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View Full Version : Pathfinder Crafting a 'White' Necromancer in Pathfinder


13ones
2014-07-10, 11:17 AM
Welcome one and all.

I've been tinkering with Necromancy in DnD and Pathfinder for awhile, mostly through encounters and the occasional minion master. But I come today seeking some input for a new idea I've got. A 'white' Necromancer, one who uses the powers of Death to do more harm to the Undead than anything. This is the guy that will Destroy or Control undead rather than create and command them.

I'm looking at being a Wizard for this. Yes I know that Clerics and Oracles have more Necromancy 'utility' but I've tried playing divine characters before and I just don't enjoy it. I do not enjoy being the coffee carrying intern for some extra-powerful outsider who may or may not give a damn about what I want.

So I've looked towards Wizard since it has the flexibility that I'm looking for in casting, but beyond that I'm not sure where to go.

As far as Arcane school I've Narrowed it down to Admixture or Earth. Admixture for the bonus to evocation spell damage and the really powerful element swapping feature that the class is built around with Abjuration and Enchantment as banned (with Abjuration eventually picked up around level 9 with the opposed school discovery/feat). For the Earth school I was looking at that because its spell types rather than schools that are banned, and it offers some pretty neat abilities in walking through earth, acid cloud bursts, and bonus to CMD in certain areas.

The really big hang up I have about this idea is...that oh my god is Necromancy rough to make work. Single Target Fort saves everywhere. It's just really not the best school out there in terms of flexibility. So I'm not sure what to do with the school when I'm not disrupting undead. Enervation is a go to spell, of course, but outside of that and controlling undead what kind of spells should I be picking up to stay useful?
137beth
2014-07-10, 11:21 AM
There's a class that is literally called the White Necromancer (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/3rd-party-classes/kobold-press-open-design/white-necromancer), but I can't tell if that is what you are looking for.
13ones
2014-07-10, 11:26 AM
See, that is really neat but I already know how the group will rule on that. It has to be from one of the core pathfinder books (CRB, UC, UM, ARG, APG, and eventually ACG) to really be considered 'legal'. So while its a great idea and super interesting I may just have to ape its spell list as opposed to play it...

Darn.
Spore
2014-07-10, 11:26 AM
How about Witches? They have healing spells to both damage undead and all the spells to cure ailments typical undead inflict. The Healing Hex is particularly strong for this (I'm thinking Orc Witch Doctor with melee touch attacks here), the Hedgewitch who can spontaneously convert spells into healing.

There are probably cool and fitting 3rd party classes but those are beyond my normal game.
Diachronos
2014-07-10, 11:36 AM
How about Witches? They have healing spells to both damage undead and all the spells to cure ailments typical undead inflict. The Healing Hex is particularly strong for this (I'm thinking Orc Witch Doctor with melee touch attacks here), the Hedgewitch who can spontaneously convert spells into healing.

There are probably cool and fitting 3rd party classes but those are beyond my normal game.

They also have the Gravewalker archetype, which gives you Command Undead at level 4 and Control Undead at level 14 as patron spells and gives you something that's basically a short-range "Command Undead Hex" at level one.
13ones
2014-07-10, 11:56 AM
Actually looking at the Witch class it could totally work. It offers a lot of what I'm looking for and doesn't have the restrictions that normally plagues the Wizards. It has a decent mix of Divine and Arcane and the hexes are just perfect little additions.

I probably wouldn't go with Gravewalker simply because its too 'evil' to really fit with the concept.

Thanks for reminding me this was a thing.
13ones
2014-07-10, 12:11 PM
Quick question about learning spells. Could I technically learn Cleric spells by having a Cleric Scroll of say 'Deathwatch' or 'Anti-life shell' and just succeeding on the check?


Learn from a Scroll: A witch can use a scroll to teach her familiar a new spell. This process takes 1 hour per level of the spell to be learned, during which time the scroll is burned and its ashes used to create a special brew or powder that is consumed by the familiar. This process destroys the scroll. At the end of this time, the witch must make a Spellcraft check (DC 15 + spell level). If the check fails, the process went awry in some way and the spell is not learned, although the scroll is still consumed.
Yanisa
2014-07-10, 12:28 PM
Quick question about learning spells. Could I technically learn Cleric spells by having a Cleric Scroll of say 'Deathwatch' or 'Anti-life shell' and just succeeding on the check?

Nope. From the Adding Spells to a Witch’s Familiar (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/base-classes/witch/witch-s-familiar#TOC-Adding-Spells-to-a-Witch-s-Familiar).

Witches can add new spells to their familiars through several methods. A witch can only add spells to her familiar if those spells belong to the witch’s spell list.
There is exception for patron spells though. (Deathwatch is gained by the Death Patron and an Animal Patron grants Antilife shell. :smalltongue:)
Vhaidara
2014-07-10, 01:28 PM
Also, IIRC, ignoring what is generally agreed to be a stupid piece of errata, a Juju mystery oracle can create non-evil zombies
13ones
2014-07-10, 02:38 PM
I don't want to create minions at all, that's the thing.