Best Undead Flying Mount

[Ace Nex]

My character is 5th level Archivist/1st level malconvoker and has access to command undead. Bone and Corpse creatures are out, but everything else is allowed. I'd prefer speed over strength. That being said, I'd prefer this creature to be able to carry at least two people at a time. Zombies are OK, but they only get a single move action making them not as ideal. This is 3.5, not PF. I can also cast animate dead, but seeing as zombies are slow and skeletons can't fly, I'm at a bit of a loss... SO I'm interested to see what my fellow playgrounders come up with.

As a sidenote, I also get command plants, so if there's anything good there I'll take it. I currently have dread blossom Swarm, but can swap it out for something else.

[Annos]

Dracolich?... Vecna?... Zombie Wyvern?... Your friend that you cast perm. fly on?... are any of these catching your intrest?:smallconfused:

[Ace Nex]

That comes later, at the moment I'm only 6th level, so I was thinking of something that could hold up until the point where I get teleport. Let me elaborate more on the purpose of the creature. In the game setting I'm in, it's very early steam-punk age, and we do have a small zeppelin airship. Seeing as we can't exactly land that thing everywhere we go, we want something that can transport us quickly from it to the ground and back. It could be our getaway vehicle until the point where I get teleport and I no longer need it.

[ayvango]

AFAIK ogre mage skeleton is the best choice. It could run indefinitely and has decent flying speed of 40".

[Segev]

Dragon skeletons, according to the Draconomicon, retain their fly speeds. Find a dead Large (or larger) dragon with 12 HD or fewer (24 or fewer if you can manage to animate it in the area of a desecrate spell; getting an evil altar set up there while you're at it will give a healthy boost to hp), and use animate dead, and you're good to go. You can even use command undead on it to release it from your animate dead-granted command pool.

Blackwings, in MMV, are corrupted Giant Eagles which are actually kinda lousy, but turn into zombies upon death and I think retain loyalties to whoever their master was prior to dying. They're not great, but they're thematic.

If you can keep it from exploding, a Gas Spore looks like a Beholder but is a plant. You'll have to look up its fly speed, though; I forget.

On that note, a zombie Beholder would be a bloated gas bag of hovering.

You could just barely animate the (exo)skeleton of a colossal monstrous centipede (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/monstrousCentipede.htm) within an area of desecration. Again, command undead is your friend. Get ahold of haunt shift from Libris Mortis to cause it to haunt your flying ship; make it the kind that manifests on command, and have it just appear, lift you and yours up or down, and then disappear.

[ayvango]

Dragon skeletons, according to the Draconomicon, retain their fly speeds.
I had impression that dragon skeletons loses both breath weapon and fly speeds.

[Segev]

I had impression that dragon skeletons loses both breath weapon and fly speeds.

I believe the special rules for dragon skeletons and zombies in the draconomicon specifically let dragons keep their fly speeds when they are animated as skeletons.

[ayvango]

I believe the special rules for dragon skeletons and zombies in the draconomicon specifically let dragons keep their fly speeds when they are animated as skeletons.
That is true only for zombies. They retain speed and breath weapon. And dragon zombies are keep existing HD unlike common zombies that doubles them.

[Segev]

That is true only for zombies. They retain speed and breath weapon. And dragon zombies are keep existing HD unlike common zombies that doubles them.

Are you looking this up in the Draconomicon? Or just basing it on the standard zombie and skeleton templates in the MM/SRD? Because the Draconomicon has specific and special rules for dragon skeletons and dragon zombies. I'm AFB, so I can't be more specific right now, I'm afraid.

[hamishspence]

The specific rules in Draconomicon, are that Zombie Dragons don't double their hit dice when zombified.

So - you use Animate Dead to animate a 10 HD dragon, and are using the Zombie Dragon rules - it will have 10 Hit Dice. And keeps supernatural abilities like breath weapon.

If you're using the PHB and MM rules - it will have 20HD, and can't use supernatural abilities like breath weapon.

[ayvango]

Typical dragon has 150" flying speed. Zombie can make only one action per round, so it is 150" per round. Skeleton ogre-mage could take run action and cover 4x40"=160" per round. Which is slightly faster and consume only 5HD of control.

[Falontani]

Typical dragon has 150" flying speed. Zombie can make only one action per round, so it is 150" per round. Skeleton ogre-mage could take run action and cover 4x40"=160" per round. Which is slightly faster and consume only 5HD of control.

Mindless undead may not take the run action. Nor can mindless constructs.

[hamishspence]

Given that Running requires a CON score (can run for number of rounds equal to Con score - "Con -" is effectively Con 0 in this case) - isn't the rule that no undead can take the Run action?

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/actionsInCombat.htm#run

[Falontani]

Given that Running requires a CON score (can run for number of rounds equal to Con score - "Con -" is effectively Con 0 in this case) - isn't the rule that no undead can take the Run action?

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/actionsInCombat.htm#run


Constitution:Any living creature has at least 1 point of Constitution.
A creature with no Constitution has no body (a spectre, for example) or no metabolism (a golem). It is immune to any effect that requires a Fortitude save unless the effect works on objects or is harmless. For example, a zombie is unaffected by any type of poison but is susceptible to a disintegrate spell. The creature is also immune to ability damage, ability drain, and energy drain, and automatically fails Constitution checks. A creature with no Constitution cannot tire and thus can run indefinitely without tiring (unless the creature’s description says it cannot run).
However I'm having a hard time finding the rule that says that mindless constructs/undead can't run. Although I'm sure it was a thing..

[Raven777]

Not adequate at 6th level, but if later as a Necromancer you're not rocking out on the back of a Nightwing (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/nightshade.htm) I don't know what to say.

[Elkad]

Juju zombie of your favorite mount?

[Morcleon]

A tien lung has flight as a supernatural ability, and so would retain that ability when reanimated as a skeleton. Young adult (with its 20 HD being the highest HD value we can reanimate) has a fly speed of 250 ft (poor).

Also it's a flying skeletal dragon, so it's automatically the best mount possible. :smalltongue:

[hamishspence]

A tien lung has flight as a supernatural ability, and so would retain that ability when reanimated as a skeleton. Young adult (with its 20 HD being the highest HD value we can reanimate) has a fly speed of 250 ft (poor).

The Skeletal Dragon template, unlike the Skeleton template, has no HD cap.

[Segev]

Okay, got to my Draconomicon. I was wrong: skeletal dragons do lose flight.

Zombie dragons do get Slow.

Zombie dragons do not double their HD, making them easier to animate, and they keep their breath weapons, for what that’s worth. The also retain flight but lose one maneuverability class. Still, a viable flying undead mount.

[Falontani]

Okay, got to my Draconomicon. I was wrong: skeletal dragons do lose flight.

Zombie dragons do get Slow.

Zombie dragons do not double their HD, making them easier to animate, and they keep their breath weapons, for what that’s worth. The also retain flight but lose one maneuverability class. Still, a viable flying undead mount.

Only one? Get yourself a mercury Dragon. Fast and near prefect maneuverability

[frogglesmash]

However I'm having a hard time finding the rule that says that mindless constructs/undead can't run. Although I'm sure it was a thing..

Running is a full round action so zombies definitely can't do it, butI don't have any info for the other mindless mobs.