Golems

Golems are non-human entities which exist across the Known World. They are typically extremely tall, somewhat slow and have been known to be formed of a wide range of material, including clay, snow, wet ash, scrap iron and drift wood.

Golems are not born. Rather, they create themselves from material present at the site of their initial manifestation. In the past, golems would typically only form from natural materials such as earth, wood or fallen leaves, with their lifespans being short due to the transience of their matter. With the onset of the Industrial Age however, urban golems have begun to manifest from sturdier materials such as scrap metal. In the Great Era, the vast majority of golems are of this type.

In her study *On the Nature of Golems,* Dr Anatolia Brice found that all golems were immediately beset by two fundamental notions upon first manifesting:

1. A powerful belief that they had created themselves for a reason, but that they had forgotten in the process, and;
2. A memory of a city of tall towers, which they invariably know to be called 'Amata-Ultec', sinking beneath vast waves of scrap material.

These notions form the most unique aspect of life as a golem. Whereas other sentient species view their life as a quest for meaning, golems are driven by a powerful conviction that they already have one, but that it may be impossible to recall what it is. Some golems, such as Gonk of Gonk Lifestyle Architects Plc. have claimed to have been born knowing their purpose, e.g. to "sell high-quality golem-scale doors at affordable prices", but this is typically perceived to be a marketing ploy.

This, coupled with their first memory consistently being of a devastating, otherworldly disaster, often leads to the golem population being substantially more troubled by existential worries than most other species- an issue which has divided golems as much as it has driven them forward. Some, such as the philosopher Golemus Crunkus, saw these formative notions as "the great driver of the Golemic peoples towards improvement". However, sociologist Angela Thonk-onk-onk argued that these formative traumas were more often the opposite, noting the higher rates of crime amongst golemic youths compared to those of other species. She did however note that systemic issues of racism and economic inequality may also be a large contributing factor, recognising that these crime rates, though still above average for the wider population, were substantially lower in countries with more meritocracy such as Raqqos and Pem, compared to Rubellium or the constituents of the Hanseatic League.

## Pre-industrial golems

Before the emergence of more durable materials from which they could be formed, golems were frequently at risk of being eroded away by weather, animals and time. In antiquity, most golems manifested from natural materials such as earth and clay, twigs and branches, or unshaped stones. As a result, they were rare, often disappearing during the winter months as harsh rains and winds washed away or rotted the materials they were formed of.

### Use as Waymarkers

In ancient times, due to two Notions they were born with- the trauma of witnessing destruction, and the confusion of believing that there was a purpose that they had forgotten- it was not uncommon for many golems to simply sit down somewhere to ponder and stay, unmoving, for decades, until the life in them eventually faded away entirely. This was often exacerbated by the scarcity of golems during this time period, meaning that few of them received the kind of support that was necessary from fellow golems.

The tragedy of this aside, stone golems who suffered such a fate often eventually became used as waymarkers for passing travellers to navigate by, due to their recognisability and large size. Many major roads are thought to have originally been built according to the last resting places of such unfortunates, and some are still known to exist today, albeit often in extremely eroded forms, with some even speculating that even the famous Wheadle Stone near Rubellium may have once been such a golem.

### The Fear of Golems

Due to lack of understanding of the nature of golems, other intelligent species often feared them as monsters to be fought due to their mysteriousness and often large size- a prejudice which while diminished, remains common in some parts of the Known World. Notably, Sir John Kerball, an early Mayor of Pembleton who was long regarded as a cultural hero by the Pemblish, was known to have waged a war of extermination against several communities of golems who had manifested in the countryside near what is now Waysouth. Due to this action, public perception has since soured towards his legacy, with Golem Rights campaigners demanding that he be more publicly acknowledged for the atrocities he committed.

Such fear and prejudice was common across much of the world, with golems often being deliberately attacked and destroyed upon first manifesting. As a result of this, many golems did not have the opportunity to become acclimatised to their new world at all, being unable to speak or reason clearly, and troubled by the fundamental notions which they manifested with. This created a brutal cycle in which their fearful lashings out were then subsequently interpreted as the actions of mindless monsters who must therefore be destroyed. This tragedy remains a black mark on the history of many nations across the world.

### Argaivan Golems

Despite this often widespread fear, in some regions golems were seen positively as symbols of life or the harvest, and as messengers of the gods. In Argaiv, golems were treated with the utmost respect, being considered to be messengers of their Blue Goddess (who was, unlike the modern Belathon, far more of an all-encompassing 'Creator' and 'life-giving' figure). They were referred to as 'Making Men' for their perceived ability to form themselves directly through the Goddess's power, rather than through birth. As such, they were seen as good omens, and were welcomed into temples and homes as guests in the hopes of encouraging fertility and a good harvest.

Their significance to Argaivian culture is not to be underestimated, with one year of the Argaivian 'Olympiad' (a religious cycle of four years) being named 'The Year of the Making Man'. Likewise, at traditional Argaivian harvest festivals, humans would wear stilts and dress in exaggerated pagan costumes made of leaves, clay, flowers and other odd-bods in emulation of their golem brethren. Variations of this tradition still continue even today in parts of the far northern Centrelands in nations such as Archpolonia and Rubellium, and as far east as parts of the Tall Kingdom.

As a result of this positive treatment in this region, Argaiv and its colonies were host to what is believed to be the earliest flourishing of golemic culture. Sheltered from the weather, Argaivan golems were able to live for a then-surprisingly long time. As a result of their supposed 'direct connection to the Goddess', many golems elected to enter the priesthood, where they gained a reputation for their wisdom and memory for historic events. The most notable golem of the era was arguably the scholar Traganismos, whose record of debates within the Sophiate remains a fundamental source on the Argaivan system of government for historians today.