Undead: Undead are once-living creatures animated by spiritual or supernatural forces.
Any creature that dies in a tainted area animates in 1d4 hours as an undead creature, usually a zombie of the appropriate size. Burning a corpse protects it from this effect. (Heroes of Horror)
Few mortal creatures have ever attempted to eat an entire dirgewood fruit, and none who has is known to have survived. Tales of what might happen to those who “live” through such an attempt vary - some believe they would gain permanent command over the dead, and others that they would be transformed into strange, powerful, and unique undead themselves. (Creature Collection III)
The passage of the black phoenix causes the dead to rise, randomly imbuing corpses below it with varying degrees of unholy might. It is attracted to places of death, disease, and oppression, where, as it passes, ghouls, skeletons, vampires, and other fell beings rise up from among the dead. (Creature Collection III)
Any corpse or skeleton within a black phoenix's aura of undeath or that the phoenix casts its shadow upon as it flies overhead may rise up as some type of undead. (Creature Collection III)
Orcus is the Prince of the Undead, and it is said that he alone created the first undead that walked the worlds. (Epic Monsters)
Despite every possible contingency, some spirits fail to pass into the next world, remaining trapped in an unnatural state between life and death. Some powerful individuals consciously aspire to achieve undead status, but most unwillingly join their ranks either through death at the hands of such a creature, through the magical intervention of a mortal or via the unfortunate circumstances surrounding their earthly demise. (Into the Black)
Once per day with a successful touch attack, Otossal’s avatar can transform any living being into an undead creature. The creature touched must make a DC 36 Fortitude save or gain any undead template of Otossal’s choice. (Strange Lands: Lost Tribes of the Scarred Lands)
Undead are once-living creatures animated by spiritual or supernatural forces. (The Dread Codex)
Over the course of a few years, every plant and animal that dies within a mile of the rupture to the negative energy plane left after a bone slime is destroyed would rise as some kind of minor undead.
Any corpse (be it fleshy or skeletal) within a death sphere's aura of undeath or that the sphere casts its shadow upon as it flies overhead may rise up as some type of undead. (The Dread Codex)
A creature slain by an undead lord rises in 1d4 minutes as an undead creature of the same type as the undead lord. (The Dread Codex)
Any living creature slain by a mortuary cyclone’s necrocone attack or energy drain attack becomes an undead creature in 1d4 rounds. (Tome of Horrors III)
Oath of Blood spell. (Heroes of Horror)
Allip: An allip is the spectral remains of someone driven to suicide by a madness that afflicted it in life.
The allip is the spirit of someone driven to suicide by madness.
Suicide need not be the individual’s conscious goal, so long as it can be directly attributed to the insanity.
For instance, someone who jumps from a tower out of depression qualifies, but so does a madman who perishes after gouging out his own eyes in order to escape his hallucinations. Further, someone found shortly after death and offered a respectful burial is not likely to become an allip; only those who lie unfound for days or longer seem to linger as undead. (Dragon 336)
Bodak: Bodaks are the undead remnants of humanoids who have been destroyed by the touch of absolute evil.
Humanoids who die from a bodak’s death gaze attack are transformed into bodaks 24 hours later.
Bodaks are “the undead remnants of humanoids who have been destroyed by the touch of absolute evil.” Typically this means that bodaks are created by other bodaks through their death gaze, but other methods exist as well. (Dragon 336)
A bodak might rise when an outsider with the evil subtype slays a humanoid creature with negative energy, a necromantic spell, or a death effect. (Dragon 336)
Devourer: Create Greater Undead Spell
Ghost: Ghosts are the spectral remnants of intelligent beings who, for one reason or another, cannot rest easily in their graves.
“Ghost” is an acquired template that can be added to any aberration, animal, dragon, giant, humanoid, magical beast, monstrous humanoid, or plant. The creature (referred to hereafter as the base creature) must have a Charisma score of at least 6.
Ghosts are similar to - though more powerful than - geists, spirits of intelligent creatures who have died with unfinished business and who remain close to the physical world in the hopes of completing some goal. (Libris Mortis)
“Ghost” is an acquired template that can be applied to any living creature. (Libris Mortis)
Held to the Material Plane through raw emotion, ghosts possess a burning need to complete some task or remain near some person or place. Love and determination are often the driving motivations behind a ghost’s existence.
The innate fury of bhorloth leads some that are slain to return as ghosts. Raging spirits have arisen from the fallen mounts of warriors, the leaders of slaughtered herds, and bhorloth driven from their homes. (Complete Book of Denizens)
All ghosts believe they died violently or of unnatural causes. A woman who dies of old age probably doesn’t become a ghost, unless she believes she was poisoned. Similarly, those who die of illness rarely rise as ghosts unless they believe the plague was deliberately spread. The truth of the matter is unimportant; only the individual’s strongly held belief matters. (Dragon 336)
In a few rare instances, the ignorant or innocent might remain as ghosts without even realizing they are dead. (Dragon 336)
Ghosts are the spectral impressions of individuals who died due to the plague or due to some incredibly traumatic incident. (Manual of Monsters)
The plundering dead who come to understand their true form become full-fledged spectres or ghosts. (Monster Encyclopaedia 1 Ravagers of the Realms)
If the death hunter used to have a familiar or animal companion, the animal gains the ghost template and an evil alignment. (Monster Encyclopaedia 2 Dark Bestiary)
A sculpt sound spell turns a whispering presence into a ghost of the creature it was in life. (Monster Encyclopaedia 2 Dark Bestiary)
Ghoul: An afflicted humanoid with less than 4 HD who dies of ghoul fever rises as a ghoul at the next midnight.
