Sorcery: Construct Crafting

Sorcery: Construct Crafting

GURPS Magic has the Golem spell, but there are no rules that cover golem creation with Sorcery or similar systems. Let's fix that.

CONSTRUCT TYPES

There are myriads of different magical constructs, but most of them can be assigned to one of four categories:

1.      Golems – constructs made of a homogenous material and animated by a spirit, usually an elemental.

2.      Automata – clockwork constructs animated by the magic itself. They rely on their mechanism for movement, but this movement is powered by magic, not by a spirit.

3.      Simulacra – lifelike constructs, usually made to imitate a specific creature. They are powered by the caster’s life force, not by magic or an elemental spirit. Some simulacra are able to attain free will and sentience.

4.      Esoteric Constructs – like golems, but made of an esoteric material – pure magic, force fields, psychic energies. They are the most difficult to create, and sometimes are difficult to differentiate from elementals or other magical beings.

BODY DESIGN

First thing the golemcrafter must create is the body. Usually it is a sculpture. GURPS Low-Tech Companion 3 provides a way to split the item cost into materials cost and labor cost. This way we will be able to find out how long it takes to create the sculpture. First, we have to find out how much a finished sculpture costs. The only pricing I have found was in GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 8. Let us assume that the golem is a SM+0 humanoid. Average human body volume is ~2.8 ft³. The golem’s body must be well made, so we assume the monthly labor rate to be (craftsman’s monthly pay) x 0.75 as per LTC3, p. 23. A potter at TL 4 makes $800, so the hourly rate for artistic pottery is ($800 x 0.75)/200 = $3. Thus, a SM+0 clay body calls for $506,8/$3 = 168,9 man-hours of effort. A potter could sculpt it by himself in 21.1 days. The body probably should also be dried for an additional day. A spellcaster with Shape Earth could do that in a very short time, but would probably ask the same amount of money. The craftsman makes a single skill check when creating the body. A critical success makes the body very receptive to enchanting, granting the enchanter a +1 bonus to his rolls made to enchant the body. A success means that the body is fit for a golem. A failure or a critical failure results in a flawed body that cannot be enchanted.

Bone ($240 per ft³; 38 lbs. per ft³; $3.55 per lb. as material)

Clay ($200 per ft³; 95 lbs. per ft³; $0.2 per lb. as material)

Ivory ($460 per ft³; 45 lbs. per ft³; $7 per lb. as material)

Porcelain ($380 per ft³; 100 lbs. per ft³; $1.25 per lb. as material)

Stone ($430 per ft³; 165 lbs. per ft³; $0.75 per lb. as material)

Wood ($175 per ft³; 32 lbs. per ft³; $0.25 per lb. as material)

Clay ($200 per ft3; 95 lbs. per ft3; $0.2 per lb. as material)
SM	Volume, ft3	Mass, lbs.	Cost	Material Cost	Labor Cost
+0	2.8	266	$560	$53,2	$506,8

To find the parameters for a body of a different SM, divide the longest dimension of the SM in yards (see B19) by 2 (longest dimension of a SM+0 creature), then multiply the volume and mass by the cube of this number. It is reasonable to forbid creating golem bodies smaller than SM-5.

Automata are designed differently from the golems. Creation of an automaton body requires the Machinist skill. Typically, automatons are made of metal, but some more exotic variations, such as automatons with wooden or stone cogs may exist. Automatons are not homogenous, but are unliving. Thus, they are more vulnerable to physical damage, than the golems, but are lighter and require less material – material mass is divided by 2.

Simulacrum bodies are designed just like golem bodies, but to achieve likeness with a specific person, the Artist (Sculpting) roll must be made at -10. Simulacra require pure elemental material – pure snow from a mountaintop, rocks from an active volcano, etc. Such materials do not have a set price.

Esoteric constructs do not have their bodies made of any material in the traditional sense. Their bodies must be “enchanted” into being, as described below.

ENCHANTING

When the golem’s body is complete, it must be enchanted with the desired abilities. The enchanter must possess the Enchant (GURPS Thaumatology – Sorcery, p. 15) spell to do this. The golem is considered a magical item for the purpose of enchanting. The enchanter does not have to know the spells he is enchanting, but he has to have them written in the golem construction manual (see below). The enchanter also is not restricted to only enchanting spells – if he wants to enchant the golem with a magical ability, he only needs to know a similar spell. For example, if the enchanter wants the golem to be able to breathe an acid cloud, he may do so if he has the Spit Acid spell. Enchanted abilities should not have a FP cost, because the golems lack FP. The golem still can be enchanted to have ER (Magic).

