In normal circumstances, the departed souls flee the body upon death. However, in some cases, the souls do linger–we know these now as a variety of undead spirits and shambling horrors. There are other, rarer circumstances that are stranger still, though.

Take, for example, the gravewax golem. It requires three crucial elements to form: firstly, a mass grave or entombment after a massacre or plague; secondly, conditions suitable for the formation of gravewax in the deceased; and thirdly, burial in a medium rich in soulstone, which reflects and blocks spiritual energy. Under these specific conditions, the souls of the departed cannot depart, and eventually form a terrible gestalt undead consciousness. The remains, too, are amalgamated, into the rough approximation of a human form.

Eventually, the gravewax golem will burst forth and take its vengeance on any living beings it can find, the cacophony of spirits at play causing it to be violently unpredictable and essentially insensate. Due to its gestalt spiritual nature, any sort of exorcism must be exponentially more powerful to take effect, and due to its gestalt physical nature, it has incredible strength and resilience, though a pronounced vulnerability to fire is present.

High Inquisitor’s Note:
It is possible for the gravewax golem gestalt to evolve into a more ordered form which renders it both able to speak and to understand–Master They of the Blynswick Catacombs is a good example. This is rather rare, though, being most common for ascetics living a communal life or military leaders buried with their slaughtered men.

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