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DF Suggestions / Re: The ancient art of Golem making.
« on: December 05, 2012, 10:36:58 pm »Well, I did just describe a way to make many kinds of golems, unless you mean like animal ones or something?1. No, many ways to make golems.
Also, I don't think DF is limited to literary conventions of the past.
2. Maybe not, but don't deny that DF is based heavily on fantasy literature, and that most works with golems include them going haywire.
Another way to make Golems rare could be the following :The general idea is good, but I'm not sure about the water and magma bit.
Lets say they are half mechanical, half magic ( I'm not into the original Golem idea, it reminds me a lot too much of stone trolls or similar, I view Golems more like bit less powerful and more sentient as this : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bg5SLBapMiI
First, you would have to build a Golem ( be it via mood, as a normal item, etc). Used materials set the Golems base values ( strength, agility, whatever fits).
Second, you need the three "Power-components" : Water, Magma, Soul. Water and Magma (not fuel, just needs to be added once) are the mechanical Power part and the soul makes the Golem sentient. In 0.34.11 the only possibility to get a Golem into Lava would be to put it into a minecart or cage and submerge it. As for the soul part .... not really sure how to achieve this, but maybe it could be a good possibility to get rid of ghosts
This simply would make Golem creation need extensive micromanagement, infrastructure and rare resources.
Some note on my line of thought : The Golems I suggest would pretty much be "Extra Dwarves", since they have a soul and therefore they couldn't be tasked directly, but would take jobs from the queue like everyone else. They should have "skill" according to their quality level and since they are highly specialized (when there's more than one type) the should be prioritized when the jobs are given out. That also means they do "Golem stuff" when not on a job, which will be most likely hanging out. But since thy have a soul they should have some preferences for funsies, so they don't just stand around all time.
Maybe a useful golem could need a different trinity: Substance, Strength, and Soul.
Substance is what makes up the golem, the physical form. Say, a statue or suit of armor.
Strength is what lets the golem move. It might be magic or mechanical.
Soul is what lets the golem live, and would probably be the biggest difference between golem-making traditions.