            A construct can have no more points in skills than 10 + 5 per level of enchanter’s Talent.

            If the cost of the body is 0 or less, it is treated as 1 for esoteric golems.

            A golem body has a template that provides traits that are free – the enchanted does not have to enchant them. For example, the body template for a humanoid SM+0 clay golem looks like this:

SM+0 Humanoid Clay Golem Body

190 points

Attribute Modifiers: ST+5 [50]; DX+1 [20]; HT+4 [40].

Advantages: Doesn’t Breathe [20]; Doesn’t Eat or Drink [10]; Doesn’t Sleep [20]; High Pain Threshold [10]; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards [30]; Injury Tolerance (Homogenous, No Blood) [45]; Unaging [15]; Vacuum Support [5].

Disadvantages: No Sense of Smell/Taste [-5]; Unhealing (Total) [-30]; Unnatural [-50].

Features: Neither has nor spends Fatigue Points.

            In addition, the golem has a free mental lens. Typically, it looks like this:

Golem Mentality

-190 points

Attribute Modifiers: IQ-2 [-40].

Advantages: Single-Minded [5]; Unfazeable [15].

Disadvantages: Cannot Learn [-30]; Disturbing Voice [-10]; Hidebound [-5]; Incurious (6) [-10]; Low Empathy [-20]; No Sense of Humor [-10]; Reprogrammable [-10]; Slave Mentality [-40]; Social Stigma (Valuable Property) [-10]; Wealth (Dead Broke) [-25].

Expensive Materials: In D&D and other fantasy games there are golems made of such expensive materials as rubies, diamonds, etc. While they look great, it is very difficult to accumulate an amount of gemstones enough for even a SM+0 body, and its cost will be in billions. If a mage managed to create such a golem, the adventurers who destroy it instantly become multimillionaires. To prevent this and allow such golems to exist, the GM should allow the enchanters to embed a piece of the desired expensive material (a gemstone, for example) in a golem body made of the basic material that corresponds to the expensive material type (simple rock in this case). This embedded piece of material must be worth at least twice more than the whole body made of basic material. In this case, natural properties of the expensive material must be enchanted. For example, if diamond has DR 10, and the basic rock has DR 5, the enchanter must enchant additional DR 5. When successfully enchanted, the golem’s body will transform into the expensive material, but any piece that is cut off reverts to the basic material. When the golem is destroyed, it reverts to the basic material as well.

            Automata have the same traits as golems, but they replace Injury Tolerance (Homogenous, No Blood) [45] with Injury Tolerance (Unliving, No Blood) [25]. Typically, they have lower HP, but higher DX than the golems. They are enchanted just like the golems.

            Simulacra have different traits. Typically, they have higher IQ than golems and automata, lack Slave Mentality and other disadvantages that prevent them from passing as real people, but have an Obsession that directs their lifestyle. They are still constructs. If they are trying to mimic a specific person, they might lack the Social Stigma (Valuable Property) [-10] and even may have Wealth. The typical simulacrum built from pure snow has the following body template and mentality lens:

Human Snow Simulacrum Body

140 points

Attribute Modifiers: ST+2 [20]; DX+1 [20]; HT+2 [20].

Advantages: Doesn’t Breathe [20]; Doesn’t Eat or Drink [10]; Doesn’t Sleep [20]; High Pain Threshold [10]; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards [30]; Injury Tolerance (Homogenous, No Blood) [45]; Unaging [15]; Vacuum Support [5].

Disadvantages: No Sense of Smell/Taste [-5]; Unhealing (Total) [-30]; Unnatural [-50].

Features: Neither has nor spends Fatigue Points.

Assassin Mimic Mentality

-40 points

Advantages: Single-Minded [5]; Unfazeable [15].

Disadvantages: Obsession (Assassinate the original) [-5]; Secret (Simulacrum; Possible death) [-30]; Wealth (Dead Broke) [-25].

Resonant Materials: Using the guidelines from GURPS Thaumatology, p. 110, the GM can allow enchanting some abilities at a 10% EP discount, if the ability is appropriate for the construct’s material. For example, crystal often is associated with psionics in fantasy, so it would be fitting to have enchanting Static (Psi) on a crystal golem be discounted.

            At last, esoteric constructs can have wildly different body templates, but usually have the golem mentality lens. Unlike all other constructs, esoteric constructs do not get their body templates for free – the enchanter must “enchant” it into being. For example, a fire golem will use the following modified Body of Fire (p. B262) meta-trait as his body template:

Fire Golem Body

-11 points

Attribute Modifiers: ST-10 [-100].

