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Golem

Colleges Charm, Transmutation or Life
Components Verbal, Material
Casting Time 32 seconds
Duration Permenent

Special Note: When used to make Flesh Golems, this is a Life spell. When used for other types, this is both a Charm and Transmutation spell. It also fits into other colleges on a case by case basis. For example, if animating a chocolate golem, this is a Food spell. Many golem types are Elemental (with Earth and Mineral being the most common), any kind of metal or plastic fits into Metal and Synthetics, Bone and Ivory are Necromancy, etc.

This animates specially shaped materials into a servant that is loyal to it's creator, by binding an elemental spirit to them (except in the case of flesh golems, which function similar to the Raise Dead spell).

Due to this fact, it should be noted that the lasting effect of this spell is not magical and the typical golem does not require mana to function. The elemental spirit provides the motive force and senses of the golem.

It is possible to build a golem powered by mana instead of an elemental spirit. Simply add a Dependency on Mana or give it the No Mana Shutdown Disadvantage. The Dependency version is effectively a walking spell that's easily disrupted by cutting off it's supply of mana; it begins to fall apart without it. The No Mana Shutdown version is effectively a large magical item that moves around on it's own.

Before this can be cast, the user must shape appropriate materials into a vaguely humanoid form. Other shapes are possible, but the GM is free to require additional skill rolls for shaping unusual features, possibly requiring one roll for each physical feature added to the design.

Adding better than average appearance should require an additional Artist (Sculpting) skill roll with a penalty equal to the desired reaction modifier. In most cases it's appropriate to use the equivalent flat reaction modifier for the desired level of appearance, since golems are sexless.

Not all modifications require shaping the Golem in a particular way. The most common change in this category is to remove Fragile (Unnatural) from the template. This produces what's known as a resilient Golem.

This works on many materials, with varying statistics based on design and base material. The most common form of Golem is shaped from clay. With few exceptions, all Golems are solid material the whole way through. For most materials, this gets quite expensive.

Skill rolls to shape the Golem's body may be required, but easy to shape materials like snow or clay can be used to produce a crude Golem without a skill roll. These will invariably be ugly, or worse, initially damaged. The GM may impose such restrictions for hasty work. One good example of this is a stone Golem made from dried clay whose body was never fired in a kiln. This type of Golem would have a Weakness to water that causes it to slowly erode in the rain.

Golems may be repaired by anyone using a skill appropriate to the base material, if repair of non-Golem objects of similar construction is possible. This will often require material to patch damaged areas with. Snow Golems can be ordered to patch themselves up, due to the easiness of building snowmen. All Golems other than Flesh Golems may benefit from the Mending spell or any effect similar to it (Golems aren't technically alive).

If a PC keeps a Golem (or a hundred) around constantly, the GM should require them to pay full points for Allies. If they often have duties at home that keep them from adventuring with the PC, then frequency of appearance may be used to reduce the value of this Advantage. If the player won't pay for their new ally, then the GM is free to arrange an “accident” for it.

Materials

Here's a table for the most common materials used in Golem construction and a list of the effects on statistics (this table assumes SM 0 Golems; use the section on size for other Size Modifiers):

