Aunt Sally is an old English game, in fact we had a rare day out up to the Norfolk coast recently and saw a couple of chaps playing it on the beach up there. Its rather like a coconut shy, the game is to throw heavy sticks to knock the head off a doll without hitting either the body or the metal stand. The dolls themselves have become... How shall I put it... Less terrifying and/or offensive, depending how you look at it.
If you're interested in the game there is more about it here
And I'm quite delighted to see people still make and sell the game
Aunt Sally
by Cab Davidson
| Stat | Aunt Sally* |
| AC: | 7 |
| HD: | 3+3* |
| Movement Rate: | 90’ (30’) |
| Attacks: | 1 slap |
| Damage: | 2d8 |
| Number Appearing: | 1(1) |
| Save As: | F2 |
| Morale: | 12 |
| Treasure Type: | Nil |
| Intelligence: | 4 |
| Alignment: | Neutral |
| XP Value: | 65 |
The same gifted hedge wizard who first created straw golems also carved the first animated Aunt Sally, and by the same accidental spark imparted the ability to these grotesque mannequins the capacity to craft more of their kind.
Aunt Sallies start off as hideous figurines of women, rarely more than 2’6” tall, resembling the dolls used as target practice in an old tavern game where wooden clubs are throw to knock the heads off the dolls while leaving the bodies in place. Naturally they strongly resent the practice, and will remorselessly attack anyone employed in such a game. But over many years their features wear thin, and old Sallies more resemble crude, ugly wooden dolls with few if any discernible human features.
They are golems, of a kind, and therefore can only be struck by magical weapons, are immune to mind based attacks, gases, charms, and hold. Similarly to a wood golem they are also immune to missile fire weapons, such that arrows, crossbow bolts etc. cause them no harm. They are vulnerable to flame however, and save at -4 to all fire based attacks.
While not desperately intelligent, they understand the weak spots that humans and humanoids have, and instinctively know to go for the throat, to try to remove the head (perhaps a racial memory of what they were constructed for), or to punch a male target hard between the legs. In the first round of combat they can leap up to 30’ to attack the head, and if their first strike hits the victim, if human or humanoid, must make a saving throw vs. death ray or die of fright.
Aunt Sallies are rare, perhaps because few of them see a purpose in creating more of their kind. But those that are encountered tend towards the chaotic and evil end of neutral. They are known to pose as Aunt Sally dolls in pubs, their immunity to normal weapons making the vengeance they claim on drinkers playing what they view as a grotesque game unanswerable.