artificer Followers

D100 Follower
01-03 Veteran Light Infantry (Size 1d6), Unit
04-06 Regular Light Archers (Size 1d6), Unit
07--9 Seasoned Light Archers (Size 1d6), Unit
10 Regular Light Flying (Size 1d4), Unit
11 Cavalier (3rd Level), Retainer
12-13 Thaumaturgist (3rd Level), Retainer
14-15 Conjurer (3rd Level), Retainer
16-17 Cutpurse (3rd Level), Retainer
18-19 Battle Priest (3rd Level), Retainer
10-22 Storm Speaker(5th Level), Retainer
23-24 Justicar (5th Level), Retainer
25-27 Knight-Sorcerer (5th Level), Retainer
28-29 Alientist (5th Level), Retainer
30-34 Guild Adept (7th Level), Retainer
35-40 Shaper (7th Level), Retainer
41-44 Alchemist
45-48 Blacksmith
49-51 Captain
52-55 Carpenter
56-59 Mason
60-62 Miner
63-64 Sage
65-66 Scribe
67-70 Tailor
71-73 Elf Ambassador
74-78 Dwarf Ambassador
79-84 Gnome Ambassador
85 Dragonborn Ambassador
86-100 Roll on the Special Allies Table (Strongholds and Followers, Page 67)

An Artificer's Followers

Artificers, above all else, value beauty and ingenuity, and attract followers that value these things too. While the inside of a workshop may be busy and cluttered, the storefronts and exteriors are a marvel to behold, maybe still messy, but in an oddly appealing manner. Only accentuated by how frequent this style of building is in these communes.

With the creativity on display in these locations, while artisans don't attract many units, those they do are always well equipped with the highest quality swords, bows, or sometimes even machines granting the capability of flight.

Artificer retainers often tend to be those who make use of specialised tools and equipment to great effect or those who aid in the creation of said tools.

More artisans flock to their strongholds than any others, as theirs are the most likely to be centers for trade and business, creatives from all walks of life sharing tips and tricks of the trade to help each other out.

Artificers attract ambassadors from other creative nations or those who look to make use of what you have to offer. Gnomes with their penchant for tinkering, dwarves looking for mining equipment, etc. In return they may offer you protection, or trade deals with their people, afterall, a blacksmith is nothing without metals to work.

Class Feature Improvement: Arcane Remoulding

Those using KibblesTasty's inventor/alternate artificer class can use this stronghold, though gain the following class feature improvement.

When you use your Arcane Retrofit feature, you can transfer properties from a magical weapon other than the bonus to attack and damage rolls, additionally the original isn't destroyed, but loses it's magical properties.

Followers

Retainers

Rules for retainers appear in the “Followers” section of Strongholds & Followers (page 69). Using those rules, you can add the following Artificer retainers to your game!

Alchemist

Armor: Medium (AC 15)

Primary Ability: Intelligence, Constitution

Saves: Intelligence, Constitution

Skills: Arcana, Medicine, Nature

Signature Attack: acid splash

Special Actions:

3rd Level (5/Day): Health Elixir. An ally the alchemist is within 5ft of regains 12 (2d8 +3) hit points.

5th Level (3/Day): grease

7th Level (3/Day): enhance ability

Smithy

Armor: Heavy (AC 18)

Primary Ability: Strength, Intelligence

Saves: Intelligence, Constitution

Skills: Athletics, Intimidation, Survival

Signature Attack: Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) bludgeoning damage.

Special Actions:

3rd Level (3/Day): Heated Hammer. The smithy's hammer glows red hot. The smithy makes a signature attack and deals an extra 9 (2d8) fire damage on a hit.

5th Level (3/Day): Blazing Surge. The smithy makes two signature attacks. If both attacks hit, all creatures within 5ft. of the smithy take 4 (1d8) fire damage.

7th Level (1/Day): heat metal

Tinkerer

Armor: Medium (AC 15)

Primary Ability: Intelligence, Constitution

Saves: Intelligence, Constitution

Skills: Arcana, History, Investigation

Signature Attack: shocking grasp

Special Actions:

3rd Level (5/Day): Copper Canine. Mechanical dogs spring from the ground. A creature of the tinkerer's choice within 30ft. must make a dexterity saving throw taking 7 (2d8) piercing damage and being pushed away 10ft. on a failure, or taking half as much damage and remaining in place on a success.

5th Level (3/Day): catapult

7th Level (3/Day): web

Kingdoms

Heroic Organization

Rules for Heroic Organizations appear in the "Domains and Intrigue" section of Kingdoms & Warfare (page 8), With a list appearing in the "Heroic Organizations" subsection (page 31) . Using those rules, you can add the following realm into your game!