Solid
Material ST DX IQ HT DR Notes and Additional Traits Template File
Adamantite +40 +2 -1 +5 10 Built-in cutting or impaling weapons must have an armor divisor of (2) or better
Very, very expensive
Adamantite Golem.gct
Aluminum TL 6
Bakelite +2 +2 -1 +2 2 TL 6 Bakelite Golem.gct
Ballistic Gel 0 +4 -2 +2 0 TL 8
Used for high-end forensics work to setup near-identical circumstances for testing
Ballistic Gel Golem.gct
Bronze +15 +3 -1 +5 6 Bronze Golem.gct
Carbon Fiber TL 8
Clay +5 +1 -2 +3 0 No skill roll required
Stats represent wet clay
Dry clay is a Stone Golem with a Clay Golem's Weakness to water
Fired clay is a Stone Golem, glaze adds 1 DR
Clay Golem.gct
Chocolate +0 +2 -2 +3 1 Chocolate Golem.gct
Concrete +7 +1 -2 +3 1 Concrete Golem.gct
Copper +11 +3 -1 +4 5 Copper Golem.gct
Crystal +10 +5 -1 +3 2 Crystal Golem.gct
Garbage +3 +1 -2 +1 1 Building with “clean” garbage removes Bad Smell Garbage Golem.gct
Glass +10 +5 -1 +3 1 or 2 Built-in cutting and impaling weapons should get +1 damage per die compared to an equivalent weapon
Comes in three varieties: Glass, Stained Glass and Tempered Glass
Glass Golem.gct
Gold +10 +3 -1 +3 4 Very, very expensive Gold Golem.gct
Ice +5 +2 -1 +2 3 Often used in teaching exercises Ice Golem.gct
Ice, Essential/True +15 +2 -1 +5 9 True Ice will only melt when exposed to Essential Fire Ice Golem.gct
Iron +15 +2 -1 +5 6 Iron Golem.gct
Ivory +4 +2 -2 +2 1 Ivory Golem.gct
Leather +2 +3 -2 +2 2 This is layer after layer of tanned leather, stitched together with leather strips
Optionally with a furred layer on the outside
Leather Golem.gct
Leather, Dragonhide Special +0 +0 +0 +1-4 As Leather, but see DF1:27
Treat as armor, directly adding to DR and weight multiplier multiplies total ST (not just the modifier) and gives the golem a -3 reputation among dragons, unless a layer of fur has been tacked over the top or the dragonhide is otherwise hidden
Leather Golem.gct
Marble +10 +1 -2 +5 6 Marble Golem.gct
Mithril +15 +3 -1 +5 7 Built-in cutting and impaling weapons should get +1 to damage compared to an equivalent weapon, but can never benefit from use of a Dwarven Whetstone (see p. DF1:25)
Usually constructed by Dwarves
Mithril Golem.gct
MMC +40 +3 -1 +5 20 TL 10? MMC Golem.gct
Orichalcum +15 +3 -1 +5 6 Very expensive Orichalcum Golem.gct
Plastic 0 +3 -2 0 1 TL 7
Milk-jug plastic
Plastic Golem.gct
Rubber +1 +5 -2 +5 1 TL 5 Rubber Golem.gct
Silicon 0 +4 -2 +2 0 TL 8
Can be made incredibly life-like
Identical duplicates of people are possible at TL 9
Silicon Golem.gct
Silver +10 +4 -1 +3 5 Very expensive Silver Golem.gct
Snow -3 -2 -2 -1 0 No skill roll required
Often used in teaching exercises
Snow Golem.gct
Steel +35 +2 -1 +5 9 Steel Golem.gct
Stone +10 +1 -2 +4 5 Stone Golem.gct
Tar +5 +3 -2 +3 0 Tar Golem.gct
Titanium +30 +2 -1 +5 12 TL 7 Titanium Golem.gct
Topiary +10 +3 -1 +3 5 Made of living plants in specially designed, tough walking pots that resemble large boots
Requires regular watering to avoid becoming a strange-looking wood golem
The pots add +5 DR to the feet but are not actually part of the golem and if their DR is penetrated, the pots spill their dirt
May alternatively have No Legs (Sessile) for a golem that has no pots for feet
If made from a thorn bush, add Spines
Topiary Golem.gct
Wax 0 +2 -2 +3 0 Wax Golem.gct
Wood +10 +2 -2 +3 5 High-quality wood may have better stats
Varnish will add 1 DR and provide Resistant (Weather, +3 to HT) [3]
Wood Golem.gct
Hollow
Material ST DX IQ HT DR Notes and Additional Traits Template File
Porcelain -1 +3 -1 0 0 Often used in dance and etiquette instruction
Usually have above-average appearance
Porcelain Golem.gct
Particulate
Material ST DX IQ HT DR Notes and Additional Traits Template File
Dirt +1 +3 -2 +1 2 Dirt Golem.gct
Other
Material ST DX IQ HT DR Notes and Additional Traits Template File
Bone -1 +2 -2 +0 2 Made from complete bones
Often resembles a skeleton
Bone Golem.gct
Bone, Dragonbone +14 +5 -1 +4 6 Made from alchemically-treated, complete dragon bones, instead of regular bones Bone Golem.gct
Flesh +8 +2 -2 +3 0 Shaped using Surgery skill
Requires large bodies
(SM+1 over the maker's size)
May also have a racial template
Remembers life before becoming a Golem (memories come from the brain used to construct it)
Flesh Golem.gct
Origami -5 +4 -2 0 0 Origami Golem.gct
Rags -2 +4 -2 0 0 Often used in teaching exercises
Often used to entertain children
Easily made from rag dolls or stuffed animals
Using Giant Spider Silk gives +1 DR
Rag Golem.gct
Scarecrow -3 -1 -2 +3 0 Scarecrow Golem.gct

Construction Options

There are various construction options that can be applied in building a Golem, to increase it's capabilities or reduce it's point value so a lesser spell-caster can create something more powerful. These are merely examples.

The assumption of these changes is that adding them makes it possible for the Golem's animating spirit to do less work to do the same job; therefore it puts it's efforts into working more effectively. For example, Articulation (see below) makes a Golem more dextrous, because the animating spirit doesn't have to work as hard to make the Golem's limbs move, thus allowing it to react quicker.

