Tammuz

Name:	Tammuz
Plural:	Tammuz
Pronunciation:	TAM-muzz
Nicknames:	Golems, Clay Men, the Unfinished
Progenitor:	Tammuz, Golem
Element:	Earth
Humour:	Melancholic
Bestowments:	Unholy Stamina, Unbreakable Will
Mockery:	Ishtari

Tammuz pilgrim mark

Tammuz is the name of a Promethean Lineage, also known as Golems. Its members were brought to life by the element of earth in the form of clay, and suffer from an excess of melancholic humour. This affinity with earth makes them hardy, stoic and impartial.

Origins

The Progenitor of the Lineage, Tammuz, is said to have been a Babylonian Golem who escaped slavery. However, some Tammuz consider another Promethean, a Construct simply called Golem, to be their true forefather.

The Tammuz claim that the Golem of Prague, which legend attributes to Rabbi Loew Belalei, was one of their number. They say that Loew did not make the Golem, as the traditional myth has it; rather, he pressed it into service.

Creation

The potential bodies of Tammuz are generally selected by looking for those that were strong or resilient in life, as the Tammuz search for Mortality is generally physical in nature. Once a body is chosen, the creator takes the Tammuz to an earthen area. A special word, unknown to any save the creator is written on a slip of paper and placed under the tongue of the corpse; this is followed by placing a mark of slavery somewhere on the body, such as a tattoo or manacles. The body is then buried in the bare earth and left. Once the new Tammuz awakens, they must dig themselves out of the ground.

Reflecting the Golem version of their origins as well as their earth element, the favored material for Tammuz Constructs is clay.

Culture

Refinements

The Tammuz, because of their hardy nature, tend to be interested in physical pursuits over intellectual ones; as a result, many of them come to follow the Ferrum Refinement for long periods of time. Unfortunately, due to their overall pessimistic natures, Torment also comes easily to them, and so does Stannum. Their straightforward natures also cause the few who hear of the Plumbum path to become avid followers.

Traits

Since their origin, the Tammuz have remained intimately familiar with slavery, on both a literal and a metaphorical level. Throughout history, many of their number have been enslaved, bound by magic into the service of others. The Golems consider slavery to be an apt description of the Promethean condition: as beings without souls, no life beyond their material existence, they believe they do not exercise true choice. Their Great Works are struggles for freedom. The Tammuz are also constantly reminded of their condition because of the physical marks of enslavement made at their creation that they carry with them throughout their existence.

Many Tammuz are brief, but effective in their choice of words. They see no need for wasting time with dramatics or chit-chat. Many other Prometheans mistake their taciturn natures for stupidity or unsocial natures, but neither is true of most Golems.

Disfigurements

Their disfigurements make the Tammuz seem like the Golems after which they are named: they appear covered in clay, eyes like small dark stones, hair matted, accompanied by the scent of turned earth. Sometimes cracks in their skin make it look as though their bodies consist entirely of clay, and sometimes illuminated sigils with a word important to the individual Golem appear in prominent places, especially the forehead.

References

• PTC: Promethean: The Created Rulebook, p. 59 , 67, 110-113
• PTC: Magnum Opus (book), p. 18 -19, 76
• PTC: Web spoiler, June 26, 2006
• PTC: Web spoiler, June 27, 2006
• PTC: Web spoiler, June 28, 2006
• PTC: Promethean Demo, August 3, 2006