RPM Animating Inanimate Matter

[Christopher R. Rice]

Originally Posted by nick_coffin

Question for RPM gurus:

How do you stat out the creature created by bringing inanimate objects to life? For example, take the example ritual in Monster Hunters: Champions that turns stone lions into the real thing - what stats do these lions have? Does it matter what size they are - would an animated giant statue of a lion have more ST than a realistically sized one? Does it matter what the original material is?

What about magical constructs like golems? How would one stat these out? Assuming that no extra effects like Bestows a Bonus (ST) is added to the spell, how strong would a traditional clay golem (of large but within the realm of human size) be? Would it be stronger if created at a larger size?

Lots of ways to do this, but I'll just put down two for you:

1). Guess. Find stats for something close to what you are animating and then ignore its ST/HP and derive that from the standard GURPS Update rules for how much a creature weighs. That is - ST = 2 x (cube root of weight in pounds). So a 1,000 lb. lion statue has stats similar to a lion (p. B456), but has a ST of 20. This is the quick and dirt method.

2) Plan ahead. If a caster is going to go around animating stuff, ask him to have a few templates already written up. For that clay golem you mentioned, I highly suggest you take a look at Powers: Divine Favor - it's a damn useful book for more things than what it actually covers.

[Christopher R. Rice]

Additionally, if you are trying to find a balance on how powerful a animated/summoned being might be, look at my post here. And here is a example of those rules in action:

Summon Kinzoku Samurai
Spell Effects: Greater Create Matter + Lesser Create Mind + Lesser Control Matter.
Inherent Modifiers: None.
Greater Effects: 1 (x3).

This spell conjures a animated suit of O-Yori armor that does your bidding for the next hour. It has an IQ of 5 and can understand most simple commands. It’s point total cannot exceed 25% of a static point total (200 points).

Typical Casting: Greater Create Matter (6) + Lesser Create Mind (6) + Lesser Control Matter (5) + Duration, 1 hour (3) + Subject Weight, 300 lbs (3) + Summoned Being, 100% of static total (20). 129 energy (43×3).



Kinzoku Samurai
An animated suit of armor inhabited by a kami of metal.

ST: 12 HP: 20 Speed: 6.00
DX: 12 Will: 12 Move: 6
IQ: 5 Per: 12 Weight: 300 lbs.
HT: 12 FP: N/A SM: 0
Dodge: 10 Parry: 10 DR: 12 (Cannot Wear Armor)

Punch (14): 2d+3 crushing. Reach C.
Katana (16): 3d+11 cutting or 2d+6 impaling. Reach 1, 2.
Kick (12): 2d+4 crushing. Reach C, 1.

Traits: Automaton; Cannot Float; Cannot Learn; Combat Reflexes; Doesn’t Breathe; Doesn’t Eat or Drink; Doesn’t Sleep; Fragile (Unnatural); Immunity to Metabolic Hazards; Immunity to Mind Control; Immunity to Pain; Indomitable; Injury Tolerance (Homogenous; No Blood; No Eyes; No Neck); Lifting ST+8; Mute; Pressure Support 3; Reprogrammable; Sealed; Single-Minded; Striking ST+7 (Broadsword or Karate only); Striking Surface; Social Stigma (Monster; Valuable Property); Unfazeable; Unhealing (Total); Vacuum Support; Wealth (Dead Broke); Weapon Bond (Katana); Weapon Master (Katana).
Skills: Broadsword-14; Karate-14; Lifting-12.
Notes: Has an Eye and Neck hit locations, but no special vulnerabilities there. Neither has nor uses FP, but can burn HP for extra effort. Usually carries a very fine balanced katana. The golem’s massive armor is a part of it’s person (it’s a ¼ inch of steel) and cannot be worn by others (it was not constructed that way).

[DangerousThing]

Originally Posted by Ghostdancer

Lots of ways to do this, but I'll just put down two for you:

1). Guess. Find stats for something close to what you are animating and then ignore its ST/HP and derive that from the standard GURPS Update rules for how much a creature weighs. That is - ST = 2 x (cube root of weight in pounds). So a 1,000 lb. lion statue has stats similar to a lion (p. B456), but has a ST of 20. This is the quick and dirt method.

2) Plan ahead. If a caster is going to go around animating stuff, as him to have a few templates already written up. For that clay golem you mentioned, I highly suggest you take a look at Powers: Divine Favor - it's a damn useful book for more things than what it actually covers.

ROTFL!

Another way might be to treat HP as damage in the table. If you choose three dice of damage, you would roll them, and the results become the HP of the creature. I'm sure there is a table that would work for ST.

[Christopher R. Rice]

Originally Posted by DangerousThing

ROTFL!

Another way might be to treat HP as damage in the table. If you choose three dice of damage, you would roll them, and the results become the HP of the creature. I'm sure there is a table that would work for ST.

