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I think that Dragon will have an article on the Artificer class in a month or two... but that is second-hand information.
Yes, it's supposed to be released next month. Keith verified it for us, but since he's still waiting to see that article on Mordain he wrote pop up for us this month, it could be closer to the end of next month, if we are lucky. ;)
I haven't wanted to contemplate what to do to homebrew a conversion.
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I hope for an arcane leader.
IMO the 3e eberron artificer would make an excellent leader-class, but...
...what about the other 3?
My brother and I were thinking something along the lines of the Master Maker (the PrC that attached warforged parts to himself kind'a like a cyborg) would make a neat defender, and the Cannith Wand Adepts would make awesome strikers.
Now...a controller... :D
The PHB already states which the power sources will be and Artifice is not among them (Arcane, Divine, Martial, Primal, Shadow, Ki, Elemental, Psionic)
Just because the PHB says one thing, doesn't mean the ECS book can't say something else.
...and I want an Artifice powersource damnit :hoppingma
Though I haven't actually taken the time, I figured that like 3.5 a 4th edition artificer class would be able to replicate many of the 'powers' of magic items as at will or encounter powers. Trick is balancing them.
Ritual casting is a must with perhaps a class feature for reducing casting time.
Just because the PHB says one thing, doesn't mean the ECS book can't say something else.
...and I want an Artifice powersource damnit :hoppingma
Well there may be more power sources later on but I very much doubt they will have exhausted this 8 before PHB IV. And that is a year after the ECS. And honestly other than the artificer nothing else feats to an artifice powersource. Arcane is a pretty good source for him if you ask me. As for role I want them to be leaders but they actually have controller and striker potential as well. Lei did function as a leader though.
Well there may be more power sources later on but I very much doubt they will have exhausted this 8 before PHB IV. And that is a year after the ECS. And honestly other than the artificer nothing else feats to an artifice powersource. Arcane is a pretty good source for him if you ask me. As for role I want them to be leaders but they actually have controller and striker potential as well. Lei did function as a leader though.
Nothing else feels like an artifice powersource?
Well they'll just have to make stuff up then! :D
Besides that, it could be as easy as differentiating between the different kinds of magic items that abound.
Strikers? Wand Adepts would work. We could say that they're artificers that choose to specialize in the crafting and use of Endless Wands (something that 4e has somewhat made obsolete). By extension, endless wands are primarily used for combat applications making them a no-brainer for a striker role.
Leaders? Good old fashioned 3e Eberron Artificers fit this role well IMO. It was basically what we did anyway.
Controllers and Defenders are the non-obvious ones IMO. I've got a couple of ideas for defenders, but controllers are hard to work out because there's no second controller class to compare wizards too.
Of course, WotC knows more about it than we do...
Nothing else feels like an artifice powersource?
Well they'll just have to make stuff up then!
Sounds like rules for the sake of having rules and maintaining false paralellism. My 4e instincts say no.
Arcane leader with striker tendencies (Bard will probably be arcane leader with controller tendencies).
For a "right now" artificer, a reflavored cleric works okay. Makeshift wands & implements instead of holy symbols for buffing & blasting.
Sounds like rules for the sake of having rules and maintaining false paralellism. My 4e instincts say no.
I'm not talking about rules for the sake of having rules.
I'm talking about an Eberron-specific power source for the sake of flavor.
Don't confuse the two.
In Eberron, magic items are common enough that they could easily get their own dedicated powersource.
I wonder if it will be balanced for the artificer to have powers related to magic items (or if that would be restrictive). A power that would let you recharge a daily or encounter item use, a class feature that would increase the number of item uses per day you can manage, or something that would increase the versatility of powers you can use? I could see for instance the artificer using spells as any arcane class but also learning infusions, which could be from any arcane class, and would be only available through use of artificer spells (to be imbued on magic items temporarily?).
I'm thinking something like this could only be the beginning.
I'm talking about an Eberron-specific power source for the sake of flavor.
What exactly is the difference between the arcane power source and this theoretical artifice power source?
Truncated 4e definitions (from 4ePHB p.54):
Arcane: Drawing on magical energy that permeates the cosmos, the arcane power source can be used for a wide variety of effects, from fireballs to flight to invisibility. Each class is the representative of a different tradition of arcane study, and other traditions (beyond Warlock & Wizard) exist.
Divine: Divine magic comes from the gods.
Martial: Martial characters use their own strength and will power to vanquish their enemies.
Future power sources: Elemental (elemental chaos), Ki (spirit), Primal (feywild), Psionic (mental), Shadow (shadowfell).
Just saying, all the other power sources listed here are either personal (ki, martial, psionic), planar (elemental, primal, shadow), or universal (arcane, divine). Where does artifice fit in this setup? "Awakens magic in items" isn't that different from "Extract magic from the environment."
Besides, each class takes 15 pages of a book, comparable to about four PrCs in the expanded format WotC used towards the end of 3e development. I think that's more than enough space taken out of the Eberron Player's Guide as it is.
What exactly is the difference between the arcane power source and this theoretical artifice power source?
In the 3e ECS book, the magic wielded by artificers to make their magic items is specifically defined as being neither arcane or divine. It's why they could mimic both cleric/druid and arcane spells (well...that and the fact that they used the UMD skill rather than any kind of spellcasting stat...).
It's a small detail I find quite amusing...on many levels.
Definitely interesting enough for some expansion/explanation.
Besides, each class takes 15 pages of a book, comparable to about four PrCs in the expanded format WotC used towards the end of 3e development. I think that's more than enough space taken out of the Eberron Player's Guide as it is.
I have a feeling that new classes are going to be a big point of the setting books. Also considering that each campaign setting is supposed to consist of fully three books, 60 pages for an entire setting specific powersource isn't out of the question.
Especially if said book is a Players' Guide.
#2) One book will be for players, one for DMs, and one is an adventure module. Therefore: look to see a new class(es) in only one of the three. Ah yeah, and I've heard the FRPG will have two new races and one new class.
#2) One book will be for players, one for DMs, and one is an adventure module. Therefore: look to see a new class(es) in only one of the three. Ah yeah, and I've heard the FRPG will have two new races and one new class.
Yep. While there'll be three books, one is a campaign guide and the other is an adventure. Only one will have races and classes, the players guide. And judging from the Forgotten Realms Players Guide, I wouldn't expect a whole lot, as that's 160 pages. And as mentioned above, it just has two races and one class. I doubt they're gonna invent an 'Artifice' Power Source, and then riddle the EPG with Artifice Power Source classes just for the sake of having them. And they're certainly not going to create a new power source for just one class.
As for power source, I'm pretty sure they won't clutter it up by creating a new one just for that one class. Here's why:
I attended a seminar with Mike Mearls at Origins over the weekend, and someone asked if Artificers were being dropped from the Eberron 4e books. He responded, "If that was true, I would have had a lot more free time about a month and a half ago."
He furthermore indicated that the 4e design philosophy requires that no class have a unique power source. So, for example, when the Ki power source debuts, it will almost certainly apply to more classes than just the Monk. Ergo, the Artificer will not be run on a unique Artifice power source unless there are some REALLY good ideas on the design team for how that power source can fill other roles, as well.
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