Beetle smith hahaha because P U N

As a beetle smith, you draw inspiration from the tiny parts of the natural world which go unnoticed and are just taken for granted to be there when creating your inventions. You appreciate the subtlety of tiny critters scurrying about unnoticed, living their own tiny lives in peace, and as many artificers do, you take that concept and turn it into a robot that explodes.

Expanded spell list

Level 3: unseen servant, find familiar 

level 5: arcane lock, knock

level 9: clairvoyance, skywrite

level 13: arcane eye, locate creature

level 17: modify memory, mislead

Create contraption

As an action, you can use your tinkerers tools to create a tiny contraption in an unoccupied space within 5 feet of you. This creation is usually a tiny mechanical critter, like a small bird, rodent, insect or some other small creature. You can only have 1 contraption made at a time, but you can make a new one as soon as the old one is destroyed (dies). Your creation is neutral towards you and your party. It has its own initiative count in battle, but on its turn it just moves around like a normal mouse, dragonfly, frog e.t.c. On your turn as an action or bonus action, you can take control of your creation. While you have control of it, you can see, hear, feel, smell and even taste whatever the contraption sees, hears e.t.c., and you can control everything your creation does. While controlling your creation, all rolls requiring wisdom, intelligence or charisma use your own modifiers instead of the creation’s modifiers. However, while in this state you cannot see anything around your actual body, and can only extremely faintly hear, feel, smell and taste the world around your actual body. If you cannot see it is harder to navigate your surroundings, especially if you are not used to not seeing things, and if you are also focussed on controlling something else. Also, since you cannot see, attack rolls against you have advantage. You can end control of your creature as an action or bonus action. You can use this feature to create contraptions an amount of times equal to your artificer level+your proficiency bonus. If you have 0 uses remaining, you can choose to create more, but each time you create 1 you must succeed a constitution saving throw equal to your spell save DC, or take 1d4 damage and fail to create a new contraption. As the power of your creations grows, so does the strain and energy taken to create them After you have reached the limit of your capabilities. The damage taken when you create more with no uses remaining increases to 2d4 at level 5, 2d6 at level 9, and 2d12 at level 15. You  regain all uses of this feature again after a long rest.

Mechanical contraption

Tiny construct

Ac: 16 Hp: 1+your artificer level

Speed: 30 ft.+Climb 20 ft., Fly 30 ft., or Swim 30 ft.

str 1(-5) dex 20(+5) con 12(+1) int 10(+0) wis 10(+0) cha 9(-1)

Saving throws: dexterity, constitution

Skills: stealth, investigation, perception

Damage immunities: poison

Condition immunities: poisoned, exhausted 

Senses: darkvision 60 ft., passive perception 15+PB

Languages: understands any languages you speak

Shares your proficiency bonus

While not being controlled by you, the tiny creature has access to any knowledge and information that you know, but having no instructions to guide it, it cannot act upon this information until you learn how to program it with basic commands at a later level.

Evasion: If your contraption is subjected to an effect that allows it to make a dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, it instead takes no damage if it succeeds on the saving throw, and only half damage if it fails.

Actions

Tiny laser eyes: Your little critter is equipped with tiny laser eyes which can be used to deal some damage to enemies. Ranged weapon attack. Spell attack modifier to hit, range 20 ft., one target your contraption can see. On a hit:1d4 damage. Ignites targeted flammable objects.

Disintegrate: Your creature quietly and harmlessly disintegrates into nothingness, or magic sparkles, or something.

Detonate: When your creature is destroyed(dies) or activates this ability, it uses up all of the remaining magical energy to explode and release a bust of power, triggering one random effect from the table below. When the explosion is done, you cease control because the contraption is destroyed. Saving throws are equal to your spell save DC, and attack rolls use your spell attack modifier. At certain artificer levels the destructive power of these magic bursts increases. At level 9 all d8s of damage on this cable become d12s, and at level 15 they become d20s.

Random effect table

Notes: I wanted to note that I am not very experienced in balancing homebrew so if something seems really broken and over powered or vice versa then feel free to tweak the range, damage, duration e.t.c. then feel free to do that. That is, this is assuming that anyone would want to play this subclass, but if anyone does actually want to play this then this is just a note to say that. Also if there are any rules that I didn’t remember that contradict something in this subclass feel free to substitute what I’ve written for the actual rule. Another note: I just said effects lasted for certain amounts of rounds, and to clarify, each effect ends at the end of your turn on the next round or however many rounds it is.

Roll 1d20

1: The contraption explodes in a burst of dark energy. All creatures within a 5 foot radius sphere centred on your contraption must make a constitution saving throw or take 3d8 necrotic damage. This energy spreads around corners but cannot go through solid walls.

