Questions tagged [necromancy]
For questions primarily about necromancy in RPGs, the art/magic of raising the dead to fight again in a limbo of undeath. (For questions about undead themselves, use the [undead] tag.)
143
questions
20
votes
1
answer
2k
views
What happens if the black onyx used in an Animate Dead spell isn't expensive enough?
Consider the following situation: The group kills a monster, and one PC wants to use Animate Dead to turn it into an skeleton under his control. But the players have no idea what the monster is, much ...
- 3,835
14
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Can I use Gentle Repose to skip dealing with a lich's phylactery?
Gentle repose has three key bits of information that interact with a lich's rejuvenation. Relevant text follows.
Gentle Repose...
Duration: 10 days
You touch a corpse or other remains. For the ...
- 4,640
7
votes
1
answer
410
views
What happens to an abandoned army of the undead?
I had two high-level necromancers summon close to an army of undead and now they have left the area and not re-asserted control. I know a lot if not all of the undead will wander now but how many ...
- 89
0
votes
1
answer
285
views
Can a dispelled zombie's remains be reanimated? [closed]
How the animate dead spell works in the video game Baldur's Gate 3 has me wondering:
Can I reanimate the remains of a dispelled zombie?
Does it remain a zombie (undead creature) after dispelling, and ...
- 19
5
votes
2
answers
238
views
What are the limitations for targets of Sylvan Necromancy?
Sylvan Necromancy (Dual Sphere) states:
You can use your (plant) geomancing abilities on corpses instead of plants. In addition, you can reanimate dead plant life as zombies (or skeletons, if they ...
- 21.7k
5
votes
1
answer
255
views
When you use the Clone spell, will the command of Undead minions transfer to the clone?
I am currently playing in 5e campaign and a question came up regarding the transferable of command of undead servants.
My Necromancer wants to live forever but not be a lich, so naturally the idea is ...
- 61
8
votes
2
answers
895
views
Limits of undead control
I was doing some theory crafting on a necromancer. Of course a player character with an army of undead isn't very good for gameplay but our DM is interested in using the character as an enemy.
So I ...
- 1,384
5
votes
6
answers
4k
views
How to build a necromancy Druid?
I'm joining a D&D game with a group of friends. Some have been playing for years, while others have just started like myself. I'm joining halfway through, coming in at level 6 or 7.
I intend to ...
- 79
1
vote
0
answers
74
views
Can Necromancers repeatedly animate skeletons which have been defeated? [duplicate]
One of my players is saying they can use animate dead (3rd level, Necromancy) to repeatedly bring back their skeleton minions.
This spell creates an Undead servant. Choose a pile of bones or a corpse ...
- 327
10
votes
1
answer
7k
views
What are all the spells that create one or more undead creatures?
Since trying to Google this just keeps finding the specific spell called Create Undead...
What are all of the spells in D&D 5e that can be used to make an undead creature? I can think of Animate ...
- 2,430
2
votes
1
answer
149
views
How do summons interact with soul-affecting effects?
For reasons of my own, I need a trapped soul for at least a couple of hours. The exact type of soul doesn't matter: so long as I have a soul in a "jar" for, say, 8 hours, I'm good.
I'm a ...
- 18.9k
34
votes
1
answer
978
views
What is the most amount of election fraud I can commit using necromancy?
I have deemed the ignorant masses of several nearby regions to be unfit to rule themselves. Unfortunately, they've established a democracy to determine leadership of their region and continuously ...
- 35.9k
1
vote
2
answers
4k
views
Is this homebrew Necromancer class balanced?
Is this necromancer class balanced, compared to a warlock or cleric? One of my players would like to use it.
The goal is for it to be roughly balanced compared to a cleric, since that’s what I believe ...
- 2,137
7
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Are there any effects in the game that would cause a necromancer to lose control over the undead he created with animate dead?
Animate Dead says:
The creature is under your control for 24 hours, after which it stops obeying any command you've given it. To maintain control of the creature for another 24 hours, you must cast ...
- 3,826
4
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Multiple instances of the spell of Animate Dead and bonus action scope
If you cast Animate Dead, that allows you to use a bonus action to command any creature you made from "this spell". Do multiple instances of the effects created by the spell named Animate ...
- 454
14
votes
2
answers
5k
views
Does Summon Undead "create" an undead?
A School of Necromancy Wizard at 6th level gains the Undead Thralls ability, which reads:
At 6th level, you add the animate dead spell to your spellbook if it is not there already. When you cast ...
- 8,088
13
votes
4
answers
3k
views
Are there RAW mechanics that a Necromancy Wizard can use to animate dead with consent?
I want to create a necromancer in the Forgotten Realms setting. One that gets some kind of consent for their necromancy when it comes to using other creatures' corpses, be it from each creature that ...
