Description
Although there are no written rules, golems tends generally to respect various specifications:
- Alignment. Being a construct, the golem does not have any notion of good and evil or law and chaos. So a golem is near systematically neutrally aligned or unaligned, whatever its creator (particularly in the case of clerical golems associated with deities other than those of neutral alignment).
- Appearance. A golem tends to adopt a humanoid form even if its detailed features can vary from one golem to another. For example, the surface of the body of the creature could be covered with runes, religious texts or other forms of writing. Moreover, golems are usually of large size and at least 8' tall.
- Control. The creator of a golem (typically a wizard or cleric) has control over the golem. The control of flesh golems and clay golems has a chance of being voided proportional to the length of time the golem is used in combat.
- Intelligence. By definition, a golem possesses no intelligence beside just enough awareness to follow orders.
- Material. Usually there is only one type of golem for each kind of material (iron, silver, etc.) from which their name is derived (gold golem, etc.). Not all materials are eligible for the construction of a golem and there are some materials that are completely inadequate. Most of the time, golems are built from only one kind of material (iron, etc.) being sculpted or molded and are very rarely obtained by assembling heterogeneous pieces or materials of different sources. Moreover, the structure of the golem is very often obtained only from solid and cohesive materials.
- Permanency. A golem is always a permanent animation contrary to magical items that can be animated as in the manner a python rod could be.
- Treasures. A golem does not have treasures in its own name. Due to its nature as an animated creature, the golem does not have any notion of property and does not express any need for possession. Nevertheless, the creature can be a guardian to the treasure of its creator or to the temple of a divinity if its manufacturer ordered to it to. The golem can also carry the possessions of the various creatures which perished under its blows. Its creator can however equip it with instructions ordering the golem to pile up treasures and to watch them and to simulate a form of cupidity. The structure of the golem can itself sometimes be regarded as a treasure, on one hand because of the value of the material it is made of, but also for the alchemical properties it can represent.
Read more about this topic: Golem (Dungeons & Dragons)
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