Combat Smith
Clad in armor and wielding tools, the Combat Smith excels at patching clothing and fixing sundered weapons. Combat Smiths can even bolster their allies with words and pure presence. Despite their name, these folk have immense utility out of combat, especially with crafting clothing, armor, or certain other cloth items.
Class: Builder
Aptitude: Versatile Artisan
Skill 1: Cloth Maker
Skill 2: Repair Armor
Skill 3: Armor Expertise
Perk 1: Talented - Repair Smith
Perk 2: Talented - Expert Weaver
Perk 3: Charmed - Ignite Inspiration
Items: Scrap Kit, Any Melee Weapon, Any Armor
Future Build Options:
Weaver (Builder): repair and make armor (or similar cloth items)
Weaponer (Builder): repair and make weapons/shields; use firearms
Tinker (Builder): repair and make skill kits; augment skill kits with gadgets
Scrapper (Warrior): Increases one’s skill in armor use and resilience to injury
Defender (Warrior): Grants and improves defenses
Binder (Counselor): bolsters the spirits and resolve of allies
Fighter (Warrior): Smite enemies in melee
Slinger (Warrior): Smite enemies from a distance.
Combat Smiths focus primarily on the repair of armors and weapons, which can spell the difference between victory and defeat in a hard fight. This means diving deep into the Weaver and Weaponer Disciplines, aiming for skills like Master of Weaving.
Some Weavers lean harder into their support role with the Binder Discipline while others focus on resilience via the Scrapper or Defender Discipline. A rare few will use Weaponer, Slinger, and/or Fighter to become a force of reckoning in a fight.
Itemization Advice: As Builders, Combat Smiths should prioritize their Scrap Kit when investing resources into their equipment. An augmented Scrap Kit can make repair even quicker or house useful gadgets such as a Hook Bracer or Smoke Belt.
Beyond their Kit, investing in decent armaments is also worth doing. Augmented armor will literally save a Combat Smith’s life, as will a well made weapon. Because these individuals rarely have damage penalties, they are free to invest in potent melee weapons or even firearms, although the latter can be expensive to maintain.