Most humanoids who engage in such activities and return from the grave are mere ghouls. (Libris Mortis)
Any humanoid creature drained to 0 levels by the juvenile nabassu’s deathstealing gaze dies and is immediately transformed into a ghoul. Ghouls are said to be created upon the death of a living sentient being who savored the taste of the flesh of other sentient creatures. This assertion may or may not be true, but it does explain the disgusting behavior of these anthropophagous undead. (Fiendish Codex I Hordes of the Abyss)
Any humanoid creature drained to 0 levels by a mature nabassu’s death-stealing gaze dies and is immediately transformed into a ghoul. (Fiendish Codex I Hordes of the Abyss)
A nabassu’s gaze can drain life, and those who succumb are transformed into ghouls. (Fiendish Codex I Hordes of the Abyss)
Ghouls most often result from an infection of ghoul fever or the create undead spell. In some instances, however, individuals who spent their lives feeding on others spontaneously rise as ghouls. This “feeding” can be literal, such as habitual cannibalism, or figurative, such as a tax-collector who takes more than the law requires so he might feed his avarices. Only those who commit these acts personally risk becoming a ghoul. A distant lord who commands his soldiers to rob the peasants blind is not at risk, but a greedy landlord who charges poor families every copper they own and then cheerfully evicts them certainly is. Some see the transformation into a ghoul as a curse from the deities, punishment for a life of greed and sin. (Dragon 336)
The first ghouls were humans who rose as undead because they had indulged in unwholesome pleasures in life. (Advanced Bestiary)
The instant a ghoul spitter is killed or destroyed, the pustules on its skin all burst simultaneously, so that all creatures within 5 feet of it are exposed to its ghoul fever.
Poison (Ex): Spit (20 feet, once every 1d3 rounds) or bite, Fortitude DC 15, initial damage 1d4 Con, secondary damage infected with ghoul fever. The save DC is Constitution-based and includes a +2 racial bonus. If a spell or spell-like ability is used to delay, neutralize, or otherwise mitigate the effects of the poison, the caster must first make a caster level check as if trying to overcome spell resistance 19. If this check fails, the spell has no effect.
Ghoul Fever (Su): Disease (Su): Ghoul fever—bite, Fortitude DC 15, incubation period 1 day, damage 1d3 Dex and 1d3 Con. The save DC is Charisma-based.
An afflicted humanoid who dies of ghoul fever rises as a normal ghoul at the next midnight.
A creature that becomes a ghoul in this way retains none of the abilities possessed in life. It is not necessarily under control of any other ghouls, but it hungers for the flesh of the living and behaves like other ghouls in all respects. (Monster Geographica Underground)
A creature whose Strength score is reduced to 0 by a stone ghoul slider's leech life ability and then dies rises upon the following midnight as a ghoul. (Monster Geographica Underground)
An afflicted creature that dies under a fukuranbou's curse of the rotten gut will arise as a ghoul in 1d4 days. (Monster Geographica Marsh and Aquatic)
An afflicted humanoid who dies of a grisl's ghoul fever rises as a normal ghoul at the next midnight. (Monster Geographica Forest)
An afflicted humanoid who dies of a ghastiff's ghoul fever rises as a ghoul at the next midnight. (Monster Geographica Plains and Desert)
Corpses of humanoids that possessed two or three class levels within range of a deadwood's foul influence that remain in contact with the ground for 1 full round are animated as ghouls. (Monster Geographica Forest)
An afflicted humanoid that dies of a canine Skulker's ghoul fever rises as a ghoul at the next midnight. (The Dread Codex)
An afflicted humanoid who dies of an ichor ghoul's ghoul fever rises as a normal ghoul at the next midnight. (The Dread Codex)
An afflicted humanoid who dies of a primal ghoul's ghoul fever rises as a normal ghoul at the next midnight. (The Dread Codex)
Any corpse of a humanoid with 2 or 3 class levels within range of a tree of woe's foul influence that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is turned into a ghoul. (The Dread Codex)
Humanoids who die from a demonling nabassu's death gaze attack are transformed into ghouls within 1d4 rounds. (Tome of Horrors Revised)
Humanoids who die from a mature nabassu's death gaze attack are transformed into ghouls within 1d4 rounds. (Tome of Horrors Revised)
Any animal, giant, humanoid, or monstrous humanoid corpse with two or three class levels and within a dirgewood's foul influence range that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is animated into a ghoul.
An afflicted humanoid who dies of a ghoul hound's ghoul fever rises as a ghoul at the next midnight.
An afflicted humanoid who dies of a ghoul overghast's ghoul fever rises as a normal ghoul at the next midnight.
An afflicted humanoid who dies of a poisonbearer ghoul's ghoul fever rises as a normal ghoul at the next midnight. (Creature Collection III)
Create Undead Spell
Field of Ghouls spell. (Libris Mortis)
Ghoul Gauntlet spell. (Libris Mortis)
Change Zombie spell. (The Dread Codex)
Lacedon: ?
When a ship sinks beneath the waves, it and its entire crew may return as ghostly wanderers, especially if the captain and crew had a less than scrupulous profession (as pirates, for example). A sunken ship of this nature may undergo a transformation from the negative energy and evil surrounding it. When this happens, the ship rises from the deep, piloted by a draug and manned by skeletons, brine zombies, zombies, and lacedons. (Tome of Horrors Revised)
A humanoid or monstrous humanoid killed by a brykolakas rises as a lacedon in 1d4 days under the control of the brykolakas that created it. Soul reapers have no ties to the land of the living, in that they have always existed and have always been. (Tome of Horrors III)
An afflicted humanoid of four or fewer Hit Dice who dies of ghoul fever from a fossil ghoul rises as a fossil ghoul at the next midnight.
Any humanoid killed by the energy drain attack of a voracious fang swarm rises 2d6 hours later as a ghoul. (Strange Lands: Lost Tribes of the Scarred Lands)
Ghast: An afflicted humanoid with 4 or more HD who dies of ghoul fever rises as a ghast at the next midnight.
The first ghouls were humans who rose as undead because they had indulged in unwholesome pleasures in life. The original ghasts rose as undead for similar reasons, but their sins were of vaster scale. A man who broke a taboo by consuming dead bodies to avoid starvation might rise as a ghoul, but a man who murdered his wife and children, then cooked them up as a delicious meal for himself and his mistress would instead rise as a ghast. Cursed with a terrible stench of death and corruption that serves as a warning to the living, the ghast’s greater sins in life grant it greater power in undeath. (Advanced Bestiary)
A humanoid of 4 Hit Dice or more that dies from a grisl's ghoul fever bite rises as a ghast.
