Puppet Master

Puppet Masters are mages who prefer to channel their magic into another entity, typically synthetic, to engage in combat in their stead. While staying mostly out of combat isn't an option, a skilled Puppet Master can utilize a Puppet and their own bodies in combat to create havoc or protect others. While being a difficult path to follow, skilled puppetry can result in an unstoppable force. 

Note: This is its own class, D&D Beyond just doesn't have an option for homebrew classes. 

Arcane Puppetry

As a puppet master, you have access to the power of Arcane Puppetry. At 1st level, you can create 3 synthetic humanoid Puppets of your own design. Each Puppet can wield two different weapons of your choosing, but only one Puppet can be controlled at any time. Weapons must be drawn prior to combat to be used. All puppets can be used in melee combat, ranged combat, or to channel magic through. The Puppet Master, however, can only cast spells while controlling a puppet. Puppets are controlled using magic tethers from the user's fingers to the puppet. Puppets do not require concentration to control, but the connection to the Puppet Master is severed upon taking damage from a melee weapon. Establishing connection to a Puppet requires one minute of concentration, and all creatures have advantage on attacks while re-connecting to a puppet. Puppets float a few inches off the ground and generally ignore difficult terrain. When not in use, Puppets can be collapsed to pill-sized capsules and stored with ease. Your movement is halved while controlling Puppets, but all Puppets have equal or greater movement speed than your normal movement speed. Beast Puppets have movement speed equal to the creature's that they are based on, and it is increased by 10 ft. if you are not moving. Lastly, damage dealt by Puppets is equal to their dice rolls divided by two. This does not apply to magic channeled through Puppets. This penalty is reduced to damage equaling your 3/4 of your roll at 7th level and full damage starting at 10th level. 

Puppet stats are rolled individually as if they were their own character, allowing for a varied group of Puppets. All spells channeled through puppets, however, are affected by the Puppet Master rather than the Puppet. No base form puppet can exceed 6'7", and all puppets have an Armor Class of 10 + the DEX Modifier of the Puppet. Puppets gain experience only when in use, and can level up with the Puppet Master. Puppet initiative is equal to the Puppet Master's -1.  

Arcane Displacement

At 2nd level, any spell that you ready can be cast by you or by your puppet. If being cast through the puppet, you must use your action to concentrate on the puppet, but all damage spells get a +1 to damage and all healing spells get a +1 to healing in combat. The bonus increases by 1 every 2nd level after 2, (4, 6, 8, etc.). All spells channeled through your puppet are modified by INT.  

Aural Puppetry

At 2nd level, you can speak through any synthetic Puppets with your voice at any distance. When using undead or living Puppets, you will speak with the voice of the Puppet you are controlling, if at all. No living Puppet can speak in a language that it does not know. 

Fast Disconnect

At 3rd level, you gain the skill Fast Disconnect. This skill allows a Puppet Master to disconnect from their puppet and draw a weapon instantaneously an unlimited number of times. This is considered a bonus action or a Reaction when being attacked and can be used for an Opportunity attack on an unwary foe. 

Fast Reconnect

At 3rd level, you gain the skill Fast Reconnect. Fast Reconnect is a skill that allows the Puppet Master to instantly regain control of one of their Puppets twice per Long Rest, negating the requirement for one minute of concentration. This is considered a Bonus Action on your turn or a Reaction when being attacked.

Disciplines of the Puppet Master

At 3rd level, you will select one of three disciplines to follow, which will drastically alter the style of Puppetry you perform, listed below. 

Mobile Puppeteer

At 5th level, Fast Disconnect doubles your movement until reconnecting. Fast Reconnect now instantly transports your Puppet to your side if you choose to do so.

Improved Connection

At 9th level, Fast Disconnect and Fast Reconnect can be used on multiple Puppets at the same time. Additionally, Fast Reconnect can now be used five times per Long Rest.

Puppet Replacement

At 12th level, you can instantly change places with any Puppet you are connected to, and you can do this ten times per long rest. This is considered a movement action after using it, you cannot move from where the Puppet was standing. You can still perform any non-movement action. 

Master of Puppets

At 20th level, all Puppets you have in your arsenal (including those you are controlling and those in reserve, and this is not limited to any type of Puppet) perform a coordinated series of attacks. For each Puppet that participates in this series of attacks, deal 1d10+5 damage. When performing this attack, you have Advantage, and the whole attack is included in one attack roll. If you have a Magical Beast Puppet at your disposal, increase the damage by +5. If using Undead Puppets, include 1d4 Necrotic damage for each Undead Puppet under your control, or 2d4 Necrotic damage for each Major Undead Puppet. If using exclusively Synthetic Puppets, each one you have in reserve is deployed and does not require the use of tethers for the remainder of combat, but they all attack the same target using the same action. This action can only be used once per Long Rest. 

