This lumbering figure is sculpted from soft clay. It wears filthy rags and crude jewelry, and its face is only vaguely humanoid.

Sculpted from clay, this bulky golem stands head and shoulders taller than most human-sized creatures. It is human shaped, but its proportions are off.

Clay golems are often divinely endowed with purpose by priests of great faith. However, clay is a weak vessel for life force. If the golem is damaged, the elemental spirit bound into it can break free. Such a golem runs amok, smashing everything around it until it is destroyed or completely repaired.

The more rigid its physical form, the less likely the golem is to lose its sense of purpose. The clay ones can be a bit twitchy.

Clay Golem

Guardian of Home and Heart

Clay golems are magical defenders made from earth and clay to protect places or communities. The materials used in creating clay golems originate from near the location the golems protect and often have special significance to their creators, such as clay from a holy site or bricks from a magical ruin. While some clay golems are masterfully sculpted to resemble living beings, others have only vaguely humanlike forms.

These golems obey their creators' orders and protect what their makers value most. Some still follow these orders long after their creators' deaths. Roll on or choose a result from the Clay Golem Orders table to inspire the commands a clay golem follows.

A construct made of clay, weighing about 600 pounds

Clay golems are made of clay, naturally, and thus may be any natural clay color; generally, one is will be grayish in color, but common clay containing iron oxide may be used which results in a red, brown, or even orange clay golem. They are usually unclad, but some golem-makers choose to put a leather belt, girdle, or apron on their creation. A clay golem weighs about 600 pounds.

Man-shaped figure created from clay by a lawful good cleric

A clay golem is created through the following procedure: a lawful good cleric of at least 17th level (or a lower level cleric of same alignment using a magical tome written for such a process) creates a man-shaped figure out of clay and then undertakes an uninterrupted ritual involving material components worth no less than 20,000 gp, vestments and ritual items worth another 30,000 gp and the spells resurrection, animate object, commune, prayer and bless. A clay golem is under the direct command of its creator. It stands a 1% cumulative chance of possession by a spirit of chaotic evil alignment for each round the golem is in combat. The creator can never regain control if the golem is possessed. Once possessed, the golem will kill any nearby living thing starting with the closest creature and will haste itself if it has not already done so.