D&D 5E 5.0 necromancer

[SigmaOne]

Is there a source for this? Hopefully one that talks about it in more detail?

Gods Appendix in PHB.

Edit: I'm slow.

 

[evilbob]

I remembered the gods stuff talking about the Death domain, just not that it would be in the DMG. Thanks!

 

[fjw70]

I remembered the gods stuff talking about the Death domain, just not that it would be in the DMG. Thanks!

There is this from Twitter.
[MENTION=32417]MikeM[/MENTION]earls re: cleric domains, will we get ones for evil clerics, like chaos, death, destruction, etc?

Mike's reply
[MENTION=54629]pukunui[/MENTION]81 couple of those are with the DM rules, but players can use them

 

[fjw70]

I think in two years' time we'll be looking back on this thread and shaking our heads. I suspect that with the flat math, a horde of skeletons is going to be outright nasty, especially if they all get +20 hit points and +6 proficiency to their attacks above and beyond what they've got innately.

That would be +6 to damage and not the attack roll.

 

[evilbob]

That would be +6 to damage and not the attack roll.

I thought the wizard's 6th level necromancer subclass feature was that they add your prof. bonus to "weapon attacks" - as in, attack rolls, not damage? Maybe I read that wrong?

 

[fjw70]

I thought the wizard's 6th level necromancer subclass feature was that they add your prof. bonus to "weapon attacks" - as in, attack rolls, not damage? Maybe I read that wrong?

I just relooked and it is damage on weapon attacks.

 

[Capricia]

The ability to raise and maintain an army of the undead that trivializes the ability of an entire party of fighters, that can reliably take out CR 20 threats in a single round, that breaks the game in just all kinds of ways...is "pretty meh".

Bravo. Bravo.

 

[evilbob]

I just relooked and it is damage on weapon attacks.

Oh, wow - yeah, that seems like it might be worse. I mean, it helps for scaling against larger HP monsters, but the low +attack kinda sucks. But maybe a CR 1/4th's normal attack bonus isn't that bad now? Still a lot of questions to be answered by the MM.

The ability to raise and maintain an army of the undead that trivializes the ability of an entire party of fighters, that can reliably take out CR 20 threats in a single round, that breaks the game in just all kinds of ways...is "pretty meh".

Bravo. Bravo.

I'm honestly not sure if you're in the right thread, because I don't think we're talking about the same thing.

 

[evilbob]

The one extra thing you get as a 14th level necromancer / wizard is the ability to control one undead you didn't make with no time limit. It's a CHA save to resist and you can only have one at a time, but the options are otherwise unlimited. The trick, though, is that intelligent undead are harder to control and anything with an Int of 12 or more gets to retry its save each round until it wins, so you will not be enslaving Strahd or a lich or something like that.

Just saw the Horde of the Dragon Queen supplement and it has a vampire spawn with 11 Int! SCORE! Definitely not fond of sunlight, though...

 

[Dausuul]

I dunno; having 50 guys means you won't be doing ANYTHING else. No fireballs, no dimension doors, no nothing. Then again I guess if cantrips don't suck and they are at-will, maybe that's ok? And while yes, they will have +10 HP at level 10 and +4 bonus to hit, skeletons start out at 13 HP. That's 23 HP at level 10 - probably not more than a single average attack? (Again, hard to know without the MM.) I'm just envisioning a single monster with multiattack going through 3 or 4 a turn. Then again, at least they aren't hitting you?

Fifty 23-hp monsters attacking for 9 points of damage apiece at a +4 attack bonus? In the dungeon context, that is a force to be reckoned with. I wasn't even really thinking about the hit point bonus, but it makes them really formidable--they aren't just minions to be swatted like flies.

Practically speaking, I doubt I would ever invest that heavily in undead. I'd keep back enough spell slots for emergencies. But thirty 23-hp monsters attacking for 9 points of damage apiece is still a scary, scary thing.

Just make sure to win initiative and target the enemy cleric first, or you'll be one sad necromancer.