Secondary Characteristics Modifiers: HP+10 [20].

Advantages: Burning Attack 1d (Always On, -40%; Aura, +80%; Melee Attack, Reach C, -30%) [6]; DR 10 (Limited, Heat/Fire, -40%) [30]; Doesn’t Breathe [20]; Doesn’t Eat or Drink [10]; Doesn’t Sleep [20]; High Pain Threshold [10]; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards [30]; Injury Tolerance (Diffuse) [100]; Unaging [15]; Vacuum Support [5].

Disadvantages: No Manipulators [-50]; No Sense of Smell/Taste [-5]; Unhealing (Total) [-30]; Unnatural [-50]; Weakness (Water; 1d/minute) [-40].

Features: Neither has nor spends Fatigue Points; Taboo Trait (Fixed ST).

Constructs and Other Power Sources: This post assumes an arcane spellcaster doing all the work, but golem crafting is not unique to the students of the arcane. Clerics are known to enchant golems with divine energies (the mythological golem was divine in nature). Druids are known to create small constructs out of twigs and moss known as boguns. Even psionic constructs may make sense in some settings that use Psionic Enchantment.

BONDING

            Once the body is enchanted, the golem is still not complete. It must be bound to its owner with the Golem spell (this works only temporarily and costs 1 FP per minute) or the Ally advantage modified with Appears Constantly, No Roll Required, x4 and Minion, +0% or +50%, depending on the golem’s mentality (this works permanently, but the owner must have enough unspent points to purchase the advantage). Alternatively, an item must be enchanted with the Golem spell. In this case, this item allows the wearer to control only this specific automaton or esoteric construct. Simulacra often are sentient and have free will.

    Alternatively, you may spend extra character points to make the construct independent as per GURPS Power-Ups 5: Impulse Buys. Then, if the construct still has Reprogrammable [-10], you still have to specify how one can give it orders.

CONSTRUCTION MANUALS

            It was mentioned before that the enchanter must have a construction manual to enchant the golem. Such manuals are prized tomes that describe the process of body creation and enchanting specific abilities. Without a manual, an enchanter has to know all the spells required to enchant the desired abilities. While the manual details the spells required, it describes them in the context of construct creation, so it is more difficult to learn these spells from the manual than from a normal grimoire. Treat learning spells from a construction manual 2 times slower than normal. Typically, a manual costs $100 + $100 per full 20 points of traits described and weighs 6 lbs. Each manual works only for one specific construct model! You have to find different manuals for a SM+0 humanoid clay golem, SM+1 humanoid clay golem, SM-2 feline iron golem with a toxic cloud ability, etc.

            There are several different types of construction manuals:

            Basic: Basic manuals are primers in construct theory. They only provide rough guidelines for body creation and minimum required spells for the construct enchantment. They provide no bonuses to skill and IQ rolls. The typical basic manual describes Shape Earth, Summon Earth Elemental, and Wisdom.

Fine: Fine manuals describe in detail the rituals of enchanting and the means of body shaping. A fine manual grants a +1 bonus to rolls made to sculpt and enchant the construct. +8 CF, double the weight.

Very Fine: Very fine manuals have colorful diagrams and drafts. A very fine manual grants a +2 bonus to rolls made to sculpt and enchant the construct. +17 CF, double the weight.

Theoretical: This is a work of an armchair wizard that has never made a construct in his life, but knows the theory pretty well. It gives no bonus when constructing or enchanting, but grants a +1 bonus when inventing a variation of the described construct. +1 CF.

INVENTING NEW CONSTRUCTS

            Each construct model is a separate invention. The characters may invent new ones as per p. B473.

            Required Skills

            Golems require Engineer (Golem). Automata require Engineer (Clockwork). Simulacra and esoteric constructs require Engineer (Golem) and Thaumatology.   

Complexity

Complexity	CP cost of the construct
Simple	0 or less
Average	1-50
Complex	51-140
Amazing	141+

            Being a simulacrum or an esoteric construct shifts the complexity one step up.

Concept

            You have to either know the spells you need to enchant the required abilities or have them written in various construction manuals you own. In the latter case, since the spells are described in context of different constructs, your concept roll is at -2. A successful roll creates a basic construction manual.        

Testing and Bugs

            The most common major bug is the Berserk disadvantage. Minor bugs lead to such things as lower IQ, DX, Basic Move.

