Golem

Golems are looming mystical creations. Humanoid monstrosities of metal, stone, or flesh, given life by magic and a mage’s willpower. They come in many shapes and sizes, from towering beasts to short, stocky bricks. But all possess raw, titanic strength and a storehouse of power taken from the Astral.

They are most often found in the company of a mage in the role of an obedient, towering servant. A tireless assistant, willing to perform any task from their creator. That is, until the mage dies or a Rage consumes the golem.

Still, many mages see golem crafting as an alternative to pure summoning. A summoned creature has to be controlled. Otherwise, it will try to kill the mage in revenge for being abducted. But a golem is obedient from the moment magic brings it to life because of how they are created.

Taken By Rage

A ‘Rage’ is a strange condition where an otherwise calm, unassuming golem goes on a wild rampage. It attacks anyone or anything nearby, including its own creator. This happens without warning, leaving a path of destruction until the golem is destroyed or escapes into a wilderness.

No one knows what causes a Rage in a golem. The condition comes on with little or no warning. A popular reason among mages is that the binding spells to create the golem frays over time or as the golem becomes damaged. As that happens, the Astral magic and bound spirit fracture. Mages are taught to always perform regular maintenance to their golem by patching cracks in the creature to fend off a potential Rage.

But there are some mages that disagree with this idea. They believe that a golem’s Rage is a natural part of the creature’s being. That a Rage represents the bound spirit and magic from the Astral struggling to be released. The magic wants to return to the Astral, where it belongs. Meanwhile, the spirit struggles to move onto the Plane of Shade.

No matter what the reason, golems that survive breaking free of a mage will wander a world. They will no longer follow commands and will attack anyone that tries to control them. Wild golems often have a solitary existence, but it isn’t unheard of that two, eight, or more will wander together in a group, called a ‘thunder’. The largest thunder of golems ever recorded was twenty-one golems wandering the Deadwalker Highlands of Ba’bonos.

Metal Golem Mid by JJ Kirby

Type

Construct

Environment

Any

Geographic Distribution

Any

Creating a Golem

Earth Golem Mega by JJ Kirby

Golem construction is a blend of science and art. A mage must select the best, highest quality for its physical body. These materials interact with the spell, which results in unique abilities for the type of golem assembled. The last ingredient, and most vital, would be a spirit.

These spirits are souls of the recently departed. But they aren’t abducted from the Plane of Shade, like those used to create skeletons. These spirits retain a connection to the living worlds. A desire to live on, see and experience more of the worlds. Spirits bound to a golem are often those whose lives were cut short or feel they had more to accomplish. Many spirits come from pauper’s graves where, before they died, people would sign a contract allowing them to be used in golem creation.

Mages and non-mages alike believe spirits used to create golems remember who they were. Spirits eager for that second chance at life, even as a mage’s assistant, at least until the golem’s body breaks down.

It’s because of that last ingredient that golem creation is considered ‘necromantic’. But the relation to other necromantic spells is tenuous at best. Golems are never evil like skeletons and don’t thirst for the death of all living things. If anything, golems express a mild disdain at the presence of the undead. Some adventurers will hire a mage to craft a golem to use it to detect undead.

These massive creatures are a common sight on many worlds, from Sow Terra to Kazik’tar. Lumbering assistants, they are a towering reminder of the power of the Astral in the hands of a skilled mage.

Golem Types

Magma Golem

The magma golem is a formidable and awe-inspiring construct. Its towering frame is composed of black igneous rock that is littered with steaming cracks and fissures that hint at molten lava underneath. This steam hovers around them like a light fog, filling the air with a faint, acrid scent while a steady heat radiates from their body. Standing no less than seven feet tall, these massive beings lumber along with a slow, deliberate pace that belies its titanic strength and power.

Medium magma golem by JJ Kirby

Its eyes burn with an intense, fiery glow. This light casts flickering shadows over its chiseled features lined with countless spiderweb-like cracks. Humanoid in shape, its two arms end in magma-infused fists that can crush rocks to diamonds, or release a torrent of lava on a foe. Once roused to action, the magma golem’s body rumbles like a distant volcano, as if the ground itself has growled.

