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Has anybody created a puppeteer as a race? a creature? for 4e?
Actually is is a Ringworld specific creature from Larry Niven's Ringworld universe. It is intelligent, but puppeteer adventurers and those leave their homeworld for any reason are insane in some form. They have a high intelligence. Put into D&D terms, they would make the best artificers. I can't quite codify what else for a puppeteer PC or even NPC. They can kick like a horse but only in extreme circumstances. The are devout cowards. They generally don't use weapons and if they do the weapon cannot be larger than a dagger. They can't use ranged weapons at all (at least ranged D&D weapons). They don't wear clothing so armor is out of the question. They come in three genders: female breeder, female incubator, and male. Just as the names imply, the female breeder and male implant the female incubator with the egg and the sperm. (Actually, breeder and incubator are terms I made up. They're not the real terms which I do not remember.)
Any other info, you will need to go to a site that has more on them. There's a Ringworld RPG that has specifics, but I can't seem to make a decent conversion from that to D&D. 
Problem with is that 4e artificers have alot of nice weapon powers. You can use their powers with a dagger, though very small damage dice isnt a good start for "best artificers".
I suppose maybe like Int with Wis/Con +2 Arcana, +2...stealth? (cowardlyness) maybe perception to look out for danger (and having two heads) If you want the weapon fluff, I'd say they wield weapons like a small race does. Armour definitely still needs to be in, even if you describe it as being minimal. Genders arent a mechanical concern. Maybe their racial encounter power is an immediate reaction shift to an enemy moving adjacent to represent the coward aspect.
The problem with weapons is that they have to use their mouths to hold the weapon. anything larger than a dagger would be extremely awkward for them. Putting on and taking off armor is a similar problem. Again they would need to use their mouths. The only type of armor they could possibly wear would be cloth. Anything heavier, they would need help to get it on or off. As a general race feature, they go naked. In fact, only the puppeteer king wears any type of clothing at all and that is a series of metal plates (looks like metal plates in the images I can find) along the length of his spine and, even then, they are for decoration more than for protection.
They would definitely get all-round vision. I like the idea of the IR shift, but I probably would make it an immediate interupt instead. The arcana/stealth definitely could work. Int (definitely) with Wis (not sure, they don't seem to have a lot of common sense)/Con (possibly) If you showed a normal puppeteer aggression, one of three things could happen. First, they would try to run, second, if they can't run, they curl up into a fetal position and hope you go away, third, die of shock. Generally, the third item is reserved for when a member of their race shows aggression. An insane puppeteer (PC or a lone NPC) would do one of two things: run, or attack. They generally attack by making sure their back is to the enemy and kicking out like a horse. Apparantly, their kicks are strong enough to break the enemy's spine by kicking through their rib cage. If one kick doesn't do it, then they would definitely run.
Maybe speed 7.
But I'm kind of wondering how this race makes good artificers, how can you build stuff if you can only utilize tools with your mouths? Implements dont seemto be an issue though. Either way the race might have to break a few of the "don'ts" of 4e race design, perhaps giving them a natural weapon of a kick (1d10, +2 prof) so they arent as screwed with weapon classes.
I think they would make great artificers because in the Ringworld timeline they managed to turn their whole planet into a spaceship to escape the black hole at the galaxy's core. They are a very technical race.
Here's the link to the wikipedia article: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierson%27s_Puppet...
I think they should be able to wield weapon with their mouths then, I dont see any other description in the Wiki on how they managed to build all their stuff with only mouths to work with, so their mouths (which do look kinda odd) must be manipulatable in such a way that they can work on fine equipment.
Adventurer ones are already crazy anyway. And it may look silly, but then again its a creature 3 legs and 2 heads.
For a creature entry, it will look something like this:
Puppeteer Level X Type Medium natural beast XP x HP x Bloodied x/2 Initiative X AC x Fortitude x Reflex x Will x Perception x Speed 6 All-Round Vision Traits Insanity (Not sure what to put yet) Herd Mentality Can run without the running penalties Standard Actions Kick * At-Will Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); x vs AC Hit: ydx + z damage Skills Arcana x Dungeoneering x History x Str x Dex x Wis x Con x Int x Cha x Alignment unaligned Languages Common, Deep Speech I just haven't figured out at what the x's, y's, and z's should be yet. The PC version is just as difficult. Puppeteer Racial Traits Average Height: x to y Average Weight: x to y Ability Scores: +2 Int, +2 Con/Dex (I'm leaning toward either Dex or Str, just not sure which) Size: Medium Speed: 6 squares Vision: Normal, All-round vision Languages: Common, Deep Speech Skill Bonuses: +2 Arcana, +2 Dungeoneering Insanity: (Not sure what to put yet) That's all I have for now. 
Give them the small weapon rules.
Speed 7 A racial power that let's the shift away from an enemy when battle starts. And can't be surprised.
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