Fantasy Setting Ideas

[SilvercatMoonpaw]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

No, golems are solely a creation of enchantment in GURPS (Magic, p. 59). Only their maker, or someone their maker designates may give them orders, and only their maker may heal them. Summoning spells that teleport things to you are very limited in 4e, pretty much restricted to demons, elementals, and extraplaner creatures.

Even if you did have a spell that summoned a random existing golem, it would just stand there like a lump because you are probably not authorized to give it orders. Conversely, you can chat with an elemental and get it help you for an hour by getting Good or better reaction roll. Charisma would help, as would Diplomacy, though I would require Cultural Familiarity (Elemental Court) for unpenalized use. Since it is not a maintained spell, a mage with support from a company of soldiers could easily summon a 1,000 CP elemental every 15 minutes. Of course, the elementals might decide to stick around afterwards, which would probably require another Good or better reaction roll to get them to go away without causing any fuss.

But can't you change those rules? Or are there too many details in the existing summoning spells to just swap in "golem"?

[maximara]

Originally Posted by DangerousThing

How do you hold a powerful mage captive if he doesn't want to be held?

If the setting is mana based a Mana vortex stone works wonders.

[AlexanderHowl]

Originally Posted by SilvercatMoonpaw

But can't you change those rules? Or are there too many details in the existing summoning spells to just swap in "golem"?

You can change whatever you want, it is GURPS. The problem with the idea of summoning golems though is that you are then allowing characters to summon enchanted items, which opens its own can of worms. After all, why pay for enchanted items when you can learn a spell that would allow you to summon any magical item of a type for an hour for 1 FP per 10 CP of power?

[RyanW]

A slightly different idea: one of the more powerful kingdoms in the world develops a new, incredibly powerful form of magic. Some of the other powerful kingdoms manage to copy it. Now the powerful kingdoms simply can't risk a direct magical conflict with one another, and fight through proxies and espionage. Magically Assured Destruction.

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by SilvercatMoonpaw

But can't you change those rules? Or are there too many details in the existing summoning spells to just swap in "golem"?

There's actually not that much difference between an Earth Elemental and most types of Golem. They both have defenses based around Injury Tolerance:Homogenous and Innate DR.

There are also the usual assumption (in the default Gurps Magic system) that elementals already exist in either out of the way places in the normal world or on their own "elemental" planes.

I have never (at least until now) heard anyone assume the existence of a Plane of Golems. If someone did they would then have a valid target for a Planar Summons Spell as seen on p.82 of Gurps Magic or even p.247 of Gurps Characters.

I'm not sure why we have to summon Golems though.

[SilvercatMoonpaw]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

I have never (at least until now) heard anyone assume the existence of a Plane of Golems.

I am working off the concept that it's functionally the same if the spell brings them from elsewhere or simply creates them out of nothing (though the former makes more sense if you have to talk them into helping you).

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

I'm not sure why we have to summon Golems though.

Because it sounds like less work than talking to elementals.

[Varyon]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

After all, why pay for enchanted items when you can learn a spell that would allow you to summon any magical item of a type for an hour for 1 FP per 10 CP of power?

A spell that creates a temporary golem quickly may be more limited in what the golem can do, if typical golems are indeed able to stand in for any magic item.

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

I'm not sure why we have to summon Golems though.

As the one who initially suggested it, what I was thinking of was more creating golems on the spot, rather than summoning them from some other place. If that's not possible with existing spells, make a new one. I'd base the energy-to-character-point ratio off Summon Earth Elemental, albeit reduced on account of increased reliability - I'd probably cut it in half.

[Rolando]

you can always use animate object on a statue, maybe a new, advanced form, of animate object (superior animate object or whatever) may be created that includes the spells independence and/or initiative (that are not normally possible to cast on animated objects).

or an advanced form of Independence and/or Initiative spells that can be cast on animated objects.

These can be used for instant "golems"

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by SilvercatMoonpaw

I am working off the concept that it's functionally the same if the spell brings them from elsewhere or simply creates them out of nothing (though the former makes more sense if you have to talk them into helping you).

If you bring a golem from somewhere else it's going to be someone else's golem and it won't do what you say. Unless it was your Golem just hanging around waiting for you to bring it to you but that's a Teleport and not a Summons.

Planar Summons would be different as you command the summonees (at least for a limited amount of time) rather than talk them into anything.

If you use one of the Elemental Spells from the corresponding Elemental Colleges it matters which spell you choose. Summon Elemental brings you an "wild"Elemental (if there is one nearby) but doesn't control it. You can try negotiating. Control Elemental controls any Elemental within range if it works (summoned or just found). Create Elemental creates an Elemental and that Elemental does who you command it to for an hour but then gains free will.

Create Elemental would probably be where alexanderhowl's 1000pt Elementals came from but I consider making an Elemental that powerful incredibly reckless to the point of being virtually suicidal. Especially if the new Elemental is used for violent purposes. If it destroys things for an hour under your control it probably goes on destrying things after it's not controlled any more.

Anyway, there are assumed to be "wild" Elementals somewhere in the vicinity to be called but "wild" Golems are practically a contradiction in terms under the default assumptions.

[SilvercatMoonpaw]

Clearly the summoning magic in GURPS is much more complicated than what I'm used to.