Alchemistical Construct [Template]

[Avicenex]

Add some flavor to your friendly neighborhood construct, and a guardian to the mad alchemist down the street!

Alchemystical Construct
Alchemystical Constructs have had the magic that powers them augmented by various concoctions and fluids. They are much more versatile than other constructs.

Creating An Alchemystical Construct
"Alchemystical Construct" is an inherited template that can be added to any construct (referred to hereafter as the base creature).
An Alchemystical Construct uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here.

Size and Type
The creature’s type remains Construct. Size is unchanged. Do not recalculate base attack bonus or saves.

Speed
An Alchemystical Construct’s speed increases by 10ft.

Armor Class
As base creature.

Attack
As base creature.

Full Attack
As base creature.

Damage
The chemicals within an Alchemystical Construct produce a fiery substance the construct unleashes on an attack. All natural attacks do an additional 1d6 fire damage. Also, the construct’s natural weapons are treated as Silver for overcoming damage reduction.

Special Attacks
An Alchemystical Construct retains all the special attacks of the base creature and gains the following:

Breath Weapon (Su): Some of the substances in the Alchemystical Construct react to produce a rancid gas that dulls the nerves and wits of a foe. The Alchemystical Construct can as a free action unleash this gas once a day in a 30ft cone. Living creatures caught in it are poisoned. The primary and secondary damage are the same: 1d4 Dex and 1d4 Wis. The Fortitude save for the poison is charisma based.

Special Qualities
An Alchemystical Construct retains all the special qualities of the base creature and gains the following:
Alchemystical Constructs are immune to acid and fire.

Burst of Speed (Su): An Alchemystical Construct can increase its speed significantly. As a free action, it can activate haste for up to five rounds a day. These usages need not be consecutive. The construct can use up one round of haste in order to negate a slow spell on itself (if applicable).

Overcharge (Su): Once per day the Alchemystical Construct can excite the elixirs and alchemedical substances that power it, causing an large electrical discharge. Arcs of lightning strike any living creature within 40 feet, doing 1d6 electric damage for every five hit die the construct has. A reflex save (charisma based) halves this damage. This power has an adverse effect on the Alchemystical Construct, and deals it 2d6 untyped damage.

Annihilating Destruction (Ex): When the Alchemystical Construct is reduced to 0 or less hit points, the chemicals as elixirs within it explosively react. This destruction does 3d6 + 1d6 damage per five HD of the construct to everything within 30 feet. Half of this damage is fire, the other half is acid. A reflex save reduces this damage by half. The reflex save is charisma based.

Abilities
Increase from the base creature as follows: Str +6, Dex +4, Cha +2

Skills
An Alchemystical Construct gains skills as a construct.

Challenge Rating
Same as the base creature +2 (if 9 or less HD), +3 (for 10 or higher HD)

Edit: Changed name, death throes, CR, added +2 Cha bonus)

[alchemy.freak]

isn't it usually "alchemail" or "achemic" instead of "alchemistical"

[Vorpal Pete]

Maybe it's a portmanteau of alchemical and mystical. If so you should call it "alchemystical." Ooh...

It sounds cool... I'd like more info about them... are they filled with chemicals and have thick tubes and cables all over them, swollen with vile liquids? How do they make themselves go faster?

I think the challenge rating should go up more at low hit dice and less at high hit dice. Some energy damage attacks and bonus strength are a neat trick for an iron golem, but a devastating change to some little 2 or 3 HD construct. High level characters will hardly notice, but low level characters will be hard pressed to survive.

[Closet_Skeleton]

isn't it usually "alchemail" or "achemic" instead of "alchemistical"

You mean "Alchemical" I assume?

Unless I'm spelling it wrong as well which woud make me trippley stupid.

[Avicenex]

Since constructs are animated by magic and this template just augments that with alchemy, I thought I would combine "alchemy" with "mystical." Apparently "Alchemistical" is a real word that means "of or relating to alchemists," so I thought it was fine. Just so it's clear I might switch to "Alchemystical," since the name seems to have generated quite a bit of confusion.

Yeah, the CR is too low for low HD constructs, but it seemed logical to use the progression CR (where it gets higher with more HD) since one of the abilities grows in power with more HD. I'll tweak that though. Maybe +2 across the board... or playtest it and find it that way, but that would take this nasty thing called "effort." Meh.

As for what they look like, I think imagination can probably come up with something far better than I can. Also, it would probably vary from construct to construct. I'll see what I can do in that department too though...

[Fizban]

Reminds me, appropriately, of the Alchemical Golem. I'd suggest making the death throes damage scale with hit dice as well, and the save for the lightning arcs shouldn't be cha based, as most construct have 1 cha. Wisdom doesn't make much sense, but neither does strength...

[Avicenex]

Charisma is really the only attribute that makes sense to base the saves after. I'd like to use constitution.... but there's a small problem there. +2 Cha helps mitigate the low throw, and not all constructs have abysmal charisma.

Death throes is now scaled to HD as well, and I bumped the CR to a nicer number that seems reasonable until I have time to actually test it.

Description of alchemystical awesomeness forthcoming eventually...