I wrote a tactical article about fighting and running golems a while back, and a recent experience battling modified stone golems forced me to find some new tactics regarding crowd control for spellcasters that I'd like to share.

Crowd Control

Golems don't pair up terribly well with each other because their abilities mirror each other so closely. Still, it's a mighty PC who can weather one set of crushing construct fists, much less two (or more). When multiple golems strike, crowd control will make you a hero.

Unfortunately, it's really difficult to immobilize or seperate a golem from his unliving peers. Walls of plants, stone, ice, or metal will be ignored or crashed through very quickly. It's unlikely that a golem could be grappled with successfully, and, being mindless, they can't be fooled or misdirected.

At low levels you may be able to fake crowd control with area of effect spells like grease (golems generally have poor reflex saves, and even poorer balance checks) or even mirror image to fill a hallway with duplicates. At mid and higher levels a summoned monster could keep a golem from getting to you and your allies, at least temporarily, and a wall of force will keep the average golem out of the fight for the life of the spell (9 rounds at least). If you're unable to figure out a golem's weakness, scan your spell list for area of effect spells and anything else that doesn't allow spell resistance to keep your usefulness high for the whole encounter--even slowing a golem down can make a real difference.

Also, Swarms

Additionally, the second Fighting and Running article will be all about Swarms. Look for it in a week or two, and watch for five unique 4E moths spanning levels 1 to 26 to be released this week in the Critter Crate.