D&D 5E (2024) The Undead Army Necromancer is not Designable

[Remathilis]

Doesn't that feel artificial? I'm not sure what element of the game world are you trying to bring to the forefront?

Most of magic is artificial. Cure Wounds heals injuries but doesn't cure diseases or poisons. Illusion spells are broken up by how many different senses it can fool at the same time. Teleport magic divided up by distance. Much of D&D's magic is artificially sliced up into separate effects across multiple levels.

 

[mellored]

Where do zombies get summoned from? Like, random graveyards? The shadowfell?

I feel like, if you go the summoning undead route, you might as well let a life cleric summon a live person.

The whole necromancer trope is they hang out in graveyards and steal bodies. Why would they do that if they can just summon animated bodies?

IMO, the spell is stronger if you have bodies.

You don't want a campaign on a deserted island to completely remove all the features.


Side question. Why human skeletons? Seems like animating undead ants would be easier.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

The whole necromancer trope is they hang out in graveyards and steal bodies

That's more of a body snatcher/reanimator/Frankenstein thing. A necromancer is someone who speaks to the dead.

 

[Minigiant]

And based on where we fall on that preference scale, we should avoid playing at the same table.

Not really. I might trust you to not bog down the game.

But my friend Malik who forgets stuff all the time. He can't play that class.

Again and the magic of D&D is ..

1) There are things that can be designed for your specific table.

2) There are things that can be designed for many tables who use the same themes

3) There are things that can be designed for most of the general audience.

The horde of individual different undead necromancer is 1).

 

[Remathilis]

That's more of a body snatcher/reanimator/Frankenstein thing. A necromancer is someone who speaks to the dead.

That's one interpretation. The issue of course is that a Necromancer can represent a someone who talks to spirits, binds souls, animates corpses, siphons life energy, and causes decay/necrotic damage or poison and disease. It's hard to make each of these necromancers work in four class features.

 

[Minigiant]

Where do zombies get summoned from? Like, random graveyards? The shadowfell?

I feel like, if you go the summoning undead route, you might as well let a life cleric summon a live person.

The whole necromancer trope is they hang out in graveyards and steal bodies. Why would they do that if they can just summon animated bodies?

Different spells

Guys. We are allowed to have more than 1 zombie spells if 1 of the 8 magic schools is Necromancy.

Proximity Summon: Animate Dead
Graveyard Summon: Raise Zombie
Shadofell Summon: Summon Undead

 

[Micah Sweet]

It's less "do one thing with a clear intended purpose and nothing more"
More "separate the combat spells from the exploration spells and social spells."

If you want a spell that summons 10 zombies at level 3, sure. But they can't be combat zombies. If you want to push a boulder out the way, you have 10 guys to do it.

If you want a dozen bony warriors, sure. But they can't push the rock, search an area, and can't make grapples. It's Bone Sword and Bone Bow only. And they can't split up. You can make them guard a door but all of them must do it.

Sure seems like "do one thing with a clear intended purpose and no more" from a setting logic perspective.

 

[Micah Sweet]

That's one interpretation. The issue of course is that a Necromancer can represent a someone who talks to spirits, binds souls, animates corpses, siphons life energy, and causes decay/necrotic damage or poison and disease. It's hard to make each of these necromancers work in four class features.

Full. Class. It's entirely doable, and has in fact been done more than once.

 

[Minigiant]

Sure seems like "do one thing with a clear intended purpose and no more" from a setting logic perspective.

Only if you have tunnel vision.

Combat Zombie, Worker Zombie, Talking Zombie, and Mook Zombie were different Zombies.

Even in video games, they are different spells.

So if you want to create Mook Zombies in order to grapple the charging orc and make 12 grapple attempts a turn... you are being disruptive. Choose the Combat Zombie to do combat stuff well.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

Different spells

Guys. We are allowed to have more than 1 zombie spells if 1 of the 8 magic schools is Necromancy.

Proximity Summon: Animate Dead
Graveyard Summon: Raise Zombie
Shadofell Summon: Summon Undead

Summoning shadows and ghosts seems in keeping with the necromancer trope