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Within the world of the Dungeons & Dragonsfantasyrole-playing game, construct is a type of creature, or "creature type". Constructs are either animated objects, or any artificially constructed creature.
Most construct are mindless automatons, obeying their creator's commands absolutely, which makes them unbribable and absolutely trustworthy, although some of them are very literal-minded about the execution of their duties, obeying orders to the letter without any concern for their intent. There are exceptions to this rule, however. Certain constructs, such as Inevitables, are every bit as intelligent as mortal creatures.
As they lack a metabolism, constructs have a wide array of immunities to frailties and effects that would affect creatures of flesh and blood, such as poison, fatigue, exhaustion, disease or various special attacks and magical effects related to draining a creature's life energy (ability drain, level drain, death effects, etc.). As most constructs lack functional internal organs (their animating force does not require any) they are immune to critical hits and forms of damage targeting a creature's weak spots (such as a rogue's sneak attack).
Constructs are almost always created by an intelligent creator, typically a wizard, sorcerer or cleric, though some are created by other character classes or spellcasting monsters. Creating a specific kind of construct begins with the creation of body, made by either the creator himself or a hired craftsman. Construct bodies can be made from wildly different materials, from clay to copper and bone to cadavers. The next part of the process is a ritual requiring the casting of specific spells to bind a spirit of some kind (typically an elemental drawn from the Inner Planes) into the body and imbuing it motion and special abilities.
The creation methods for certain constructs are unknown, or might require much more stringent requirements. Warforged, for example, can only be created with the help of specific artifacts, the creation forges.
Animated objects
Animated objects come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. They owe their existence to spells such as animate objects and similar supernatural abilities.[1]
Originating from the neutral plane of Mechanus, an inevitable's sole purpose is to enforce the laws of the universe.[2]
Shield Guardian
A massive conglomeration of stone, wood, and metal, shield guardians are the size of an ogre and resemble stick figures with stony appendages. They act as bodyguards to spellcasters, protecting their masters with spells and stamina.[3]
Automaton
Automatons are built for labor or war. Superficially similar to a golem, they are built with clockwork parts and animated by means of powerful shadow magic.[4]
Bogun
Boguns are small nature servants created by druids. Like a homunculus, it is a direct extension of its creator. It resembles a vaguely humanoid mound of compost.[5]
The golem-like bronze serpents were first seen in tropical lands, serving as guardians to temples of the gods they resemble. They appear as 20-foot-long (6.1m) serpents made of articulated bronze rings and with impressive fangs armed with electricity instead of venom.[6]
Cadaver collector
The Cadaver collector appeared in Monster Manual III. They resemble giants made from stone, with jagged metal armor binding them at such points as the head, the hands, the feet, the knees and the arms. Sharp red spikes protrude from this armor.
Cadaver collectors dwell in battlegrounds, and typically emerge from dormancy after a great fight has taken place. They are known as cadaver collectors for a grisly purpose; they pick up the corpses of the recently defeated, and impale them on the spikes on their armor. In other words, they collect cadavers. Older Cadaver collectors become completely covered in corpses, blood, bone, torn clothing and such, and really are a most grotesque sight.
Clockwork Horror
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Dread Guard
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Golems are perhaps the most archetypal type of construct, having been a part of the Dungeons & Dragons game from its very earliest incarnation.
Loosely based on both the famous Jewish legend and Frankenstein's monster, golems in D&D are typically man-sized or larger, roughly humanoid and built from one particular kind of material for which they are named, e.g. flesh golem, iron golem, wood golem, etc. They are normally very strong and impervious to most magic. Typically, each kind of golem has special vulnerability to one or more specific spells or kinds of spell, usually reflecting their abilities and the properties of the material they're built from. Many also have the ability to benefit from spells of a certain kind, absorbing particular kinds of energy and using it to heal themselves.
Aside from their brawn, golems often possess special attacks or abilities. These include, for example, the iron golem's ability to spray clouds of poison gas and the stone golem's ability to supernaturally slow its opponents down.
Helmed horror
The helmed horror is an ancient construct that resembles an animated suit of plate mail. The helmed horror was introduced in the second edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. The helmed horror along with the battle horror appears first for the Forgotten Realmscampaign setting in the module Halls of the High King (1990), by Ed Greenwood,[7] then in the revised Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting (1993),[8] and was later reprinted in the Monstrous Compendium Annual Volume One (1994). In edition 3.0 it appears in Monsters of Faerûn (2000).[9] and in Dragon #302 (December 2002). In edition 3.5 the helmed horror and battle horror appear in Lost Empires of Faerûn (2005).[10] In the fourth edition the helmed horror appears in the Monster Manual.[11]
The zodar is a fictional humanoid ("medium-sized construct"), which is incredibly powerful and rather enigmatic.