Corpses of humanoids that possessed four or more class levels within range of a deadwood's foul influence that remain in contact with the ground for 1 full round are animated as ghasts. (Monster Geographica Forest)
An afflicted humanoid of 4 Hit Dice or more who dies of a ghastiff's ghoul fever rises as a ghast at the next midnight. (Monster Geographica Plains and Desert)
An afflicted humanoid 4 Hit Dice or more who dies of a ghoul creature's ghoul fever rises as a ghast at the next midnight. (The Dread Codex)
Any corpse of a humanoid with 4 or more class levels within range of a tree of woe's foul influence that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is animated into a ghast. (The Dread Codex)
If a ghoul lord slays its victim with its claws or bite, the victim returns as a ghast in 1d4 days. (Libris Mortis)
Lebendtod create more of their kind by breathing into the mouth of a dying humanoid (one below 0 hit points) as it draws its last breath. This requires a full-round action and provokes attacks of opportunity. The body must then be isolated for 72 hours. If the body is disturbed in any way but left largely intact, it rises as a ghast. (Libris Mortis)
The best-known methods for creating a ghast are through create undead and by contracting ghoul fever. A third method exists, however. If someone who might spontaneously become a ghoul at death dies while actually in the process of consuming humanoid flesh, he instead rises as a ghast. (Dragon 336)
Any animal, giant, humanoid, or monstrous humanoid corpse with four or more class levels and within a dirgewood's foul influence range that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is animated into a ghast. (Creature Collection III)
An afflicted humanoid of 4-5 Hit Dice who dies of ghoul fever from a fossil ghoul rises as a fossil ghoul at the next midnight. (Strange Lands: Lost Tribes of the Scarred Lands)
Create Undead Spell
Lich: A lich is an undead spellcaster, usually a wizard or sorcerer but sometimes a cleric or other spellcaster, who has used its magical powers to unnaturally extend its life.
“Lich” is an acquired template that can be added to any humanoid creature provided it can create the required phylactery.
The process of becoming a lich is unspeakably evil and can be undertaken only by a willing character.
An integral part of becoming a lich is creating a magic phylactery in which the character stores its life force.
Each lich must make its own phylactery, which requires the Craft Wondrous Item feat. The character must be able to cast spells and have a caster level of 11th or higher. The phylactery costs 120,000 gp and 4,800 XP to create and has a caster level equal to that of its creator at the time of creation.
As the quintessential “self-made” undead, a lich is a spellcaster who becomes undead through a complex ritual that takes years of research and careful experimentation. This involves the creation of a phylactery, a vessel to contain the lich’s essence.
The process requires Craft Wondrous Item, 120,000 gp, and 4,800 XP. Discovering the proper formulas and incantations to create a phylactery requires a DC 35 Knowledge (arcane) or Knowledge (religion) check. This check requires 1d4 full months of research. Note that this check represents starting from scratch and can be bypassed entirely if the knowledge is available (such as through a tome or tutor).
Perhaps the most common form of the accompanying ritual for arcane liches—although not the only one—involves the spells create undead, magic jar, and permanency.
When a dread necromancer attains 20th level, she undergoes a hideous transformation and becomes a lich. A dread necromancer who is not humanoid does not gain this class feature. (Heroes of Horror)
The comparable rite for clerical liches involves create undead, harm, and unhallow. (Dragon 336)
To become one, an evil spellcaster must knowingly consume a potion that will end his life only to resurrect him as an unliving vessel of pure evil. (Complete Guide to Liches)
Liches are powerful undead creatures – mortal wizards, warriors, and other beings of might who use the dark necromantic arts to make their spirits immortal. (Complete Guide to Liches)
No one knows for certain how the first liches came to be. (Complete Guide to Liches)
Sages say that the necromantic arts of lichdom came from failed sorcerous attempts to find immortality, or even godhood. (Complete Guide to Liches)
The creation of a lich requires a willing, living subject. (Complete Guide to Liches)
The process of becoming a lich is a dark and arduous one. The secrets and spells that must be learned in order to create a lich are numerous and difficult – it can take a lifetime alone just to learn all that is required. (Complete Guide to Liches)
In order to create a lich or a lich variant, two simple elements are essential above all others: a skilled spellcaster to create the lich, and a willing subject to become the lich.
The spellcaster can be any high-level spellcaster, including epic-level paladins and rangers.
Spellcasting: Caster level 11
Feats: Craft Wondrous Item
The subject must be a willing subject. Should the subject not truly desire to become a lich, or understand and object to the fact that becoming a lich involves actually dying and being reborn as an undead creature, the subject will never become a lich or lich variant. Suggestion, charm, or any other sorts of magic spells and psionics used to convince a subject that becoming a lich is a good idea are not enough, nor is misleading the subject about what the lich creation process entails. Only a subject that chooses to be a lich of his own free will can ever successfully become a lich.
Once both the spellcaster and the subject are ready and willing, a phylactery must be created to begin the process of lichdom.
Creating the phylactery requires the Craft Wondrous Item feat. This phylactery costs a minimum of 120,000 gp and 4,800 XP to create, and possesses a caster level equal to that of its creator when it is made.
With the phylactery (and, optionally, the vessel) in place, a ritual is required to bind the soul to the phylactery. Different cultures and magical traditions have developed slightly different rituals for spellcasters who wish to become liches.
The Potion of Undead Life: A potion of undead life slays the drinker unless he succeeds a Fortitude save (DC 20). A creature so slain cannot be brought back from the dead by anything short of a wish or miracle. If a creature has undergone the necessary ritual to bind its soul to a phylactery (and optionally, its mind to a vessel), the potion of undead life does not immediately slay the drinker; instead, it causes the creature’s physical body to rapidly decompose, turning into little more than dust and ash in less than two days. This is often to the horror of the lich, who cannot be certain the ritual was effective. But 1d10 days after the subject’s body drops dead from drinking a potion of undead life, he returns as a lich, looking very similar to the way he did in life.
Binding the Twin Winds: For this ritual, the prospective lich must find a windy cave, which acts as his phylactery. A ritual binds his soul to the cave, but to make the bonding permanent, he must die amid the cries of both mourning friends
and victorious foes – the twin winds of the ritual. After the prospective lich takes its last living breath, his body is suffused with a black miasma of negative energy that slowly dissolves his body. Only once there are no breathing creatures within a hundred feet will the lich be reanimated. Though a difficult ritual to perform, the benefit is that the lich’s phylactery is nearly impossible to steal or destroy. Though the cave only has hardness 8, it has tens of thousands of hit points.
The Sultan’s Curse: A thousand years ago, the sultan of a desert nation was blessed by a djinni to be able to invoke a curse of his choice once during his reign. That curse was lain upon a foreigner who defiled the holiest city of the land, and he was struck down by a bolt from the heavens. But the foreigner’s magic allowed him to steal a bit of the divine essence of the lightning bolt, bonding his soul with the twisted glass created when the lightning seared the desert sands. His body reformed from the sands of where he died, and he lives to this day seeking revenge. Similarly, if a mage prepares the proper ritual, and if he is slain by a spell channeling positive energy, he can corrupt that energy and use it to propel himself into the undeath of lichdom.
