Starting a dread necromancer off with a couple undead

[Darth Stabber]

So I have a character starting as a lvl4 dread necromancer. Her former homeland was a land ruled by generations of necromancers, and all unskilled labor has been replaced with mindless undead. Would it be reasonable for her to start out with a Zombie (as her servant/packmule) and a skeletal wolf (ie her transport{halfling}) already controlled? She is a member of a noble house that is one of the main "managers" of labor in the capital. Should I charge her for that, or should I make her play through an encounter before play starts to control them, or should I just assume it worked? Or should I charge her some money before the game starts? As a note, she has stated that she has no intention of using the zombie as warrior (just a packmule), nor does she really plan on making mounted combat part of her shtick (she has 1 rank in ride).

[Vknight]

It actually depends on your DM if you make your skeleton non-combat in design. Which could be you tampering with it to increase it's ability to carry things as a DM I would allow that. It just depends on the DM

[Darth Stabber]

Sorry Forgot to mention that I am the GM. And by I have a character, i meant I have a player. So the GM (me) is trying to figure out if this is a reasonable request.

[Analytica]

Let her have it. If you really are worried, state that the zombie has no combat programming, and that the standard costs will be required to eventually augment it to gain such.

[Vknight]

Exactly. Simple as that. The Wolf is only trained to carry the rider and maybe can bite but besides that is offers nothing.

[ScionoftheVoid]

Maybe charge half/full price of the onyx required by Animate Dead for those creatures (both 2HD, IIRC)? I'd definitely allow the request, but a small charge shouldn't be unreasonable.

[Vknight]

True but if your charging them it should probably only be 1Onyx per creature because they are losing there ability to attack and defend themselves.

[ScionoftheVoid]

True but if your charging them it should probably only be 1Onyx per creature because they are losing there ability to attack and defend themselves.

Hence half of the onyx's price as one of the suggestions, with full being the less reasonable option (though not by much).

[mabriss lethe]

Having someone else cast the spell to animate 4 HD worth of undead would cost 250 gp, so it absolutely shouldn't cost more than that.

[Darth Stabber]

I just decided to give it too her, the rest of the party has a slight edge in optimization anyway, so I figured it would supply a fair balance. Besides, considering that they could be effectively free with a turn attempt or two in an encounter it would not be a major power bump.

[Coidzor]

Been rather interested in figuring out rubric for a reasonable way to adjudicate that sort of thing for a bit now. Since DNs can rebuke for free and if he'd been adventuring previously then it's reasonable he would've been able to acquire some. My gut would be to say not to fill up the number of commanded HD completely, but at low levels that's possible with just 1 or 2 to happen.

Not sure why everyone's so fixated on neutering them though, what's been requested is in no danger of even being OP or outside of decorum though. Since he's a rebuker he can also have purchased the undeads' creation and then taken control of them with rebuking in exchange for the creation cost as has been mentioned for the grand cost of two fiddy.

One thing you can do as a potential option for balancing things is update the DR and such on 3.0-style skeletons/zombies of the appropriate shape, which are generally weaker than their 3.5 counterparts. I've been toying with the idea of adding a "lesser" version of animate dead that creates weak/simple undead like those two and maybe some homebrew weak things like that one guys' organ undead.

[ScionoftheVoid]

I've been toying with the idea of adding a "lesser" version of animate dead that creates weak/simple undead like those two and maybe some homebrew weak things like that one guys' organ undead.

I've seen a third-party book (not sure of the publisher) called "Necromancy: Beyond the Grave" or something similar, and though it may have been 3.0 it had spells for raising things like rats at lower spell levels and whole cities at ninth, as well as some interesting PrCs which aren't too bad balance-wise. The other DM of my group has it, so I could find out more and PM you the name and publisher some time if you like.

[Coidzor]

I've seen a third-party book (not sure of the publisher) called "Necromancy: Beyond the Grave" or something similar, and though it may have been 3.0 it had spells for raising things like rats at lower spell levels and whole cities at ninth, as well as some interesting PrCs which aren't too bad balance-wise. The other DM of my group has it, so I could find out more and PM you the name and publisher some time if you like.

Actually, I have it, and I can't quite remember what my issue with them that I felt I needed to take them as inspiration for homebrew rather than use straight away, but I do need to go review 'em, thanks for that reminder.