#clay golem

[oldschoolfrp]

"A berserk clay golem lurks in the small alcove in the northeast." (Jeff Easley, AD&D module S4: The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth, by Gary Gygax, TSR, 1982)

[miaminks]

Finally been able to reveal my little amnesiac beetle clay golem to the rest of the party today. Now we are contemplating their name between grub, rusty or teal.

I'm looking forward to the next session. 𓆣

[jaypea00101010]

Better Monster Statblocks

I've seen a lot of people doing their own takes on revised and simplified D&D statblocks, so decided to try my own take

Here's the Golem statblock from the monster manual

And here's my revision:

The stats are nearly basically the same, but the main changes are to the formatting to make it nicer to read.

So, what did I change?

Colours

The monster manual's colour formatting is honestly just a bit ugly, I personally find the browns and reds all meld together a little bit. Sure it's thematic and makes it look older, but I'd personally rather it be just that little bit cleaner.

Damage..... Restorations?

Damage resistance makes you take half damage, damage immunities makes you take no damage, and damage restorations heal you for the amount of damage you would take. Basically this single line with the other damage modifications (so it's easier to reference) replaces the three line Acid Absorbtion trait from the original.

Conditions, Conditions, Conditions

You might notice three new conditions on this statblock: Hasted, Bloodied, and Beserk. More conditions cuts down a lot of unneeded lines in monster statblocks and gives more room to play around with things. Hasted is the most obvious of these new conditions, giving the creature the exact same effects as the haste spell (for this revision, the hast spell would be changed to something along the lines of 'you become Hasted for the duration of the spell). Beserk is also fairly obvious given what it's replacing, I imagine there could be plenty new spells or features built around this condition. And finally Bloodied, coming from older editions, Bloodied is a condition that all creatures get when they get below half health, it doesn't do anything on its own, other features or effects can trigger off of it, as seen here.

Force Damage!

In line with a lot of changes from Monsters of the Multiverse, the magical bludgeoning damage from the original statblock has been replaced with force damage.

Drone??

The statblock's name has also been changed to 'clay drone' rather than 'clay golem' for sensitivity reasons

There's a few other changed I'd probably make that I can't as easily showcase with this statblock, but if people are interested, I can do some more

[smbhax]

Demon Lord Reincarnation (PC)

Trying to beat the final bit, game is resisting ; )

Gameplay session: https://youtu.be/Vo4KP8CDwtU

Finished mapping the dungeon at least! ^ _^ - Floor 4 map: https://paleface.net/cgi-bin/gdb/n.pl?i=1650_map_floor4.png - Floor 5 map: https://paleface.net/cgi-bin/gdb/n.pl?i=1650_map_floor5.png

[dailycharacteroption]

Experimental Explosives Mechanic (Mechanic Alternate Class Feature)

(art by Edvin Venclavovic on Artstation)

 Whether it’s traditional explosives, pressurized cryogenic compounds, Single-use sonic weapons, or even deployable summoning circles, grenades are a surprisingly versatile class of weaponry, providing a variety of single-use effects. While most simply do damage and/or perhaps add a debilitating effect, some are useful for nonlethal takedowns or even helpful effects like extinguishing fires.

And where there are explosives, there are explosive experts who make use of them, whether they are traditional grenades or high-powered charges meant to blast apart solid objects.

Now, obviously classes like the soldier have their own grenade specialists, but our subject today focuses on bomb technicians who not only are masters of explosive arts, but have so many supplies on them that they can prepare and pull out said bombs in an almost cinematic fashion, seeming to always have the right bomb for the job.

In this way, these mechanics seem to reflect the classic bomb-focused alchemist of Pathfinder’s yesteryear, and perhaps a sliver of that quasi-magical investment makes its way into the arts of these bombers.

In any case, these demolition experts boast powerful (if entirely unsubtle) answers to obstacles, be they walls, doors, or angry foes.

 Each day during their daily preparations, these mechanics construct a supply of grenades and charges, though the exact specifics of what they prepare are cinematically left ambiguous until drawn and uses, though they are never more powerful than what they have a license to use. However, their handmade nature means that others cannot easily utilize them. They also can prepare one more such explosive when taking a short rest. Additionally, their custom rig has a detonator for both their charges and any grenades they wire for remote detonation built in.

Early on, they refine their explosives to be more harmful to foes.

They can also set up and rig explosives much faster than others, especially when they push themselves to set up faster.

Eventually they can even push themselves to assemble a new explosive in the field in seconds

Normally adding more explosives to a charge only helps so much, but these engineers know just where to place them to maximize the effect in bringing down a structure.

The most skilled among them bolster the effect their charges can have. Additionally, they can always find time to toss a grenade when attacking multiple times, attacking twice and then tossing, though doing so makes them even more inaccurate.

Interested in using a lot of grenades without having to necessarily pay for a lot of grenades? This option may be for you. I highly recommend keeping a list of all the highest level available grenades so you know what you can make on the fly, and familiarize yourselves with their effects. Doing so will allow you to quickly apply the right damage type, debilitation, battlefield control, or utility effect to the situation. Obviously, any feats or mechanics tricks that deal with grenades are very important as well.

