I've got a moral quandary eating at me.
Background, I'm true neutral and raised some undead. The justification being we had one of our party members die, and I'd rather not lose another if a mindless undead could take their place.
So the major meatshield is a necrocraft. A lot of it was jokes, with his name and purpose. Plus the cleric is a little iffy about him, but over a few encounters I've proven his worth by saving a few lives.
Now the quandary though... He's close to death. As of the end of last session he's got 5 HP remaining. He's proven to be helpful, and we've named him, so I'm reluctant to want to let him die. But in the long run, that's his purpose. To die so a living friend won't have to.
So the moral issue. The necrocraft is a mindless undead. It's only been doing good at all by my verbal command. I could send it home to take it out of the fight, showing remorse and care for a monstrosity I made with no feelings or desire other than to destroy. Alternatively, I accept him as just a tool or object and march him forward into the ground. That was his purpose after all.
Animating dead is evil. To make a new necrocraft would be evil (or making the current one larger would be since you're essentially making a new one). It's unlikely I'll scrape together everything to make a new one. Which is the less-evil act though from the circumstances? Showing care for a mindless moster, placing it's well being above real people. Or disregarding it as little more than a tool to live and die to keep the living safe?
I assume you could just use inflict light wounds to heal it up right?
I am not familiar with necrocraft specifics. I read it a bit, but I may be missing something. I see that they use construction points, but they appear to be undead not constructs. Are they not healed by negative energy or are they immune to it or is there a clause that says that don't heal damage (without the Cannabilize ability)?
No, you are correct. Unfortunately as a wizard I cannot cast Inflict. The only negative energy spell I have is Chill Touch, which effects undead differently.
Not where we currently are unfortunately. Middle of a dungeon with little access to new spells. S'why my options are keep him there to die, or show care and send him home.
Since a typical necrocraft has to be made from five different undead (barring a larger size undead counting as two or more contributed parts), it's not like there's a whole lot of your original friend there. Sure, you could have used his head or something, but I don't if the fact that his arm is part of the creation is something to get sentimental about.
I didn't use any pieces if our friend. That was a moral line my character was unwilling to cross. So you are right, it's my own projection of a connection to it.
Which goes to my question of morality more than healing options. I made him, which was morally questionable, casting evil spells and all that. I have been justifying that he is a tool to save lives, and he's been used as such (lots of grapple to prevent AoO when the Alchemist and Gunslinger get in melee).
On the one hand, caring about my creation's wellbeing is pointless. It's mindless and uncaring, and connection is just my own to it. On the other hand, running him into the ground because it's his purpose, or because "I could always just make another" feels evil.
Morally, I'm neutral. I ignored the evil required to make him, but I am not outright a bad person. I made him to prevent more death. Is it wrong to care about an undead monster's wellbeing? Which is the lesser evil?
So healing it is not an option.
You may either destroy it, or abandon it.
If you abandon it, then it will probably seek out life to destroy which is irresponsible.
Ergo, destroy it.
Role play your pain or whatever, and move on. Still make references and cry every now and then like it was old yeller.
Well, it is mindless, but that's no reason not to be sentimentally attached to it. I hear a lot of people get sentimentally attached to their automobiles, and while that's never happened to me I certainly can appreciate a good pair of walking shoes and I always feel a bit like a traitor when I sweep discarded head hair into the garbage can. Humans are funky critters. I imagine the feeling would be amplified if the thing both looked like a person and had repeatedly saved your life and the lives of those you care about.
I say, if at all possible, get the cleric to heal it with negative energy. It's an unpleasant business all around, from the cleric's perspective, but I'm sure a reasonably intelligent person could tell that it's better to have a unliving necrocraft taking hits then letting your friends die on account of a silly superstition.
You could regulate it to being a baggage carrier until such time as you're able to heal it or safely release control. If you have to sacrifice it to save someone then so be it. There'a difference between putting it on the front line so it can die against the 1st hit and having it jump in front of an enemy to distract it from an ally who's in a bad spot.
Once you're in a relatively safe place and are ready to let it go you could create some sort of memorial to the dead party member and set it to guard said memorial. Undead are often depicted as being tomb guardians, there's no reason this one couldn't also be one.