The Diary of Riddles: Many loremasters, feeling their pursuit of knowledge is yet incomplete, craft textual phylacteries, recording in extreme detail the events of their lives, typically in a well-bound tome. The mage seeking to become immortal must include at least one mystery he seeks to solve in his undeath, though additional mysteries may later be added to the book. He then writes an account of his own death into the tome, at which point he dies, his soul binding with the pages. (Complete Guide to Liches)
Mohrg: Mohrgs are the animated corpses of mass murderers or similar villains who died without atoning for their crimes.
Mohrgs are mass murderers or similar villains, but not all dead murderers become mohrgs. To become a mohrg, a killer must not only fail to atone for his crimes, he must intend to kill again. In other words, only murderers whose sprees are interrupted by death rise as mohrgs. A hanged killer possesses a better chance of rising as a mohrg than one slain through any other means. Even the wisest sages maintain no real idea why this should be, although some speculate it is because hanging is often considered the most dishonorable means of execution.
Only the spell create undead can form a mohrg from a corpse that is not a murderer. (Dragon 336)
Create Undead Spell
Mummy: Mummies are preserved corpses animated through the auspices of dark desert gods best forgotten.
Whether it’s a mindless, shambling corpse or a spellcasting sorcerer, a mummy is usually the protector of a tomb or the victim of a curse. Either of these scenarios generates a worthwhile horror villain, but consider the possibility of a mummy not bound to a higher power.
Perhaps an ancient necromancer chose mummification over lichdom in his bid for immortality. Or a mummy might indeed be cursed but potentially able to escape her eternal imprisonment if she can find another to take her place. (Heroes of Horror)
For a bizarre twist, consider the possibility that the power animating the mummy is in fact contained in the wrappings. Should even a scrap of the cloth survive the first mummy’s destruction, the next creature to touch it might find itself possessed by the ancient’s vengeful spirit. (Heroes of Horror)
Normally formed via ancient burial rites, the process to create a mummy involves complex spells, chants, and designs. The mummification ritual entails the removal of internal organs and the slow drying and desiccation of the corpse. (Dragon 336)
On very rare occasions, an individual might spontaneously rise as a mummy. If a person dies in a state of anger and hatred and if his body is naturally mummified or preserved, due perhaps to exposure to great heat and dryness, the individual might reanimate and seek to destroy the object of his rage. (Dragon 336)
A creature afflicted with hunefer rot that dies shrivels away into sand unless both remove disease and raise dead (or better) are cast on the remains within 2 rounds. If the remains are not so treated, on the third round the dust swirls and forms an 18 HD mummy with the dead foe’s equipment under the hunefer’s command. (Epic Monsters)
Create Undead Spell
Mummy Lord: Unusually powerful or evil individuals preserved as mummies sometimes rise as greater mummies after death. Most are sworn to defend for eternity the resting place of those whom they served in life, but in some cases a mummy lord’s unliving state is the result of a terrible curse or rite designed to punish treason, infidelity, or crimes of an even more abhorrent nature.
Mummy 18 HD: A creature afflicted with hunefer rot that dies shrivels away into sand unless both remove disease and raise dead (or better) are cast on the remains within 2 rounds. If the remains are not so treated, on the third round the dust swirls and forms an 18 HD mummy with the dead foe’s equipment under the hunefer’s command. (srd 3.5 epic)
Mummy Dust epic spell (srd 3.5 epic)
Nightshades: Nightshades are powerful undead composed of equal parts darkness and absolute evil.
Nightshades were entities of pure evil even before they became undead. They result when outsiders with the evil subtype are continually subjected to negative energies long after death. The type of nightshade the fiend becomes is determined by adding up its Hit Dice and its Charisma modifier. If the total is 10 or less, the creature cannot become a nightshade. From 11 to 18, the creature might rise as a nightwing; 19 to 26, as a nightwalker; and 27 or more, as a nightcrawler. (Dragon 336)
Nightcrawler: ?
Nightshades were entities of pure evil even before they became undead. They result when outsiders with the evil subtype are continually subjected to negative energies long after death. The type of nightshade the fiend becomes is determined by adding up its Hit Dice and its Charisma modifier. 27 or more, as a nightcrawler. (Dragon 336)
Nightwalker: ?
Nightshades were entities of pure evil even before they became undead. They result when outsiders with the evil subtype are continually subjected to negative energies long after death. The type of nightshade the fiend becomes is determined by adding up its Hit Dice and its Charisma modifier. 19 to 26, as a nightwalker. (Dragon 336)
Nightwing: ?
Nightshades were entities of pure evil even before they became undead. They result when outsiders with the evil subtype are continually subjected to negative energies long after death. The type of nightshade the fiend becomes is determined by adding up its Hit Dice and its Charisma modifier. From 11 to 18, the creature might rise as a nightwing. (Dragon 336)
Shadow: Any humanoid reduced to Strength 0 by a shadow becomes a shadow within 1d4 rounds.
According to ancient texts, an arcane creature known only as the Shadow Lord created beings of living darkness to aid him and protect him. These beings, called shadows, were formed through a combination of darkness and evil. (Tome of Horrors Revised)
Any creature with a Charisma score of 15 or higher that is killed by a dread shadow rises as a dread shadow in 1d4 rounds. Any other creature slain by a dread shadow instead rises as a normal shadow in 1d4 rounds. (Advanced Bestiary)
Any humanoid reduced to Strength 0 by a ndalawo becomes a shadow under control of its killer within 1d4 rounds. (Monster Geographica Forest)
Any humanoid reduced to a Strength score of 0 by a ndalawo shadow leopard becomes a shadow under control of its killer within 1d4 rounds. (The Dread Codex)
Any humanoid reduced to Strength 0 by an umbral creature dies and rises as a shadow under the control of its killer in 1d4 rounds. (Libris Mortis)
In ancient times, before the development of create greater undead, the first shadow arose. Shadows spontaneously manifest when someone dies due, at least in part, to her own physical weakness. A warrior slain after rendered helpless by a ray of enfeeblement spell, an old woman murdered because she lacked the strength to fight back or scream for help, or a rogue slowly eaten by rats after incapacitation by poison might become a shadow. (Dragon 336)
Create Greater Undead Spell
Shadow Greater: ?
Skeleton: Skeletons are the animated bones of the dead, mindless automatons that obey the orders of their evil masters.
