Rules For Creating Constructs

[Sear N. Rivers]

What are the rules for creating a construct as a Wizard? When looking at construct creatures I only see the GP price listed with them in their entry. Nothing explaining the process of actually making one.

[Weirdo]

Creating constructs works just like creating a magic item, using the Craft Construct feat.

Individual golems should have the specific construction requirements - see the stone golem.

CONSTRUCTION
Requirements Craft Construct, antimagic field, geas/quest, limited wish, symbol of stunning, creator must be caster level 14th; Skill Craft (sculpture) or Craft (stonemasonry) DC 19; Cost 55,000 gp

Sso to make this golem, you need a total of 55,000gp of raw materials (some of which is the actual stone), the four listed spells, and must have a caster level of 14+. Like normal for making magic items, you can skip the spells or the caster level requirement by adding 5 to the DC for each pre-requisite you lack. Crafting takes 55 days.

[kestral287]

For Constructs, the "creator must be caster level 14th" requirement can't be skipped.

Building & Modifying Constructs wrote:

Regardless, the creator must meet all item creation feats and minimum caster level requirements.

Not all Constructs have a minimum caster level requirement though.

[Weirdo]

Interesting, I'd missed that. Ultimate Magic? My first thought was that's not the intent - the normal item creation rules say that you "must" meet all prerequisites, but then say that you can skip them by taking +5 to the DC. However full context is aware of that:

Building Constructs wrote:

Like when crafting magic items, a creator with a sufficiently high skill bonus may ignore these requirements. Each missing requirement increases the Craft DC by 5. Regardless, the creator must meet all item creation feats and minimum caster level requirements.

Makes sense as an extra limiting factor given how powerful constructs can be - though it feels a bit like a stealth errata given that there's no indication in the Bestiary (where Craft Construct is found) that it doesn't work like other item creation feats where you can ignore caster level requirements.

[kestral287]

I'd never played PF before UM, but you may well be right on the stealth errata. Which... makes sense.

Every now and then we get those stories here of how X low-level character managed to make tons of money. Well, if X is a CL5 Wizard... make an Adamantine Golem*. He now has a CR19 beatstick that basically can't be killed. Everyone else, go ahead and respec your characters, your job is now to detect Pit traps and kill flying enemies.

*We won't question how he got +20 on his Spellcraft check to make that possible, even assuming he scrolled up the various spells.

Corner-casey as all hell, but I can see the reasoning. And there are other constructs without that limit, so he can still go animate a castle or something.