# Artificer Subclass: The Tattooist Tattooist artificers use magical tattoos to help their allies and hinder their foes. Using magical needles and inks, they can create temporary tattoos to influence the sway of battle, or create more permanent tattoos to strengthen the wearer. Tattooists are valued both for their magical expertise and the artistry of their creations. ### Stick and Poke At third level, you gain proficiency with calligrapher’s supplies. If you already have proficiency in calligrapher’s supplies, you gain proficiency in a different set of artisan’s tools of your choice. You also learn the *sapping sting* cantrip if you don’t already have it. Additionally, the following magical items are added to the list of magical items you can replicate with the Replicate Magic Item infusion at the specified levels: <br> <br> **Magic Item - Attunement** Illuminator’s Tattoo - Yes Masquerade Tattoo - Yes <br> <br> **12th Level** Coiling Grasp Tattoo - Yes Eldritch Claw Tattoo - Yes <br> <br> **16th Level** Shadowfell Brand Tattoo - Yes Absorbing Tattoo - Yes Lifewell Tattoo - Yes Ghost Step Tattoo - Yes <br> <br> Tattoos can be created as described in the item description by using a tattooist’s needle on the creature attuning to the tattoo. They otherwise work identically to other infusions. ### Tattooist Spells Starting at 3rd level, you always have certain spells prepared after you reach particular levels in this class, as shown in the Tattoo Artist Spells table. These spells count as artificer spells for you, but they don’t count against the number of artificer spells you prepare. <br> | Artificer Level | Spells | | --- | --- | | 3rd | *Color Spray, Silvery Barbs*| | 5th | *Barkskin, Enhance Ability*| | 9th| *Haste, Hypnotic Pattern*| | 13th| *Elemental Bane, Stoneskin*| |17th| *Seeming, Skill Empowerment*| <br> <br> ### Needlepoint At 3rd level, you learn how to create a tattooist’s needle over a short rest. The needle is a magical item that functions as calligrapher’s tools and can be used as a spellcasting focus. You can have only one tattooist’s needle at a time - if yours is lost or destroyed, you can create another one over a short rest. The needle can also be used as a melee weapon - when used in this way, its stats are identical to a non-magical dagger. You can use your needle to create temporary magical tattoos. As an action, you target a creature within 30 feet (including yourself) to be affected by the needle. A magical tattoo appears on the creature’s body of a design and color that you decide. As a bonus action on each of your turns, you can manipulate the tattoo to affect the creature in one of the following ways: * **Illumination**: You force the creature to make a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failure, the tattoo glows brightly, shedding dim light in a 10-foot radius. The creature can’t benefit from being invisible, and any attack rolls against the creature have advantage until the start of your next turn. * **Constriction**: You force the creature to make a Dexterity saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failure, the tattoo twists painfully around the creature’s limbs. The creature has disadvantage on Dexterity checks and saving throws and has its speed reduced by 15 ft until the start of your next turn. * **Distraction**: You force the creature to make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. On a failure, the creature is distracted by the swirling patterns of the tattoo. It has disadvantage on the next attack roll until the start of your next turn. * **Conflagration**: You cause the tattoo to burn painfully on the creature’s body. You deal either radiant or necrotic damage (your choice) to the creature equal to your Intelligence modifier. * **Restoration**: You remove one condition afflicting the creature as described by the lesser restoration spell. * **Benediction**: The creature has advantage on the next saving throw it makes until the start of your next turn. The tattoo lasts for one hour, or until you end the effect or die, after which it disappears and leaves no trace. The tattoo also ends if the creature moves more than 60 feet away from you. You can use an action to transfer the tattoo from the affected creature to another creature within 30 feet. If the creature dies, you can use an action on your next turn to target another creature within 30 feet with the tattoo. Changing the creature affected by the tattoo does not extend the tattoo’s existence past the one hour mark. You can create magical tattoos in this manner a number of times equal to your Intelligence modifier, and can only have one magical tattoo active at a time. You regain all expended uses after a long rest. \pagebreak > ##### Flavoring Your Tattoos > Your tattooist’s needle is a magical tool that allows you to create your tattoos. Think of the different ways your needle could appear - it could be a complicated contraption of gnome artistry, with multiple glowing bottles of magical ink attached; or it could be a sharpened fingerbone, inscribed with potent runes of Giant or Abyssal origin. > >The tattoos you create could be flavored similarly. Do you create complex pieces of art, resembling dragons or tigers that crawl around the surface of the skin? Do your tattoos have sentience, and react to what’s going on in the world? Are they glowing runes imbued with the power of secret languages that pulse with power when used? You might cast your spells differently than other artificers - maybe *barkskin* appears as tattoos of nature and floral patterns, or when you cast *enhance ability* the visage of a bear or eagle actually appears on the target's skin. >Further, what do *your* tattoos look like? Do you have familiars of ink that dance across your skin and give you advice? Do you tattoo your spell list onto yourself? Or perhaps you have no tattoos at all, and hope to live on in the art you give to others - the choice is yours! ### Graffiti Artist At 5th level, you develop your ability to use magical ink for a variety of tasks. You learn the illusory script and glyph of warding spells and can cast them without expending a spell slot, provided you use your tattooist’s needle as the spellcasting focus. You can do so once for each spell, and regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest. When you use the illusory script spell in this way, you can cast it on any surface, rather than just ones suitable to writing. Additionally, when using your tattooist’s needle as a melee weapon, it counts as magical for the purposes of overcoming resistances and immunities. ### Arcane Ink You have learned to bind spells into your tattoos, as described by the *spellwrought tattoo* magical item. You add this item to the list of items you can create via the Replicate Magic Item function, and it does not count against the list of infusions you know. When you create a *spellwrought tattoo* in this manner, it can only contain a spell that you know and can cast. You expend a spell slot of the spell’s level when you create the tattoo. The wearer of the tattoo can choose to use your Intelligence modifier and spell save DC when casting the spell. After casting, it disappears as described in the *spellwrought tattoo* item description. You have also enhanced your ability to make other permanent magical tattoos. You can maintain two more magical Infusions at a time, provided that they are one of those listed in Stick and Poke (i.e. it must be a magical tattoo obtained via the Replicate Magic Item infusion) or the *spellwrought tattoo* described above. The number of magic items you can attune to increases by 1, provided that the additional magical item is a magical tattoo. ### Ink Master At 15th level, you have perfected your talents at creating magical tattoos. You now regain all uses of *Needlepoint* after a short rest instead of a long rest. You can also simultaneously maintain two temporary tattoos at a time. When you have two temporary tattoos active in this way, you can use a single bonus action to activate both tattoos (the effect need not be the same for both tattoos).