You were not simply captured—you were broken, reshaped, and made into something between living being and controllable construct. Your soul was splintered, your memories peeled apart, and the fragments stored like spell components. For a time, you served as a hunting instrument for those who created you, a puppet forced to retrieve escaped abominations.
But now the strings have snapped.
You walk the world free, yet incomplete, haunted by echoes of stolen memories and the lingering impression of puppet-threads beneath your skin.
- Skill Proficiencies: Over the years you've seen your creators fracture emotions and alter souls giving you an uncanny Insight
You served as a hunting instrument for those who created you, a puppet that was one with the shadows, designed for Stealth
- Tool Proficiencies: Watching your makers at work you've gained the understanding of their tools
- Tinker’s Tools (for interacting with constructs & arcane devices)
- Alchemist’s Supplies (from exposure to experimental chemicals)
- Poisoner’s Kit (from witnessing or assisting in containment procedures)
- Languages: You learn one additional language, often spoken by your captors.
- Deep Speech
- Infernal
- Qouri
- Undercommon
- Equipment:
- A shard of cracked crystal that hums faintly (a remnant of your marionette core)
- A scrap of notes from the laboratory—half-burned, half-written in a cipher
- A set of traveler’s clothes
- A small vial containing a drifting mote of soul-energy (you cannot tell if it’s yours)
You retain unnatural reflexes and instincts from your time as a bound experiment.
You gain the following benefits:
Echo of Command
Once per long rest, you may enter a hyper-focused state resembling your controlled mode. For 1 minute, you gain:
- Advantage on one attack roll, ability check, or saving throw
- An emotionless calm that suppresses fear or charm effects for that roll
Arcane Residue Memory
When you encounter soul magic, constructs, experiments, rituals involving consciousness or identity. You can recall fragmented impressions flashes of sensations, diagrams, or voices. You do not remember why you know these things… only that your soul reacts.
At the DM’s discretion, this provides hints, warnings, or partial insight into the experiment or magic at hand.
Suggested Characteristics
Personality Traits
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I flinch when someone stands directly behind me.
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My emotions surge unpredictably, like storms breaking through cracks.
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I speak calmly—but my eyes dart, always expecting commands that no longer come.
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I mimic voices without realizing; fragments of others cling to me.
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When I’m alone, I talk to the missing pieces of my soul.
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I crave sensation—wind, rain, warmth—as proof I’m still alive.
Ideals
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Reclamation. I will find every stolen shard of my soul. (Neutral)
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Vengeance. The Marionettists will fall for what they did. (Chaotic)
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Control. Never again will anyone dominate my will. (Any)
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Empathy. I will help the broken, because I know their suffering. (Good)
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Restraint. My power is dangerous—I must not lose myself again. (Lawful)
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Rebirth. I will reshape myself into something new, unbound by the past. (Any)
Bonds
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A soul fragment still calls to me in dreams—I must reclaim it.
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Someone I hunted as a puppet survived… and I owe them a debt.
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I carry a piece of another experiment’s soul—they trusted me before death.
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My body still bears hidden runes; I fear what will happen if they activate.
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A member of my former troupe lingers in the world—I must find them.
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I secretly believe I died in that laboratory… and this body is just pretending to be me.
Flaws
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I dissociate when stressed—my mind slips back into the laboratory.
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I struggle to trust anyone, even those who help me.
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Sudden loud noises or flashes can trigger uncontrolled bursts of magic.
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I sometimes feel compelled to obey direct commands.
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My identity shatters under pressure; I forget who I am supposed to be.
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I fear sleep—my dreams are filled with puppet strings and screaming souls.
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