Iron Golem

Iron Golem (Heavy; CR 15)

Neutral - Large - Construct

Lore:	Know (Arcana)
28		41
Basic DC		Full DC

Initiative

25

Perception:
37	+27
Passive	Active

Ambush:

9+

on a d20

• Ambush Notes: Iron Golems are incredibly good at ambushes, because they are often disguised as statues or decorations, and older Iron Golems have usually been left in place for so long they may be completely buried by detritus, allowing them to burst forth in most terrifying fashion.

Senses:

• Standard Senses
• Darkvision 50 ft.
• Precise Hearing 50 ft.

Movement Types:

• Walk 50 ft.
• Lesser Climb 30 ft.
• Vaulting 30 ft.

Defense

AC

37

Man Def

40

Monster Health
858	429	29
Hit Points	Bloodied	Hit Dice

Saving Throws
Fort:	+19
Refl:	+19
Will:	+19

Strong Against:

• (Heavy Role) Immunity (partial 3): Heavies are immune to the first three conditions applied to them during an encounter. If a fourth condition is applied to a heavy, it is resolved normally. A 'condition' is defined as any non-instantaneous harmful effect applied to the monster, other than damage, but is most commonly one of the defined Status Conditions (but it doesn't have to be). Statuses related to damage (such as injured, bloodied, staggered, dying, or dead) are not 'conditions', and cannot be negated or avoided with this ability.
• (Construct 1) Immune (no effect): diseases (infected, diseased, blighted), poisons (tainted, poisoned, blighted), ability damage (dilution, damage, drain), and essence damage (suppression, omission, destruction)
• (Construct 2) Immune (no effect): bleeds (bruised, bleed, ruptured), fatigued, exhausted
• (Construct 3) Immune (no effect): magical sleep (drowsy, sluggish, asleep), paralyzed, stunned
• (Construct 4) Immune (no effect): any effect that requires a Fortitude save (unless the effect also works on objects, or is harmless)
• Hardened (½ damage): All damage from Spells, True Dweomers, and Spell-Like Abilities, as well as Rods, Staffs, and other effects as determined by the GM.

Weak Against:

Offense

Size:	Large
10 ft.		15 ft.
Space		Reach

To-Hit

+24

Man Off

+27

Action

1

Points

Standard Attack (Melee):

• 2x Iron Strike +24 (4d8+25/18-20 x2)
  as bludgeoning (physical, common)
  plus Breaking Blow

Full Attack (Melee):

• 4x Iron Strike +24 (4d8+25/18-20 x2)
  as bludgeoning (physical, common)
  plus Breaking Blow

Standard Attack (Ranged):

• 2x Iron Bolts +24 (4d8+25/18-20 x2)
  as piercing (physical, common)
  (Increment: 100 ft.; Max Range: 1000 ft.)
  plus Boring Bolts

Full Attack (Ranged):

• 4x Iron Bolts +24 (4d8+25/18-20 x2)
  as piercing (physical, common)
  (Increment: 100 ft.; Max Range: 1000 ft.)
  plus Boring Bolts

Siege Damage:

• 1x Iron Mitts +27 (1d6+1)
  

Statistics

33

STR

23

DEX

—

CON

6

INT

22

WIS

18

CHA

Skills:

• Knowledge (Dungeoneering): 25
• Perception: 27
• Sense Motive: 25
• All other skills: 20 (no ranks)

Languages: Fluent in the language of its creator, rarely speaks unless commanded to or to answer questions posed by its creator or owner

Feats:

• Combat Reflexes (EFFECT: Monsters with this feat make up to 4 attacks of opportunity per round instead of one.)

Special Abilities

Breaking Blow (Su) Auto upon successful melee hit

Up to once per round per targeted foe, at will, an Iron Golem's massive iron weapons, or even just its titanic hands, inflicts the Bruised condition. This condition can be removed by the application of healing, as normal, but can be, and often is, re-applied frequently by the golem's attacks. There is no saving throw against this ability.

