Constructs

Constructs are autonomous humanoid statues, created by other sentient creatures and imbued with a self-sustaining power source of some kind. Their primary body could be built from a number of materials, usually depending on what was available to the constructor - For instance, stone, marble, wood, or even metal. While some highly advanced models of Construct were able to use Electrical signals to operate themselves, the majority made use of Arcana, leading to most Constructs being rendered inoperable by The Collapse, but some models still exist to this day.
Constructs come in many different sizes and varieties, but are classified as Sentius or Servitus depending on their level of independance.

Servitus Constructs

Servitus Constructs typically follow basic tasks that were programmed into them at the time of their creation, or input received from an outside source through some form. Typical roles Servitus Constructs upheld were of the industrial nature - Moving large objects, using machinery, and performing basic maintenance inspections. They also held some roles in the daily operations of some particularly large cities, most notably in Enphune, where they would control the opening of military and commercial gates, as well as do basic guard patrol routes around the perimeters.
First created in 514, Servitus Constructs were originally created by the Silver Society, a collective of Archmages, to perform housekeeping operations that they felt were beneath their caliber of expertise. These Constructs, while efficient, were prone to error or mistakes however, often causing more issues that required fixing. As a result, the eldest student of the Society, Paeris Danala, instead dedicated himself to researching how to make more effective constructs, selling off the previous prototypes in order to fund his further endeavours once he separated from the Society - Ironically recording his belief that "The tasks they require of my creations are far too insignificant for beings of such grandeur."
The Constructs would see use in Industrial processes, starting with the Fabrika Conglomerate in 573. For over a hundred years, manufacturing operations would be run almost entirely by Sentius Constructs, until Arcane Machina as a concept began to phase them out at the turn of the 7th century - A technology that the Constructs themselves provided the primary inspiration for. Due to the expenses of creating Arcane Machina, they would still be used by smaller businesses from then on, with a surplus of Servitus Constructs available on the market due to the new technologies surpassing them.

Sentius Constructs

Sentius Constructs were designed to primarily fulfil the role of personal assistants or servants to wealthy individuals. There were requirements for Constructs to be able to dynamically respond to a wide range of inputs from their owners, as well as make logical decisions independently and assess tasks that are required without the consultation of direct superiors. In more than a few cases, companionship was also stated as part of a reason for commissioning a Sentius Construct, as some individuals found it distasteful to work with creatures that had no way of conversing in turn with them.
The knowledge a Sentius Construct would have upon its creation differed greatly between them and was reliant upon the wishes of their creator - It was possible to pre-program a Construct with a large wealth of information from the offset, so that it may function as part of its intended society and household with ease. Others opted for their Constructs to have the highest degree of autonomy possible, by allowing them to naturally experience and learn from the world around them with a blank slate in this regard. However, such a request normally required the express permission of a local governing body after an incident in 614 where a Sentius Construct was influenced in such a manner that it became expressly violent towards any behaviour it perceived as disagreeable.

Body Types

While most Constructs were of humanoid structure, it was also fairly common that their builds would have been designed around the requirements of their creation. For some instances, this would be extra legs to aid in the traversal of rough or jagged terrain, such as transporting delicate cargo, or vehicular wheels in place of legs for when speed was most desired. The bulk of a Construct would also be changed to reflect this.
Interestingly, there is no firm measure of what a Construct cannot be in terms of appearance - Records exist that show they were once built into the likeness of quadrupedal animals, centaurs, and aquatic life such as octopi, for instance. Some of these designs would be used in Sentius Constructs as well, often similar to common household pets such as Dogs, Cats, Birds and the likes. Whether this was merely as a fashion statement by the exorbitantly wealthy, or there were practical reasons for such designs, is unknown, but it would seem constructs made even to this day will occasionally deviate from the existing trends.

Post-Collapse

After The Collapse, the vast majority of constructs, both Sentius and Servitus, would become inert and no longer operable due to the lack of their Arcane enchantment. Those powered by other sources, such as Electricity, may have survived and remain active, if they were able to ensure they had a self sufficient means to restore their energy. However, examples of this are few and far between, and the majority of Constructs either remain dormant and unlikely to be reactivated, or have been long since salvaged for spare parts.