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Akennedy
2007-08-08, 10:49 PM
Game Rule Information
Abilities: Intelligence for infusions, con and strength for combat abilities.
Alignment: Any non-chaotic.
Hit Die: d6.

Class Skills
The tinkerer’s class skills are: Appraise, Concentration, Craft (any, including alchemy), Disable Device, Forgery, Intimidate, Knowledge (all; taken separately), Listen, Profession, Search, Spot, Use Rope.
Skill Points at First Level: (4 + Int mod) *4
Skill Points At Each Additional Level: 4 + int mod

Class Features

All of the following are class features of the tinkerer.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A tinkerer is proficient with all simple
weapons, light and medium armor and all his own creations. Because his infusions aren’t actually spells or even considered magical, he incurs no
chance of arcane spell failure under any circumstances. However, because he has to have one arm free to use a gadget or potion, it limits his weapon selection and his ability to use subtlety outside of combat.

Infusions: A tinkerer does not channel arcane energy, nor does he pray
to the gods for divine power, not even does he psionically channel his brain to produce a desired effect; he creates infusions. He uses mundane, material products and extracts the useful properties from them and makes various tools and potions.
All of where he obtains his materials are from nature itself; from earth, stone, and plant material, thus, it doesn’t cost the tinkerer much money to practice his craft. However, in order to obtain and extract the useful ingredients, he needs an artisan’s kit, for the specified craft (Alchemy for potions, Blacksmithing for anything involving metal and Leatherworking for anything involving cloth or hide material).
Also, the tinkerer stores all his knowledge in a bound book (usually). Each infusion takes up as many pages as per infusion level. 0-level infusions are practiced so often that they are engraved into the tinkerer’s mind. The tinkerer begins play with 6 + intelligence modifier worth of 0 and 1st level infusions, divided as the tinkerer wishes. At the beginning of each new level, a tinkerer learns 3 new infusions, and may learn more by researching previous tinkerer’s notebooks, or by independent research. Each page, though non-magical, is worth 25g, due to its intensive instructions and work involved.
The maximum level of infusion the tinkerer can prepare is equal to ˝ of the amount of ranks in his Craft skill (round down).
Each morning, after eight hours of rest, a tinkerer spends one hour preparing his daily infusions. He receives bonus infusion points by rolling a Craft (Alchemy) check DC 15; by every 1 he passes the DC, he gains an additional infusion point for the day. He may choose to not use all of his infusions points at the beginning of the day and may use the remainder later in the day; however, it takes at least 15 minutes to make the rest of his infusions should he decide to use make them in later in the day.



Each infusion level uses so many infusion points according to the following table:
Infusion Point Costs
{table]Infusion Level|0|1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8
Point Cost|.5|1|3|5|7|9|11|13|15[/table]
(round up when necessary)
(if anyone can teach me how to use tables properly {I think I messed up?}, I'll love you forever.)

There are a few different types of infusions:
- Potion
- Item Imbued
- Multi-Use (A sub-category)

Potion – A potion-infusion falls under one or more of these categories:
- Thrown, as a thrown weapon. All potion-infusions can be contained into a vial or flask.
- If a thrown potion-infusion misses, it has a 75% chance of detonating on the square it lands (see missing with a thrown weapon, page 158 of the PhB).
- - Vial: can be thrown 10ft.
- - Flask: can be thrown 20ft.

- Imbibed
- - The potion, upon being imbibed (standard action), will take 1d3-1 rounds to take effect.

- Salve
- - The salve requires a full-round action to apply, but its effects occur immediately.

- Contact: Delayed
- - A potion requiring contact (usually on an individual) to take effect. After the chemical has contact with the individual (the vial/flask breaks on contact) its effects occur 1d4 rounds later.

- Contact: Instantaneous
- - A potion requiring the contents on the vial/flask to be outside of the vial/flask to take effect. After the contents are splashed outside its effects happen immediately.

- Creating potion-infusions require the normal amount of infusion points to create.