EXAMPLES

1.      SM+0 Humanoid Clay Warrior Golem

This is the most simple and iconic golem – a humanoid made of clay. It has the body and mentality described in Enchanting, plus 10 points spent on various combat skills. It has no special abilities. The total point cost of the golem is 10 points. At TL 4, the body costs $560 (see Body Design above).

The inherent value for enchanting (GURPS Thaumatology – Sorcery, p. 30) for 10 EP and TL 4 is $100. The body’s cost is enough to cover that. The enchantment itself would cost $365*10 = $3,650. Add that to the body cost, double it, and get the retail price of $8,420.

2.      SM+1 Lead Golem

This is a golem made of lead – a metal traditionally associated with antimagic. The golem’s volume is 9.45 ft³. Raw material cost is $4.3 per pound. Density is 707.9 lbs./ft³. This gives us a mass of 6,690 lbs. and raw material cost of $28,767. Let’s multiply it by ~1.5 to account for labor cost and get $43,150. Expensive. The golem will have the standard golem mentality lens and the following body template:

SM+1 Lead Golem Body

300 points

Attribute Modifiers: ST+15 (Size Modifier, -10%) [135]; DX-1 [-20]; HT+4 [40].

Secondary Characteristics Modifiers: SM+1.

Advantages: DR 5 [25]; Doesn’t Breathe [20]; Doesn’t Eat or Drink [10]; Doesn’t Sleep [20]; High Pain Threshold [10]; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards [30]; Injury Tolerance (Homogenous, No Blood) [45]; Unaging [15]; Vacuum Support [5].

Disadvantages: No Sense of Smell/Taste [-5]; Unhealing (Total) [-30]; Unnatural [-50].

Features: Neither has nor spends Fatigue Points.

Knowing Your Own Strength [295] Replace ST+15 (Size Modifier, -10%) [135] with ST+13 [130]

Additionally, it will be enchanted with 10 points in combat skills, Combat Reflexes [15], and Static (Magic) [30]. Since Static (Magic) looks fitting for lead as per Resonant Materials, its cost is effectively 27 points. The final point cost of the golem is 162 points (KYOS: 157 points). The enchanter only has to enchant 52 points, because the rest is granted for free by the body template.

The inherent value for enchanting (GURPS Thaumatology – Sorcery, p. 30) for 52 EP and TL 4 is $3,000. The body’s cost is more than enough to cover that. The enchantment itself would cost $365*52 = $18,980. Add that to the body cost, double it, and get the retail price of $124,260. Obviously, large golems are expensive, as the body cost in this case is almost 4 times higher than the enchanting cost.

3.      SM+0 Humanoid Diamond Golem

No wizard probably can collect enough diamonds to build a golem, so we are going to use Expensive Materials for this. The based body will be common stone. The golem’s volume is 2.8 ft³. Raw material cost is $0.75 per pound. Density is 165 lbs./ft³. This gives us a mass of 462 lbs. and raw material cost of $346.5. The full cost is $1,204, and the labor cost is $857.5. As per Expensive Materials, the embedded diamond must be worth at least $346.5 x 2 = $693. Looking at GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 8 – Treasure Tables, we see that this equals to a diamond of ~2.6 carat. Thus, the final body cost is $1,897. Affordable. The golem will have the standard golem mentality lens and the following body template:

SM+0 Stone Golem Body

195 points

Attribute Modifiers: ST+5 [50]; HT+4 [40].

Advantages: DR 5 [25]; Doesn’t Breathe [20]; Doesn’t Eat or Drink [10]; Doesn’t Sleep [20]; High Pain Threshold [10]; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards [30]; Injury Tolerance (Homogenous, No Blood) [45]; Unaging [15]; Vacuum Support [5].

Disadvantages: No Sense of Smell/Taste [-5]; Unhealing (Total) [-30]; Unnatural [-50].

Features: Neither has nor spends Fatigue Points.

Let’s assume that diamond has DR 10 (it’s probably wrong). This forces the enchanter to enchant additional DR 5 [25]. Additionally, it will be enchanted with 10 points in combat skills, Magic Resistance 5 [10]. Since Magic Resistance looks fitting for diamond as per Resonant Materials (remember diamond golems from Heroes of Might and Magic 3), its cost is effectively 9 points. The final point cost of the golem is 49 points. The enchanter only has to enchant 44 points, because the rest is granted for free by the body template.

The inherent value for enchanting (GURPS Thaumatology – Sorcery, p. 30) for 44 EP and TL 4 is $1,400. The body’s cost is more than enough to cover that. The enchantment itself would cost $365*44 = $16,060. Add that to the body cost, double it, and get the retail price of $35,914.