“Skeleton” is an acquired template that can be added to any corporeal creature (other than an undead) that has a skeletal system.
A skull lord’s creator skull can create a bonespur, a serpentir, or a skeleton from nearby bones and bone shards. (Monster Manual V)
A pyre elemental can touch the corpse of any once-living corporeal creature within its reach as a free action, animating it as a zombie or skeleton (depending on the condition of the corpse). (Libris Mortis)
When a ship sinks beneath the waves, it and its entire crew may return as ghostly wanderers, especially if the captain and crew had a less than scrupulous profession (as pirates, for example). A sunken ship of this nature may undergo a transformation from the negative energy and evil surrounding it. When this happens, the ship rises from the deep, piloted by a draug and manned by skeletons, brine zombies, zombies, and lacedons. (Tome of Horrors Revised)
As a standard action, a bone sovereign can create any number of skeletal monsters from its body. (Complete Minions)
Those slain by the effects of the skulleon’s bite rise as skeletons under the control of the skulleon, their flesh sliding from their bodies as they are animated. (Bestiary Malfearous)
As a standard action, a bone sovereign can create any number of skeletal monsters from its body. (Monster Geographica Underground)
As a full round action, an undead ooze can expel the skeletons in its body. (Monster Geographica Underground)
Any animal, giant, humanoid, or monstrous humanoid corpse within range of a deadwood's foul influence that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is animated as a skeleton or zombie. (Monster Geographica Forest)
If a victim dies while engulfed by a bone slime, it becomes a skeleton. (The Dread Codex)
Any animal, giant, humanoid, or monstrous humanoid corpse within range of a tree of woe's foul influence that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is animated into a skeleton or zombie. (The Dread Codex)
A remove curse or remove disease spell, or a more powerful version of either, transforms an eaten one into a normal skeleton that can crawl with a speed of 10 feet. Neither spell restores any missing portions of the eaten one’s body. (Dangerous Denizens The Monsters of Tellene)
Any humanoid killed by the ka spirit’s rotting possession ability rises again as an undead in 1d4 rounds. Spawn are under the command of the ka spirit. Treat these unfortunates as standard zombies or skeletons, with none of the abilities they formerly had in life. (Lore of the Gods)
Battle rams that fall honorably in battle are resurrected by the powers of Chardun and continue to serve him as undead.
In the same manner as humanoid followers of Chardun, battle rams serve their evil god loyally and, if slain in battle, rise from the dead after 30 days. A risen battle ram gains the skeleton template.
Any animal, giant, humanoid, or monstrous humanoid corpse with less than two class levels and within a dirgewood's foul influence range that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is animated into a zombie or skeleton. (Creature Collection III)
Dragons who undergo a failed ritual of lichdom do not become semi-liches, instead tending to rise as wights or skeletal dragons. (Complete Guide to Liches)
As a standard action, an ankou can choose any creature it has slain via its death grip or death touch attacks and cause it to rise again as a skeleton. (Monster Encyclopaedia 2 Dark Bestiary)
Animate Dead spell
Plague of Undead spell. (Libris Mortis)
Plague of Undead spell. (Heroes of Horror)
My Life for Yours spell. (The Dread Codex)
Puppets of Death spell. (Complete Guide to Liches)
Spectre: Any humanoid slain by a spectre becomes a spectre in 1d4 rounds.
Living creatures in an atropal’s negative energy aura are treated as having ten negative levels unless they have some sort of negative energy protection or protection from evil. Creatures with 10 or fewer HD or levels perish (and, at the atropal’s option, rise as spectres under the atropal’s command 1 minute later) (3.5 epic srd)
A humanoid slain by a t’liz’s energy drain rises as a spectre 1d4 days after death. (Dragon 315)
Any creature with a Charisma score of 16 or higher that is killed by a dread spectre rises as a dread spectre in 1d4 rounds. Any other creature slain by a dread spectre instead rises as a normal spectre in 1d4 rounds. (Advanced Bestiary)
When not created by spells or the touch of another spectre, they manifest in a similar fashion to ghosts. They rise from the violent death of someone who lacks the requisite strength of purpose to become a true ghost, yet who possesses sufficient will and fury that they cannot move on.
Spectres are born from sudden acts of violence. (Dragon 336)
The plundering dead who come to understand their true form become full-fledged spectres or ghosts. (Monster Encyclopaedia 1 Ravagers of the Realms)
Any humanoid killed by a spectral troll rises 1d3 days later as a free-willed spectre unless a cleric of the victim’s religion casts bless on the corpse before such time. (Tome of Horrors Revised)
Create Greater Undead Spell
Vampire: “Vampire” is an acquired template that can be added to any humanoid or monstrous humanoid creature (referred to hereafter as the base creature).
If a vampire drains a victim’s Constitution to 0 or lower, the victim returns as a vampire if it had 5 or more HD.
Seduced by the promises of Orcus, he cast aside his life for the dark blessings of undeath. (Monster Manual V)
He begged the gods to spare him from death, vowing that he would do whatever was asked of him in exchange for the gift of immortality. His pleas gained the attention of Orcus, who longed for mortal souls to feed his insatiable hunger. The demon prince granted this knight the power to defeat death by stealing his soul, transforming his mortal form into the undead monstrosity it remains to this day. (Monster Manual V)
Vampire myths older than Dracula (novel 1897, film 1931) attribute the existence of the undead to sinners and suicides unable to enter Heaven. (Heroes of Horror)
Dread vampires can create spawn only if their victims are kept in coffin homes, a special receptacle, until they rise. A coffin home can be any container capable of accommodating the corpse.
Under these conditions, a humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by a dread vampire’s energy drain attack rises as a vampire 24 hours after death. (Advanced Bestiary)
The vampire is a powerful undead monster that spawns its own followers from living humans.
Veldrane mold vampires spawn others of their kind, but a small fraction of their spawn are mutants: They are standard vampires. (Complete Guide to Vampires)
When a creature that breathed in a Veldrane vampire's spores is slain by a Veldrane mold vampire, it will rise in 6 days as a new Veldrane mold vampire. There is a 1% chance that it will rise as a standard vampire instead of a Veldrane mold vampire. (Complete Guide to Vampires)
Vampire Spawn: Vampire spawn are undead creatures that come into being when vampires slay mortals.
A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by a vampire’s energy drain rises as a vampire spawn 1d4 days after burial.
If a vampire drains a victim’s Constitution to 0 or lower, the victim returns as a spawn if it had 4 or less HD.
