Buy me a coffee“Soulbound Doll: The Haunted Vessel of Trapped Souls”
“A Soulbound Doll is a tragic, porcelain-bodied construct animated by a stolen soul, forever teetering between lifeless obedience and the haunting whispers of the person it once was.”
A tragic construct of porcelain and soul, eternally caught between life and death, haunting the places where grief and magic converge.
Appearance
Soulbound Dolls resemble finely crafted humanoid puppets, their bodies made of porcelain, bone, or polished wood. Cracks trace fragile lines across pale faces, and glassy eyes shimmer with faint ghostlight. Their attire often mirrors the life of the bound soul—antique dresses, tattered uniforms, or ceremonial garb—while tiny runes or sigils sometimes glow along their limbs, marking the arcane binding. Despite their small stature, the aura of lingering consciousness lends them an unsettling, almost lifelike presence.
Behaviour
They are eerily calm and deliberate, moving with jerky precision or fluid grace depending on the strength of the binding. Soulbound Dolls may mimic emotions from their former lives, whispering fragmented memories or singing haunting melodies. Some follow and guard obsessively; others drift silently, observing intruders with unblinking attention. Extreme stress or corruption can provoke violent outbursts, as the soul’s anguish bursts through the construct.
Habitat
Soulbound Dolls are typically found in ruined estates, abandoned laboratories, or arcane sanctums, where sorcery or grief gave rise to their creation. They rarely stray far from the site of their binding, forming territories suffused with residual necromantic energy and faint whispers of the lost soul.
Modus Operandi
They prefer subtle observation and ambush, using silence and small stature to their advantage. When threatened or commanded, they fight with swift strikes, enchanted implements, or protective wards, exploiting the environment to isolate foes. Some possess minor magical abilities—telekinetic manipulation of objects or spectral attacks—that reflect the soul’s lingering powers.
Motivation
A Soulbound Doll’s actions are driven by loyalty to its creator, preservation of its own fragile existence, and the fragmented desires of the soul within. Many seek recognition, freedom, or vengeance, and a few are capable of forming bonds with adventurers, though always tinged with subtle unease.
Soulbound Doll, 5e 2024
Soulbound Doll, Pathfinder
Soulbound Doll
Small construct, usually Neutral (some Evil, some Lawful)
Armor Class: 15 (natural armor)
Hit Points: 52 (8d6 + 24)
Speed: 30 ft., climb 20 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 (−1) | 16 (+3) | 16 (+3) | 12 (+1) | 13 (+1) | 10 (+0) |
Saving Throws: Dex +5, Wis +3
Skills: Perception +3, Stealth +5
Damage Resistances: Psychic; Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing from nonmagical weapons
Damage Immunities: Poison
Condition Immunities: Charmed, Poisoned
Senses: Darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages: Understands languages of bound soul; telepathy 30 ft.
Challenge: 3 (700 XP)
Alignment: Usually Neutral; some dolls are Evil (malicious souls) or Lawful (obedient guardians).
Traits
Soulbound Awareness. The doll senses creatures within 60 ft. that have emotional ties to its bound soul.
Haunting Aura (Alignment-Dependent).
- Neutral/Lawful Dolls: Creatures starting their turn within 10 ft. must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the start of their next turn. Success grants immunity for 24 hours.
- Evil Dolls: Creatures within 15 ft. must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened and take 7 (2d6) psychic damage. Success grants immunity for 24 hours.
Animated Form. The doll can move through spaces as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing.
Spellcasting (Innate). Charisma is its spellcasting ability (spell save DC 12):
- At will: Mage Hand, Minor Illusion
- 2/day each: Mirror Image, Hold Person
- 1/day each: Phantasmal Killer, Misty Step
Actions
Piercing Strike. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) piercing damage.
Soul Pierce (Recharge 5–6). The doll unleashes a psychic wave in a 15-ft. line. Each creature must make a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw, taking 16 (3d10) psychic damage on a failed save, or half on success.
- Evil Variant: Failed targets are also frightened until the start of the doll’s next turn.
Alternative Signature Attacks (DM Choice):
- Mind Rend (Recharge 5–6): 15-ft. cone; DC 13 Intelligence save or take 14 (4d6) psychic damage and be stunned until the start of its next turn.
- Echoing Wail (Recharge 5–6): 20-ft. radius; DC 13 Wisdom save or take 12 (3d8) psychic damage and have disadvantage on attack rolls until the start of their next turn.
- Soul Grip (Recharge 5–6): Single target within 30 ft.; DC 13 Charisma save or be restrained by spectral hands until the end of its next turn, taking 2d6 psychic damage.
Whispering Echo. Target one creature within 30 ft.; DC 13 Wisdom save or take 5 (2d4) psychic damage and have disadvantage on its next attack roll or saving throw. Evil dolls may target up to two creatures instead.
Reactions
Vengeful Guard. When a creature hits an ally or the doll itself, it can move up to half its speed and make one Piercing Strike. Evil dolls can make one additional attack when using this reaction.
Legendary Actions
1 legendary action at the end of another creature’s turn:
- Shift Form. Move up to 20 ft. without provoking opportunity attacks.
- Ethereal Glance (Costs 2 Actions). One creature within 30 ft. must make a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or be stunned until the end of its next turn. Evil dolls may affect two creatures.
Alignment-Based Behavior
Neutral Doll:
- Follows commands or assigned purpose without malice.
- Uses psychic powers defensively; avoids unnecessary violence.
- Observes and reports rather than attacks unless provoked.