 When it comes to explosives-loving characters, you have a few common tropes that come to mind, like the “mad bomber” who enjoys explosions more than is probably healthy, which can range into outright disrespectfully overblown (don’t do this, both for respectful reasons and also because the temptation to be disruptive will be high) to having a special interest which unnerves others. However, that isn’t the only sort of character that comes to mind. There is also the steely explosive expert, the sort of character whose focus is entirely on their volatile payload, whether they are setting it up or trying to disable someone else’s. In any case, their expertise in explosives more or less means that most of these demolitionists are relegated to military, field, or criminal enterprises.

  Previously believed to be entirely uninhabited, a ruin complex was found on the dead world of Modra-8. Unfortunately the entrances are sealed by magic, so the explorers have no choice but to blast their way in. Inside, they find signs of a civilization that favored magic over science, guarded by ancient guardians, including a few clay golems.

 Antisocial for an maraquoi, Hovvus keeps to themselves, but their expertise in explosives is in high demand, so they always find work on starship crews (and they can brew a fine cup of stimulant too!). If hired onto a crew, they usually won’t interact, but persistent crew members may get them to open up, including about the tragedy which left them so distant and reserved.

 The squad has been assigned to provide security detail on a border fortress, though there has been no sign of the enemy army yet. That all changes when a tremendous explosion rocks the base, and the call to arms goes up to put out fires, defeat the invading sappers, and see to repairing the defenses.

[goodgolemgoetics]

[educationaldm]

Clay Golem by artist: Pedro A. Alberto Illustration (@Pedro_A_Alberto on Twitter) He has worked his way through the Monster Manual. Some great pictures. Perfect for colouring. 

https://pedroaalbertoillustration.com

[notaplaceofhonour]

no thoughts, head empty

Available on RedBubble

[pratchettquotes]

A Personal Note: Celebrating 4,000 Followers*

Lord Vetinari walked out of the room and back into the main hall, with Vimes trailing behind. "However," he said, "in order to keep the peace, the golem will have to be destroyed."

"No, sir."

"Allow me to repeat my instruction."

"No, sir."

"I'm sure I just gave you an order, Commander. I distinctly felt my lips move."

"No, sir. He's alive, sir."

"He's just made out of clay, Vimes."

"Aren't we all, sir? According to them pamphlets Constable Visit keeps handing out. Anyway, he thinks he's alive, and that's good enough for me."

The Patrician waved a hand towards the stairs and his office full of paper. "Nevertheless, Commander, I've had no less than nine missives from leading religious figures declaring that he is an abomination."

"Yes, sir. I've given that viewpoint a lot of thought, sir, and reached the following conclusion: arseholes to the lot of 'em, sir."

The Patrician's hand covered his mouth for a moment. "Sir Samuel, you are a harsh negotiator. Surely you can give and take?"

"Couldn't say, sir."

Terry Pratchett, Feet of Clay

*A Rare Personal Note: This exchange comes after what may be one of the most famous Discworld moments of all time: the conversation where Vimes and Vetinari first discuss the age old question, "Who watches the Watch?", which becomes one of the central threads of Vimes' character progression. But the end of the conversation, which involves the fate of the newly christened Constable Dorfl, strikes me powerfully today. This marks one of the few times in canon that Vimes explicitly rejects one of Vetinari's commands on moral grounds. It also marks a rare moment when Vimes and Vetinari (who are often complex foils for each other) seem to agree on a fundamental point of morality: that a person must be treated as a person, whatever the cost, even if we do not understand them. On the last day of 2023, this seems more important to me than ever. We 4,000 Pratchett fans who share the quotes that fill this blog likely share very little else: If we met on the street we would not agree about politics, religion, the weather, or the correct storage of Battle Bread. But I think that Sir Terry would perhaps want us to remember that, even when we are at our most opposed, we are all made out of clay -- and that is something worth protecting. Happy New Year, my friends. May we all continue to learn what must be given, and what can never be taken.

[p4nishers]

thinking about the relationship between mightily oats' "the worthwhile [words] don't burn" and constable dorfl's "the words in the heart cannot be taken"

[vesperthealchemist]

It is now real

[suckrose-and-akwa]

The vampire looked from the golem to Vimes.

"You gave one of them a voice?" he said.

"Yes," said Dorfl. He reached down and picked up the vampire in one hand. "I Could Kill You," he said. "This Is An Option Available To Me As A Free-Thinking Individual But I Will Not Do So Because I Own Myself And I Have Made A Moral Choice."

"Oh, gods," murmured Vimes under his breath.

"That's blasphemy," said the vampire.

He gasped as Vimes shot him a glance like sunlight. "That's what people say when the voiceless speak. Take him away, Dorfl."

-Terry Pratchett, Feet of Clay

[dimity-lawn]

[druidofsuburbs]

Visit your local cemetery this season

[tiny-golems]

recent late night creatures

[i-am-worm]

Inktober 52 2024 - Week 27 - 'Free'

"Is It Frightening To Be Free?' 'You said it.' 'You Say To People "Throw Off Your Chains" And They Make New Chains For Themselves?' 'Seems to be a major human activity, yes.' - Terry Pratchett 'Feet of Clay'.

Have some discworld fan art.