Eberron: Forge of the Artificer reads like a book aimed squarely at the folks who saw the original 5e Artificer and thought, “Cool idea, weird execution.”
This isn't a full reboot of the setting, and it doesn’t pretend to be. It’s a cleanup pass and a box of toys for the game’s resident magitech-engineer, built for the 2024 rules and assuming you already like Eberron's lightning rails, airships, and morally dubious magewright guilds.
Disclaimer: Wizards of the Coast provided Geek to Geek a review copy of Eberron: Forge of the Artificer.
What’s Actually in This Thing?
First, expectations: this is not a brand-new Eberron book. It's not a whole new thing, as it really builds on and updates the foundation laid by the previous 5e Eberron content. Think of it as an add‑on for the new core rule set. In fact, even the cover simply calls it a “rules expansion.”
It includes a reworked Artificer class that fits the 2024 update design, with updated versions of Alchemist, Armorer, Artillerist, and Battle Smith, plus a brand‑new Cartographer subclass. There are Dragonmarks rebuilt as feats instead of being hard‑wired to specific ancestries, which opens up a lot of character concepts that used to be awkward to build.
And then you also get a bunch of new feats, backgrounds, and Eberron‑specific magic items, along with rules for airships, vehicles, and the magical industry that makes the setting feel like lightning‑punk pulp instead of another generic fantasy world.
If you’re hoping for a full setting tour with all the lore and maps repeated, this book doesn’t do that. It assumes you either own Rising from the Last War or you’re comfortable filling in blanks yourself.
The New Artificer Really is Better in Play, Not Just on Paper
The Artificer isn’t a brand‑new class, but it does feel like the version they were reaching for the first time. The other one has always been awkward to use at the table in some ways, and Forge of the Artificer does offer a few significant improvements:
The base class is tighter and lines up better with how 2024 classes are built. Early levels do a better job of selling “I do weird magic with tools” instead of “I’m sort of a half‑caster with a screwdriver.”
The old infusion system gets replaced with a more straightforward “magic item plans” approach through Replicate Magic Item. You unlock tiers of items at set levels and actually learn to build signature gear.
That last bit is both the coolest thing and the part that can stress some DMs out. It nails the fantasy of being the gadget person at the table, but if you don’t think about how early access to certain items hits your campaign, it can get swingy fast. I'm not the kind of DM who really cares that much about that, but there are a lot who do.
Big picture, though, the Artificer finally feels like it clicks. It’s easier to read, easier to build, and closer to the character people were trying to homebrew toward anyway.
Subclasses: No True Dead Weight, Clear Favorites
One of the nicest surprises is that none of the subclasses feels like a trap pick anymore. The conversation is more “which one fits my game?” than “which one is secretly bad?”
- Alchemist finally steps out of the “I did this for roleplay” corner and into a solid support/control lane, with better potion play and clearer tools. After spending a year with Pathfinder, though, I'm still disappointed because the one in PF is just so much more robust.
- Armorer comes together as a tough, straightforward frontliner that no longer feels like “Iron Man hot glued onto a spell list.”
- Artillerist is still the turret‑focused build. It does good damage, and the cannon modes are flexible, but it’s probably the most one‑note of the bunch now that the others picked up more depth.
- Battle Smith keeps the “robot buddy plus magic weapon” identity, with smoother progression and fewer “wait, how does this actually work?” moments.
- Cartographer is the standout new option. If you’ve ever wanted “magic map specialist” to be a real mechanical niche instead of a reskinned ranger, this is that. Exploration‑heavy groups are going to get a ton of use out of it.
Add in the new feats, backgrounds tied to Eberron’s institutions, and the updated Dragonmarks, and the whole thing feels like it was actually built for the current edition.
Airships, Industry, and the Eberron Feel
The other half of the book is about making Eberron’s signature tech matter at the table instead of just living in flavor text.
Airships and other vehicles get enough rules and upgrade options that players have reasons to care about them beyond “fancy transport.” They’re something you can tinker with and fight over.
The magic items lean into dragonshard tech, lightning rails, magewright craft, and so on, so your Artificer’s gear list actually matches the setting instead of pulling randomly from a generic magic item table.
The adventures and tools it suggests lean into heists, corporate intrigue, and “what happens when industrial magic goes sideways,” which is exactly what Eberron is good at.
This is the part of the book that really sells “we’re pushing Eberron forward into the new rules,” not just patching the Artificer.
If you need more Eberron than that, I suggest looking into the Keith Baker-created Eberron content on DMs Guild, like Frontiers of Eberron: Quickstone, Exploring Eberron, or Chronicles of Eberron.
Where It Stumbles
First, the book leans hard on you already owning or knowing Rising from the Last War. A lot of the foundational stuff—who the Dragonmarked houses are, regional context, broader faction details—isn’t really covered. If you’re new to the setting, you’ll end up looking things up.
Second, the organization isn’t always friendly to fresh eyes. Jumping from “here’s the cool thing I want to play” to “here’s the lore that gives it context” can be clunky if you’re not already living in Eberron’s headspace. (And if you're not, you should be. It's a fantastic setting that really doesn't get the love from WotC it deserves.)
It's not a thick book, so if you're expecting a 300-page worldbook, this ain't it. But for $29.99, it’s still a good chunk of content for the price, especially if you or someone at your table plans on using the Artificer. It is not, however, the book to hand someone as their first taste of the game or the setting.
Should You Buy It?
Are you already into Eberron and have a player (or want to play) the Artificer? This is an easy yes. The class feels better, the Cartographer is worth stealing even for non‑Eberron games, and the tech/magic support makes it much easier to run the setting the way it looks in your brain.
If you are curious about the Artificer but don’t own Rising from the Last War? You’ll get a strong mechanical book that will also send you to wikis or older books to fill in lore gaps. Fine, as long as you know that going in.
Do you want a new Eberron sourcebook with lots of setting lore as an Eberron relaunch? This isn’t that. It’s a focused upgrade and a pile of toys for one class and one style of campaign.
In day‑to‑day use, Forge of the Artificer feels like a “second or third purchase” book. Once you know you want to spend real time in Eberron, or if someone at your table is itching to play an Artificer, there's no reason not to grab it, especially at the lower price point it comes in at.