'thul's story project...

['thul]

ahh... right... should've added a note about that...

go·lem/ˈgōləm/
Noun:
(in Jewish legend) A clay figure brought to life by magic.
An automaton or robot.

or more precisely, in the world created here, a stone/metal construct brought to life by magic.


Their use of such automatons makes guard duty far simpler. A golem can technically be on duty all hours of the day, so instead of having anything from a few dozen to hundreds of soldiers on duty at a gate, one could have just enough to command the golems (with a bit of redundancy).
You don't break down a golem nearly as easily as you break down a soldier. of course, designing a golem is somewhat more difficult. Sort of like making a good knife. Its not enough to know that it is sharp. You have to make it from the right materials (typically good edge steel), make it curve the right ways towards its point, make it balanced, have the correct angles set up for the edges, and so forth.
In the case of these golems, the design is even more focused on what it is empowered to do, though shape does have importance.