By drinking the blood of the living, vampires rejuvenate themselves and create their foul spawn. (Monster Manual V)
A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by a chiang-shi’s energy drain attack rises as a vampire spawn 1d4 days after burial. (Libris Mortis)
If the chiang-shi instead drains the victim’s Constitution to 0 or less, the victim returns as a spawn if it had 4 or fewer Hit Dice. (Libris Mortis)
A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by a nosferatu energy drain attack rises as a vampire spawn 1d4 days after burial. (Libris Mortis)
If a nosferatu drains a humanoid or monstrous humanoid's Constitution to 0 or less, the victim returns as a vampire spawn. (Libris Mortis)
Victims reduced to 0 Intelligence or below from a cerebral vampire's intelligence drain fall into a catatonic stupor. if they die while their Intelligence is still at 0 or below, they may return as cerebral vampires, depending on their Hit Dice. (Libris Mortis)
A humanoid or monstrous humanoid slain by the diseases spread by a vrykolaka rises as a vampire spawn 1d4 days after burial. (Libris Mortis)
If the vrykolaka instead drains the Victims reduced to 0 Intelligence or below from a cerebral vampire's intelligence drain fall into a catatonic stupor. If they die while their Intelligence is still at 0 or below, they may return as cerebral vampires, depending on their Hit Dice. (Libris Mortis)
If a dwarven vampire drains a victim's Constitution to 0 or less, the victim returns as a vampire spawn if it had 4 or fewer Hit Dice. For this to happen, however, the victim’s body must be placed in a stone sarcophagus and placed underground. Next, the master vampire must visit the corpse and sprinkle it with powdered metals. If all this occurs, the new vampire spawn rises 1d4 days after the vampire’s visit.
An elf or half-elf that commits suicide due to the effects of an elven vampire’s Charisma drain rises as a vampire spawn 1d4 days after burial. (Libris Mortis)
If the elven vampire drains the victim’s Charisma to 0 or less, causing the victim to die, the victim returns as a spawn if it had 4 or fewer HD. (Libris Mortis)
A halfling victim slain by a vampire's Constitution drain returns as a vampire spawn if it had 4 or fewer HD. (Libris Mortis)
Almost everyone knows that vampires spawn other vampires, but myth and legend present many other possible origins for these infamous undead. In cultures that believe suicide is a sin, anyone who takes his own life might rise from his coffin as a vampire.
Those who make deals with entities of evil and gods of death, seeking power or immortality, often become vampires, their desires granted in a most twisted fashion. Also, someone who might otherwise spontaneously rise as a ghoul, slain specifically through negative energy or the result of a curse, might instead rise as a vampire, a drinker of blood rather than an eater of flesh. (Dragon 336)
Wight: Any humanoid slain by a wight becomes a wight in 1d4 rounds.
A character with negative levels at least equal to her current level, or drained below 1st level, is instantly slain. Depending on the creature that killed her, she may rise the next night as a monster of that kind. If not, she rises as a wight.
Wights, unless created by other wights, are animated almost entirely by their desire to do violence. Just as ghouls arise from those who feed off others, wights result from the deaths of individuals whose sole purpose in life was to maim, torture, or kill. Simply coming from a profession that requires one to kill, such as a soldier or gladiator, is not sufficient; the individual must harbor a true love of carnage and take intense pleasure in ending life. Wights arise only when the person died frustrated, unable to complete a murder he had already begun, or unable to find a chosen victim. (Dragon 336)
After decades or centuries of existence, certain vohrahn’s animating magics have worn a hole between the realms of life and death. The vohrahn’s passion is gone, but its power causes creatures slain by its claw attacks to rise as zombies under the vohrahn’s control after 1d4 rounds. They do not possess any of the abilities they had in life. A vohrahn with 7 or more HD can raise creatures as wights, instead. (Complete Book of Denizens)
Any humanoid slain by a negative-energy-charged wight becomes a wight in 1d4 rounds. (Advanced Bestiary)
After decades or centuries of existence, the animating magics of a vohrahn with the tainted passion of the spirit of undeath and with 7 HD or more have worn a hole between the realms of life and death. The vohrahn’s passion is gone, but its power causes creatures slain by its claw attacks to rise as wights under the vohrahn’s control after 1d4 rounds. (Monster Geographica Plains and Desert)
After decades or centuries of existence, the animating magics of a vohrahn with 7 HD or more and the spirit of undeath power have worn a hole between the realms of life and death. The vohrahn’s passion is gone, but its power causes creatures slain by its claw attacks to rise as wights under the vohrahn’s control after 1d4 rounds. (The Dread Codex)
Any humanoid slain by a slaughter wight becomes a normal wight in 1d4 rounds. (Libris Mortis)
Any creature killed by the Gray Man’s energy drain rises as a wight under the control of the Gray Man 1d4 rounds after being slain. (Creature Collection III)
For several minutes after the bleak crow captures a soul, its plumage becomes luminescent, emitting a soft, eerie light and giving the bird an almost ghostly appearance. The body of an individual whose soul is thus captured rises as a mindless undead creature under the Crow’s control.
As a standard action, a bleak crow can capture the soul of adying or recently dead creature within 30 feet. The soul of any creature that has been dead for less than 1 hour is eligible to be captured, but the crow must be able to see the body to use this ability. The crow makes a Will save with a DC equal to its target’s total HD during life. If this check succeeds, the crow captures the soul, and the body immediately rises as an undead servant of the crow.
The undead servant is identical with a zombie of equal size.
Any animal, giant, humanoid, or monstrous humanoid corpse with less than two class levels and within a dirgewood's foul influence range that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is animated into a zombie or skeleton.
An opponent slain in any way by the Gray Man other than by energy drain animates as a zombie under the Gray Man’s control 1d4 rounds after being slain. (Creature Collection III)
Dragons who undergo a failed ritual of lichdom do not become semi-liches, instead tending to rise as wights or skeletal dragons. (Complete Guide to Liches)
Any humanoid slain by a cavewight rises as a normal wight in 1d4 rounds. (Monster Encyclopaedia 1 Ravagers of the Realms)
Wraith: Wraiths are incorporeal creatures born of evil and darkness.
Any humanoid slain by a wraith becomes a wraith in 1d4 rounds. Its body remains intact and inanimate, but its spirit is torn free from its corpse and transformed.