Artisan Union

Bound by a love of creativity, your group may be formed of all types of artists and inventors, from apothecaries and tinkers, to cooks and painters. Artificers and bards are the most common members of these unions, though they're open to anyone with a penchant for creativity, invention, and innovation.

Domain Titles

Artisan union officers gain access to the following titles, each of which grants a character the noted additional features.

Apothecary. You gain proficiency with alchemists supplies and an herbalism kit Whenever you take a long rest, you can craft any potion of common or uncommon rarity during the rest using the supplies in an herbalism kit. Potions created this way are effective only if consumed within 24 hours of their creation.

Blacksmith. You gain proficiency with smith's tools. Your proficiency bonus is doubled for any ability check you make that uses this proficiency. Once per long rest, you can choose one simple weapon to reinforce for 24 hours. A reinforced weapon gains an extra damage dice (e.g. a mace would deal 2d6 bludgeoning damage).

Builder. You gain proficiency with mason's tools and carpenter's tools. Additionally, you can cast the spell leomund's tiny hut without expending a spell slot, once per long rest, as an action.

Culinarian. You gain proficiency with cook's utensils and brewer's supplies. Additionally, you can cast the following spells using Wisdom as your spellcasting ability:

At Will: prestidigitation, purify food and drink

1/day each: create food and water

2/day each: goodberry

You can feed creatures any number of goodberries as a bonus action on your turn.

Tinker. You gain proficiency with tinker's tools. Your proficiency bonus is doubled for any ability check you make that uses this proficiency. You also select two infusions from the artificer infusion list that have no level requirements. These act as infusions would for the artificer, rules for which can be found in Tasha's Cauldron of Everything.

Domain Power

Artisan union officers gain access to the following domain power.

Unscammable. When you fail a Wisdom saving throw, you can take a power die from your domain’s pool and add the number on the power die to your saving throw. If this causes you to pass the DC required, the spell or effect does nothing to you.

Domain Features

Artisan union officers gain access to the following domain features.

Fan Following (Special Unit). As a domain action, you make a DC 13 Operations test. On a success, you muster the Critics, a special unit of fans who'll fight to help protect you. (See the Warfare chapter for full details on how to read a unit card.)

Well Equipped. If your domain's resources level is 2 or higher and the end of deployment, choose a number of units equal to your domain size. These units all gain the Hard Hats and Barbs traits.

Specialization

When you found your artisan union, you also choose a specialization. Are you contractors, doing work you're tasked to on a case by case basis? Are you a merchant company, selling your wares to whoever'll buy them? Or are you scam artists, able to complete tasks given to you, but why would you when you can half finish it and get all the money?

Contractor

As contractors, you're already well enough established as a group where people come to you asking for your help. Perhaps they want you to create the perfect venue for their wedding, or want to commission a very specific art piece. Whatever the case, you intend to leave them satisfied with your services

Domain Power

Contractor officers gain access to the following domain power.

Domain Power. Whenever you make a roll that you can add your charisma modifier to, after the roll is made, but before the outcome is declared, you can take a power die from your domain's pool, and add the number to the roll.

Domain Features

Contractor officers gain access to the following domain features.

Specialist Hire. Once per intrigue, you can attempt to muster a unit from another domain. When you do so, you make the same test that domain would do to muster them, but increase the DC by 1. For example to muster a Frog of War, you must make a DC 16 Lore test.

Time to Pay Up. Once per intrigue as a domain bonus action, make a Diplomacy test against an opposed domain's Resources. On a success, their Resources level decreases by two.

Merchant Company

You're a group of merchants, trying to make your way in the world, selling quality your wares to those that can afford them. You're likely travelers, setting up stalls in markets across the map, hoping to by land so you have less to carry on your travel, or maybe you already own a little shop in your home town, but are looking to expand.

Domain Power

Merchant company officers gain access to the following domain power.

Right Tool for the Job. As a bonus action, you can take a power die from your domain's pool, and summon a mundane item with a maximum cost of the number on the die x 10 GP.

The object appears in a free hand if you have one and can carry it, or on the floor in front of you otherwise.

Domain Features

Merchant company officers gain access to the following domain features.

Sold Out. Once per intrigue as a domain bonus action, make an operations test against an opposed domain's Resolve. On a success, their Resolve level decreases by two.

This Should Cover It. Once per intrigue as a domain reaction, when an opposed domain makes a test against your Communications or Resolve, you can choose for the test to instead be against your Resources.

Scam Artists

You're of course skilled in your craft, but why finish the job when you can just start it and run away with the money? Your group are masters of this, drawing people in with your craftsmanship, then making false promises and conning them out of their coin.

Domain Power

Scam artist officers gain access to the following domain power.

