A sword that bleeds instead of the wielder. A pauldron that keeps an eye open at night. The dread phylactery. These are the tools of an Investor, an Artificer Trade that disperses themselves into the items they ensignature.
Subclass Features
This subclass grants you access to the following features:
1 Ensouling Signature
Your signature now grants a modicum of awareness to everything it touches, although not in the traditional sense. You may spend a bonus action to open the eyes of all items that bear your signature, creating various sensory outcroppings along their surface that allow you to perceive through them as if they were your own eyes. In addition, your perception bonus and passive perception increase by 1 for each opened signature item within 30ft of you.
2 Extra Infusions
You add the following infusions to your list of available options:
Endoskeleton
Armour
The infused item can hide itself beneath your very skin. As an action or reaction to an attack, you can switch the Armour from underneath your skin to outside your skin. When the armor is outside your skin, you gain the full benefits of it. When the armor is underneath your skin, you gain no extra AC and cannot wear other armor, but you do not need to add it to your carrying weight and you take no penalties from wearing it.
- Greater Endoskeleton: Starting at 5th level, the armor enhances your frame. While the armor is beneath your skin, you gain a +1 modifier to Strength and Constitution roles.
- Superior Endoskeleton: Starting at 9th level, the armor resists physical blows. While wearing the armor in either mode, you have resistance, to slashing, piercing, and bludgeoning damage.
Psychic Noise
Any
The infused item contains a sliver of your consciousness that is telepathically powerful enough to block mind-reading effects. Whenever a creature would use an effect that lets it read or otherwise perceive your thoughts, they instead receive a garbled mess of noise. Best not to think what the infused item is thinking.
- Greater Psychic Noise: Starting at 5th level, the item has evolved into a conjoined mind. You have resistance to psychic damage, and are immune to the charmed and frightened conditions.
- Superior Psychic Noise: Starting at 9th level, the item has evolved into a fully separate soul. You have immunity to psychic damage, and whenever an enemy spell or ability would cause you to act against your will, you can choose to ignore the effect.
Sentience
Weapon
The infused item is imbued with a limited copy of your own mind. Upon infusing the weapon, choose either Charisma, Intelligence, or Wisdom. The sword gains your Proficiency modifier as their bonus for that stat, and can make rolls with that stat. In addition, it gains the ability to speak one language you know aloud without the need for a mouth.
- Greater Sentience: Starting at 5th level, the item has gained a greater mastery of the chosen stat. In addition to the stat, choose any two skills. The item doubles it's bonus for those two skills.
- Superior Sentience: Starting at 9th level, the item has become a true genius in the field. It rolls all checks using the stat with advantage. In addition, for any spell or effect that requires a live sacrifice, de-infusing the sword will now fulfil the requirement.
Spell Storing
Wand or Staff
The infused item is granted the ability to replicate a single first level spell. Said first level spell must be cast on the item at the moment of infusion for it to take hold. The spell-casting ability for the spell is the original caster's relevant score, and any spell save DCs also use the original caster's. It can be cast once per day, with the charge returning at dawn.
- Greater Spell Storing: Starting at 5th level, the spell can be cast by dealing 3 Notches of damage to the item.
- Greater Spell Storing: Starting at 9th level, the spell can be cast by dealing 1 Notch of damage to the item. In addition, for each additional notch of damage dealt in the casting of the spell, the spell is upcast by 1 level.
3 Sympathetic Transmission
At 3rd level, you gain the ability to transfer suffering, using your signature items as a medium. You may spend an action to transfer any number of hit dice from one person wielding a signature item belonging to you to another person also wielding a signature item belonging to you.
At 6th level, you gain the ability to transfer mental and physical conditions as well. Environmental conditions, such as being Restrained or Grappled, cannot be transferred. Illnesses count as physical conditions, although they transfer with all symptoms and severity intact.
At 9th level, you gain the ability to transfer HP in the same way. You may deal any amount of unavoidable force damage to someone wearing one of your signature items, and grant that many bonus hitpoints to someone else wearing one of your signature items. If the initial damage is reduced by any amount, the transferred hitpoints are as well.
6 Partitioning
You gain the ability to independently seize control of any items bearing your signature. In addition to perceiving with them, you may also transfer your consciousness into them as an action, and back again as another one. An item bearing your consciousness is functionally your body, which means that while you retain all mental stats your physical stats and HP are replaced by that of the item. You can speak telepathically with anyone who touches the item, and selectively remove or replace any infusions present in it. You may use this feature a number of times equal to your intelligence modifier (minimum of 2), and cannot use the last charge to transfer anywhere but your own body. You regain all expended uses at the end of a short rest.
10 Pinnacle of Investiture
You have learnt the secrets of a legendary infusion, one which you learn instantly and cannot forget.
Phylactery
Any
The infused item becomes a lesser Phylactery, a poor imitation of what a Lich could create given time and knowledge, but an effective copy nonetheless. Whenever you drop to 0 hitpoints, your soul is extracted to the Phylactery, where it lies in wait for 1d4 hours as it rebuilds your body. Once the time is up, you appear prone on the ground in front of your Phylactery with all your hitpoints but none of your possessions. After you are rejuvenated, the Phylactery shatters, removing your signature from the item. However, if you have extra phylacteries, your soul will go to one of them the next time you die instead, until there are none left.
There is a catch to this, as with all immortality. If you fall to 0 hitpoints without a Phylactery in existence, it is an instant death, with no saving throws available. In addition, such a death cannot be undone by any means. The gods are very precious about keeping those who cheat death well contained. In addition, if your Phylactery is destroyed while your soul is contained within it, you die instantly without a chance for resurrection. A recommendation is to make sure that your Phylactery is stored somewhere safe, perhaps underground, and guarded by several high level monsters. Storing your treasure there too wouldn't be such a bad idea, while you're at it.
