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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

Pathfinder RPG (1st Edition) Pathfinder RPG (2nd Edition) Starfinder RPG

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Artillerist

The maintenance and operation of a siege weapon is the highest form of art for the artillerist. They are second to none in terms of reliability and speed due to years of experience and training. Their mastery is such that they often construct smaller models of their preferred weapon to mount on their shoulders. Many will insist this is in case of an emergency, but they often truly enjoy crafting, designing, and perfecting their personal piece of artillery. Traditionally, artillerists are used on both side of a siege. Massive weapons are both fired towards the walls and from the walls. In such battles, artillerists are invaluable. However, artillerists are seen in other places outside of massive wars. For example, artillerists are often employed on ships to manage their cannons and harpoons.

Recall Knowledge - Humanoid (Society): DC 18
Unspecific Lore: DC 16
Specific Lore: DC 13

Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level

ArtilleristCreature 3

Medium Human Humanoid 
Source NPC Core pg. 44
Perception +8; (10 if the artillerist is crewing a siege weapon)
Languages Common
Skills Crafting +9 ((+11 for siege weapons)), Diplomacy +9, Engineering Lore +11 ((+13 for siege weapons)), Explosive Lore +9 ((+11 for siege weapons)), Society +9, Thievery +8
Str +3, Dex +3, Con +1, Int +2, Wis +1, Cha +0
Siege Acumen The artillerist is permanently quickened. They can use this extra action only to Aim, Load, or Launch a siege weapon.
Items artisan's toolkit (siege weaponry), dueling pistol (20 rounds), light hammer, repair toolkit
AC 18; Fort +8, Ref +12, Will +6
HP 45
Siege Shield While adjacent to a siege weapon, the artillerist gains a +1 circumstance bonus to AC.
Speed 25 feet
Melee [one-action] light hammer +10 [+6/+2] (agile), Damage 1d6+5 bludgeoningMelee [one-action] fist +10 [+6/+2] (agile, finesse, nonlethal, unarmed), Damage 1d4+5 bludgeoningRanged [one-action] dueling pistol +10 [+5/+0] (concealable, concussive, fatal d10, range increment 60 feet, reload 1), Damage 1d6+3 piercingRanged [one-action] light hammer +10 [+6/+2] (agile, thrown 20 feet), Damage 1d6+5 bludgeoningBombard [two-actions] (manipulate) The artillerist activates a shoulder-mounted artillery piece to launch an explosive shell up to 120 feet away that explodes in 10-foot burst. Creatures within the burst take 2d6 piercing damage and 2d6 fire damage with a DC 19 basic Reflex save. A creature that fails its save is also knocked prone. The artillerist can't use Bombard again until they reload the artillery with 2 Interact actions; these actions don't have to be consecutive.

Sidebar - Advice and Rules Siege Weapons

The artillerist is meant to pair with siege weapons, and engineers in general often pair well with these large instruments of war. Siege weapons usually work best with multiple NPCs crewing them. Rules for siege weapons can be found here.

All Monsters in "Engineer"

NameLevel
Artillerist3
Demolitionist4
Driver2
Dynamo8
Gadgeteer6
Gunsmith1
Juggernaut13
Mechanic1
Rocketeer6
Toymaker3

Engineer

Source NPC Core pg. 42
Although relatively uncommon across much of Golarion, the frequently eccentric but undeniably brilliant minds who create elaborate devices of clockwork, gunpowder, and steam often loom much larger in the public eye than their numbers would suggest.

Engineering Device Malfunctions

When making an attack or activating an ability granted by a mechanical device that has been poorly maintained or is of shoddy construction, an engineer must attempt a DC 5 flat check after making the relevant attack roll or skill check. On a failure, the action is lost and the device misfires spectacularly (roll on the Device Malfunctions table). A device misfire doesn't affect the amount of time that must pass before some abilities can be used again.

Device Malfunctions

d6Effect
1Fizzle The device jams or short-circuits. If the triggering action was an attack, it retroactively becomes a critical failure. The engineer must use an Interact action to reset the device before it can be used again.
2 Backfire The device violently explodes, disabling it and dealing 1d6 bludgeoning damage for every 2 levels the engineer has in a 5-foot burst centered on the device. The device is broken until the engineer Repairs it.
3 Off-Target If the triggering action was a targeted attack, the attack instead targets another creature (other than the engineer) within 10 feet of the intended target, determined randomly by the GM. If no such target exists, the attack misses.
4 System Reset A burst of feedback momentarily shuts down all the engineer's devices. The engineer can't use attacks or abilities granted by any personal engineering device, potentially including movement speeds, until the start of their next turn.
5 Overheat The overstressed device generates a wave of intense heat. The device burns the engineer for 4d6 fire damage and 2d4 persistent fire damage, with a basic Reflex save. The DC is equal to the engineer's Fortitude DC. The engineer can Release the item before rolling to improve their degree of success on the save by one step.
6 Delayed Reaction The device fails to function, having no apparent effect. At the start of the engineer's next turn, the device automatically activates. The GM chooses any target or area at random.

Sidebar - Additional Lore Brigh

On Golarion, science and magic coexist, and many engineers worship Brigh, the deity of clockwork, invention, and time. She's often invoked when an inventor needs inspiration or is on the clock and needs the next few hours to go slower. Often, engineers engrave small icons of Brigh's religious symbol—a mask in her likeness.

Sidebar - Related Creatures Crossover Ancestry NPCs

Several of the NPCs elsewhere in NPC Core can fit well in this group: Goblin scavenger (level 4), kobold trapper (level 2)

Sidebar - Advice and Rules Firearms

Multiple engineers use firearms, technology that's present in relatively small numbers on Golarion. These are uncommon, simple, and martial weapons, so many player characters can use them. If you want to avoid putting the items in their hands, swap out the firearms with crossbow or similar weapons. More firearms and the gunslinger class appear in Pathfinder Guns & Gears.

Sidebar - Advice and Rules Gadgets For PCs

Since engineers often carry unique gadgets, your player characters will likely want to salvage and reuse those items. If you want to do this in your games, you can either let them use the items primarily as written or convert them into consumable gadgets. In any case, these items are typically unstable when salvaged, usable once to a few times or subject to misfires.

Sidebar - Related Creatures Mechanical Allies

Often, engineers are accompanied by mechanical creatures of their own creation, like clockwork hounds or mechanical birds. To build encounters including such creatures, you can either adapt an existing construct (such as an animated object) or change an animal's trait to construct and give it immunity to bleed, death effects, disease, doomed, drained, fatigued, healing, nonlethal attacks, paralyzed, poison, sickened, spirit, unconscious, vitality, and void. You might want to reduce its HP slightly to compensate.

Sidebar - Advice and Rules Misfires

Firearms that are improperly maintained or subjected to unusual strain can misfire. If a creature attempts to fire a firearm that was fired the previous day or earlier and hasn't been cleaned since, it rolls a DC 5 flat check before making its attack roll. If it fails this misfire check, the weapon misfires and jams. The attack is an automatic critical failure, and a creature must use an Interact action to clear the jam before the weapon can be reloaded and fired again. Once a creature has spent at least an hour cleaning a weapon, no one needs to roll for a misfire for that weapon until the next day unless an effect says otherwise.