Any humanoid slain by a dread wraith becomes a wraith in 1d4 rounds. Its body remains intact and inanimate, but its spirit is torn free from its corpse and transformed.
Any humanoid slain by a bane wraith becomes a standard wraith in 1d4 rounds. (Heroes of Horror)
Like spectres, wraiths are the spirits of those who died under horrific circumstances, but who lack the strength of purpose to return as ghosts. Whereas spectres are born from sudden acts of violence, wraiths result from slow, lingering deaths. Someone bricked up inside a wall and allowed to starve, or slowly poisoned, is more likely to return as a wraith than a spectre. Those wraiths who do not arise spontaneously result from the touch of other wraiths or from the create greater undead spell. (Dragon 336)
Any humanoid slain by a ragged wraith becomes a wraith in 1d4 rounds. (Monster Encyclopaedia 1 Ravagers of the Realms)
Create Greater Undead Spell
Dread Wraith: The oldest and most malevolent wraiths.
Any creature slain by a dread wraith sovereign’s Constitution drain or incorporeal touch attack rises as a dread wraith in 1d4 rounds. (Advanced Bestiary)
Zombie: Zombies are corpses reanimated through dark and sinister magic.
“Zombie” is an acquired template that can be added to any corporeal creature (other than an undead) that has a skeletal system (referred to hereafter as the base creature).
Creatures killed by a mohrg rise after 1d4 days as zombies.
If a hellwasp swarm inhabits a dead body, it can restore animation to the creature and control its movements, effectively transforming it into a zombie of the appropriate size for as long as the swarm remains inside.
As a standard action, a rot reaver can animate any dead creature within 60 feet that was affected by its wound rot ability within the last 24 hours. Creatures animated by a rot reaver rise as zombies. (Monster Manual III)
As a standard action, a necrothane can animate any dead creature within 60 feet that was affected by its wound rot ability within the last 24 hours. Creatures animated by a necrothane rise as zombies. (Monster Manual III)
Whenever a creature that can acquire the zombie template dies within 20 feet of a graveyard sludge, that creature rises as a zombie 1d4 rounds later. However, the graveyard sludge imparts some of its own unique physiology to the zombie, causing each of the zombie’s natural attacks to deal an extra 1d6 points of acid damage. Any creature slain by a graveyard sludge rises as a zombielike creature with an acidic touch. (Monster Manual V)
Any humanoid slain by a bleakborn becomes a normal zombie in 1d4 rounds. (Libris Mortis)
Any humanoid slain by an undead cloaker’s energy drain (including the host) rises as a zombie 24 hours later. (Libris Mortis)
A pyre elemental can touch the corpse of any once-living corporeal creature within its reach as a free action, animating it as a zombie or skeleton (depending on the condition of the corpse). (Libris Mortis)
Humanoids slain by a Jolly Roger’s cackling touch rise as waterlogged zombies in 24 hours unless the body is blessed and given a traditional burial at sea. (Libris Mortis)
Those who fail a zombie lord's aura of death save by more than 10 die instantly and become zombies. (Libris Mortis)
Once per day, by making a successful touch attack, the zombie lord can attempt to turn a living creature into a zombie under his command. The target must make a Fortitude save. Those who fail are instantly slain, and rise in 1d4 rounds as a zombie under the zombie lord’s command. (Libris Mortis)
Any creature that dies in a tainted area animates in 1d4 hours as an undead creature, usually a zombie of the appropriate size. Burning a corpse protects it from this effect. (Heroes of Horror)
Any creature killed by a dread mohrg rises as a zombie in 1d4 days. (Advanced Bestiary)
Any humanoid slain by a vampiric ooze becomes a zombie in 1d4 rounds. (Tome of Horrors Revised)
Any creature killed by Constitution damage from the ka spirit’s rotting possession ability rises as a zombie under the ka spirit’s control after 1d4 rounds. (Complete Minions)
After decades or centuries of existence, certain vohrahn’s animating magics have worn a hole between the realms of life and death. The vohrahn’s passion is gone, but its power causes creatures slain by its claw attacks to rise as zombies under the vohrahn’s control after 1d4 rounds. They do not possess any of the abilities they had in life. A vohrahn with 7 or more HD can raise creatures as wights, instead. (Complete Book of Denizens)
Living creatures killed by a deadwood tree will rise in 1d6 rounds as zombies. (Creatures of Freeport)
Living creatures killed by a thanatos's energy drain will rise in 1d4 rounds as zombies. (Creatures of Freeport)
Magic that removes curses or diseases directed at a spawn of Kyuss can transform all but the most powerful into normal zombies. (Dragon 336)
a Huge or larger creature slain by a worm from a favored spawn of Kyuss becomes a normal zombie of the appropriate size. (Dragon 336)
Most dragons who drink directly from the Well of Dragons are stricken down and die immediately, animating as mindless zombie dragons in 1d4 days. (Dragon 344)
Any humanoid killed by the ka spirit’s rotting possession ability rises again as an undead in 1d4 rounds. Spawn are under the command of the ka spirit. Treat these unfortunates as standard zombies or skeletons, with none of the abilities they formerly had in life. (Lore of the Gods)
Anyone killed by a batyuk’s thunderbolts is instantly animated as a zombie under the batyuk’s control. (Monster Encyclopaedia 1 Ravagers of the Realms)
While under the mud, the zombies of a patch of grasping hands are functionally a single entity; but if dragged up into the light, they revert to being normal zombies. (Monster Encyclopaedia 1 Ravagers of the Realms)
Any creature killed by Constitution damage from the ka spirit’s rotting possession ability rises as a zombie under the ka spirit’s control after 1d4 rounds. It does not possess any of the abilities it had in life. (Monster Geographica Underground)
The corpse of an unfortunate victim trapped in an iron maiden golem is transformed into an undead being similar to a zombie. (Monster Geographica Underground)
Any humanoid slain by a vampiric ooze’s energy drain becomes a zombie in 1d4 rounds. (Monster Geographica Marsh and Aquatic)
Any animal, giant, humanoid, or monstrous humanoid corpse within range of a deadwood's foul influence that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is animated as a skeleton or zombie. (Monster Geographica Forest)
As a standard action, a spirit rook can capture the soul of a dying or recently dead creature within 30 feet. The soul of any creature that has been dead for less than 1 hour is eligible to be captured, but the rook must be able to see the body to use this ability. The rook makes a Will save with a DC equal to its target’s total HD during life. If this check succeeds, the rook captures the soul, and the body immediately rises as an undead servant of the rook.
