Uses for low-level undead

[Wippit Guud]

Someone brought up that animate dead is an underpowered spell, because by the time you get it, skeletons and zombies have no uses - anything of equivalent level gets through them quite easily. So, can we come up with a few ideas on what to do with the forgotten undead?

First thing I came up with:

Animate 20 ogre skeletons, stand them 10 on each side of a room with their arms in the air, and freeze like that. Lay rock slab on top of arms, just heavy enough that they can hold it up.

PCs walk in, make it to the middle of the room, skeleton execute their given command - "When anyone steps here, let go of the roof."

Splat.

 

[Jeremy]

"Through the archway is a smallish room lined up and down by massive skeletal humanoids all standing with feet on the floor and hands on the ceiling. The stark flagstones between their feet are dusty from disuse."

"Why is it everytime there is a decoration in the room, statues generally, do I get the feeling it's going to attack us?"

"I don't know. Wanna fireball them from here just incase?"

"Couldn't hurt. Fire in the hole!"

 

[Kershek]

50 gold of black onyx gems for each one adds up to 1000 gold of gems burned out by the skeleton creation. Expensive trap But it is cool...

 

[AuraSeer]

They may not be too hot at combat, but they're great for manual labor.

Say you're a powerful necromancer type, and you want to build an evil laboratory and turn yourself into a lich. Traditionally, you'll want a nice, dank, gloomy dungeon to set yourself up in. The problem with that idea is that dungeons, being underground, require a whole lot of digging and earth-moving.

So are you going to do all that grunt work yourself? Or pay good money to hire living workers, who might then blab about your evil plans to the first adventurers who happen along? Hell no! You zap together a few dozen (or a few hundred) skeletons and zombies, hand 'em some shovels, and put 'em to work.

 

[Darkness]

50 gold of black onyx gems for each one adds up to 1000 gold of gems burned out by the skeleton creation. Expensive trap But it is cool...

Judging from the prices in S&S, traps are generally somewhat expensive.

Anyway - skeletons and the like are good trap-finders as well, if you know what I mean.

 

[Pax]

One good fix is, to make Skeleton of Zombie a -template-, applied to the base creature. Lose most or all all Spell-Like and Supernatural abilities, any Extraordinary abilities based on use of brainpower, and apply the benefits of the template.

Thus, when the party kills a horse-sized dragon, you can have a skeletal dragon for your necromancer's MOUNT.

The manual labor thing is good, too. They make decent watch/guard troops, not for fighting off intruders, but for sounding alarms and triggering traps ("If anyone not wearing THIS insignia ..." *shows basic symbol* "... enters this room, PULL THAT LEVER!" *points to lever*).

But I agree ... especially given the 50gp-per-undead cost, as a FIFTH level Wizard spell ... it's just too much. Even as a 3d level Cleric spell.

Cleric (2), Sor/Wiz(3) would be far better. Those level adjustments, -and- use of Templates, -and- the ability to "build in" additional improvements with the original, or subsequent, castings of the spell (using additional expensive materials), would go a long way to returning Animate Dead to the "coolness factor" it deserves.

As for the bonus abilities; picture if a Cleric of their deity could spend 100gp and 25xp, per undead, per +1, to grant Turn Resistance (not effective against clerics of that caster's deity) to their undead minions -- capped at 1/2 of their HD pre-animation? Want a room with five Ogre skeleton guards? Fine, pop a +2 turn resistance on the 4HD skeletons, for 1000gp and 250XP total (200gp and 50xp apiece).

Stuff like that. 8)

 

[Darkness]

One good fix is, to make Skeleton of Zombie a -template-, applied to the base creature. Lose most or all all Spell-Like and Supernatural abilities, any Extraordinary abilities based on use of brainpower, and apply the benefits of the template.

You mean the templates on the WotC page, right?

 

[Xarlen]

I say create some lower level spells. Mongoose PUblishing's Necromancy book had some good ideas, but here's one I remember from the ol' Necro's book in 2e.

Animate Undead Animal. Simply a lesser material component. I had a necromancer who used Undead as smartbombs. He cast Firetrap on them, and had them open their mouth when they grappled someone.

Another mean trick he did was animate a lot of mice skeletons. Strapped a caltrop on their back, and poisoned each one. These mice were inserted in grooves along the stairway up to his study and rooms. If someone came up the stairs, the mice blasted out of their hiding places, and dove under peoples' feet.

Another thing to rememebr: Skeletons are collapsable. They're much thinner, and thus can be kept in smaller compartments. A skeleton hiding in a trunk with a weapon, for instance. Or a snake skeleton in your pocket as a protection from thieves.

Or, here's something I've been devising: skeletons set up in barrels that line up a room. Someone walks in, they stand up, and start firing bows.

And of course, there's always those spell-launching skeletons from Diablo 2 (Which can be done by Spell-stitching! ).

 

[cptg1481]

Funny Mini

I don't know if you are using gun powder or not, I am and I got inspiration from a mini I just got.

Have a minor undead Zombie/Skeleton carry a keg of GP with a lit fuse towards your enemies.

I also have a larger mini of a skeleton that inspired me to make a "pirate lich" Sorcerer/Rogue with an undead crew to ply the airways for an eternity, or until the PC's are called to find them.

I like the idea of making larger undead, I agree that humanoid 4HP Zombies and Skeletons are a cake walk for all but the most intellectually challenged, but animated dragons, giants, and monster types are well, not so easy. We fought a colossal zombie in the last game I played in at level 12, he was easy to hit but being long on HP he did still manage to dole out a great many hits of his own for upwards of 24-35 HP per hit.

In my new homebrew, I intend to have some large scale battles when my players get between 5-7th level with them as company commanders and such. The Undead Army will deploy 10-20 of the suicide bombers I mentioned above, perhaps if I'm feeling antsy I'll camouflage them in the center of a 10 skeleton unit and have the 8D6 explosion go off in a 30' radius to break a cavalry charge or something.

I like the undead workers ideas too, heck one could even double the value of slaves by working them to death and then animating their remains for an eternity of supplication. They would suffer in undeath as they did in life....BUHAHAHAHAH! (or something)

Undead, they're just not for breakfast anymore!

 

[Darklone]

Uhm... How do you guys build so many undeads with that puny spell? You got a HD limit dependant on your level.

Huhm... have no gunpowder... could skeletons drink potions of fireball ?

Besides: Having many fighter/rogues and barbarian/rogues and ranger/rogues in my groups... I do like EVERY undead!