[3] In 2006, Skip Williams explained that the class "represents an approach to magic that's a little different from spellcasting as presented in the Player's Handbook.

[4] He noted that the "core" of the class is as "a master of gadgets", however, the artificer has a range of expressions for players such as "a cool-headed problem solver, an ascetic philosopher, a cunning explorer, a magical dilettante, or a combat magician".

Infusions work similarly to spells but must be implanted in a specific object, giving it a temporary magic effect.

Thus Artificers are able to make use of item creation feats without the experience penalty that other spell casters must take.

[6][7] Shannon Appelcline, author of Designers & Dragons, wrote that it "was the first character class to be playtested as part of D&D Insider".

Artificers can also use arcane spells called infusions to imbue objects with magical power, and focus on buffing, healing and protecting allies.

[7] He noted that Dragon #376 (June 2009) included a "design & development article" focused on the artificer and it included "interesting insights" such as the reason that the artificer's special rules "were replaced by more standard 4e mechanics" was "because the new rules 'didn't amount to enough mechanical benefit'".

[20][21][22] The Armorer subclass was originally released in February 2020 as part of the Unearthed Arcana playtest series.

[27][28] Then in December 2024, a revised version of the artificer using the Player's Handbook (September 2024) ruleset was released as an Unearthed Arcana playtest.

[32][33] Chris Przybyszewski, in his review of Eberron Campaign Setting (2004) for the SF Site, stated that he was disappointed by the Artificer in comparison to the new races introduced in the sourcebook.

[...] Depending on who you ask, the character class was made either to enhance the Eberron campaign at the time, or it was simply put into the game to attract steampunk fans into checking out D&D.

[35] Jeremy Thomas, in his review of Eberron: Rising From The Last War for 411Mania, highlighted the multiple playtest iterations Artificer went through before being published in the 5th Edition.

He wrote "the version we get rather effectively combines all those elements into a workable, balanced class that feels true to the spirit of the Artificer.

[37] However, besides the Alchemist, Hoffer felt that "the Artificer is a fantastic new class that adds both mechanical flavor and lots of roleplaying options".

[12] Charlie Hall, in his review of Eberron: Rising From The Last War for Polygon, highlighted potential game balance issues with the Artificer, the first new character class for 5th edition.

[16] Hoffer, for ComicBook.com in 2020, highlighted that the revised version of the class in Tasha's Cauldron of Everything (2020) included changes that "were made mostly to 'future-proof' the Artificer for future editions, such as giving the Artificer the ability to replicate any common magic item, as opposed to only common magic items found in Xanathar's Guide to Everything.

As an arcane engineer that channels magic through gadgets and contraptions, it stands a little outside the most common fantasy adventurer tropes (like 'guy with big sword' or 'orphan thief')".

DDO community manager Amanda Grove said she enjoyed playing the class in the game, although she said using two hands to shoot rather than one was difficult.