Automaton Design

[virgil]

I was realizing the annoying social aspects to necromancy, especially since it seemed like one player was going to play a paladin and another was contemplating something where they might end up as exalted. Using animate dead would be easy, but there going to be severe intra-party conflict if I used such means. The DM offered the idea that I could instead make golems. There's only 'one' problem...

* Homonculus = feat + 1,000gp + 2,000gp/extra HD + 78xp
* Skeleton = learned spell + 25gp/HD

Pretty much every construct I've ever seen follows a similar paradigm. Massive magic item costs, and the low grade golems are even worse with their beserk ability. All the while, you don't even need a feat and you can play around with all sorts of customization with the undead.

Now, shall we also mention the insanity where clerics and bards can animate objects while wizards are left in the dust?

What I'd like to do is offer a spell that serves the same role as animate dead, but makes permanently animated constructs.

Probably the easiest thing would be the below spell. The problem is attempting to find a way to convince the DM. I mentioned the core idea earlier, and he seemed reticent because of the existing rules for constructs, and the fact that the animate objects spell is a 6th level spell that isn't even an option for wizards. What kind of arguments can I even use to convince him if he decides not to go along with this?

I'm still annoyed at the difference they made between necromancers and golem makers and the headache I'm getting from this.

Animate Automaton
Transmutation
Level: Sor/Wiz 3
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 hour
Range: Touch
Target: Single object
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
. You imbue an inanimate object with mobility and a semblance of life. An animated object can be of any nonmagical material.

The animated object can follow you, or it can remain in an area and attack any creature (or just a specific kind of creature) entering the place. It remains animated until it is destroyed.

The animated object has as many Hit Dice as appropriate for their size, as under their monster description. Regardless of what you target, however, you cannot animate any object with more hit dice than your caster level with a single casting of this spell.

The animated object remains under your control indefinitely. No matter how many times you use this spell, however, you can control only 4 HD worth of animated objects per caster level.

Attempts to animate skeletons and zombies through animate dead count the total HD of your animated objects as if they were undead for purposes of how many you can control. For instance, a level 10 caster with five large statues animated under his control could only control up to 20HD of skeletons or zombies.

If you exceed this limit, the newly animated dead or object comes under your control, and excess from previous castings either lose control in the case of undead or become lifeless in the case of animated objects.

Material Components: 50gp of powdered amber per HD of the target object

[JonSetanta]

Been reading Genius Girl much? haha

Interesting, I never considered the lack of animating for mages to be a problem (maybe due to my blaster fetish?).
If anything, I'd just remove the Divine-Arcane barrier and let all of those classes cast something as vague as that.