Help with a Construct

[Jacob]

I considered that. AC 13.

So let's look at how to get past that: How would you increase the AC of a Huge creature with no slots for items and no consistent form to armor?

What is giving the living sand AC 13? Natural Armor? Can't be DEX because you said it was 8, so...? If it is indeed natural armor, boosting that through feats/abilities/slotless magic items/etc. could help. Also, should you boost the WIS being a Monk could assist as well. Though I don't know if it's AC you need to be worried about. For a CR 5 creature, it has a lot of HP, so keeping it alive should be the focus. Artificer route seems the best option in that regard, reasons already stated.

I wonder what the hardness of Sand is?

Actually, that's a good question. How hard is sand to damage?

I'm of the assumption that because sand is already broken apart, it doesn't have any hardness like solids...but does the monster stat block say it has an DR (damage reduction), a living creature's equivalent?

Also, I believe this Awaken Sand spell is akin to the original Awaken, in that the newly intelligent creature is simply friendly to its creator? Be wary the construct won't necessarily follow its creator around like a servant.

 

[RUMBLETiGER]

The stats are figured as an Animated Object of huge size, so AC is -2 size, -1 DEX, +6 natural.

Awaken Sand is 1 level higher than the Awaken spell, but otherwise is much the same.

Regarding friendliness, it reads, in part, "You have no special empathy or connection with sand you awaken, although it serves you in specific tasks or endeavors if you communicate your desire to it." So, like a cohort, if you respect it's personhood, you'll likely have an ally.

As for Hardness, it doesn't say anywhere. The Sand Shaper PrC, however, says that the items created by the Sand Shape class ability have a hardness of 5, so I'd start there. This is also where I saw that functional armor could be made from Shapesand, something that should aid your construct.

 

[Grogg of the North]

If you cast Awaken Sand at a higher level, can you give it more HD?

Mage Armor can be cast on other targets, can you cast it on the golem?

Ask the DM if you can borrow an idea from Diablo 2. In D2, if you've summoned an iron golem you had to sacrifice an item first. The summoned golem gained the properties of the sacrificed item. Could you do something like that for your golem? Say, you sacrificed a +1 sword while creating your sand golem and in return your golem gained a +1 to hit and damage and could overcome DR/Magic? It's not cost effective but it never hurts to ask.

 

[Greenfield]

A 100% silly thought just came to me: I wonder if I can add the Feral template to the Sand Construct. That would give him some Natural Armor and a Fast Heal.

Yeah, ludicrous, but then so is having an animated landslide following my character around.

 

[VariSami]

“Feral creature” is an inherited template that can be added to any corporeal humanoid or monstrous humanoid (referred to hereafter as the base creature). A feral creature has all the base creature’s characteristics except as noted here."

No, sorry. It is both inherited and inapplicable to constructs. As I understand, you houserule a bit, though, and it might be justified as something of a wild spirit inheriting the sand or maybe magical experimentation.

 

[Greenfield]

I always could say it was made from wild sand (as opposed to the domesticated stuff).

No, I was joking. Or, to be more precise, I was completely serious when I said it was 100% ridiculous.

 

[Greenfield]

Okay, on a more serious note, presume I plan on advancing him/it as a cohort or hireling.

It's an 8 hit dice Animated Object, CR 5.

How do we translate that into levels? It makes a difference in how much Exp it needs to advance.

My gut says 8 hit dice equals 8 levels, since there's no "Character adjustment" listed. I know Pathfinder would go by CR and call him a 5th level PC/NPC.

 

[RUMBLETiGER]

Oh... but what if it was made of more-than-ordinary sand?
Blacksand would be sick. Engulf, kill, make more sand, grow the construct.

...anywho, I know you're asking for your specific, existing sand buddy. Defending weapons should boost AC as much as you'd need it to for as many defending weapons you can get. Were it a creature with limbs I could see limiting it to 2, however this is an amorphous creature that can grasp from any part of it's surface.

 

[Greenfield]

A similar idea was expressed in the "Bracers that Stack" thread a few days ago.

First problem is stacking Defending weapon effects. I don't think multiple AC bonuse stack if they're from the same source, even if they are "Unnamed" in type.

Second problem is that you have to declare the defensive use of the item "before you attack with it". So even if he could carry 33 Defending weapons, he can only attack with one of them (and he'd lack proficiency with even that.)

I'm thinking Ioun stones as an item he can use. The theme appeals to me, using stones to enhance an Earth subtype creature. Weapon and Armor crystals also seem to fit the flavor.

 

[Grogg of the North]

The Ioun Stones sound really neat, a bunch of gems orbiting around a walking pile of sand.

For advancing your sand golem, how is it going to gain levels? Is it your cohort? Do you need to perform some sort of ritual? Or is it merely a tool that you are using, like an animated skeleton or a magic sword?

I think what may be easiest is to just say that whenever you level/perform a ritual/scoop the litter that it gains a HD and when it gets enough it goes up a size category. Though skills may become an issue. Does it have any skills right now? If it can gain levels, I would say it's probably something like "Sand Golem 5". Rogue actually may be a good choice. Imagine a giant wave of sand leaping up out of the desert to swallow you up AND dealing sneak attack damage. Need to find a trap? The sand golem filters in around the floor edges until it can gum up the gears and they can't work.