Funerary Golem Creature (CR +2)

Among many of the rich and powerful, and those with rich and powerful families and friends that wish to see their loved ones undisturbed after death, funerary golems are considered the last line of defense against tomb raiders, necromancers, and ghouls. While this occasionally causes problems for those left behind (a funerary golem doesn’t care if you didn’t MEAN to leave Uncle Basalt’s noble sigil in the casket when he passed away, it’s not letting you get it back), it also provides eternal protection with a guardian that does not age, starve, choke, or grow bored.

A funerary golem is built in the form of a sarcophagus, usually given an appearance matching the dead held within or a religious figure appropriate to the beliefs of the passed, into which a fully-sealed coffin (and in some cases up to three nested layers of coffins) are placed. Once the funerary golem is closed, it is designed to literally never open. Lead seals make the closure airtight, and the magic of the golem fuses the lid to the rest of its frame permanently. To access the remains within the golem need to not just be defeated, it must be smashed open. In extreme cases, smaller funerary golems (often funerary wood golems) are used as additional layers of protection and are sealed within the larger golem.

A funerary golem is passive until a resident corpse is placed within it, and the golem is shut forever. In most cases, a funerary golem does not react when other creatures enter the tomb it resides in as long as they make no effort to touch or effect the golem or its contents. For cultures where tombs are places of worship or offerings are made at them, the golem is often roped off for the safety of visitors. Of course another function of funerary golems is to entomb undead that defy permanent destruction, and these funerary golems are generally set to attack any creature that comes within 120 feet of them. In either case this instruction is set when the funerary golem receives its charge, and cannot be changed.

Creating a Funerary Golem Creature

Any golem can be a funerary golem.

CR: +2

Hit Dice: The funerary golem’s hit die do not change, but it does gain bonus hit points equal to its new CR total x2.

Attacks: A funerary golem has the same number of attacks at the base golem, though they may deal a different damage type depending on the form of the golem (slashing instead of bludgeoning, for example). It additionally gains a bite attack it can use whenever it takes a full attack action.

DR: A funerary golem does not gain DR, but if the base golem has it the value of the DR is increased by +3.

Save DCs: The save DC of any spell, spell-like ability, or supernatural ability the funerary golem has increases by +1.

Feats: A funerary golem gains improved Disarm as a bonus feat, though it can only use it with a bite attack.

Special Abilities: The funeral golem gains the following special abilities.

Ethereal Tomb (Su): A funerary golem’s physical form extends into the ethereal plane, as if it was a force effect. Teleportation, etherealness, and even being incorporeal do not allow a creature to bypass the physical form of a funerary golem, even after it has been deactivated. Only cracking its shell, exposing its interior to the air, causes this effect to end.

Immobile (Su): A funerary golem cannot be moved against its will by any force when it is in its assigned tomb. This includes telekinesis, teleportation, plane travel, and even bull rush. Funerary golems rarely leave their assigned tombs, though they will do so if it is the only way to protect their contents.

Involuntary Offering: Whenever the funerary golem succeeds at a bite attack against a foe, it can immediately make a disarm combat maneuver as a free action. If the maneuver is successful, the disarmed object may be swallowed, becoming part of the golem’s contents. The golem does not swallow anything that would clearly damage its existing contents.

Undead Bane: All of a funerary golems attacks act as if they had the bane magic weapon ability against undead. Additionally, the gain a favored enemy bonus (as the ranger class feature) equal to 1/3 the golem’s final CR against undead, clerics with the death domain, and anyone who has ever taken anything of value from a formal tomb or grave.

Construction

Creating a funerary golem takes more effort than creating a typical golem of the same type. All materials used in a funerary golem’s construction cost 10% more than for a standard golem, and additional incenses and oils costing 100 gp per CR of the final golem also be used. In addition to the standard spells, creating a funerary golem requires casting deathwatch and gentle repose, both once each day. If the golem has a final CR of 13 or higher, death to undeath must also be cast once.