Boring Bolts (Ex) Auto upon successful ranged attack

Up to once per round per targeted foe, at will, the golem may throw its massive ranged bolts attack all the way through an affected target. This is counted as an un-aimed Sunder attack, using the Golems Maneuver Offense of 25 against the struck victim's Maneuver Defense. If you are subject to an un-aimed Sunder attempt, such as from a spray of acid or being scraped across jagged diamond shards, then your items are sorted for damage in the following order: Shield Armor Weapon/Item held in main hand Weapon/Item held in off-hand Gloves Bracers Boots Helmet Belt If none of the above items are present, or all of them are broken, such an untargeted Sunder maneuver has no effect.

Poison Miasma (Su) Swift Action

Up to once per round, as a swift action, the Iron Golem may exude a poison miasma. This may be a choking exhaust from hidden ports about its body, a deadly breath, or merely a seeping mist of death. This Miasma may fill a space adjacent to the Golems space (sharing one edge or one corner with the Golem's space), or it may be projected to center upon a target square up to 30 feet from the Golem's space. Only one option may be chosen per use of the power. The Miasma fills a space of 5x5x5 squares, and inflicts 4d6+14 points of Poison (physical, uncommon) damage to all enemies who end their turn in that space this round, then dissipates. There is no saving throw against this ability.

Broken Valves (Ex; Heavy Role) Auto Upon Death

The first time during an encounter an Iron Golem is reduced to zero hit points, it does not die. Instead, some vital gas-handling mechanism within its form is broken, and it fights on. The Golem is rendered Immune to all conditions, damage, and effects, while it's space and all spaces within 3 squares of its space are filled with Poison Gas. This gas inflicts 4d6+14 points of Poison (physical, uncommon) damage to all enemy creatures that are in the area of effect when the power is activated. There is no saving throw against this effect. The Golem remains on the field of battle, maintaining it's place in the initiative order, until it reaches its turn in the initiative order again. At that point, it loses its immunity to damage and conditions, it's hit points are set to 429, and it fights on.

Iron Golem

This creature possesses the Heavy role, and therefore counts as 2 monsters for purposes of encounter size, XP award, and treasure.

Iron Golems are constructs, in many ways the quintessential example of constructs, being large, terrifying, and implacably deadly. Iron Golems, like many golems, are not truly aware or sentient, but they always have a comprehensive set of instructions that allows them to perform their function with admirable efficiency.

Despite their enormous weight and considerable size, Iron Golems, while undeniably clunky, are far from slow or clumsy devices. Indeed, their prowess in battle is frightening to behold, as their speed seems unvarying, but is always fast enough that foes are struggling to keep up with the metallic monstrosity.

Iron Golems are very durable, hard to hurt and hard to stop, absorbing magical attacks with aplomb and attacking in return with steady menace. Far worse are the miasmas of deadly gas that always seem to accompany Iron Golems, as they exude poisons all around themselves during battle that are anathema to all living things.

Iron Golems can be found of tremendous power, and ancient golems left behind by ancient civilizations are terrifying indeed, as they can have inexplicable powers and abilities, as well as being tremendously powerful and inherently unpredictable, as they follow rules left from darkened ages past.

Iron Golems are everything that Stone Golems are and more, being beloved heavy weapons on the battlefield of Generals lucky enough to have them, as well as reliable and deadly engines of death in the dungeon. Iron Golems tend toward simple and reliable sets of rules, which usually devolve to 'kill things that should not be here'.

Iron Golems make excellent guardians, as their simple instructions are magically interpreted by the patterns of their creation in surprisingly capable fashion. They are not exactly loyal or faithful, but in general, an Iron Golem finds a way to be useful to its owner within the bounds of its rules.

Combat Tactics

Iron Golems are powerful and versatile. They are generally set to fight melee combatants, relying upon their Breaking Blow power to wear down nearly any enemy no matter how tough it is, especially when it uses its Poison Miasma upon them. They have tremendous reach for their size, and will usually use it to attack more than one foe, seeking to use their Breaking Blow on more than one foe each round if at all possible. If not set to defend an objective, they will often use a five foot step and their reach to force melee foes to lose attacks and gain more use of their Combat Reflexes, and Iron Strikes made this way will also apply more Breaking Blow effects. Of course, if set to hold a point or passage, they will stand their ground with utter tenacity, being mindless, fearless, engines of destruction.