Item-Imbued – A item-imbued infusion requires a tool or piece of equipment in order to be used – from a handheld gadget to boots of flying.

- Every item-imbued item requires a magical item slot (see page 214 of the DMG)

- Every item-imbued item will include a list of what magical item slot it can fill. It is up to the play of what it looks like and how they in particular want it to function.

- Altering an item does make physical changes to the item, but can be disguise via Craft check (the check rolled when item is made) opposed by a spot check.

- A tinkerer can alter magical items in this fashion without destroying the magical properties of the item

- Infusing items in this fashion costs the usual amount of infusion points.

Multi-use – a sub category of potions and item-imbued.
- Creating a potion or an imbued item with three uses before it’s expended.
- When creating a multi-use potion, the potion can be help in two different fashions.

- - Single Charge – If all 3 charges are expended at once, the numerical effects are multiplied by 1.5. The DC of the save to resist a single charge multi-use is increased by 2.

- - Normal Usage – If the tinkerer decides to use the three charges separately, he must have the appropriate amount of vials/flasks/ containers to hold them in.

- - During a tinkerer’s hour of preparation after his 8 hours rest is when he decides how he wants to make his infusions (either single charge or normal usage. He cannot change his mind in the middle of the day).

- When creating a multi-use item, it requires twice the normal amount of infusion points to create.

There is a different set of rules for using infusions:
- All tools or potions a tinkerer makes have a shelf life of 24 hours.
- Each and every infusion does not fall under a spell school.
- There are no components, except for material (often a vial or flask), for

Infusions
- “Casting Time” – often a standard action unless otherwise noted
- Range: dependant, usually 10-20ft.
- Duration: as per infusion
- Saving throw: as per infusion
- Spell resistance: Never.

A problem many tinkerers face is not having enough vials or flasks to hold all of their potions. As a result, a tinkerer often improvises be hollowing out a chunk of stone, old wine bottles, or using water skins or even clay jugs to hold a lot of the same potion. If the DM desires, you may make your own improvised containers which may require a different craft check, and should only have a 95% chance (maximum) of detonating on a successful hit.

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Now, the whole class, especially the fluff hasn't been worked out yet, but i want to know on a mechanics point of view - is this sound? I know ignoring spell resistance is HUGE, but I'm not sure if I offset that with anything else. Infusions are just going to be modified spells.
Scorns? Ideas? Praise? Laughter? Lemme know please!

Nawyria
2007-08-09, 09:33 AM
What I like about your Tinker Class is the fact that he does not use magic to create potions. But, I personally dislike the fact that the things he creates things are based off magic (I personally completely disagree with the fact that only spellcasters are able to make Alchemical items). After all, Alchemy and Magic are quite different. The problem with Alchemy is that it cannot fully substitute the abilities of a character wielding a sword, or casting spells for that matter, but that it is a gadget used to improve performance. The most common uses for Potions is to store Spells. Although you could make a ruleset that allows you to make Healing Potions and Grenades, frankly the Cleric and Wizard class are better at both, respectively.

I have read the World of Warcraft RPG Rulebook and it contains a Tinker Class specifically designed for creating and using Firearms, Vehicles and all sorts of devices. It covers Technological Devices, their function, creation and use quite well (I read it today). The Tinker class is a viable class because using the things he can make, he's basically got all Inspector Gadget's or James Bond's Gadgets and knows how to handle Firearms effectively. This makes him a versatile Skill Monkey while still allowing some usefulness in combat.

Personally, I'd be in favour of adopting a creation engine enabling you to make Alchemical Products and Technological Devices. Then using that engine to allow characters to create such things (Craft (Alchemy), Craft (Technological Device), Use Technological Device). A Tinker class like you're suggesting, and like the one in the World of Warcraft RPG Rulebook could work quite well if he has access to both Alchemy and Technology. A class based around Alchemy alone be pretty situationally effective, and it probably doesn't get any better than throwing Molotov Cocktails and patching up others after a fight (which, again, frankly, the Wizard and Cleric classes are better at, respectively).