When a zodar chooses to fight, it will do so (usually) without any weapons, preferring to slam and grapple their opponents, rather than punch and/or kick them.
Zodars have many unique powers as well. Three times a day, for a few seconds at a time, a Zodar can increase its strength. Zodars are also immune to many effects such as poison, stunning, and disease. They also can only be damaged by bludgeoning weapons. A zodar's ultimate ability is that once per year it can cast a wish spell to alter reality as it sees fit.
Approximately five feet tall, zodars appear as ornate black suits of armor with a life of their own; these "suits" are not actually made of metal, but rather a ceramic material. They are capable of speech which all sentient beings are able to understand, though despite this unique linguistic proficiency, they hardly ever speak more than one sentence every 50 years or so. When it does speak, what is says is usually very important.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, illithids are monstrous humanoid aberrations with psionic powers. In a typical Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting, they live in the moist caverns and cities of the enormous Underdark. Illithids believe themselves to be the dominant species of the multiverse and use other intelligent creatures as thralls, slaves, and chattel. Illithids are well known for making thralls out of other intelligent creatures, as well as feasting on their brains.
The beholder is a fictional monster in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Its appearance is that of a floating orb of flesh with a large mouth, single central eye, and many smaller eyestalks on top with powerful magical abilities.
A gnoll is a fictional creature in the Dungeons & Dragons game, which resembles a humanoid hyena.
The yuan-ti are a fictional species of evil snakemen in the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. The species comprises a number of castes. In some campaign settings, the yuan-ti are descended from evil human cultists who mixed their bloodlines with those of serpents. They have formidable psychic abilities.
Lizardfolk are a fictional humanoid species in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, having appeared in every version of the game to date.
Kenku(pronounced keng-KOO or KENK-oo) are a fictional race of bird-like humanoid creatures in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game. They have appeared in multiple editions in the game's history and became an official playable race in Volo's Guide to Monsters. They are loosely based on tengu, spiritual beings in Japanese mythology, and are most recognizable for their lack of a voice; instead of speaking themselves, they use their gift of mimicry to communicate. Jeremy Crawford, lead rules designer of the Dungeons & Dragons game, says "[they] can cleverly piece together voices and sounds they've heard to communicate".
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, gnomes are one of the core races available for play as player characters. Some speculate that they are closely related to dwarves; however, gnomes are more tolerant of other races and of magic, and are skilled with illusions. Gnomes are small humanoids, standing 3–3.5 feet (91–107 cm) tall.
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, orcs are a primitive race of savage, bestial, barbaric humanoid.
The bugbear is a type of fictional monster in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, goblins are a common and fairly weak race of evil humanoid monsters. Goblins are non-human monsters that low-level player characters often face in combat.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, humanoid is a type of creature, or "creature type". Humanoids are any creature shaped generally like a human, of Small or Medium size. Most humanoids can speak, and usually have well-developed societies.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, undead is a classification of monsters that can be encountered by player characters. Undead creatures are most often once-living creatures, which have been animated by spiritual or supernatural forces.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, an elemental is a type of creature. Elemental creatures are composed of one of the four classical elementals of air, earth, fire, or water.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, nagas comprise a variety of similar species of intelligent aberrations with widely differing abilities and alignments.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, giants are a collection of very large humanoid creatures based on giants of legend, or in third edition, a "creature type".
The lich is an undead creature found in the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) fantasy role-playing game. Liches are spellcasters who seek to defy death by magical means.
A mummy, in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, is an undead creature whose corpse has been mummified and animated, often through the power of an evil god of the Egyptian pantheon such as Set.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the zombie is an undead creature, usually created by applying a template to another creature.
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the skeleton is an undead creature. In the third edition of the game, a skeleton's statistics are usually created by applying a template to those of another creature.
The golem is a fictional class of monster created for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game based upon the Golem of Jewish mythology. The golem first appeared in the original Greyhawk supplement (1975) written by Gary Gygax and Robert J. Kuntz and has since then become one of the most well-known creatures of the Dungeons & Dragons game.
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