playable constructs

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Be a fiend of possession or a ghost and possess an object? If you're also a psion or have a psychoactive skin of proteus, use your status as an object/construct to become an animated object and pretend to be a haunted marionette (which actually IS a haunted marionette).

[Blue Jay]

Savage Species Flesh Golem Monster Class at whatever level the other PCs are at (4?).

But be aware that sticking to its official printed LA is going to be worse than playing a Commoner. Since the printed rules here simply don't work as they are meant to, you may be amenable to rebalancing them if its going to help add workable content into your game...

I personally balance Monster races to the LA reassignment thread rating, because I've seen a few unplayable monster PCs at my tables after sticking faithfully to WotC's (mostly horrible) printed LA's, and I LIKE people swimming against the current with character builds. The LA reassignment thread considers a Flesh Golem character to be weaker than its 9HD, rather than requiring the extra SIX level adjustment that Savage Species thinks it needs.

So, if it were me, I'd probably start them with a free construct HD (letting them be pretty tanky at level 1 - which a golem should be), and then let them progress through the remaining 7 HD as normal, and just see what happens from there. Or at the very least, I'd give them an extra feat by considering their race choice as a "flaw".

I made progressions for just about all of the monsters from MM and MM3, using the Reassigned LAs (only monsters with ECL 4 or higher are included, though). I haven't converted them to Playground format yet, so they're still just sitting at Myth-Weavers at the moment. But you're welcome to use them.

I feel like the golems make a fair amount of sense here, because they're fairly simple and generic; though they might not be very fun to play, mechanically; and the Magic Immunity might be something you'd want to pay attention to. My progressions give the golems Spell Resistance, until it becomes immunity at the last level of the progression. Also, for clay and flesh golems, don't enforce the Berserk quality, or at least reduce the severity of it, because that's just mean.

Another option is to just let the player use the statistics of a Medium animated object (2 HD). Just give it an Intelligence score, probably reduce the Wis and Cha penalties, and say it's a statue (or something else humanoid-shaped) that can wield weapons. If you're nervous about the immunities and the Hardness quality being disruptive to your game, give it LA +1.

[newguydude1]

It doesn't really make any sense to suppose a Dustform Creature hired someone to cast Awaken Construct on him. I mean, Dustform Creatures are mindless... and mute... and blind. Lots of challenges to overcome.

thats not how it works. mindless creatures dont have sentience. so the moment someone casts awakening on the dustform creature is when the player first sees his pc.

[ShurikVch]

Soulfused Construct (MoI)? LA +1

[Mechalich]

Bladelings (MMII, LA +1) are outsiders, but they have a lot of superficial commonalities with constructs. Covered in metal, oily black blood, no actual need to eat. A bladeling that got transported to the Prime Material more or less immediately after their 'birth' (Bladelings manifest from shards of razor ice primed in the forest that surrounds their city on Acheron), might erroneously believe they were a construct. Thought I'd offer that as a possible workaround.

[Particle_Man]

Soulfused Construct (MoI)? LA +1

Wait, how does the LA +1 work if the template is attached to constructs that have no intelligence score and are not already living constructs? +1 to what, exactly? Won't the base constructs with no intelligence score have LA --, rather than LA 0?

[rel]

An easy and often overlooked approach is to make a custom creature with powers, LA and backstory tailored to the player and table.

[Segev]

I understand wa forged do not exist for world setting reasons. Is there a reason some other unique construct that uses warforged stats but doesn't look like them nor use their fluff would not work?

What are the setting limitations on what a construct can be, and what does the player want out of being a construct for his concept? "Being a construct" is almost as broad as "being an elf."

[Anthrowhale]

I'd suggest creating a monster progression for Maugs so they can start at 4th level, then take one more level of Maug.

There's quite a bit in the Fiend Folio about Maugs giving them backstory, and they are a solid melee race even with the LA+3 penalty. They have:

Construct type (and extraplanar subtype)
Large size
Natural Armor+7
SR 14
Str+10, Dex+4, Con---, Int+2, Cha+2
Special Ability: Rapid Repair (1hp/hour), Outsider skills for racial HD, Craft(Stonemasonry)+4, Knowledge(Architecture&Engineering)+4, Pulverize(Su) 3/day negate hardness for 1d4 rounds, access to Maug grafts
Bonus Feat: Alertness

Overall, it seems like an LA+3 penalty is pretty appropriate. You could easily shave it down to LA+2 by removing large size and going with:
Construct type (and extraplanar subtype)
Medium size
Natural Armor+5
SR 14
Str+2, Dex+6, Con---, Int+2, Cha+2
Special Ability: Rapid Repair (1hp/hour), Outsider skills for racial HD, Craft(Stonemasonry)+4, Knowledge(Architecture&Engineering)+4, Pulverize(Su) 3/day negate hardness for 1d4 rounds, access to Maug grafts
Bonus Feat: Alertness

Relative to a PHB handbook half-orc (for example), this would have a much higher AC, but lower to-hit and a penalty of 2 to all skills. Once 5th level is reached, the to-hit and damage become superior to a half-orc, but the Maug is missing a feat and 3 ranks in skills.

[ShurikVch]

a better thing to do is to homebrew your own maug monster class. seems so much better than homunculus.

That's strongly depends on: what, exactly, you're hoping to achieve by playing a construct?

If it's a beefy warrior which is immune to most of SoD/SoS effects - then yes, Maug is superior

But if it's a nimble skillmonkey which is impervious to poisons, able to squeeze through gaps which are barely big enough for a cat - then Homunculus is, obviously, better (especially considering the speed)

But, if all they need from the Construct is "LOL! ROBOT!" - then anything will work (maybe, not even a Construct at all - as long as its looks "metallic" enough)

Wait, how does the LA +1 work if the template is attached to constructs that have no intelligence score and are not already living constructs? +1 to what, exactly? Won't the base constructs with no intelligence score have LA --, rather than LA 0?

Dustform Creature template (Sandstorm) makes base creature Mindless, but gives it LA +2
Thus, Dustform Creature is a legal variant for playable Soulfused Construct

[Doctor Despair]

Of note, isn't there an Incarnum template for constructs that gives negative 2 LA somehow?

[Particle_Man]

Dustform Creature template (Sandstorm) makes base creature Mindless, but gives it LA +2
Thus, Dustform Creature is a legal variant for playable Soulfused Construct

Well then I guess a Soulfused Dustform Human would work? It could even have a single class level in something. That seems to fit the OP's criteria. Might be a little weak with 1 HD at level 4, but thats Level Adjustment for you. Maybe the LA could be bought off later.

https://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/r...djustments.htm

[PoeticallyPsyco]

Probably the easiest solution is to pick one of the constructs that the LA Assignment Threads have done, giving you a theoretically viable LA for (at the very least) all the ones in the MM. That is definitely homebrew, but should be relatively balanced and fair.

If that's not on the table, then of the other options mentioned so far, the Modrun seems the best from a mechanical (heh) standpoint.

There's also Mechanatrix from the Fiend Folio, which is like a construct in the way a Tiefling is like a fiend. LA +0, I think, though that may be for Lesser Mechanatrix.

[Kelb_Panthera]

Awakened human effigy (CAr).

It's got one construct HD and assigning a level adjustment via SS guidelines should be fairly trivial.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Awakened human effigy (CAr).

It's got one construct HD and assigning a level adjustment via SS guidelines should be fairly trivial.

What would an awakened dvati effigy be like? I mean, you'd lose all of your special qualities but keep the special attacks which require at least one special ability to function.