Getaway Plan. As an action, Take a power die from your domain's power pool and choose a number of allied creatures you can see equal to the number on the power die. For a number of turns equal to your domain size the selected creatures become invisible. This invisibility also ends on a creature if they are damaged.

Domain Features

Scam artist officers gain access to the following domain features.

'Borrowing'. Once per intrigue as a domain bonus action, you can make an Operations test against an opposed domain's Resources. On a success, the opposed domain's Resources level decreases by one, and your domain's Resources level increases by one.

We Can Pay Better. As a domain reaction when an opposed domain musters a unit from another domain, make an Operations test with disadvantage against the opposed domain’s Communications. On a success, your domain musters the unit instead.

Note

While an argument could be made that the niche for this organization is already filled by the Mercantile Guild my intent with this is to help players feel more like creatives, rather than business owners, the latter being what, in my mind, the Mercantile Guild skews towards.

NPC Realm

Rules for NPC Realms appear in the "Domains and Intrigue" section of Kingdoms & Warfare (page 8), With a list and further information appearing in the "NPC Realms" subsection (page 65). Using those rules, you can add the following realm into your game!

The Iron Legion

Made up of tinkerers and warforged, the iron legion is a force to be reckoned with. Their magical skill may be lesser than that of wizards or sorcerers, but their ability to infuse that into their weapons, and create mechanical monstrosities is second to none.

Domain Title

Walking Fortress. While wearing a set of heavy or medium armor (not including hide), the walking fortress gains a +1 to their armor class, and strength and dexterity saving throws. They also have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls with melee weapons.

Domain Powers

Iron Legion officers gain access to the following domain powers.

Adamantine Aegis. As a reaction to being hit by an attack, an officer may take a power die from their domain's pool, and add the number their AC. Additionally, allies of the officer within 20ft. of them gain the same bonus, and critical hits against any creatures who's AC has been heightened in this way become normal hits. These benefits last until the end of the officer's next turn.

Mithril Mark. When an officer rolls to hit with a melee weapon attack, after the attack has been rolled, they can take a power die from their domain's pool, and gain a bonus to the attack equal to the roll, possibly turning a miss into a hit. If the attack hits, they also deal extra damage equal to the roll or the type associated with the weapon used.

Domain Features

Iron Legion officers gain access to the following domain features.

Activate Automaton (Special Unit). As a domain action, an officer makes a DC 13 Operations test. On a success, the iron legion creates a Mechanical Titan. A special unit, a single entity with the power to crish armies beneath its feet (See the Warfare chapter of Kingdoms & Warfare for full details on how to read a unit card.)

Branding Attacks. If the iron legion starts Resource level is 2 or higher at the start of any combat with officers of an opposed domain, all its infantry units deploy for that battle with the Flaming Weapons Trait.

Torch the Stocks. Once per intrigue as a domain bonus action, an officer can make an Operations test against an opposed domain’s Resources. On a success, the opposed domain’s Resources level is reduced by 2.

Impenetrable Defences. As a domain action, make a DC 15 Operations test. On a success, you successfully reinforce your fortification's defences. At the start of the next battle, each fortification you’re defending gains additional hit points equal to your domain’s Resources level.

Artificerless Campaigns

Not all campaigns make use of artificers or the warforged race which inspired this NPC realm. In these circumstances you could reflavor this organization to be made up of blacksmiths, armorers and weaponsmiths, maybe the special unit is a siege tower. You ultimately decide how you want to flavor it.

Warfare

Martial Advantages

Rules for Martial Advantages appear in the "Warfare" section of Kingdoms & Warfare (page 93). More specifically in the "Martial Advantages" subsection (page 65). Using those rules, artificer commanders can use the following advatages in your game!

Artificer Martial Advantages

Artificers may not instantly appear to be the best commanders, but their troops always end up the best equipped. The toughest armors and the sharpest swords are always found in the hands of an artificers battalion.

Domain Size Martial Advantages
1 Torched Arrows, Wand of Smog
2 Heavy Training
3 Flash of steel
4 Armored Brigade
5 Scroll of Towers

Torched Arrows. When deploying units, the commander can give a single artillery unit the Flaming Weapons trait.

Wand of Smog. As an action, the unit with this wand chooses a space and puts a smog token there. Any unit that moves into that space or starts it's turn there has disadvantage on attack tests for that activation. At the end of that activation, it removes one smog token.

Heavy Training. Each heavy and super-heavy units this commander controls, inflicts 1 additional casualty on a power test.

Flash of Steel. Cavalry units this commander controls have the the Guerrillas trait

Armored Brigade. Each unit this commander controls has +2 to Defense and Toughness.

Scroll of Towers. As an action, the unit with this scroll chooses 2 spaces, causing Guard Towers to spring up. These towers last until the end of combat.