That might be doable, but I have no idea how it might work in game play. I suppose you could use Altered Traits, but that might get expensive for what you are doing...better to go with templates.

[PK]

Originally Posted by Ghostdancer

That might be doable, but I have no idea how it might work in game play. I suppose you could use Altered Traits, but that might get expensive for what you are doing...better to go with templates.

Yeah, charging for Subject Weight and then adding some sort of "hit point tax" like that seems like double-charging to me. If he animates a lion, it has the stats of a lion (p. B456) for free. If he animates a lion statue, then the GM might throw in Homogenous and DR 8-13 (Ablative/Semi-Ablative, see p. B559) as well.

Anything more than that should be paid for via Altered Traits; for example, if you want your animated lion to get +5 ST, then you add Altered Traits, ST+5 (50 energy).

[VulpesFulva]

I'm too lazy to do my calcs right now, but how do Ghostdancer's "Summoned" mods compare to "buying an ally with altered traits?"

And I'd presume this is also where a GM can tweak costs for magic rather easily.

After all the reference point total for Summons don't have to be based on the PC's starting point total.

If Reference Total > PC Starting Points;
then Monsters getting away from their summoners is a lot more dangerous.

Conversely, a GM can make the reference total lower if he wants to deprecate "summoning."

[Christopher R. Rice]

Originally Posted by VulpesFulva

I'm too lazy to do my calcs right now, but how do Ghostdancer's "Summoned" mods compare to "buying an ally with altered traits?"

Both ways are doable IMHO, but I like my way best, because, well, it works better in the long run.

Originally Posted by VulpesFulva

And I'd presume this is also where a GM can tweak costs for magic rather easily.

That's the idea.

Originally Posted by VulpesFulva

After all the reference point total for Summons don't have to be based on the PC's starting point total.

Yup.

Originally Posted by VulpesFulva

If Reference Total > PC Starting Points;
then Monsters getting away from their summoners is a lot more dangerous.

Very much so.

Originally Posted by VulpesFulva

Conversely, a GM can make the reference total lower if he wants to deprecate "summoning."

Yes. But keep in mind that this really only applies to "generic" beings or "lesser named" critters. I would not use these rules for Princes of Hell, Archangels, etc. That's a whole different set of parameters.

[Kalzazz]

I've used the 'Altered Traits - Ally' method with no problems arising due to it, it is an intuitive way of pricing stuff

For Clay Golems, there is a great clay golem template in Magic, so if you have Magic I would check it out (even if you don't use the spells and alchemy as written it is great inspiration for RPM stuff, but, the Alchemy seriously rocks and is awesome (though I admit to using hellishly blenderized house rules of course to combine RPK MyGURPS alchemy and Magic alchemy with my own insanities for PC alchemists, the rules as laid out in magic are fine and awesome for non PC stuff))

Hmmm, maybe I should actually try to type out my own blenderized Alchemical insanity sometime for attempted Pyramidification

The clay golem template in magic is 0 pts, which means you can combine it with anything else for a net 0pt change, so you can have clay golem lion, clay golem knight, clay golem whatever, convenience!

As a note, we use the static summon point value rule (with major Kudos to Ghostdancer for coming up with a cool name for it, because I could never come up with a good name for it myself), which, like any good houserule annoys everyone equally yay! We use static value = 250 (so that things match up with DF! I heartily recommend using 250 also so you can steal all the wonderful DF templates for things). Our characters actually are baseline 300pts (more with experience), so the static value is actually weaker than the PCs, but thats okay, because the PCs are well, PCs, and thus presumably tougher than generic mookling mages that the baseline is closer to representing or something (or some other handwavium, honestly, the 250 is picked purely to make it easy to use DF stuff)

On that topic, here is a spell one of my characters uses featuring clay golems

Terra Cotta Gaurd Squad
Greater Create Matter[6](),
Greater Create Mind[6](),
Lesser Control Magic[5]();
Subject Weight: 5 tons [6],
Duration: 1 week [9],
Altered Traits: 24 [24] (Ally Group, 10 25% clay golem Guards, Constantly).
Cost: 280
Clay Golem from Magic is 0pts, Gaurd template from DF Henchmen . . . . the create matter is also handling equipping them (though is going to be some brutal Armory rolls!) So before casting the spell the character likes to cast this other spell

Armoury Enlighten
Lesser Strengthen Mind[3]();
Subject Weight: 100 lbs. [2],
Duration: 30 minutes [2],
Bonus Or Penalty: Single: +4 [8] (Armoury).
Cost: 15

The character in question is a Junior Clerk of the Celestial Bureaucracy, and uses Bureaucracy VH as her sub for Thaumatology. Her charms look suspiciously like forms in triplicate


Heh, silly thing Ive now realized, that spell shouldn't have a subject weight, oops! Well, it illustrates silly mistakes in spellgen so is educational?