unseenmage
2015-09-09, 03:51 PM
Constructs with souls. How do they get them? Why should you give them to them? Why not?
Basically it has been a curiosity of mine for some time to infuse souls into Constructs. The purpose of this thread is to discuss the pros and cons of putting souls into Constructs. And the how if we feel like it.
Do Constructs get souls?
What if they gain free will?
What if they already have free will when they're created?
What if they're magically made flesh and blood and alive?
What about the children of such living Construct people?
Do the souls of Constructs go somewhere different after death?
Can a deity just randomly cram a soul into a Construct for fun, granting it an afterlife instead of oblivion?
The above are the questions I've been pondering for a while.
More mechanically interesting than they would at first appear since souls can be evil currency, and there are magics that interact with souls, etc.
And yes I realize the answers are mostly, 'Ask your DM.' Not interested in that answer. More interested in discussion and conjecture.
If you can think of some other good ones I'll add them to the list.
Animated Soul Container
The spells Trap the Soul (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/trapTheSoul.htm) and Soul Bind (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/soulBind.htm) and their ilk don't necessarily make a Magic Item. As such the gem could theoretically be Animated via the spells Animate Objects (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/animateObjects.htm) or Minor Servitor (SS). Thinaun Steel (CWa136) is a special weapon material that also traps souls and Special Materials are explicitly non-magical.
Using the above we can make a Construct that technically houses a soul. I like the idea of using Shapesand or similar to give it a body and adding Livewood (Eberron special material, wood objects made from it are alive) so that it detects as a living thing.
Polymorph
Simply use the brute force method (aka a Wizard) to change a living person with a soul into a Construct. Do it right and the change is permanent even.
Incarnate Construct
Much like the above but in reverse, we take a Construct and make it a living thing. Nothing in the spell description gives the new humanoid or giant a soul though.
I do wonder, would the children of these creatures get souls the normal way? One assumes so. Though an entire race or royal lineage who are alive but soulless could be... interesting.
Divine Intervention
Could a make a Construct into a 'real boy' by using their deific might to cram a soul into said Construct? Could they do it in such a way that the soul is incorporated like that of a living creature's?
Probably. Very likely even. Especially if the plot demands it.
Incarnum
Soulstuff in Construct form or a construct with a soul? Probably the former as the latter would be more akin to the Warforged of Eberron.
Warforged
Some text says they don't go anywhere when they die, other text says they are alive and have souls. Yet other text would imply that they are merely on the cusp of developing a divinity to worship and with it souls and an afterlife.
Haunting
Assuming there are incorporeal undead that are the restless souls of the dead we could probably get one of them to inhabit/haunt a Construct. Viola, soul in a Construct. Sort of.
The above are just me spitballing really. Plot hooks and character backgrounds galore, but little useful info I'm afraid. Anything I missed? Ideas of your own? Feel free to share. i'm always looing for more Construct related material to work with.
Eventually I want to put together a thread that lists all the references to souls and uses for souls from all the books and magazines and web articles. Eventually.
I suspect that knowing what souls are good for in the gameworld will inform me about this thread.
Basically it has been a curiosity of mine for some time to infuse souls into Constructs. The purpose of this thread is to discuss the pros and cons of putting souls into Constructs. And the how if we feel like it.
Do Constructs get souls?
What if they gain free will?
What if they already have free will when they're created?
What if they're magically made flesh and blood and alive?
What about the children of such living Construct people?
Do the souls of Constructs go somewhere different after death?
Can a deity just randomly cram a soul into a Construct for fun, granting it an afterlife instead of oblivion?
The above are the questions I've been pondering for a while.
More mechanically interesting than they would at first appear since souls can be evil currency, and there are magics that interact with souls, etc.
And yes I realize the answers are mostly, 'Ask your DM.' Not interested in that answer. More interested in discussion and conjecture.
If you can think of some other good ones I'll add them to the list.
Animated Soul Container
The spells Trap the Soul (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/trapTheSoul.htm) and Soul Bind (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/soulBind.htm) and their ilk don't necessarily make a Magic Item. As such the gem could theoretically be Animated via the spells Animate Objects (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/animateObjects.htm) or Minor Servitor (SS). Thinaun Steel (CWa136) is a special weapon material that also traps souls and Special Materials are explicitly non-magical.
Using the above we can make a Construct that technically houses a soul. I like the idea of using Shapesand or similar to give it a body and adding Livewood (Eberron special material, wood objects made from it are alive) so that it detects as a living thing.
Polymorph
Simply use the brute force method (aka a Wizard) to change a living person with a soul into a Construct. Do it right and the change is permanent even.
Incarnate Construct
Much like the above but in reverse, we take a Construct and make it a living thing. Nothing in the spell description gives the new humanoid or giant a soul though.
I do wonder, would the children of these creatures get souls the normal way? One assumes so. Though an entire race or royal lineage who are alive but soulless could be... interesting.
Divine Intervention
Could a make a Construct into a 'real boy' by using their deific might to cram a soul into said Construct? Could they do it in such a way that the soul is incorporated like that of a living creature's?
Probably. Very likely even. Especially if the plot demands it.
Incarnum
Soulstuff in Construct form or a construct with a soul? Probably the former as the latter would be more akin to the Warforged of Eberron.
Warforged
Some text says they don't go anywhere when they die, other text says they are alive and have souls. Yet other text would imply that they are merely on the cusp of developing a divinity to worship and with it souls and an afterlife.
Haunting
Assuming there are incorporeal undead that are the restless souls of the dead we could probably get one of them to inhabit/haunt a Construct. Viola, soul in a Construct. Sort of.
The above are just me spitballing really. Plot hooks and character backgrounds galore, but little useful info I'm afraid. Anything I missed? Ideas of your own? Feel free to share. i'm always looing for more Construct related material to work with.
Eventually I want to put together a thread that lists all the references to souls and uses for souls from all the books and magazines and web articles. Eventually.
I suspect that knowing what souls are good for in the gameworld will inform me about this thread.