Large magma golem by JJ Kirby

In combat, a magma golem can release its full potential. The creature’s molten core surges with fury, causing veins of lava to burn a bright orange-red. Cracks in its rocky skin widen to allow boiling magma to seep through, then cascade down its body like a slow waterfall of liquid fire. A roar is the only warning before the golem ejects blasts of lava from its hands, engulfing opponents in a searing, fiery doom.

This golem is a testament to the raw power of a mage. They are a brutal symbol of the untamed forces of the primal elements. A blazing behemoth that can be a stalwart ally for an adventurer, or a titanic force to be reckoned with.

Metal Golem

Metal golems are imposing figures. An unsettling mix of metal and magic that shines with a polished luster. An eerie aura radiates through its metal body as the glow of arcane electricity pulsates like a river of blood.

The creature is meticulously crafted from interlocking plates of steel. Each plate is etched with intricate engravings. Runes, diagrams, and symbols that weave the arcane powers of the Astral to bind willing spirit to the construct. A magical contract as strong as the steel it’s made from.

A metal golem may appear clumsy, but its limbs move with an uncanny grace. Enchanted cogs and gears drive its joints and produce a low, rhythmic hum. With each step, an electric sizzle touches the air and hints at the raw power buried inside its hulking frame. Its walk is surprisingly silent, but when it runs, each step is like the crash of thunder. A death knell to an enemy.

Its eyes glow with a fierce blue aura of pure electrical energy. The ghost-like light can split most any darkness. Like all golems, it has no voice. But relies on the mysterious sign language that all golems seem to possess to communicate.

Electrified metal golem by JJ Kirby

Once in combat, a metal golem is a force of raw power. Arcs of lightning dance between its fingers and along its arms, illuminating the air with brilliant, crackling flashes. The charged energy races through the golem’s body to trace each rune and etched diagram in a lurid, spectral light. This is the first and last warning for any opponent before the golem chars them to a steaming, cracked, crisp.

This formidable construct is an awe-inspiring work of art for any mage. A perfect blend of form and function. They are destructive poetry in motion. These creations could be a gleaming protector for any adventurer in distress, or a deadly force to be reckoned with. Perhaps the last thing an adventurer would see in a bright flash of lightning.

Earth Golem

Walking Earth Golem (mid) by JJ Kirby

Earth golems are titans even among golems. The oldest type of all, they are imposing creations that are a living testament to the raw power of the earth itself. Earth golems are crafted from a blend of stone, soil, and gems, then bound to a spirit with Astral magic. A rough-hewn figure that embodies the raw, untamed essence of the land itself from it was born.

From the outside, earth golems look to be a chaotic amalgamation of boulders, gravel, and gemstones. But this hides an underlying order and symmetry to their shape. Because between the rocky plates of their skin are deep fissures. Crevices which pulse with a green glow of nature magic that binds spirit and construct together. A spell of deep strength woven through the stone form like a web of thick vines across an ancient wall.

An earth golem moves with a deliberate, lumbering gait. Ponderous but determined steps that send light tremors through the ground. When it moves, a thin cloud of dust hovers around the creature. The dust carries the hum of latent elemental power, and drifts around the beast. A faint cloud layer that drifts over a rocky landscape.

These creations are have a humanoid form, like any golem. Gemstone eyes glimmer with inner power from its craggy face. Its limbs are lined with roots and veins of minerals in its crags and fissures. Like any golem, it doesn’t speak. An earth golem can only communicate through the same sign language shard by all golems.

If roused into a fight, the earth golem strikes with massive, gem-studded fists. The ground trembles and the earth itself rises to the golem’s defense. Vines and roots sprout to life, anchored in the golem’s elemental body. These push out and wrap around the golem to form a layer of living armor.

This armor is strong enough to resist both magic or blade, but also grabs the opponents who step too close. Once caught in the vines, they are crushed by fist and roots before being buried inside the golem itself.

Earth golems are the immense forces of nature bound to a single form. Colossal creations that could be a towering ally, made from the raw, untamed essence of the land. A boon for any adventurer across the worlds. But they can also be a deadly opponent, where the adventurer finds they are fighting nature itself as it descends on them like an unforgiving avalanche of death.