Van Richten's Monster Hunter's.pdf - Askadesign.com

The woo( golem introduced here is
not the Rav enloft doll golem. The
latter creatL ire is a toy that may or
may not be made of wood. (Most doll
golems, in f ‘act, are stuffed animals or
dolls of mix ed materials.)
Wood go1 ems do not bite or cause
their victim: i to laugh uncontrollably,
as doll golei ns can. However, the creatures
do bot 1st an unusual splintering
attack. By s mashing a limb against a
solid object, a wood golem can cause
Id4 large SF ,linters to fly from its body
(range 10 fc :et). If a splinter hits its
target, it bui .rows into the flesh, causing
ld4 poir its of damage per round
until removf :d. Further, unlike doll
golems, wo( 2d golems are not siouied
by the war6 ) wood spell. In fact, the
creatures ci in themselves warp wood,
three times per day.
which foe yo, u’ve encountered, I
suggest you examine the head. In all
likelihood, th e straw golem born of
obsession wil II be constructed solely of
straw, thougt I the material may be
stuffed into c lothing. In contrast, the
evil scarecro w’s head will almost
assuredly be a pumpkin or gourd.
Truth surely i is stranger than fiction, is
it not?
Wood
The time-hor iored skill of woodcarving
continues to be a common practice in
villages and i :owns throughout the land.
Most carvers use this skill to create
items rangiy 3 from the most practical
of bowls to tt ie most fanciful of
sculptures. U nfortunately, I have heard
that some ca rvers have turned this
same skill to’ ward the creation of wood
golems.
Although F vood golems tend to be
smaller in stt iture than most, they are
still vicious o pponents and should not
be discounte, d in combat. Some wood
golems are s aid to have a painful
splintering at tack in which they drive
Most wood golems can only be
struck by weapons of +2 or better
enchantment. If the golem is
constructed of petrified wood,
however, a +3 weapon or better is
required. Magical fire attacks cause
double damage. Additionally, these
golems suffer twice the usual amount
of damage from magically
summoned insects (summon swarm,
for example). Golems made from
ironwood are slowed for 3 rounds by
electrical attacks.
Golern, Wood: AL N; AC 6; MV 12;
HD 12; THACO 8; #AT 2; Dmg
2d8/2d8; SA splinters: SD +2 or
better weapon to hit; MR Nil; SZ M;
ML 20; XP 6,000. Str 19; Dex 18;
Con 20, lnt 9; Wis 2; Cha 7.
wickedly pointed shards of wood into
the victim’s flesh. The shards
supposedly work inward, towards the
victim’s heart, inflicting additional
damage upon the sufferer.
Compilers’ Note: Since DK Van
Richten wrote the aboue text, he
continued to collect stories regarding
golems made ofother, unusual
materials. Since his disappearance, we
haue collated these sparse notes into
the follouing list. We haue not, yet,
been able to determine the degree of
truth behind these “new” creatures,
thus at present, we haue no concrete
details on the gargoyle, doll, zombie, or
mechanical golem.
LWF
be found in the collected
MONSTROUS COMPENDIUM^
Appendices I & II (TSR #02162).
e. 3