The seemingly bottomless powers of magic, the limitless ingenuity of the art of artifice. Few vocations marry these aspects of life as well as the mystical art of puppetry.

Arcane Puppeteer

Arcane Puppet

 

When you pick this subclass at 3rd you get a common puppet. You also become proficient in performance. 

You can craft an arcane puppet as a using the "crafting a magic item" downtime activity. At 3rd level you can craft a common puppets. If you begin play as an arcane puppeteer. When you can craft uncommon and rare items is when you can also craft uncommon and rare puppets. 

An arcane puppet is a small animated object with the following statistics:

• 5+ (5x your level), AC 8+ your dexterity + your proficiency, Str 6, Dex 14, Con 10, Int 3, Wis 3, Cha 1, speed 30 ft.
• The size of this puppet, when unfolded, is Medium.
• Gains as much HP as you do when you level up.
• Unlike other animated objects, it does not have blindsight, instead sharing your senses.
• It can make a slam (melee weapon) attack that deals 1d8 + your Dexterity Modifier in bludgeoning damage, with an attack modifier equal to your Dexterity modifier + your proficiency bonus. It does not roll for initiative, take its own turn, and cannot move or take actions or reactions on its own.
• If the puppet falls to 0 hit points, it is destroyed.
• It weighs 60 lbs. You can use an action to fold it up into Tiny size to be transported in a backpack, sack or basket; it takes another action to unfold it for use.
• The Puppet is able to use items and weapons instead of its slam attack.

The puppet only has these stats if you are controlling it with your magical strings feature, other wise it is an inanimate object. You must use an action or bonus action to have the puppet take a turn, it takes its turn on your turn. If you don't command the puppet it will remain in place, you can use your reaction to have the puppet make an opportunity attack. The cantrip mending can heal only up to half of the hitpoints of the puppet, otherwise the puppet heals the same amount you would heal from a short rest or long rest. 

At 6th level your puppets gain +1 to their ac.

At 12th level you can control two puppets at once (assuming you have a second hand or alternative way to control the puppets), you command both puppets with either a bonus action or action. 

 At 20th level In addition, your puppets have resistance against bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage from nonmagical weapons.

Magical Strings

Your subclass features require you to use a set of strings – threads of magical force used for controlling your puppets and other creatures. A set of strings comprises of five threads, attached from each of your fingers on one hand to the limbs and head of a target puppet or creature. You must have an empty hand to use one set of strings: thus if you have two empty hands you can control two sets of strings. Strings are intangible and invisible and cannot be severed by creatures within the Material Plane. Beings within the Ethereal Plane can see, manipulate, and sever these strings as if they were normal threads. 

At 3rd level the length of your strings is 60 feet. You lose control of the subject of the strings if you are separated from it by a distance longer than the length of the strings. You can dismiss one or both sets of strings on your turn: this does not require an action. The strings also disappear if you fall unconscious. 

At 6th level The length of your strings increase to 90 feet, and you can target an unwilling creature as an action. The creature must make a strength saving throw beating your spell save. And it has disadvantage if it is unconscious or paralyzed. On a failed save until the next round the creature is restrained and as a reaction and' or a bonus action you can forcibly move the target creature in the direction you want it to move in equal to the target creatures movement. The creature can still cast spells, attack, and other such actions, and at the start of its turn can attempt to break free. You can do this a number of times equal to your proficiency modifier, afterword's you need to take a long rest to regain your expended charges. 

At 12th level the length of your strings increases to 120 feet. 

Puppetry Expertise

From 5th level onward, you can project your voice through a puppet you control. You have advantage on making performance, and deception checks on these rolls. 

Additionally your puppets move abnormally with your controlled movement, your puppets do not provide opportunity attacks when they move away from an enemy. 

 

One with Puppets

You can cast bark skin on yourself once per short rest without using a spell slot, additionally you become a construct for the duration of the spell when casting the spell this way. If you are already a construct before casting the spell on yourself you get +1 to your ac. 

At 12th level you can cast Animate objects once per short rest without using a spell slot. 

Puppet Fusion

At 9th level, if you are in control of two puppets and they are within 5 feet of each other, you can use your bonus action to have them combine into a single puppet. Two Small puppets become a Medium object; two Medium puppets become a Large object, two large become huge. 

Combined puppets are treated as a single puppet, you still require two sets of strings to control it. Its statistics are as follows:

• It has hit points equal to the total of the component puppet's hit points.
• Each ability score is the better of the component puppet's scores and it gains +1 each of its scores. 
• Its slam attack becomes a 1d12 instead. 
• Its AC is the better of the two component puppet's ACs and gains +1 to its AC. 
• When it takes the Attack action, it may attack 3 times instead of twice.
• It has all the special features of the two component puppets.

They remain combined until you separate them with a bonus action or fold them up. When you do so, divide its remaining hit points between the two component puppets  equally (up to that puppet's maximum hit points). 

If you control a fused puppet you cannot control any other puppets. If your fused puppet is destroyed this way both puppet are considered destroyed. 

A True Puppet Master

Each of your puppets can attune to up to one magical item. 

When you would die you can transfer your soul to a puppet you have controlled and is attuned to a magical item. The item must be of rare quality or higher for this to work. Upon doing so you can't do this again for another year, when your soul transfers to the other doll both the doll and the magical item is destroyed and morphs into what your old physical body. You retain all of your previous stats but immediately go to 1 hitpoint and take 2 levels of exhaustion. 

Dollification

When you attempt control a creature with your strings, if they fail the strength saving throw they then must make a wisdom saving throw equal to your spell casting ability - 10. On a failed save the creature turns into a puppet that you can control. It retains it size but you can fold it and its weight is halved of what it originally was. The creatures stats change to what your normal doll stat would be but retains all of its special features and actions assuming an item is not required, it can still wield the items it previously wield if it did wield any. The creature cannot be turn into a doll if it is huge or larger. The creature remains an inanimate doll for 1 day, it cannot move by itself however it still retains all of it sense and memories of when it was alive. You can consume a 4th level spell slot or above to refresh the duration. If you fall unconscious while the creature is your doll it immediately reverts back to its original form as though it were fully rested, additionally a spell like dispel magic or remove curse will remove the effects of its dollificaiton. Once per day the creature can attempt to break free of dollificaiton by making a wisdom save by your spell dc.