Do you play an Artificer? You might want to talk to your DM about the updated Exploring Eberron now on D&D Beyond.
Eberron continues to be the gift that keeps on giving to D&D. Keith Baker, the original creator of Eberron, really gets what a good supplement should be like. You can see for yourself in the updated for 5.5E Exploring Eberron, available now on D&D Beyond. This splatbook provides an even fresher coat of paint for Artificers, including introducing new, alternate capstone abilities that actually feel like they should be the culmination of an Artificer’s career. Let’s check it out.
5.5E Exploring Eberron – Mavericks Unleashed
Exploring Eberron is a fantastic splatbook. It was great when it first released for 5E, and it’s arguably better now with an update for the new rules system. It’s “partnered” on D&D Beyond, meaning this isn’t an in-house WotC supplement, but it was written and designed by the guy who originally created Eberron back in the halcyon days of 3.X.
EE has a lot to offer players, regardless of what class they play. Though as you might imagine, anyone playing an Artificer will get a little extra out of this book. It adds two new Artificer subclasses, the Maverick Artificer and Forge Adept, as well as optional new capstone abilities for the Artificer subclasses, including the new Cartographer. We’ll talk about those in a minute.
Even if you’re not playing an Artificer, there’s still plenty to get out of this book. You’ll find ten new species, including Sahuagin, Bugbears, Gnolls, and Merfolk. There’s also a total of six subclasses, including the Maverick. There’s the Circle of the Forged for Druids, or the Monk’s Living Warrior Weapon, which really benefits from the updated 5.5E rules. All that to say, if you want a bunch of cool new stuff for your D&D game, this book will not steer you wrong.
“Exploring Eberron (2024) delves into aspects of the setting never before revealed. Explore the thirteen planes of Eberron, along with the dreadful demiplanes of Khyber. Venture into the Mror Holds and discover the consequences of the terrible War Below. Marvel at the wonders of the Thunder Sea, and the civilizations of the Sahuagin and the Kalamer Merfolk. Deeper lore on history, species, religions, and more is supplemented by new character options, including new species, feats, and subclasses! Whether you’re an adventurer or a Dungeon Master, Exploring Eberron (2024) will expand your understanding of the world and give you new options to play with.”
And truly it does. If you are an Eberron lore enthusiast, this book has got so much of the world covered. The section on the Mror Holds is so rich and chewy you can mine several campaign ideas out of it. And that’s not even mentioning the underwater kingdoms. You can run some truly fantastic campaigns using this book. It’s a reminder of what campaign setting books can be like, and why we get so excited for them. Because it’s not just the new stuff – it’s the inspiration that you can find within.
Also if you want to play a weird little guy (and who doesn’t), Exploring Eberron gives you so many options. Including goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears. All in line with the 5.5E ruleset. Which might be a little power creep-ified, but again, I’m all for it. Speaking of power creep, though, let’s take a look at the two new Artificer subclasses and the capstone abilities.
What About Those Artificers, Though
As mentioned, there are two new Artificer subclasses in the book. Well, not new-new – they were originally in the 5E release of Exploring Eberron. But now they get a slight overhaul and are in line with the rules. Today we’re going to talk about the Artificer Maverick, which is an extremely flexible subclass, focused on having the right tools (and spells) for any situation. It’s the MacGyver subclass. But it’s also a spellcasting-focused subclass.
Which sounds a little iffy at first, because Artificers are only “half-casters” so focusing on the “half-” aspect feels like it could be limited. But Mavericks gain a lot, including Maverick Spells, which grants you the ability to prepare additional spells that you can pick from the Artificer, Wizard, or Cleric spell lists. Sure, you only get your Proficiency Bonus in extra spells, but this means you can grab things like Spirit Guardians or Mass Cure Wounds or the like. And – they count as Artificer spells for you, which makes them work with all kinds of Artificer-specific features.
On top of that, thanks to the Maverick’s Tinker’s Tools, they get to craft magic items in half the time. Which is a huge benefit for players in campaigns with gold and downtime. You can make stuff beyond what you just find in the world. It feels so good that every Artificer should have it. But the Maverick stands out for it.
You also get Arcane Prototype, a feature that works like a spell scroll, but you get to decide what you get. With a system of Arcane Charges (that kind of work like spell points), you can effectively walk around with extra, one-use prepared spells that you can refresh every Long Rest. You can also cast those spells with a spell slot and keep the Prototype (which you can always expend at your leisure) for the future.
Those three level 3 features already give the subclass a ton of its identity. But then on top of that, you still get the rest of the subclass. At level 5 Fine-Tuning lets your add your Intelligence modifier to all spell damage. Nothing fancy but it’s still nice. At level 9, Work In Progress lets you swap out one of your prepared Maverick Spells after a short rest.
And at level 15, thanks to Final Breakthrough you can swap out one of your Arcane Prototypes after a Short Rest, and ignore requirements to attune to any magic item. Normally the subclass would stop there. But Exploring Eberron has a number of alternate capstones (level 20 options) that replace an Artificer’s Soul of Artifice. And for the Maverick, you effectively gain the spellcasting option of Wish, with Improved Genius. This lets you cast any level 8 or lower spell with a single Magic Action (and no components) once per Long Rest.
You can see why I like this book. And every Artificer gets a new and improved option here. Armorers get a 30d6 superlaser for their power armor. Artillerists get souped up new options for their Arcane Cannon, Cartographers get to cast Gate once per day, Battle Smiths can supercharge their Steel Defenders, and Forge Adepts become extremely Paladin-y. I could go on, but you can check out Exploring Eberron for yourself at the link below.
Get out ther eand explore Eberron!
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