Post/Author/DateTime	Post
peanut69 02-13-08, 03:56 PM	I had tossed a comment about this in the thread about broken abilities, however I would like to have a separate thread regarding this. I would like to know everyone's thoughts on the following: If you take an Artificer with Infusion including the Personal Weapon Augmentation infusion; and considering the ability to burn an action point to infuse a weapon in one round; The Artificer can infuse weapons with bane <BLAH> in one round. I think this is rather overpowered, especially for a 1st or 2nd level character. Doing an extra 2d6 of dmg per attack that overcomes DR at a low level is quite strong.
NoldorForce 02-13-08, 04:29 PM	How often do you get action points in your career? Unless you're pulling off Unfettered Heroism abuse, you only get a limited supply each level. At 1st level, you get (from what I recall) five at most. It's a nice boost when you need it, really. And what +1/+2 weapon property deals 2d6 damage that ignores DR? Bane is the only one that grants 2d6, and it doesn't get to ignore DR.
11d7 02-13-08, 05:28 PM	How often do you get action points in your career? Unless you're pulling off Unfettered Heroism abuse, you only get a limited supply each level. At 1st level, you get (from what I recall) five at most. It's a nice boost when you need it, really. I've seen a few groups use house rules where people get a smaller number of action points but on a per week basis because they tend to not level as often due to XP reduction or leveling with the plot, not static XP bonuses per encounter.
Sunic_Flames 02-13-08, 05:47 PM	You still have to hit. Unless you're built as a gish, you won't have a stellar Strength. You have a medium BAB. You have 5.5 HP a level, because 14 Con is standard character operating procedure. 8, at level 1. End result is a low to medium chance to actually deliver that damage, with a round of buffing needed to do it, and even then... Ok, you do weapon damage + 2d6+2 (averages 9 + weapon damage which is 4.5 + str modifier). End result is it sounds great in theory but doesn't actually work. I have tested this exact strategy in a variety of combat situations. Suffice it to say the Artificer did nothing but lose until he was high enough to craft Wondrous Items, and Wands for Persistent Spell abuse. At which point he became a demigod. Of course that doesn't work nearly as well in a game that isn't pure combat, because if you buff up and don't fight much, if anything you quickly end up in the red financially. Artificer gishes are a nice sneak attack, but not like that.
Edymnion 02-13-08, 08:37 PM	Yes, its very powerful, but it eats up a lot of resources to accomplish. As has been said, in Eberron you only get 5 action points at level 1. And they have a wide array of uses other than speeding up infusions, which means the Artificer gets it in a bad way if he relies on insta-bane all the time, because when he needs to make that save, and doesn't have an AP, he may be screwed. Plus, he's still spending his first round twiddling his thumbs. Considering the fact that most combats only last 4-5 rounds, that means not only are you burning 20% of your AP, but you're burning 20-25% of the combat just trying to buff yourself. And secondly, any smart DM that has a problem with this is going to realize real quick, how does the character know what type of creature he's fighting? Look it up, skillchecks. You want to put Abberation Bane on your weapon? Thats fine, roll me a Knowledge (Dungeoneering) check to see if you even realize thats what you're fighting. Bane doesn't do you a lot of good if you put the wrong one on your weapon. I've played multiple artificers. Believe me, Bane is the only way they even stay alive at low levels. Because without that, they're a d6 guy with crappy saves and no combat abilities of any kind.