Utility (Ex): Your construct can perform tasks for you. This can include such tasks as cleaning, cooking, or setting up camp, or any other activity that requires a DC 10 or lower skill check. An astral construct with this option does not need to stay close to the manifester and will continue following any given order until given other instructions. You can select this menu option multiple times. Each time, the DC of skill checks the construct can attempt increases by 2. An astral construct with this option that is not used in combat has a duration of 1 hr./lvl.. If it later enters combat, its duration resets to 1 round/lvl., but suffers a -2 penalty to its attack rolls.
The wording of this is screwing with my brain, so I thought to ask the community.
An Astral Construct is a "Mindless Construct," the definition of mindless being debated as to its exact effect within the community and usually subject to DM interpretation, but usually goes along the lines of not being able to make INT skill/ability checks and not having the initiative or understanding with actions that require choice (basically, they have to be babysat and told what to do constantly unless you only want them to do one thing). I have seen games where the INT restriction was lifted for crafting as long as it was surpervised, but generally speaking the community majority goes for the prior.
Now I ask, what does the bolded text mean exactly? I was under the assumption that as long as the construct didn't have to be trained in the skill or it wasn't intelligence based, it could perform the skill in question (albeit usually poorly because of lack of ranks and class skills).
I have come up with a few ideas as to the meaning but I'm not sure with any of them:
1.) It allows them to make certain checks untrained as long as the dc is within the limit (thereby increasing the bounds of the limit by taking it multiple times).
2.) They automatically succeed at any check within the limit.... (kinda farfetched because of its op nature at higher levels and the wording in the second bolded text about "attempts").
3.) I was wrong about mindless constructs being able to make most untrained skill checks, and this allows it to within the limit (especially dumb sounding when certain skills seems so intrinsic like climb, acrobatics, swim, and sometimes fly).
Of course I may be missing something and this is my brain being dumb.... but anything you guys have to say about this would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance! ^_^
They are still mindless, but have the ability to perform basic tasks like a "bot". They still need to make the check, as no non-AI programming is perfect.
They are still considered mindless.