Golems' Immunity to Magic

[Tyger]

Can an awakened golem (awakened via the Awaken Construct spell) lower its immunity to magic, much as a creature with spell resistance can lower their resistance?

Specifically, could a golem use an item like a Cloak of Displacement to gain the benefits thereof?

[TheOOB]

Nope, golems are immune to any spell that allows spell resistance, which includes most useful buff spells. There are however a fair number of buff and healing spells specifically for constructs that just happen to not allow spell resistance that can be used.

If you are running a golem character, I may suggest homebrewing a feat that allows you to lower your immunity.

[Jasdoif]

The FAQ has a big entry on this.


The entries for all the golems in the Monster Manual say that golems have magic immunity, which is supposed to allow golems to completely resist most magical and supernatural effects except for specific ones listed in each golem’s description. (Most of those heal, slow, or damage the golem.) Can you cast beneficial spells on a golem? For example, can you turn a golem invisible? Can you teleport one? Could you cast darkness on a golem? How about fly or reverse gravity? To put it another way, if you are not trying to directly cause damage or drastically alter the golem (such as with polymorph), will the spell work? Clearly, if you cast darkness on yourself and the golem attacks you, once it moves into the area of darkness, it can no longer see you. But can you cast darkness on the golem? Could a golem use a magic item, such as a ring of invisibility?

As noted in each golem’s entry, a golem resists any spell or spell-like ability that allows spell resistance. (In previous versions of the D&D game, golems were impervious to most supernatural effects as well, but that is no longer the case.) In most cases, you can tell if a spell or spell-like ability works on a golem simply by looking up its spell resistance entry. Let’s take a quick look at the effects you’ve listed:

Invisibility: You cannot turn a golem invisible with any version of the invisibility spell. (They all have spell resistance entries of “yes.”) This immunity to being made invisible doesn’t mean the golem has any special ability to see or detect invisible creatures or objects.

Teleport: The spell resistance entry for the various versions of the teleport spell is “no,” at least for creatures. Note that when you’re using the teleport spell, you teleport yourself and other willing creatures. Unless you can command the golem (and you probably don’t unless you created the golem), it probably isn’t willing to accompany you and receives a saving throw to resist.

Darkness: You can’t cast a darkness spell on yourself, on a golem, or any other creature—only on an object (see the spell description). Golems have no special ability to see through darkness (and the spell resistance entry is “no”). The silence spell provides a better example of how a golem’s magic immunity (and spell resistance in general) works. You can cast silence on a creature, and when you do so, spell resistance applies (see the spell description). A silence spell automatically fails if you try to cast it on a golem.

Once a silence spell is operating, silence reigns throughout the emanation the spell creates. If a golem moves into the emanation, the golem still cannot hear or make any noise.

Fly: You can’t use a fly spell to make a golem fly (the spell resistance entry is “yes”).

Reverse Gravity: The spell resistance entry is “no,” so it affects a golem as readily as it affects any other creature or object.

Note that a golem cannot voluntarily lower its magic immunity so that it can receive a harmless spell, but a golem’s magic immunity does not extend to magic the golem uses on itself (just as spell resistance doesn’t apply to such effects). A golem can make use of any magic item that works continuously or is use activated (provided whoever commands the golem is on hand to put the item on the golem or order the golem to pick it up). Being mindless, a golem cannot use any item activated by command, spell, or spell completion.

[Mr. Friendly]

So then the Golem in question could use a Cloak of Displacement, Lesser but not Greater, based on the FAQ.

[Jack Mann]

Of course, if they had spell immunity, instead of magic immunity, then they would be able to lower it.

Which brings up the question of why they bothered putting spell immunity in the back of the book, if they weren't going to give it to anything.

[Tyger]

Note that a golem cannot voluntarily lower its magic immunity so that it can receive a harmless spell, but a golem’s magic immunity does not extend to magic the golem uses on itself (just as spell resistance doesn’t apply to such effects). A golem can make use of any magic item that works continuously or is use activated (provided whoever commands the golem is on hand to put the item on the golem or order the golem to pick it up). Being mindless, a golem cannot use any item activated by command, spell, or spell completion.

The above bolded quote from Jasdoif's FAQ find (thanks by the way!) would seem to indicate that an Awakened Golem could indeed use any magical item, even if the spell said item casts or uses would ordinarily not be castable on a golem. Or am I misreading that part?

And thus, if one was really crazy, you could make a golem wizard (who's buffs actually work on themself)... at least, that's how I read that anyway.

[Fighteer]

Yes, presumably if you could find some way to make a golem spellcaster, it would be able to buff itself, as it is not subject to its own magic immunity. At least that's how I interpret it.

[Jasdoif]

The above bolded quote from Jasdoif's FAQ find (thanks by the way!) would seem to indicate that an Awakened Golem could indeed use any magical item, even if the spell said item casts or uses would ordinarily not be castable on a golem. Or am I misreading that part?That's pretty much what it says; the easiest way to think of the magic immunity is that the golem has infinite SR, with some specific exceptions. The spell would have to be able to affect a nonliving creature of the Construct type, of course.

[Tyger]

Excellent! That's good news for the planned adventure. Gracias to all.

[Jack Mann]

Pity golems can't be awakened, though. *Points to SR: Yes entry on Awaken Construct*

[Kyeudo]

Stone Golems hit with a Stone to Flesh spell lose their Magic Immunity. You can, through a ridiculous process, create a character that is a Mind Switched Stone Golem Telepath, should you wish to.

So a Stone to Flesh followed by an Awaken Construct spell would produce an Awakened Stone Golem.

[Tyger]

The awakened part I am not worried about. That's already covered by story, and wild magic. It was what happened after that I wanted to be RAW.