The undead servant is identical with a zombie of equal size (see the “Zombie” template in the MM), but with a number of bonus hit points equal to the victim’s total HD when it was alive. Due to the spiritual link between the spirit rook and the body of the captured soul, the servant also gains the benefit of the spirit rook’s damage reduction and spell resistance as long as it remains within 30 feet of the rook. (Monster Geographica Plains and Desert)
On a successful swordpod attack, a swordtree’s victim is implanted with a swordseed. The seed itself does no damage to its host. However, when the creature dies, it rises after three days as a zombie of the same size as the original creature. This zombie is drawn to the nearest iron-rich location at least one mile from another swordtree, where it buries itself; a sapling swordtree springs from the earth within one month. (Monster Geographica Plains and Desert)
After decades or centuries of existence, the animating magics of a vohrahn with the tainted passion of the spirit of undeath have worn a hole between the realms of life and death. The vohrahn’s passion is gone, but its power causes creatures slain by its claw attacks to rise as zombies under the vohrahn’s control after 1d4 rounds. (Monster Geographica Plains and Desert)
Any avian creature slain by a poultrygeist’s Wisdom drain rises as a zombie in 1d4 rounds. (Octavirate Presents Lethal Lexicon 2)
Any humanoid slain by a rhythmic dead becomes a zombie in 1d4 rounds. (Octavirate Presents Lethal Lexicon 2)
Living creatures killed by a deadwood tree rise in 16 rounds as zombies. (The Dread Codex)
Living creatures killed by a thanatos' energy drain rise in 1d4 rounds as zombies. (The Dread Codex)
Any animal, giant, humanoid, or monstrous humanoid corpse within range of a tree of woe's foul influence that remains in contact with the ground for 1 full round is animated into a skeleton or zombie. (The Dread Codex)
After decades or centuries of existence, the animating magics of a vohrahn with the spirit of undeath power have worn a hole between the realms of life and death. The vohrahn’s passion is gone, but its power causes creatures slain by its claw attacks to rise as zombies under the vohrahn’s control after 1d4 rounds. (The Dread Codex)
When a ship sinks beneath the waves, it and its entire crew may return as ghostly wanderers, especially if the captain and crew had a less than scrupulous profession (as pirates, for example). A sunken ship of this nature may undergo a transformation from the negative energy and evil surrounding it. When this happens, the ship rises from the deep, piloted by a draug and manned by skeletons, brine zombies, zombies, and lacedons. (Tome of Horrors Revised)
Although standard iron golems have a breath weapon, an iron maiden does not; it has the ability to usurp the essence of any humanoid being enclosed within, however. The corpse of the unfortunate victim trapped in the iron maiden golem is transformed into an undead being similar to a zombie.
Once a victim trapped within an iron maiden has died, it reanimates as a zombie in the next round (as if by an animate dead spell). It cannot escape, however, and serves only to fuel the iron maiden and provide it with skills and abilities. While it is trapped, the zombie cannot be attacked, damaged, turned, rebuked, or commanded, and it doesn’t suffer any damage from the bladed lid. If the lid of the golem is somehow forced open, the zombie has the normal abilities of a Medium zombie (as detailed in the MM). The victim of an iron maiden golem must be alive when it is placed inside and the lid is closed or the golem’s animate host ability fails. (Tome of Horrors II).
Animate Dead Spell
Greater Seed of Undeath spell. (Complete Mage)
My Life for Yours spell. (The Dread Codex)
Plague of Undead spell. (Libris Mortis)
Plague of Undead spell. (Heroes of Horror)
Puppets of Death spell. (Complete Guide to Liches)
Seed of Undeath spell. (Complete Mage)
Animate Dead
Necromancy [Evil]
Level: Clr 3, Death 3, Sor/Wiz 4
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Targets: One or more corpses touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
This spell turns the bones or bodies of dead creatures into undead skeletons or zombies that follow your spoken commands.
The undead can follow you, or they can remain in an area and attack any creature (or just a specific kind of creature) entering the place. They remain animated until they are destroyed. (A destroyed skeleton or zombie can’t be animated again.)
Regardless of the type of undead you create with this spell, you can’t create more HD of undead than twice your caster level with a single casting of animate dead. (The desecrate spell doubles this limit)
The undead you create remain under your control indefinitely. No matter how many times you use this spell, however, you can control only 4 HD worth of undead creatures per caster level. If you exceed this number, all the newly created creatures fall under your control, and any excess undead from previous castings become uncontrolled. (You choose which creatures are released.) If you are a cleric, any undead you might command by virtue of your power to command or rebuke undead do not count toward the limit.
Skeletons: A skeleton can be created only from a mostly intact corpse or skeleton. The corpse must have bones. If a skeleton is made from a corpse, the flesh falls off the bones.
Zombies: A zombie can be created only from a mostly intact corpse. The corpse must be that of a creature with a true anatomy.
Material Component: You must place a black onyx gem worth at least 25 gp per Hit Die of the undead into the mouth or eye socket of each corpse you intend to animate. The magic of the spell turns these gems into worthless, burned-out shells.
Create Undead
Necromancy [Evil]
Level: Clr 6, Death 6, Evil 6, Sor/Wiz 6
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 hour
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: One corpse
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
A much more potent spell than animate dead, this evil spell allows you to create more powerful sorts of undead: ghouls, ghasts, mummies, and mohrgs. The type or types of undead you can create is based on your caster level, as shown on the table below.
Caster Level Undead Created
11th or lower Ghoul
12th–14th Ghast
15th–17th Mummy
18th or higher Mohrg
You may create less powerful undead than your level would allow if you choose. Created undead are not automatically under the control of their animator. If you are capable of commanding undead, you may attempt to command the undead creature as it forms.
This spell must be cast at night.
Material Component: A clay pot filled with grave dirt and another filled with brackish water. The spell must be cast on a dead body. You must place a black onyx gem worth at least 50 gp per HD of the undead to be created into the mouth or eye socket of each corpse. The magic of the spell turns these gems into worthless shells.
Create Greater Undead
Necromancy [Evil]
Level: Clr 8, Death 8, Sor/Wiz 8
This spell functions like create undead, except that you can create more powerful and intelligent sorts of undead: shadows, wraiths, spectres, and devourers. The type or types of undead you can create is based on your caster level, as shown on the table below.
Caster Level Undead Created
15th or lower Shadow
16th–17th Wraith
18th–19th Spectre
20th or higher Devourer