New Warfare Unit Traits

The construct ancestral units make use of the following traits:

Constructed Nature. This unit does not suffer casualties from poison tokens, is not affected by the poisonous trait, and cannot be diminished.

Locked Joints. Traits or other effects that cause units to move against their will, have a 50 percent chance of automatically failing against this unit.

Thanks to ReubenHung#4067 on the MCDM Discord server for coming up with the first drafts of these traits.

Ancestral Units

Constructs

Constructs are defined by two things, their physical hardiness, and their nearly unparalleled communicative skills. When construct units are made, they're typically formed as a unit, which allows them access to know what the rest of their unit is thinking. Due to this, they're better coordinated at performing maneuvers such as Prey on the Weak or Strafe. This also grants them one half of their Constructed Nature trait, when their allies fall, they automatically reposition themselves into a formation that works better for the remaining troops, and don't become diminished.

Their constructed nature also grants them immunity to poison. They don't need to eat, drink or even breathe, so there's no way of poisoning them. Most constructs are also forged of metal and can lock their joints into place, making it all the harder to maneuver them.

Gorgon Unit

Gorgons in Dungeons and Dragons have historically been monstrosities, not constructs. I've included them in this army as they are mechanical, however, if this doesn't make sense for your campaign setting, you can change the unit's name to 'Mechanical Bulls' and swap the Poisonous trait for the Reckless trait.

Intentional Ambiguity

The core ancestral units here (infantry, cavalry, artillery), while designed as warforged, are left deliberately open in their nature. The fact they all have the Locked Joints trait leads one to believe they're mechanical, and the presence of the Point Blank trait on the artillery suggests that they're using crossbows, however, these were intentionally left ambiguous so that you can decide what fits your world best.

Perhaps they're statues or golems brought to life by a wizard, an army of animated objects trained for war by a mad artificer, or perhaps they're modrons descended from the plane of Mechanus to bring order back to the prime material plane. The choice is for you to decide.

Ancestral Unit Card Images

In the comments is an imgur album of the 9 new ancestral units created for this project.

End

Thanks

If you've taken the time to read this entire compendium, thank you, this has been a long, but rewarding journey to make, and is by far the largest piece of homebrew I've ever made, more than double the length of my Puppeteer subclass, and it's also the first piece of homebrew I've commissioned artwork for. This is by no means the final version of this compendium though, as there's plenty I'm not happy with, all of which is listed below. If there's any improvements you have for these, I'd be more than happy to hear them.

Vertical Unit Cards

I've created a template for my vertical unit cards, a link to which can be found HERE and in my comment on this post.

If you want my domain sheet's template, it's also there, though I'll admit I'm not as proud of it as I am the unit cards.

Changes I Want To Make/Things I'm Not Happy With

There's a long list of problems I have with with this compendium, and so I don't have to repeat them, I'll list them here:

  • Traits should be more visible on vertical unit card.
  • Commander section of the unit card should be a lighter color (white?).
  • Some of the vertical unit card icons need polish (plant, fiend, goblin, elf).
  • The followers the artificer gets from the d100 table should probably be medium/heavy.
  • Scam Artist features don't really fit the theme, closer to an underworld syndicate.
  • Ancestral unit for Artisan Guild isn't great thematically.
    • Honestly Artisan Guild is just the but I'm least happy with in general.
  • I'd like to add information about how constructs as an ancestral unit function in warfare.
  • I want to add some kind of moving castle type thing in a similar vein to Dracula's castle from castlevania, or Howl's moving castle.
  • Not really happy with the name, I just wanted alliteration with 'A' and then worked back from there.
  • Artificer Martial Advantages should have 'Artificer' on a different line to 'Martial Advantages', but I can't get that working.
  • Would love to find where the Cadaver Collector art I use if from, and confirm the artist.

Waiting on the Special Unit Deck

There's also a few units I'd like to make, but would like to get a better grasp on higher level units first, or see how MCDM designs things before I make them, including:

  • Anvilwrought Raptor inspired aerial unit.
  • Modrons.
  • A Marut.
  • Hellfire Engines.
  • A Higher leveled mechanical titan in the vein of the Warforged Titan or the Colossus of Akros.
  • A Construct Dragon.

Art Credit

  • Cover: Izzet Guild Land by Svetlin Velinov
  • Page 2: A Wizard of the Izzet League by Magali Villeneuve, copyright WotC
  • Page 3: Elven Blacksmith by Cosmic, commisioned by me for this document
  • Page 6: Medieval Pasta Cooking by Bo Xun Lin
  • Page 7: Blacksmith Workshop by ChekydotStudio
  • Page 9: Cadaver Collector, likely by Wayne England, copyright WotC
  • Page 10: Gorgon by Zack Stella, copyright WotC, Mechanical Wyvrn by mozchops