2: The contraption bursts into a wave of energy. All creatures within a 5 foot radius sphere centred on your exploding contraption must make a dexterity or strength saving throw. On a fail, the creature takes 2d8 force damage and if it is large or smaller it is pushed 5 feet outwards from the explosion. On a success, they take half of the damage and are not pushed back. This energy cannot spread around corners.

3: Your creature releases a volley of magical poisoned darts, using up the last of its power before it is destroyed (or non magical darts if you are playing your artificer as less of a magic user and more of an inventor. The same goes for everything else of course, so I won’t mention this again, but do whatever you like with the flavour). Make 3 ranged spell attacks with a range of 60 feet centred at your contraption. On a hit, deal 1d8 piercing damage, and the creature must make a constitution saving throw or take 1d6 poison damage and be paralysed for 1 round.

4: Your creature causes lighting to strike around it. All creatures in a 10 foot radius circle centred on your creature must make a dexterity saving throw. On a fail, they take 2d8 lightning damage. If the sky is blocked by something, for example if this ability is triggered in a cave, the ability fails because the lightning cannot reach. If the sky is partly covered, it only fails in the parts that are covered.

5: A cloud of noxious gas is emitted. This gas can spread around corners. All creatures in a 10 foot radius sphere centred on your contraption must make a constitution saving throw or take 1d8 poison damage and be poisoned for 1 minute. This cloud lingers for 1 minute unless it is blown away by a strong wind. Any creature who ends their turn in this cloud must make a constitution saving throw or the same effects as shown above will occur.

6: Your contraption creates a fiery explosion. Each creature in a 5 radius foot sphere centred on your contraption must make a dexterity saving throw. On a fail, the creature takes 2d8 fire damage. On a success, the creature takes half damage. The fire ignites flammable objects that aren’t being worn or carried. The fire can spread around corners.

7: A cloud of magical darkness billows out from your creature, causing the effect of the darkness spell centred on your creature.

8: It just explodes, sharp little pieces of it go flying. Each creature in a 10 foot radius sphere centred on your creature must make a dexterity saving throw or take 3d8 nonmagical piercing damage. This cannot spread around corners.

9: The creature releases sleep inducing powder or hormones or maybe sings a lullaby. However you imagine it, each creature in a 10 foot radius sphere centred on your creation must make a constitution saving throw or fall asleep for  minute. Any sleeping creatures wake up if damage is dealt to them or if someone wakes them up. This effect can spread around corners.

10: As your creation is destroyed, it spews out a shower of acid. Each creature within a 5 foot radius sphere centred on your contraption must make a dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, the creature takes 3d8 acid damage,  and on a success they take half. This cannot spread around corners because it is not magical floating acid, just a regular spray of acid, even though it was created magically.

11: Your creation shoots oil out all over the floor. This causes the effects of the grease spell, starting at a point of your choice within the spell’s range, the spell being cast from the creature that just exploded. The oil is shot in a straight line so it cannot be shot around corners.

 12: The contraption explodes into flames, and shoots out shrapnel. Each creature in a 10 foot radius sphere centred on the contraption must make a dexterity saving throw or take 1d8 fire damage. Additionally, all creatures in a 5 foot radius sphere centred on the contraption take 1d8 piercing damage no matter what. The flames can spread around corners, but not the shrapnel.

13: The contraption magically projects a loud bang at a random location 70 feet from your contraption. The dm chooses where the bang is made. This can be heard up to 200 feet away. This effect must be centred on an unoccupied space, and cannot be projected through sound resistant barriers.

14: Just before it is destroyed, your contraption turns into a gun and shoots people. This gun targets the nearest hostile creatures within range. If there are not enough creatures to target, it targets the same creatures multiple times. The gun shoots 3 times, make 3 ranged weapon attacks, with a range of 120 feet. On a hit, a target takes 2d8 piercing damage. 

15: The contraption makes a really loud sound wave. All creatures within a 10 foot radius sphere centred at your contraption Must make a constitution save or take 2d8 thunder damage. Creatures within 5 feet of the centre of the explosion also are deafened for 5 rounds if they fail the saving throw. Creatures made of inorganic material such as crystal, stone or metal have disadvantage on this saving throw. This effect spreads around corners and through walls, unless protected by a soundproof barrier.

16: The bust of power manifests as a flash of blindingly bright light. All creatures within a 10 foot radius sphere centred on the explosion must make a constitution saving throw or be blinded for 1d4 rounds. The light can spread around corners.