- 141
4
votes
0
answers
3k
views
does undying servitude add animate dead to the warlock spell list? [duplicate]
does the invocation undying servitude add animate dead to the warlock spell list? it says you may cast it without spending a spell slot once a day, however, does "once a day" apply to the ...
- 2,855
3
votes
1
answer
2k
views
What is the strongest minion a necromancers Command undead ability can control?
I am currently a lv13 Necromancer and my 14th lv ability lets me control 1 undead. I want to know what the strongest official undead creature is with an int of 11 or less so I can start tracking 1 ...
- 1,248
4
votes
2
answers
2k
views
When a necromancer raises a zombie, is it animated by the dead creature's soul, or by magic?
I am interested in what precisely "moves" the undead body, in the Forgotten Realms and Eberron.
Is it the magic of the spell?
Is the creature's soul rebound to the body?
Is a "false ...
- 4,413
4
votes
1
answer
365
views
Ways to learn Antilife shell on a Necromancy wizard?
Is there a RAW way to learn the spell Antilife shell on a wizard of the necromancy school without taking more than 3 levels of any other class? Any feats or magic items or features that would make ...
- 6,587
1
vote
1
answer
223
views
Can I combine effects of 19 Deathwines?
Let's say that I am a level 10 Arcanist. I cast Deathwine two times to affect 20 potions of Cure Light Wounds, costing 1000 gp. Then, "the first necromancy spell you cast within the next minute ...
10
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Could a necromancer command an undead to act as it did in life?
It's already mentioned in the 5e Monster Manual in the entry for skeletons that uncontrolled skeletons will do things they would often do in life:
Habitual Behaviors. Independent skeletons ...
- 489
7
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Is it possible to raise undead versions of animals (or other creatures)?
Are there any ways to make undead animals in D&D 5e?
What other types of creatures can be raised from the dead except humanoids, and how can this be achieved?
I'm interested in ways to do so, both ...
- 1,090
1
vote
3
answers
2k
views
What Class or Class combination will raise the largest controlled undead (skeletal) army in 48 hours?
I am planning on making a Necromancer type with the largest undead army available in 5e D&D. He has 48 hours to build it. I have an existing strategy that nets me 150 skeletons using a lv 6 ...
- 11.1k
10
votes
1
answer
972
views
If the Bestow Curse spell causes me to do extra damage, does the target's death trigger the Necromancy wizard's Grim Harvest feature?
In D&D 5e using a wizard of the School of Necromancy:
If I cast bestow curse on a monster, then kill it with a crossbow, would it trigger the Grim Harvest feature due to the extra 1d8 damage? Does ...
- 103
4
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Can undead creatures (raised by a necromancy spell) climb a rope, climb a ladder, or swim?
I'm thinking about making a Necromancy wizard, but had a few questions about RAW.
Would undead from the animate undead spell (or any necromancer spells), e.g. skeletons or zombies, be able to climb ...
- 91
3
votes
3
answers
3k
views
As a player character, is there a way to reanimate a dragon I killed as an undead under that PC's control?
If a PC killed an ancient green dragon, what could they do to reanimate it as undead under their control, assumeing they have whatever combination of class levels necessary to make the idea work?
...
- 2,855
13
votes
2
answers
5k
views
What spell will provide the most healing for a Necromancy wizard's Grim Harvest feature?
The Necromancy wizard's Grim Harvest feature allows the necromancer to heal themselves an amount of HP equal to 3 times the level of the necromancy spell used to kill a creature, once per turn.
...
- 762
6
votes
1
answer
4k
views
Can you use animate dead on something that was previously animated by the same spell? [duplicate]
If a zombie or skeleton that you have animated with Animate Dead is reduced to 0 hit points, can you reanimate it using Animate dead?
The spell description only says:
Choose a pile of bones or a ...
- 1,225
32
votes
3
answers
5k
views
Can you separate a flesh golem and make two separate people?
I'm running Descent into Avernus and two characters died at one point. They were morphed together as a flesh golem by an NPC.
The players wanted to stay in the game with their (flesh golem-ified) ...
- 725
6
votes
2
answers
319
views
Can a Necromancy wizard raise a Spawn of Kyuss?
Are there any spells out there that would allow a necromancy school Wizard to specifically raise a Spawn of Kyuss?
Or would controlling one only be achievable through turning it?
- 3,409
12
votes
4
answers
5k
views
How many undead skeletons can a PC command and/or control?
Fantasy novels are rife with evil necromancers controlling hordes of undead...and they also make great BBEGs! But what if a player wanted to do the same thing?
I'd like to see how big of an army a 5e ...
- 10.8k
8
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Can Undead created via 'Animate Dead' be dismissed?
