Name:
Clang (a name he assumes early after his awakening – he cannot remember his original name)
Race:
Construct
Description:
Clang appears as an unusual, hulking suit of armour about two meters tall and almost as wide. He is roughly humanoid in shape, although his massive shoulders make him appear hunched over. A few mechanical workings can be seen a handful of his joints, but most of his body is otherwise covered with metal plating. Small jets of steam occasionally escape from between his joints, though mostly when he is very physically active.
His entire body is made of metal, consisting primarily of thick slabs of iron, copper and bronze – not surprisingly, this means that Clang weighs a lot. Some parts of the metal, particularly across his shoulders and back, are inscribed with runes, but they are pretty much indecipherable. Corrosion of various types covers most of Clang’s body – a sign of long years spent buried in the desert.
Clang’s ‘face’ is incapable of expression, but he does have a large hinged mouth that is capable of moving. A faint blue light emanates from within his otherwise hollow helmet, causing his eyes and mouth to emit a soft glow.
Somewhere in the depths of Clang’s chest is a hidden furnace, the source of his animation. Whatever it is, it must be a device of spectacular complexity and efficiency, and most likely magical to some degree – it is somehow able to power and animate Clang with a comparatively small amount of fuel.
The source of Clang’s ability to think and feel is unknown, but is most likely a combination of mysterious machinery and some type of long-forgotten sorcery.
Background:
Whoever created Clang – and how, and why – remain a mystery for now. It is obvious that he is very old, and likely created before the current age. Unfortunately, there are few clues as to his origins, and Clang cannot remember them himself.
Clang was found, apparently inactive, in a desert dig by an enterprising trader and tomb robber. He was transported from the desert to the trader’s storeroom in a nearby town.
Although the trader originally thought Clang to be a bizarre suit of armour, he quickly discovered there was no actual way to climb into the thing. The trader called in a scholar friend to help identify the strange device, and the scholar concluded that it was some sort of a machine. The scholar then surmised that the machine could be fuelled via dropping coal into its open ‘mouth’, and he promptly dropped in a few chunks just to demonstrate. However, when asked how to start the furnace, the scholar merely shrugged – there did not seem to be any clear way to access it without dismantling the whole machine. The trader, irritated, left Clang sitting in the middle of the storeroom as he went to attend other matters.
That night, however, Clang’s furnace started entirely on its own. Creaking loudly, shaking off flakes of rust and corrosion, he thudded forward to the nearby fireplace and mindlessly gorged himself on the coal pile there.
The trader, awakened by the racket, dashed into the storeroom, only to behold the mechanical horror moving of its own accord. In a panic, he fired his pistol at the construct, throwing sparks and cutting a deep groove into Clang’s shoulder. In turn, Clang gave of a hollow roar of pain and fear, rose to his feet, and sprinted away as fast as his mechanical legs would carry him – smashing through the storeroom wall in the process.
Two days of running have now passed, and Clang’s limbs are gradually growing heavy again...
Personality:
Clang’s personality is still largely unformed. He can think, and he can speak simple words, but he knows very little of the world around him. He is very much afraid and alone, and would like nothing more than a friend or two to guide him. His memory has abandoned him, and he can remember nothing prior to his most recent awakening.
However, there does seem to be an additional layer to his personality – a hidden failsafe subsystem designed to ensure his survival. This system seems to keep tabs on his inner workings, and when needed, will take over control of Clang’s body to ensure he remains functional.
Abilities and Needs:
Clang is a rather unusual being and has some unusual abilities and needs.
Clang does not need to eat or sleep in the normal sense of the words – however, he does need fuel in order to run. The furnace is his chest is almost supernaturally efficient, and he can run for several days with a modicum of fuel. However, if he does not ‘eat’ occasionally, he may end up shutting down. In case he does shut down, manually feeding him additional fuel seems to be sufficient to ‘reawaken’ him... once his furnace mysteriously fires itself back up.
His preferred ‘foods’ are fuels, such as coal, but he can eat basically anything that burns – including organic matter if needed. What he eats will likely have a significant effect on his energy output.
The amount of power Clang consumes depend on his actions. If he is merely standing idle, he consumes almost no power – however, if he is moving quickly or performing other arduous tasks, his fuel will be consumed much faster.
Clang sometimes also manifests the desire to ‘eat’ metal. This seems to help repair damage to his armour and inner workings, although how exactly this works isn’t clear.
Due to his size, Clang is not able to use weapons made for humans, elves, dwarves orcs or halflings. His fingers are much too big to wrap around the trigger of a gun, and rapiers and halberds seem rather puny in his massive hands. Of course, if someone were to forge a weapon specifically for him, that would be a different story.
Lastly, as one would expect of a two-metre tall metal golem, Clang possesses phenomenal physical strength and considerable resistance to damage.
Equipment:
Nothing. Clang has only just awakened and has not yet found anything to carry with him. His body does contain a few hinged storage compartments where he could carry items (or fuel), but they currently contain only sand.
Armour:
Clang is basically a walking suit of heavy armour – for obvious reasons, he cannot really wear any other armour.
Weapons:
In addition to his rather massive fists, Clang also carries a huge metal mace in a compartment in his leg – however, he does not know about it yet.