17: Your contraption emits a blast of frigid air, causing damage and making the groundbreaking slippery as ice forms on the floor. All creatures in a 5 foot radius sphere centred on the explosion must make a constitution saving throw. On a fail, they take 1d8 cold damage, and on a success they take half. Additionally. The ground in a 10 foot radius circle centred on the explosion becomes difficult terrain for 5 rounds, unless the dm decides that it wouldn’t make sense, like if the temperature is very hot or you are in hell or something. Water is also frozen by this effect. This can spread around corners.

18: An invisible intangible barrier is formed, creating a 15 foot radius sphere centred on your contraption. For a duration of 1 minute, 1 effect of your choice occurs. 1: no sound can pass into the sphere so no one in the sphere can hear anything from outside of the sphere, 2: No sound can pass out of the sphere, meaning that creatures outside of the sphere cannot hear what is inside of it, and 3: No sound can pass in or out of the sphere, meaning neither can hear each other. This effects stays in the same place once created, and can spread around corners and through walls.

19: The contraption releases a Blast of psychic power. All creatures inside a 5 foot radius sphere centred on your contraption must make an intelligence saving throw or take 1d8 psychic damage and be stunned for 1 round. This effect spreads around corners and through walls.

20: The contraption explodes into a flash of radiant energy. All creatures within a 5 foot radius sphere centred on your creature must make a constitution saving throw or take 3d8 radiant damage. This effect spreads around corners. 

Basic commands

When you create one of your contraptions, you can instruct it with a set of basic commands. These basic commands cannot be much more complex than instructions like “follow that NPC without being seen and hide in their pocket”, or “sneak into that cluster of goblins and detonate”. However, more complex commands such as “follow that NPC without being seen and hide in their pocket. When they take off their coat, hide in their new set of clothing”, or “sneak into that cluster of goblins. Once the chief goblin is identified, attach to it and detonate” require more effort. for every extra set of commands given to the creature on top of the first set, it takes 1 extra action or bonus action. You can also expend a spell slot to decrease the amount of time needed. A spell slot can nullify the extra time needed for an amount of extra instructions equal to its level, so if you had 3 extra basic commands, a level 2 spell slot would reduce 2 of them, leaving an extra action or bonus action to create the creature, but a level 3 spell slot would reduce it to the normal amount of time to make it. You cannot reduce it below the minimum, so in this situation a level 4 spell slot would effectively accomplish the same thing as a level 3 slot. You can change, remove or replace any instructions while controlling it. It does not cost anything to remove all commands, but it costs one action or bonus action per instruction added or replaced. The same rules with spell slots apply, and it still costs a minimum of one action or bonus action to make a set of instructions. Additionally, it costs time and also money to make a very complicated set of many commands, no matter what. If you create a creature with more than 10 sets of instructions, it costs 5 gold pieces and half an hour to create, because getting something to fit all of the commands can be expensive. If the creature has over over 40 commands it will take 2 platinum pieces and at least 8 hours to create, one with over 70 commands would take 5 platinum pieces and a full day to create, and one with over 100 commands would cost 10 platinum pieces and an an entire week of downtime to create. Note: I’m pretty sure 1 platinum piece is 10 gold pieces but if it is not then just pretend it says 20 gold pieces for over 40, 50 gold pieces for over 70, and 100 gold pieces for over 100.

Refined technology

Now when you detonate one of your contraptions, you may spend one use of this feature to choose the effect that is caused by the magical explosion from the table of possible outcomes. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your intelligence modifier (minimum 1)+your proficiency bonus. If you want to use this feature and have no uses remaining you can also activate it by expending a spell slot of any level. You regain all uses of this feature after long rest. Having refined your contraptions to become newer, sleeker technology, you can also make a mechanical creature look realistically like a normal living creature. When you create one of your contraptions, you can choose to make it look like an actual living version of the creature you have created. You can also choose to make the creature you created still look mechanical, but now you also have another option.

Master of surveillance

You now gain advantage when making perception and investigation based rolls through your contraptions. When listening through your contraption, your/the contraption’s hearing range is doubled and you find it much easier to pick up exact sounds. Your/the contraptions 60 feet of darkvision is also now doubled and you are able to see things with much more detail even if they are quite far away while looking through your contraption’s eyes. While seeing through your contraption’s eyes, you can also choose to see through solid objects. This sight only has a range of 20 feet but can be very useful in different ways. If a wall or other object is made out of an especially dense substance like lead, this ability may be blocked. You can activate or cancel this vision freely.

These bonuses also all apply to the contraption when you are not controlling it, so all of these abilities can be used to help it carry out its instructions.