Guild Wars 2

I consider that the Iron Forgeman is perhaps the first prototype of what eventually became the steam creature race. Redesigned by Kudu, the Forgeman was powered by draconic energies – in particular, Primordus’s energy. The reason I think that the draconic energy behind the Forgeman was Primordus’s is because of the lack of organic being corrupted by the Elder Dragon in the Crucible of Eternity. Kudu not only caught various Elder Dragon minions therein, but also (probably) used chaos crystal technology (what I will call “chaostech”) to create new minions. However, even Subject Alpha does not appear to have been infused with Primordus’s energy. Of the Elder Dragons, it appears that only four (if we include the elusive Mordremoth) are able to synergize their magic with organic flesh without killing it. Thus, Zaithan, Kralkatorrik, Jormag and Mordremoth all have the ability to “possess” (for want of a better word) a host without consuming it. Primordus, on the other hand, has a form of corruption that simply destroys most organic matter. Thus, infusing a being with his energies would involve the development and/or discovery of new creatures. For Kudu, the answer was metals. The Forgeman was a creature capable of synergising Primordus’s corruption without being consumed.
As I have already stated, the Forgeman is probably the first prototype of the race that we now know as the steam creatures. In suggesting this, I am not stating that the steam creatures are Primordus’s minions. They might be, of course, but I’ll leave others to demonstrate that such is the case…

The original Forgeman is a Stone Summit golem-like machine powered by three flame djinns. It has nothing “steam” about it:

http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/The_Iron_Forgeman

There are hints in the GW1 Oola’s Lab that she either designed the Forgeman or used it in her later golem constructions.

With the lack of flame djinns and the focus of the Inquest being draconic energies, it was natural they chose Primordus as a battery to recharge the Forgeman.

Okay, two things:

As Thalador said, the thing was originally a dwarven construct powered by Flame Djinn. What Thalador didn’t say is that the steam creatures cyborgs – the Iron Forgeman, both iterations, is not.

Secondly, nothing actually says which – if it were only one – dragon’s energies was used to power the second Iron Forgeman. Just simply that Kudu used draconic energies to empower it. While Primordus is a logical assumption given the Destroyer of Worlds and the pool of lava around the Iron Forgeman, nothing actually says that it was Primordus and we know that the Inquest have access to five – with the sixth being recent thus may not be viable – Elder Dragon energies.

Thirdly, Subject Alpha has very much been infused with Primordus’ energy. He has a skill titled “Teeth of Primordus” which is where a series of “Dragon’s Teeth” (the elementalist skill) fall from the sky, and a burst of fire appears around Subject Alpha – you wouldn’t see the teeth, however, if you stack adjacent to Subject Alpha, which most groups do nowadays. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that Primordus indeed can corrupt living beings – we just never see it happen naturally.

Fourthly, the steam creatures are not a “race” – they are merely a series of cybernetic beings. They are made no differently than, say, the Borg from Star Trek, or even the Husks from Mass Effect – you take pre-existing races and you modify them with technology. Though the steam creatures are very different than either example I gave, the concept is the same. The steam creatures are not their own race – of metal or otherwise.

And finally, the Steam creatures hold no ties to the Inquest. At least originally, as far as we know.

On a side: @Thalador, it was stated – I think by Linsey – that the copies of the Forgeman in Oola’s lab was that she found the Iron Forgeman’s remains and began recreating it in her study of dwarven “golems.”

I think that your counterpoints – particularly regarding the augmentation of Subject Alpha with Primordus’s powers – are a valid reason to consign my theory to the scrap heap, no pun intended.

Stephen,

If you play the Infinity Ball option with the Asura, it explains where the steam creatures come from.