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slowly slumped to the ground, its head and right arm missing. The other, an even taller bronze monstrosity, lifted its
lightning-covered sword in victory.
A voice came from the chest of the standing giant. "So triumphs Golem Fighter Tir Na Nog. Your clan will never defeat
my own while you insist on your outmoded oak esthetic."
A willowy man, thin of features with blond hair, painfully pushed open a hatch on the fallen golem's chest, and exited.
"Your metals are too inflexible. A sword can cut down a tree, but the forest remains."
A new voice bellowed from over a nearby hill, "And sometimes the forest learns enough to strike back!" A coal-black
golem fighter strode over the hill. It stopped, and pointed a titanic war-maul at Golem Fighter Tir Na Nog. "Defend
yourself," said the voice from the chest.
"The next battle is not until tomorrow. Who are you? This violates all protocol!" protested the faerie woman inside the
bronze golem.
"I care not for your fae protocols. From now on, my battle will be ongoing until you and your kin learn to leave the Earth
alone!"
The thin faerie below, as he turned to flee the battlefield, called up, "Good luck, cousin! It seems these mortals have
picked up a few of our tricks!"
(((START BOX)))
@B-BOXHEAD:The Social Qabala Association
@TEXT-BOX:This organization exists in the world of Qabala, from GURPS Steampunk, p. 134. Founded by Karl
Marx, it is dedicated to the end of qabalistic secrecy, and the exploration of qabala-created golems as a tool for the
liberation of mankind from slavery and tyranny.
@TEXT-BOX:As the golems created by qabala are mostly used for industrial and military purposes, the Association's
chief opposition comes from the magnates and warmongers most interested in keeping the secret of their construction in
as few hands as possible. Those Jews who are members either are certain that qabalism can only be used by Jews (and
thus can be safely distributed to as many Jews as possible, the better to free both Jews and gentiles from persecution), or
suspect that God's gift can and should be shared by all people.
@TEXT-BOX:The Association's surface activities are primarily political, including the creation and funding of Social
Qabala parties worldwide, and attempting to raise public awareness of the injustices that could be cured through the
spread of qabala. On a more secretive note, many religious espionage agents are members of the Association.
(Unfortunately, they often find themselves treading on the feet of Inquisition, who spy on qabalists for quite different
reasons.) Lastly, of course, Marx is at heart a revolutionary. The possibility of the Association being the catalyst in a
bloody revolution that displaces those powers interesting in keeping qabala secret should not be ignored.
6. Golems and Mechagolems 6. Golems and Mechagolems
(((END BOX)))
The basic spell for enchanting golems is on p. 44 of GURPS Magic, Second Edition. The rules here provide guidelines
for determining the cost of new types of golem, and optional rules for enhancing golems in many different ways.
The Nature of a Golem
A golem belongs to its enchanter, and will only follow his orders. It only understands one language, chosen by the
enchanter from those he knows. The voice of a golem never sounds perfectly human, though its precise qualities depend
on the type. A golem follows verbal orders, and has no initiative, but never forgets. It is capable of reason and can even
apply judgment, but only insofar as this helps it interpret its orders. In the GURPS Technomancer setting, golems are
designed to obey the first person to give them clear orders, not necessarily the enchanter (or enchanters). When golems
come off the magical assembly line, they are locked in reasonably sound-proof packaging immediately, and then shipped
to their owners. Intentionally taking control of a golem one does not have legal title to is treated as grand theft. Golems
can be ordered to follow the orders of another, but the commands of the original owner always take priority.
Enchanting a golem summons -- or creates, depending on cosmology -- a spirit to animate the artificial body. The spirit
animating a golem is a collection of magical forces and does not have a mind as such; it cannot be charmed, influenced,
possessed, or subverted via mind control. The spirit is relatively loosely-bound to the body. The amount of damage
necessary to sever the connection (i.e., the golem's hit points) is much lower than the amount needed to hack apart a
statue of the same size. A golem is destroyed if its HT reaches 0; before that point, the enchanter can cast Healing spells
on it (excluding Resurrection) to repair damage. The enchanter can also command it to cease to exist. Flesh golems are
affected by Body Control spells like Deathtouch, but non-meat golems are not. The basic Golem spell requires
knowledge of Shape Earth and Animation, but specific types of golems may require other spells.
The average golem is 5' 9" tall; weight varies based on material, but a flesh golem weighs 190 lbs. (Some of the original
200 lbs. of meat used to build a flesh golem is lost in the process.) It weighs more than a human of the same height, as it
is both extremely muscular and lacks internal cavities such as a stomach or lungs.
Golems as Characters
A normal golem is unsuitable as a player character except in very unusual campaigns. Without initiative or free will,
most players would find a golem too restrictive to play. However, various techniques (such as the Soul Golem spell, p.
G42) allow a sapient being to inhabit a golem body, and such joined entities make fine, if expensive, PCs.
@E-HEAD:Golem 15 points
@TEXT-CSTATS:Advantages: Doesn't Breathe [20]; Doesn't Eat or Drink [10]; Doesn't Fatigue [15]; Doesn't Sleep
[20]; Eidetic Memory 2 (No skill bonus, -70%) [18]; High Pain Threshold [10]; Immunity to Disease [10]; Immunity to
Poison [15]; Injury Tolerance (No Blood, No Brain, No Neck*, No Vitals) [20]; Invulnerability (Mind Control) [75];
Unaging [15]; Unfazeable [15].
@TEXT-CSTATS:Disadvantages: Cannot Learn (Can memorize, -40%) [-18]; Clueless [-10]; Dead Broke [-25];
Hidebound [-5]; Low Empathy [-15]; No Extra Effort [-15]; Reprogrammable Duty [-25]; Slave Mentality [-40]; Staid
[-1]; Sterile [-3]; Undiscriminating [-1]; Unhealing (except by healing spells cast by enchanter, -0%) [-20]; Unliving
The Nature of a Golem 6. Golems and Mechagolems
[-50].
@TEXT-CSTATS:Features: Many advantages and disadvantages are unavailable to golems; GMs should use their
judgment.
@TEXT-CSTATS:* Most golems technically have a neck, of course, but it is not a vulnerable spot.
(((START BOX)))
@B-BOXHEAD:New Advantage: Doesn't Fatigue 15 points
@TEXT-BOX:The individual doesn't lose fatigue at all due to extended running, swimming, combat, or other strenuous
activity. Extra Effort for physical activities still costs Fatigue, however. Recovery rates and HT rolls aren't affected.
Fatigue is still marked off normally for Extra Effort, as well as magic and psi use, and recovered normally. But the
character never feels tired or suffers any penalties as long as his ST is greater than 0; he just can't perform any more extra
effort/magic/psi until he recovers his Fatigue. However, if he spends or loses his last point of Fatigue, he falls
unconscious just like anyone else.
@TEXT-BOX:This advantage is often combined with No Extra Effort, yielding a creature that does not tire but has no
"reserve" of strength.
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