Lawful Doll:
- Obeys assigned duties strictly, regardless of circumstance.
- Defends locations or objects efficiently, using environment and tactics.
- Predictable but highly effective at completing its tasks.
Evil Doll:
- Aggressive and manipulative; exploits fear and terrain.
- Uses Soul Pierce or other psychic attacks offensively, targeting vulnerable or isolated foes first.
- May act independently if the bound soul is vengeful, ignoring commands.
Tactics
- Neutral/Lawful Dolls: Stay near assigned posts, observing intruders, and use psychic control to deter or incapacitate without unnecessary violence.
- Evil Dolls: Act aggressively, separating enemies and striking with psychic attacks first. Use climbing, mobility, and terrain to maximize fear and damage.
Soulbound Doll
This small ball-joint doll wears a bright white dress and stands, posed, without the aid of a doll stand. Its glass eyes stare straight ahead, vacant and seemingly sightless, before it blinks suddenly and shifts its stance.
Orginally posted on Archives of Nethys
Crafted from a fragment of a creature’s soul, these small dolls are animated with sentient will. For the most part, the binding process strips almost all of the individuality and personal conviction from the soul fragment, making a brand new soulbound doll a blank slate onto which the creator can ascribe what values he desires. Despite this process, however, fragments of the orginal creature’s will remains.
Soulbound dolls act as conversation companions, surrogate children, servants, guards, sentries, and warriors. In short, they perform nearly any function desired by their creators. Those created by city-dwellers tend to act civilized and polite, while those crafted in or near the wilderness possess traits appropriate for survival in their savage environment.
When a soul fragment is stripped from its soul, it retains just enough of its personality to influence the new personality born within the soulbound doll. As such, the creators of soulbound dolls are typically very careful to cull soul fragments from people who possess personality traits the crafters wishes to see in their dolls.
| Doll, Soulbound |
| Soulbound CR 2 N (any) Tiny construct Init +6; Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Low-Light Vision; Listen +0, Spot +3 |
| DEFENSE |
| AC 14, touch 14, flat-footed 12 (+2 Dexterity, +2 size) hp 19 (3d10+3) Fort +1, Ref +3, Will +1 DR 2/magic; Immune construct traits |
| Offense |
| Speed 20 ft. Melee dagger +2 (1d2-2/19-20) Ranged dagger +6 (1d2-2/19-20) Space 2-1/2 ft., Reach 0 ft. Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd) 3/day – light, mage hand, open/close, prestidigitation 1/day – levitate, one additional ability dependent on alignment |
| Statistics |
| Strength 7, Dexterity 14, Constitution , Intelligence 11, Wisdom 10, Charisma 9 Base Atk +2; Grapple -8 Feats Improved Initiative, Toughness Skills Hide +16, Move Silently +5, Spot +3 Languages Common SQ alignment variations, soul focus |
| ECOLOGY |
| Environment any Organization solitary, pair, or family (3-12) Treasure no coins, 50% magic items Advancement by character class; Favored Class rogue Level Adjustment +4 |
| SPECIAL ABILITIES |
| Alignment Variations (Sp) All soulbound dolls are at least partially neutral in alignment, although they can also be chaotic, evil, good, or lawful depending upon the nature of their soul focus. All soulbound dolls have an additional spell-like ability usable once per day dependent on their alignment as listed below. Lawful Neutral: suggestion (DC 12) Neutral Good: heroism Neutral: deep slumber (DC 12) Neutral Evil: inflict serious wounds (DC 12) Chaotic Neutral: rage Enchantment Weakness (Ex) The weakened conviction of the soulbound doll’s soul makes it susceptible to mind-affecting effects, despite its construct traits. Soul Focus (Su) The soul bound to the doll lives within a focus integrated into the doll or its apparel, typically one of the doll’s eyes or a gem embedded into the neck or chest of the doll. As long as this soul focus remains intact, it can be built into another doll for the soul to animate, using the same cost as creating a new construct. Once bound into the soul focus, the soul continues to learn, and so if later put into a new doll body the soul retains its personality and memories from its previous body or bodies. Regardless of its construction, a soul focus has hardness 8, 12 hit points, and a break DC of 20. |
Construction
A soulbound doll’s body is made from whatever materials the creator wishes (common choices include wood, stone, and porcelain), as well as one exquisite item worth at least 2,000 gp to serve as the soul focus. This item is typically a single tiny gemstone, but it may also be a finely-crafted miniature dress or a Tiny masterwork weapon. Assembling the body requires a DC 20 Craft (sculpting) or Craft (dollmaking) check.
Creation also requires a soul fragment from a living or recently deceased creature (died within 1 hour of the start of the binding ritual). The binding process strips most of a soul fragment’s personal conviction and personality, but not necessarily all. If the source soul has a non-neutral component to its alignment, one of those components (selected randomly if the creature has two) influences the soulbound doll’s final alignment.
If the soul used to infuse the doll is from that of a still-living creature, the creature can resist the procedure with a DC 20 Will save. If the saving throw is failed, the creature takes 1d4 points of Wisdom damage and 1 point of Charisma drain. Stripping a soul fragment from someone who is already dead does not deal damage or drain to the corpse, nor does it inflict any lasting damage on the soul itself, which is free to proceed on to the afterlife once the dolls fragment is secured. The soul fragment retains no memories from its former life.
CL 9th; Craft Construct, lesser geas, levitate, light, mage hand, magic jar, open/close, prestidigitation, soul of a living creature; Price 10,000 gp; Cost 6,000 gp + 320 XP.