4.      SM+0 Copper Automaton

This is a clockwork copper automaton. The automaton’s volume is 2.8 ft³. Raw material cost is $4.3 per pound. Density is 558.1 lbs./ft³. This gives us a mass of 1,562 lbs. / 2 = 781 lbs. and raw material cost of $3,358. Let’s multiply it by ~1.5 to account for labor cost and get $5,040. Expensive. The automaton will have the standard golem mentality lens and the following body template:

SM+0 Copper Automaton Body

131 points

Attribute Modifiers: ST+2 [20]; DX+1 [20]; HT+3 [30].

Secondary Characteristics Modifiers: HP-2 [-4].

Advantages: DR 3 [15]; Doesn’t Breathe [20]; Doesn’t Eat or Drink [10]; Doesn’t Sleep [20]; High Pain Threshold [10]; Immunity to Metabolic Hazards [30]; Injury Tolerance (Unliving, No Blood) [25]; Unaging [15]; Vacuum Support [5].

Disadvantages: No Sense of Smell/Taste [-5]; Unhealing (Total) [-30]; Unnatural [-50].

Features: Neither has nor spends Fatigue Points.

Additionally, it will be enchanted with 10 points in combat skills, Combat Reflexes [15], and DR 5 (Limited, Electricity, -40%) [15]. Since DR 5 (Limited, Electricity) looks fitting for copper as per Resonant Materials, its cost is effectively 14 points. The final point cost of the automaton is -19 points. The enchanter only has to enchant 39 points, because the rest is granted for free by the body template.

The inherent value for enchanting (GURPS Thaumatology – Sorcery, p. 30) for 52 EP and TL 4 is $1,000. The body’s cost is more than enough to cover that. The enchantment itself would cost $365*39 = $14,235. Add that to the body cost, double it, and get the retail price of $38,550.

As this is an automaton and not a golem, the enchanted will also create an amulet that allows to control the automaton. This will be the Ally (Automaton; Built on 25%; Constantly, No Roll Required, x4; Magical, -10%; Minion, +0%) [4]. The amulet form divides the EP by 2 for the final EP cost of 2 EP. The inherent value for enchanting (GURPS Thaumatology – Sorcery, p. 30) for 52 EP and TL 4 is $60. The enchantment itself would cost $365*2 = $730. Add that to the inherent cost, double it, and get the retail price of $1,580.

5.      Human Assassin Simulacrum

This is a lifelike construct that is made to mimic, assassinate, and then replace a specific person. The body is built from polar snow barely touched by human beings. To achieve likeness with the person being mimicked, the sculptor makes an Artist (Sculpture)-10 roll. This body has no set cost – gathering the material is a quest by itself. The simulacrum will be using the body template and mentality lenses from Enchanting.

Additionally, it will be enchanted with 20 points in combat skills, Combat Reflexes [15], and Charisma 2 (Magical, -10%) [9]. The final point cost of the simulacrum is 144 points. The enchanter only has to enchant 44 points, because the rest is granted for free by the body template.

The inherent value for enchanting (GURPS Thaumatology – Sorcery, p. 30) for 44 EP and TL 4 is $1,400. Something of this value must be sacrificed during the enchantment or be incorporated in the body. The enchantment itself would cost $365*44 = $16,060. Add that to the inherent cost, double it, and get the retail price of $35,914.

6.      SM+0 Fire Golem

This is an esoteric construct made of fire. Fire has no cost, so the body cost is nonexistent. The golem will use the fire golem body template and the standard golem mentality lens from Enchanting.

Additionally, it will be enchanted with 10 points in combat skills. The final golem cost is -191. The body is treated as costing 1 point. Since the body itself must be “enchanted” into being, the enchanter must enchant 11 points.

The inherent value for enchanting (GURPS Thaumatology – Sorcery, p. 30) for 11 EP and TL 4 is $140. Something of this value must be sacrificed during the enchantment. The enchantment itself would cost $365*11 = $4,015. Add that to the inherent cost, double it, and get the retail price of $8,310.

As this is an esoteric golem and not a normal golem, the enchanter will also create an amulet that allows to control the automaton. This will be the Ally (Esoteric Golem; Built on 25%; Constantly, No Roll Required, x4; Magical, -10%; Minion, +0%) [4]. The amulet form divides the EP by 2 for the final EP cost of 2 EP. The inherent value for enchanting (GURPS Thaumatology – Sorcery, p. 30) for 52 EP and TL 4 is $60. The enchantment itself would cost $365*2 = $730. Add that to the inherent cost, double it, and get the retail price of $1,580.