If no foe will fight it in melee, or if it takes heavy damage or debilitating conditions from range (GM's discretion), the Golem will switch to making ranged attacks with Iron Bolts, looking to kill, wound, and Sunder ranged attackers (with their Boring Bolts ability), and will generally use Miasma at range in such a case. Again, it will generally attack at least two ranged foes, looking to activate Boring Bolts more than once. Note that Iron Golems are extremely resistant to Spells and Spell-like abilities, Rods, Staffs, and other ranged magical effects, taking only half damage against all such effects, so this ranged attacker effect is most often triggered by status conditions...although, as always, the GM may rule as they wish. Golems are rarely programmed to make ranged attacks when triggering attacks of opportunity, but it is possible.

It is possible to find Iron Golems specifically ordered to attack at range first, such as devices set to guard a bridge or gateway. Another tactic sometimes seen (usually on military golems) will have the Golem make five foot steps every round they can in order to perform one or more melee attacks using their reach, mixed up with one or more ranged attacks, thus exploiting their reach to avoid the worst of melee attacks while placing pressure on the back ranks of their enemies. Since this often causes the Golems to move around unpredictably, this tactic is rarely ordered when Golems are set to guard a fixed point, being better suited to open battle when they are ordered to kill as many foes as possible.

An Iron Golem's poison miasma is nearly invisible, as it does not block line of sight or line of effect, but it is also pervasive, such that dispersing effects cannot defeat it, a nasty surprise to those who rely on such things. The effect appears as wavering distortions in the affected space, easy to detect, but the innocuous effect is very dangerous, unless those fighting it can move out of the area of effect. Despite their ponderous appearance, fights against Iron Golems are often mad-cap affairs, with players running about like mad to escape the gas while landing effective attacks.

Iron Golems are often programmed to avoid damaging their surroundings, but it is common for them to be set to destroy a wall, crush a chest, break an item, collapse a passage, etc, if they take enough damage. The GM adjudicates such cases on a situational basis.

When killed the first time, most Iron Golems vent their Gas to revive themselves, the noxious miasma dealing heavy damage to those close to them, while making them immune to harm until their next initiative tick.

Of course, Iron Golems are completely fearless, and will do as they are commanded, or as their programming dictates, until they win the battle, or are destroyed.

Out of Combat

Iron Golems do nothing out of combat, except what they are told to do. Iron Golems are far too bulky to be used as accesories by the rich and powerful, but they are frequently found tucked in niches and hidden rooms of palaces, dungeons, and other places. When not active, Iron Golems do nothing, and have no place in the ecology of the world.

Rewards

XP: 102,400 (Heavy role included.)

Treasure: Sellable Goods worth 64,250 gp.

Weight: 300 lbs.     Volume: 12 cu. ft.

Optional Treasure Rules: Roll a d20 on Table 1 below once per encounter (NOT per creature). Any items discovered are in addition to the normal treasure for the encounter.

Table 1: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 8	Nothing Found
9 - 12	1 Languid Remnant (tier 1)
13 - 15	1 Pale Remnant (tier 2)
16 - 18	1 Bright Remnant (tier 3)
19 - 20	Roll on Table 2
###	Nothing to see here!
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 2: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 3	4 Languid Remnants (tier 1)
4 - 7	4 Pale Remnants (tier 2)
8 - 11	1 Intense Remnant (tier 4)
12 - 15	1 Blazing Remnant (tier 5)
16 - 18	1 Vital Remnant (tier 6)
19 - 20	Roll on Table 3
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 3: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 3	4 Bright Remnants (tier 3)
4 - 5	4 Intense Remnants (tier 4)
6 - 8	4 Blazing Remnants (tier 5)
9 - 11	4 Vital Remnants (tier 6)
12 - 15	1 Prime Remnant (tier 7)
16 - 18	1 Mythic Remnant (tier 8)
19 - 20	1 Empyrean Remnant (tier 9)