In the 5e D&D PHB, the spell 'Animate Dead' states that:
The creature is under your control for 24 hours,
after which it stops obeying any command you’ve given
it.
3.5e 'Animate Dead' ...
0
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Would a sentient creature that agreed to be resurrected via Animate Dead be less agressive than normal undead?
If a necromancer were to make a deal with like 4 people before a fight that the necromancer could animate them if they die during the fight, and then those same 4 people were to die, would those 4 ...
- 17
14
votes
2
answers
2k
views
How are the skeletons in Tresendar Manor created? And by whom?
Under Tresendar Manor,
It looks like the animate dead spell only works for 24 hours at a time. However,
Who made the skeletal guards in Tresendar Manor, and how were they constructed?
- 141
2
votes
2
answers
499
views
Can you chain Night Caller whistlers?
You, a 13th-level wizard, go to a graveyard and blow your Night Caller. Then you cast Awaken Undead on the zombie, and one week later have it blow on the Night Caller and order the new zombie to obey ...
- 4,023
2
votes
0
answers
744
views
Does anyone have a good way to allow a Necromancer to summon more powerful undead at the cost of summoning less of them? [closed]
I have a Necromancer that is starting to get a decent size army of undead going. It works great, he mainly uses his other spells to fill the support/buff/debuff role and uses the undead as his main ...
- 1,373
1
vote
4
answers
250
views
How can an Undead Necromancer make other Humanoids detect as Evil Undead?
I am planning an encounter in which a cabal of evil undead necromancers fortify inside an important building with some commoner hostages, disguising the commoners in the same clothes as them to ...
- 466
9
votes
1
answer
696
views
How would uncontrolled zombies react to a zombie raised by a necromancer?
If a necromancer raises a zombie, then orders the zombie to cross into area containing non-controlled zombies, how would the non-controlled zombies react? I've always assumed 'wild' undead don't ...
- 93
0
votes
1
answer
103
views
How many Hit Dice of undead does an acquired scroll of Animate Dead raise?
Animate dead is one of the few spells which has a variable cost to its casting, as it's based entirely on the amount of HD you are going to raise with the casting, which is partly dependent on the CL.
...
- 27.3k
5
votes
2
answers
2k
views
If I animate and control a zombie, does it benefit from Undead Fortitude when it's reduced to 0 HP?
I have been thinking over this and couldn't find anything about it online so far.
If I animate a corpse into a zombie to be my undead follower using the spell animate dead, when it is reduced to 0 HP ...
- 61
32
votes
5
answers
10k
views
What is the maximum number of PC-controlled undead?
I decided to make an unreasonable demand from nearby town and to gain an advantage in upcoming dispute I want an undead horde reinforcing my arguments. I am not looking for quality (after all, those ...
- 4,958
2
votes
1
answer
4k
views
What are the options for animated undead for a Necromancer?
I have just moved to 5e from 3.5e.
I've read up about the Necromancy Wizard subclass in 5e, and from what I have seen so far there are only three possible undead that they can possibly animate: ...
- 317
3
votes
2
answers
286
views
Can the spell "Sticks and Stones" create ANY humanoid Skeleton?
Sticks and stones, a 3rd-level necromancy spell from the Shining South, animates a pile of sticks, rocks and rubble to form a crude, humanoid shape. Effectively creating a skeleton out of none-bone ...
- 7,798
3
votes
0
answers
186
views
Raising a maximumly optimized tarrasque [closed]
What would be the most powerful undead type to raise a tarrasque as and would regeneration work with undead counting charisma for their health instead? I'm looking for the maximum beefy killing ...
- 39
6
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Can I use the Clone spell to create bodies, then raise them as undead?
My thought process here is that Clones do not have souls and are not creatures that have a consciousness. They’re essentially empty shells that breathe and are waiting for me to die.
My idea, step by ...
- 1,820
2
votes
1
answer
206
views
Can undead be altered into another type of undead?
I am playing a necromancer (Cleric/Wizard/Mystic Theurge with level 3 early entry cheese if you must know).
Let's say that I happen to have a dead body in front of me (don't ask where it came from or ...
- 27.3k
14
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Do creatures all have the same statistics upon being reanimated via the Animate Dead spell?
I have been thinking of making a necromancer, and I feel like I am missing something.
Do all zombies and skeletons, regardless of the corpse they used as an ingredient, become the creature listed as ...
- 21.7k
5
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Can a PC Necromancer maintain undead with the Animate Dead spell if they were originally raised with the Danse Macabre spell?
Since the casting time of Danse Macabre is more favourable to a higher level Necromancer, it would be more efficient to raise undead with Dance Macabre and then maintain them with Animate Dead. Is ...
- 8,768