The CX-1 is a 3-meter bipedal construction automaton — a walking crane, welder, and demolition rig in one chassis. Its arms terminate in modular tool mounts that accept construction equipment: pneumatic hammers, welding torches, cutting saws, concrete sprayers, and rebar grippers. It was designed to perform heavy construction tasks autonomously, operating on building sites 24 hours a day without rest, breaks, or safety complaints.

The CX-1 was not designed for combat. But a machine that drives rivets through structural steel can drive them through people. A machine that cuts through I-beams can cut through anything softer. A machine that demolishes walls can demolish whatever is behind them. The construction tool mounts accept weapons as readily as they accept tools — someone welded a machine gun mount onto a CX-1 arm within a week of the first unit being deployed.

The Golem has become the Shelf's heavy hitter — the closest thing to a walking tank that non-corporate forces can field. Stolen, reprogrammed, and jury-rigged with improvised weapons, CX-1 units have appeared in every major Shelf conflict in the past five years. They are slow, crude, and terrifyingly effective. A Golem walking down a street with a pneumatic hammer in one hand and an improvised flamethrower in the other is not sophisticated warfare. It is, however, warfare.