The Three Disciplines:

Master of Mimicry:

Puppetry of the Self

This path follows the one you start with, further expanding upon it. The only puppet type you can control is that of your own creation, in humanoid form. However, you now have the option to control two Puppets at once, and both Puppets gain a +1 in two stats of your choosing, or a +2 in one stat. Lastly, each Puppet is proficient in every weapon type, including martial weapons.

Autonomous Puppet

Beginning at 5th level, you can have a Puppet act independently of your control (to clarify, this means you do not have to have tethers attached to the Puppet and they can perform any action you command within their ability). When a Puppet is acting freely, you cannot cast spells through them, but they will still listen to your commands. Their movement speed will be increased by 10 ft. and their range of control is unlimited.

Faster Caster

At 7th level, spells cast through your Puppets will be treated as a bonus action on your turn. 

Greater Mastery

At 10th level, rather than an additional +1 to your spell's damage or healing when channeled through a Puppet, add a dice roll to that spell. Additionally, you no longer have a movement speed penalty when controlling your Puppets, and your Puppets permanently retain their movement speed bonus regardless of if you are moving or connected to them.

Autonomous Puppets 

At 13th level, you gain the ability to have both Puppets act independently, with the same effects as previously listed.

True Puppetry

At 15th level, you can fuse with one of your Puppets, giving you stats equal to your stats + the Puppet's stats. All magic is always treated as if it is being channeled through a Puppet and you gain an extra action. Additionally, you become proficient with any weapon.

Tripuppet

At 17th level, you gain your third Puppet, with the same design restrictions and possibilities of the original, and it gains the bonus given at the start of this discipline. Additionally, you can control all three at once.

Full Autonomy

At 20th level, all three Puppets can act independently. Additionally, you can craft two more Puppets of the same design, though you can still only control three at a time. You also gain the option to control all three as if they were one entity. This entails casting spells through all three, creating one spell with three times the bonus provided by Puppets, and with regular attacks, you would roll one attack roll for all three attacks, but then roll damage separately. 

Master of Monsters:

Puppetry of the Wild

You can create 2 Beast Puppets, based on any beast of your choice. As with the humanoid Puppets, they can be designed at the whims of the Puppet Master so long as they resemble a beast, and the stats are rolled individually. These Puppets are more resilient than Synthetic Puppets, and as such gain a +5 to their HP upon creation. The beast's attacks are based on the attacks of the beast the Puppet resembles (i.e. Bear/Wolf). Puppets do not require food, water, or oxygen, and therefore any sea creatures are eligible beasts to be used as Puppets. Spells channeled through the beast Puppet gain a +2 to damage or healing and a +1 to DC. Due to the size of many beasts, these Beast Puppets have the ability to reduce their size up to half of their original size without being collapsed into a storage capsule. At 3rd level, you can only control one Beast Puppet or one Synthetic Puppet of your choosing. Beast Puppets do have the advantage of being able to be ridden on, and are thus useful for traversing difficult terrain with ease.

Find Familiar

While Puppet Masters prefer to use Puppets for fighting, a familiar can come in handy in any situation. At 4th level, the Puppet Master gains access to the Find Familiar spell.

Beast Aspect

At 6th level, you gain the ability to take on the characteristics of the Beast your Puppet is based on for 2 turns. This is treated as a Bonus Action. Sea creatures do not give you the necessity to breathe water and allow you to swim through the air, though only up to 5 feet high, and your movement speed is based on the sea creature in question. Flying creatures all give you double movement speed and the ability to fly, and if you are in the air at the end of the second turn, you will be safely returned to the ground. During the time you are taking these characteristics, your Beast Puppet will attack the same enemy as you but you cannot cast magic during this transformation.

Puppet's Primal Fury

At 8th level, your Beast Puppets can go Berserk. This action counts as a Puppet Master 2nd level spell. Using your action will increase all of their damage rolls by one extra die, and they gain temporary HP equal to 1d10 + your INT modifier. This effect lasts for two of your Puppet's turns but can be prolonged by casting it with a higher spell slot by one turn per slot.

Artificial Symbiosis

At 10th level, you can assimilate your Synthetic Puppets into your Beast Puppets to create Hybrid Puppets. In appearance, these Puppets are essentially your Beast Puppet with a Synthetic Puppet riding it. This assimilation gives your Hybrid Puppet a second action each turn and a +1 to every stat. You can also defuse them at will, though you can only use Artificial Symbiosis once per Long Rest.

