While the Artificer as a class has always been popular, the alchemist subclass has long been overlooked in favor of other options. Its features can be frustrating and feel very passive compared to a robot attack dog or armor with magical boxing gloves, but it does offer some useful support and healing options which can make the alchemist a good addition to party that lacks a support caster like a cleric.
DnD 5e – New Alchemist Artificer Handbook
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T.E. Kamstra
Tyler "RPGBOT" Kamstra has been the author of RPGBOT.net since 2013. Tyler began playing tabletop RPGs with 3rd edition Dungeons and Dragons over 2 years ago. Tyler has a long-standing love for building characters and for game mechanics, and brings that enthusiasm to everything he creates.
I feel like a contender for most optimal racial pick for Alchemists is the High Elf. Make your Wizard cantrip Toll the Dead, and turn your four weapon proficiencies into even more tool proficiencies.
Toll the Dead helps with your tiny cantrip pool until level 10(!), and after level 5 it gives a potent, zero-cost offensive option to help round out this mostly support-focused build. Target an injured opponent for 2(+)d12+int damage on a failed Wisdom save, and you don’t need to multiclass for it.
You already get four tool proficiencies as an Artificer, plus up to two more depending on your background, but why not get MORE? Make a true craftsman of all disposable magical crafts! Take herbalism kit (obviously, you’re a potion maker), poisoner’s kit (useless for making poisons, but potentially useful for figuring out what poisons you’re being attacked with or for crime scene investigation), calligrapher’s supplies (scribe the best damn scrolls!), jeweler’s tools (there’s a number of spells with gemstone components, and it’s a lot easier to know exactly how much diamond dust you have with this), cook’s tools (a solid roleplay opportunity), and you still have room for another tool proficiency, or an additional language (in addition to the one you get for being High Elf), or a weapon proficiency.
For skills, the only one I want to highlight is the generally useless Medicine. Mechanically, it’s only good for stabilizing dying party members, but roleplay wise it’s amazing for playing a doctor, and roleplaying as a doctor can be surprisingly helpful in a number of situations, depending on the DM and game. Stop an assassination in progress by recognizing the poison used, whipping up an antidote, and expertly administering it to that NPC that the DM really, really didn’t want to survive!
I played one, 10/10 experience, felt like the most powerful and consistently useful character in the party.