Each requires an Engineering roll to fit the feature into the overall design and some form of appropriate craft roll to actually incorporate it.

Option ST DX IQ HT Will Per DR Notes and Additional Traits Template File
Animation TL 4+
Golem has a power system and likely requires fuel of some kind or is tied to a stationary power source
Reduces the point total of the Golem
Remove Doesn't Eat or Drink and note the fuel required as a feature
Generally gains an eight hour running time
May pick up other traits, such as a Noisy engine, Bad Smell from exhaust, etc.
If the power source fills a significant portion of the Golem's interior, then it loses Injury Tolerance (Homogenous) and gains Injury Tolerance (No Brain, No Neck, Unliving)
The Maintenance Disadvantage is common along with this option
Articulation, Hinged +1 TL 1+
Requires a metal material
Allows chinks in armor to be attacked
Articulation, Gears +2 TL 4+
Requires a metal, synthetic or wood material
Allows chinks in armor to be attacked
Articulation, High Tech +3 TL 5+
Requires a metal or synthetic material
Allows chinks in armor to be attacked
Chain +2 +2 Requires a metal material that can be forged into chain mail
Looks like a walking mass of chain mail; it's obviously not a suit of armor, however
Make sure you add the Flexible Limitation to DR, unless the Golem is of Elven construction (see p. DF1:27)
Remove Ham-Fisted if the hands are made from solid material
Chain Golem.gct
Comprehension +(TL-3)/2, rounded up -Same -Same TL 4+
Requires adding some form of calculation machinery, such as a clockwork calculator, Babbage Engine, etc.
Grants an IQ bonus equal to (TL-3)/2, rounded up, which does not contribute to Will or Per
This normally adds mental aberrations (such as quirks), based on the type of thinking engine used
Computers used in this fashion lose all capability to run programs; the effect of becoming part of a Golem completely re-purposes the computer hardware
This also adds the Disadvantage Has a Brain if the Golem is homogenous or diffuse for -5 points or removes Injury Tolerance (No Brain)
Controls Normally combined with Hollow (see below) and/or some level of Payload, this allows the Golem to be driven like a vehicle
Add Compartmentalized Mind (Controls)
Driving or Environment Suit are the skills most appropriate for operating a Golem, depending on size and others might work for unusual shapes
The specialty of those skills is determined by the Golem's hollowness, shape and size
Dwarven Requires a metal material and cannot be combined with Chain unless the material is Mithril
The golem is built extra sturdy, using techniques similar to Dwarven armor construction (see p. DF1:27)
Add the DR bonus normally and multiply final ST by the weight multiplier
This generally makes the golem appear extra thick in all body parts
Hollow This modifies a solid material to make it hollow
Golem has a hollow interior, in order to save on materials, but making it easier to damage
This can also become useful, because the Golem can be modified to have internal Payload
Cannot be combined with Crystal, Leather, Snow, Tar or Topiary
Hollow Construction.gct
Mana-Bound The golem is dependent on drawing mana from it's environment in order to stay in one piece
Add Dependency (Mana, Very Common, Constantly) [-25]
This is common for golems made of smaller, unlinked objects functioning as a swarm, or odd particulate materials not normally used to build a golem, like dirt
Requires no extra rolls to incorporate
Mana-Powered The golem is dependent on drawing mana from it's environment in order to function
Add No Mana Shutdown [-20] (see p. Thm119)
Requires no extra rolls to incorporate
No Elemental Spirit 0 The golem is animated directly by magic without summoning an elemental spirit
This results in a golem with IQ 0 and must include the effects of Mana-Powered
This type of golem normally performs a simple, repetitive function (turning a crank continuously), or also has the Controls option
It's very rare for them to be used in any other fashion, because they require complex instructions that foresee all possibilities in order to otherwise function and they can often get into a confused state where they end up performing an action on the wrong object
Requires no extra rolls to incorporate
Particulate This modifies a solid material to make it particulate
Golem is made up of many smaller objects or possibly a swarm of smaller golems or creatures
Cannot be combined with Leather, Snow, Tar or Topiary
Includes the effects of Mana-Bound
Particulate Construction.gct
Perception +TL-4)/2, rounded up TL 5+
Requires the addition of sensory equipment
Grants a Perception bonus equal to (TL-4)/2, rounded up
This can grant senses a Golem normally lacks, such as touch or taste and smell
This can also grant other Advantages, such as Infravision or Ultravision
Poison Metal Golem is made of a Poison Metal alloy (see p. DF8:33)
Requires a metal material
Poison Metal.gct
Wire +2 +1 -1 TL 1+, but TL 2+ is much more likely
Requires a metal material
This is layer after layer of thin, sharp wire pieces wrapped into the shape of a Golem
It's surface is normally frayed, with lots of small sharp bits
At TL6 or higher, the Golem can be made from barbed wire or razor wire
Wire Golem.gct