Ability Score Increase

At 12th level add +1 to two of your stats, or a +2 to one stat.

Puppets of Legend

At 15th level, you can create another Beast Puppet, and it can include Magical Beasts. These Beasts can only be controlled for 5 minutes total per Long Rest and disconnecting from a Magical Beast Puppet ends that 5 minutes early. The stats are still rolled, but give every stat +5, as well as the extra +5 HP all Beast Puppets acquire upon creation. Connecting to a Magical Beast Puppet requires a full 5 minutes of concentration out of combat, but can be connected to using Fast Reconnect. The attacks are based on attacks used by Magical Beasts and any magic cast through a Magical Beast gets an extra 2 damage rolls, at the cost of your full turn.

Twin Beasts

At 18th level, you can control a second Beast or Hybrid Puppet. This does not apply to Magical Beast Puppets.

Mythical Mastery

At 20th level, the time you can control a Magical Beast Puppet is doubled, and you can use Fast Disconnect without ending your connection for the day. 

Master of the Mausoleum: 

Puppetry of Death

At 3rd level, you gain the spell Animate Dead, as a first level spell, and can use undead minions as Puppets. Undead minions do not require concentration to connect to for Puppetry, but take on the stats of the undead creature that was animated. Additionally, all spells channeled through undead minions gain 1d4 Necrotic Damage. . This bonus is increased by 1d4 every 3rd level (6, 9, 12, etc.). You also gain resistance to Necrotic damage when controlling Undead Puppets. Undead Puppets can be moved completely autonomously, including through the air and have movement speed equal to 50 ft.

Life Tap

At 5th level, you gain the spell Life Tap, which, when cast through an Undead Puppet, gains double the temporary HP, and is modified by INT.

Company of Death

At 6th level, you can control two Undead Puppets, but all Undead Puppets are controlled with the same thread, and thus always perform the same actions or movement, albeit in separate positions. Spells cast through multiple Undead Puppets are cast equal to the number of Undead Puppets being controlled but lose any bonus to damage, healing or DC.

Animate Major Undead

At 8th level, you gain the spell Greater Animate Dead, but cannot control multiple Greater Undead Puppets.

Invisibility

At 10th level, you gain the spell Invisibility, which can be cast on yourself or your Puppets. When used on Puppets, there is no limit to how many can be made invisible, but you can only make yourself or your Puppets invisible.

Living Puppetry

At 11th level, you can control any creature that fails a Constitution save as a Puppet. Willing creatures do not perform a save. When channeling spells through a living Puppet, they gain an increase in damage based on the creature's highest stat (add the stat modifier to all damage rolls). Additionally, any living Puppet can be disconnected from or reconnected to as a bonus action. A living Puppet that has been disconnected from gains Advantage on Constitution saves to break free of your control.  While under your control, the creature and the Puppet Master make a Constitution save on the creatures turn to determine if control is retained. All living Puppets gain a +3 to STR and CON.

Domination of Death

At 14th level, if you would take fatal damage, you can redirect the damage to one of your Puppets. If this is a Synthetic Puppet, it is permanently destroyed, but you take no damage. Living Puppets will gain an additional Constitution saving throw to attempt to break free of your control, and if they succeed, you take half damage and the creature you were controlling takes half, if they fail, they take full damage and you take none. Undead Puppets simply die again, but can be reanimated.

Ability Score Increase

At 15th level, add a +1 to two of your stats, or a +2 to one stat.

Horde of the Damned

At 17th level, you can control 3 Undead Puppets, 2 Greater Undead Puppets or one of each. If you control one of each, they are attached to separate threads and have separate actions, but your movement speed penalty when controlling them is doubled.

Necrotic Pulse

At 20th level, you gain Necrotic Pulse, and when triggered after casting a spell through your Undead Puppets, even through multiple at once, this bonus action deals 3d10 + 20 damage, but you can only use it twice per Long Rest. When using it after a spell cast normally, you can heal for 50% of the damage dealt.

 

Ability Score Increase

At 6th level, you gain +1 in two stats of your choosing, or +2 in one stat.

Luminous Threads

At 14th level, your threads now glow at an intensity you decide on, if you so choose. They cannot glow to a blinding degree. Additionally, those in the radius of the light cannot be heard by those outside of it. 

Puppeteer of the World

At 18th level, you can use your tethers on any surface to transport yourself or check for hidden doors or traps. Your tethers intrinsically have Detect Magic active at all times when doing this, and if your tethers are struck, no damage is sustained and your tethers are simply deactivated. Additionally, when using your tethers as a form of movement, your movement in tripled, and the length of your tethers is extended to that number (i.e. 30 ft. movement normally, 90 ft with tethers).