The Arcanist has two more action points than anybody else and the smallest health pool in the game. They turn a clear line of sight into a death sentence — provided they never let their opponent get within five tiles.
Those 14 AP do not come from a passive: they are part of the class stats. Two extra AP a turn is one more Fire bolt, or a free Blink in every attacking turn.
The further away the target, the harder you hit: +5% damage per tile past 2, up to +40% at 10 tiles. In contact, no bonus. And all your spells of range 2 or more reach 1 tile further.
The second effect is the one people forget: Fire bolt actually reaches 9 tiles, Blast 8, Comet 9, Blink 4. With Mage’s eye, count two more tiles again.
The first effect dictates your position. At 3 tiles you hit like everybody else; at 8 tiles you hit 30% harder. A decent Arcanist does not back off to survive, they back off because that is where their damage is.
16 to 24 damage, and above all an Ignite mark that lasts 3 turns. On the third mark, the target explodes: 38 to 54 damage on itself and on the adjacent tiles, and the marks start again from zero. Since you can only cast two Fire bolts a turn, the third mark always lands on the following turn — it is an appointment your opponent can plan for, and so can you.
21 to 30 damage on the target tile and the four adjacent tiles. It targets a tile, not an enemy: it is your only way to hit an invisible Shade, and the spell that punishes a hero standing next to their summon.
No immediate damage: the target burns for 17 to 25 at the start of each of its next 2 turns. Once applied, the damage over time ignores distance, line of sight and walls — which makes it the best spell to cast just before breaking contact and disappearing around a corner.
23 to 33 damage to everything 2 tiles or less from the target point. The widest area in the class, and the only one that reaches a hero and their summons at once. Minimum range 3: it never casts on someone who has just closed on you.
A short teleport, with no cooldown: you have it every turn. Two AP to get out of melee, find a line of sight again, or cross a low wall. It is the most important spell in the class, and the one beginners spend too early.
+2 range on all your spells and +20% damage, this turn and the next. Fire bolt then reaches 11 tiles: enough to strike from an angle where your opponent simply cannot reach you in one turn.
For 2 turns, half the damage you take is also dealt to whoever hits you — you still take it. It is an answer to melee, not a protection: against a Warrior chaining two Lunges it returns more than any shield in the class, which has none.
Summons an elemental with 130 health and 4 MP, which you play on its own turn, right after yours. It spits embers at 5 tiles (26 to 38 damage, 5 AP) and breathes in a straight line to push back 2 tiles (12 to 18 damage, 3 AP). It lasts 5 turns. Beyond the damage, it blocks a tile: placed in a corridor, it buys you the turn you need.
4 AP are left — one Blink and 2 AP of margin. On the next turn, the first Fire bolt sets off the explosion for 38–54 on the target and on everything adjacent to it.
Every AP is spent. The Blink at the end of the turn is not a luxury: it is what decides the distance your opponent’s turn will start at, and therefore your damage on the following turn.
Against the Warrior and the Brute, count their closing tools before you pick your tile: a Charge reaches 7 tiles in a straight line, a Leap 5. Ending a turn 6 tiles away in a clear corridor is handing them melee. Break the line, keep the Blink.
Against the Shade, Blast on an empty tile is your only answer to invisibility. Against the Artificer, Comet destroys the charges before they arm. Against the Clockmaker, beware of the Automatons: each one is a foothold to teleport you away from your ideal distance.
The Arcanist is played by holding distance: every tile past 2 is worth 5% damage to them, up to +40% at 10 tiles. Their 14 AP allow two Fire bolts and a Blink in the same turn. Blink, 2 AP and no cooldown, is saved for the end of the turn: it is what decides the distance your opponent’s turn will start at.
The Arcanist has 700 health, the smallest pool in the game along with the Shade and the Artificer. In exchange they get 14 action points — two more than every other class — and 6 movement points. They have neither shield nor class resistance.
Every Fire bolt lays an Ignite mark that lasts 3 turns, and on the third mark the target explodes for 38 to 54 damage on itself and on the adjacent tiles. Since Fire bolt can only be cast twice a turn, the third mark always lands on the following turn. It is an appointment your opponent can plan for, and so can you.
Blink, even though it deals no damage: 2 AP, no cooldown, available every turn to get out of melee or find a line of sight again. For raw damage it is Comet: 6 AP, 23 to 33 damage in a circle of 2 tiles, range 3 to 8 and a 3-turn cooldown.
By sticking to them. In contact, their Focus pays nothing any more, and their 700 health has neither shield nor class resistance to protect it. Anything that drags them towards their opponent — Taunt, Charge, Quake, Shove — cancels their passive, and their Blink can only be used once a turn.
The Arcanist teaches the most useful lesson in the game: distance is a resource, just like AP.
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