Clockwork iron cobras were a type of Serpent-like Clockwork Constructs built for use as guards, trackers, and hunters. Most were made from iron plates fitted over compact clockwork mechanisms, though some later designs used lighter or more specialized metals. Despite their rigid construction, iron cobras moved with surprising quietness and were difficult to detect in dark tunnels, workshops, and ruins. They were activated and deactivated through command words known to their owner, and when inactive they remained completely motionless and silent.
Iron cobras were best known for their ability to track specific individuals over long distances. Once given the name of a target, the Construct could follow traces of their presence through magical means similar to a locating spell. Their bite delivered venom stored within an internal reservoir, which could be quickly refilled depending on the artificer’s needs. Monstrous spider venom was common, though some were loaded with paralytic or disorienting alchemical compounds instead. In combat, iron cobras relied on simple tactics, repeatedly striking until a target was disabled or killed. Their metal bodies resisted ordinary weapons and many magical effects, and they could operate effectively in complete darkness.
Stories about their origins differed, though most artificers agreed the earliest iron cobras were more advanced than the later copies that became common in Gnome workshops and guardhouses.