Size

This table assists in adjusting the Golem templates based on size (note, ST is listed as a percentage of a SM 0 Golem's ST):

Size Modifier ST DX HT Basic Speed Move
-6 5% +3 0 +0.75 -5
-5 10% +3 0 +0.5 -5
-4 20% +2 0 +0.5 -4
-3 30% +2 0 +0.25 -3
-2 50% +1 0 +0.25 -2
-1 70% +1 0 0 -1
0 100% 0 0 0 0
+1 160% 0 0 -0.25 +2
+2 220% -1 0 -0.25 +4
+3 350% -1 -1 -0.5 +6
+4 600% -2 -1 -0.5 +8
+5 780% -2 -1 -0.75 +10
+6 1300% -3 -2 -0.75 +12

Physical Shape

All of the forgoing assumes a roughly human shape. To make Golems shaped like other races, animals or monsters, start with the creature's base ST and treat the Golem's size modifier 0 ST as a percentage figure used to modify the creature's strength. For DX, average the scores for the Golem template and the creature's template, rounding up. IQ and HT use the Golem template's score. Add other traits as appropriate to body form (the Ichthyoid, Quadruped and Vermiform Meta-Traits are quite appropriate, as well as Teeth and Claws).

To illustrate this process, a crazy wizard decides to stock his shark tank with Wood Golem Tiger Sharks! Tiger Sharks have a natural ST of 19. Human size and shape Wood Golems have a ST of 20. This indicates it will have 200% of the strength of a Tiger shark, giving a final score of 38. DX will be (12+13)/2 = 12.5, rounded up to 13. IQ will be 8 and HT 13. Finally, add Teeth and the Ichtyoid Meta-Trait and you've got a wooden shark!

The notable exceptions to this are Flesh Golem animals. Work ST as above, but the rest of the stats modify the animal's template, so a Flesh Golem Tiger Shark would have ST 38, DX 15, IQ 0 and HT 15. Unfortunately, the darn thing is brain dead (IQ 0) and thus, completely useless.

Now, if the Flesh Golem Tiger Shark had been made with a super-genius shark's brain (IQ 3 before surgery, IQ 1 after), or the brain of a human, then the IQ will be above zero and it will be able to function.

Generous GMs might allow an extra two Surgery rolls at a -10 penalty to salvage the shark's brain without damaging it. This is extremely delicate work and requires the surgeon to salvage the brain while it's still alive. The first roll is for removing the brain from it's original body. The second roll is to put it in it's new body. The rest of the surgical work will have to be done ahead of time, and the Golem body zapped to life just as the brain is implanted. If done by a single individual, the casting of this spell will take a -4 penalty to the activation roll, due to the distraction of simultaneous surgery and spell-casting. At higher TLs, equipment for brain transplants might make this process easier.

Game Mechanics

Slave Mentality Golems Other Golems
Ally (25% of point total, Appears Automatically) [12] 
    Constructed [+0%] 
        You build the ally instead of gaining them socially 
    Minion [+0%] 
    Extended Duration (Permanent) [+300%] 
    Takes Extra Time 5 [-50%] 
    Magical [-10%] 
    Spell Components [-40%] 
        Must chant in Latin 
        Must shape base material into body of Golem 
Level 2 [24] 
    Increase Ally to 50% of point total [+1 base] 
Level 3 [36] 
    Increase Ally to 75% of point total [+1 base] 
Level 4 [60] 
    Increase Ally to 100% of point total [+2 base] 
Level 5 [120] 
    Increase Ally to 150% of point total [+5 base] 
Level 6+ [+60/level] 
    Increase Ally point total by 50% [+5 base] 
    At this level and higher, the golem must be IQ 0
        This requires the No Elemental Spirit construction option
Ally (25% of point total, Appears Automatically) [14] 
    Constructed [+0%] 
        You build the ally instead of gaining them socially 
    Minion [+50%] 
    Extended Duration (Permanent) [+300%] 
    Takes Extra Time 5 [-50%] 
    Magical [-10%] 
    Spell Components [-40%] 
        Must chant in Latin 
        Must shape base material into body of Golem 
Level 2 [28] 
    Increase Ally to 50% of point total [+1 base] 
Level 3 [42] 
    Increase Ally to 75% of point total [+1 base] 
Level 4 [70] 
    Increase Ally to 100% of point total [+2 base] 
Level 5 [140] 
    Increase Ally to 150% of point total [+5 base] 

Additional Files

  • Golem.gct - This can serve as a starting point for building new golem templates
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