A Stitched Statue is a creation of enchanters, alchemists, and priests who wish to build a perfectly loyal soldier (or, rarely, assistant). The creator must create a statue out of something, typically stone or iron, but some will construct effigies of straw or wood, and then empower it by stitching it together with magic. The energies required are so massive that it's rare that the creator of the statue can keep it alive for more than a few hours.
In order to keep spell stitched statues together, the creators often use some sort of external power source, typically using telluric energy. This means tapping into a lei line and drawing the power of the earth itself into the statue to keep it alive. This means that the statues are forced to live atop the lei line, unless the creator can find a way to store magical energies, or find an alternate power source.
Spell Stitched statues require a deity to grant one to a priest, or a geomancer to engrave the stitches on the state, bit by bit. Then the statue begins to draw the lifeforce from the creator until it is linked to another magical source. If they are not, the statue will quickly consume the lifeforce of their creator until they are a dessicated husk. These statues will be fiercely loyal to their creators, but they are fully intelligent, and have free will to act on their own. Many of the spell stitched toil within a single small building or grove and long to see the larger world.
These statues are alive, and therefore can exercise their own will. Their creators can instill beliefs in them, but this does not mean that they are going to obey their creator. Legends tell of the Priest-King of Loughal who created a palace guard of the Spell Stitched, and commanded them to protect the kingdom. When the king became spoiled by their power, and began to rule harshly, they were slain by their own guard.
Many believe that the spell stitched cannot be harmed by weapons due to their nature being made of stone. However, being geomantic creations, they require methods of channeling telluric energy. Each of the statues must bear a series of runes along their body, using the geomancy of the body. This generally means they need a rune on their feet to ground them, a rune on every elbow and knee to propel them, a rune at their chest to anchor them, a rune in their mouth to speak for them, and a rune on their head to open themselves to the world. Unlike mortals they do not gather telluric energy at the groin because they cannot create life. Each of these runes will glow slightly if the statue is animated, and they will stop when the statue's magic is inert. If these runes are damaged, the statue will begin to deteriorate.
Some rare spell stitched statues have been created to not be stuck in a single location. Blood mages have managed to link their statues to people other than themselves. Some have managed to use precious gems or other matrices to empower their statues. This does end up that if the statue's power source is destroyed, the statue itself becomes inert.
Spell Stitched statues must be started by selecting a Forte for the statue. The statue's physical durability might be thought to be infinite, but their hardiness is dependent on the animating force. The Forte can be any number between B1 and W10, though later steps will be affected by the choice.
Depending on the material, an appropriate craftsman or artisan skill should be used. The Ob for building the statue will be the desired Forte, plus a bonus or penalty for the Material. So a stone statue with B6 Forte will be an Ob8 Sculpture test.
Then the spell must be sealed into the statue. This is an Ob6 Faith test to create the spell simply using the power of Faith. Otherwise it could be a Ob7 Engraving test if the spell stitching is being empowered by a geomancer or other enchanter. The Enchanter must then make an Ob8 Enchanting test to empower the Statue.
Once these steps are complete - the statue awakens. The statue has the following Attributes:
Additional successes on the Enchanting or Faith test gives the creator skill points they can spend to add skills to the statue. The statue can learn most skills, but many are taught Hauling or a Fighting Art. Some are taught skills to make them useful lab assistants.
Finally, the creator gives the statue one Belief and one Instinct. The statue also gains the Instinct "Obey My Creator". The other two beliefs and final instincts are up to the statue itself.
When the statue is created, the creator now is forced to make a Forte test against an Ob of the statue's Forte. This is the same as Tax for Sorcery in Burning Wheel Gold. The statue will not stop using the creator's lifeforce after they have fallen, and will continue to bleed them dry until their creator dies. As long as the creator is conscious, they may release the spell, causing the statue to go inert.
Instead of this, most creators will prepare something to empower the Spell Stitches. The most common method is to use a lei line or other site of power. Whether standing stones, a purified temple, or naturally occurring site of telluric energy, the creator can simply pass the creation off to the new site as long as both are within it. Once this is done, if the statue leaves the site, they fall inert until they are restored to their home. It should be decided how many Forte (both exponent, shade, and number of individual statues) a site can hold, depending on how sacred or overflowing with energy it is. An ancient Mythal or a site where a god walked is going to have more power than a simple local shrine or single lei line.
A Blood Mage can use the advantage dice they have from Blood Magic to empower a Spell Stitched statue, allowing it to roam freely. It takes 4D per day to keep the Spell Stitched statue around, and if the creator cannot pay, then they receive Tax to their own Forte as above.
Another person can take on the burden of the statue. This is an Ob4 Faith or Enchanting test that takes about an hour to perform, and leaves a mark on the new source of power. It's possible to do it against the will of the new power source, if they can be kept still long enough.
Finally, a sustainer matrix can be created to sustain the statue. Typically this is a large gemstone or jar filled with specific herbs or organs. Creating an object to sustain a statue is an Ob4 base enchanting test. The target is always Wielder of the Item, but the Duration and Trigger are up to the enchanter. These items are often not infinite and require some activation, making the statue not always mobile, in a way it often dislikes.
Statues are repaired with the Mending, Engraving, or Sculpting skill. The main purpose of the skill is to repair their stitches, as well as patching their bodies of major chips and breaks. Spell Stitched Scarecrows, being made of straw, can also have damage from rot or loss. Spell Stitched Statues are typically damaged by their spell stitches taking damage, and once damaged they will begin to decay, so they suffer deterioration normally. They do not typically suffer from disease and poison.
Use the standard healing rules from the Codex, using the following charts:
Mending:
Engraving:
Sculpting, Carving:
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