casting animate dead on an already controlled undead

[dragsvart]

what would happen on if you cast animate dead or a similar spell on an already created undead that is under the control of another person?

[Dark Ass4ssin 1]

You can't take control of someone else's undead as the spell requires an un-animated pile of bones or a corpse. plus if this became a presedence you will regret it later.

[Coidzor]

Spell fizzles due to an illegal target, I suppose, that or you just can't actually cast it and instead merely waste an action attempting to cast it.

If you want something fluffy, the animating spirits are already fully occupying the body, so there's no room for the new ones you're conjuring up and they can't get in in the first place because that door has been closed.

[Joe the Rat]

On already controlled undead? Nothing. They're already under control. This is me taking the perspective of the recast-to-maintain-control as a refresh of the existing effect rather than a new spell. Plus if I'd allowed that, the number of necromancer villains would have to go up, and we really only need about 40% undead antagonists for the game (the rest of the party is about ninjas, fey, and an actual quest).

On free range zombies and skeletons? Unless I'm forgetting (AFB), the spell doesn't normally do that. But I'd consider allowing it. It saves you the trouble of having to re-dead them so you could re-un-dead them.

[Inevitability]

Unless said undead happens to be a humanoid corpse, nothing happens.


That makes me wonder... what if someone casts Animate Objects on a corpse, after which you animate it?

[PoeticDwarf]

what would happen on if you cast animate dead or a similar spell on an already created undead that is under the control of another person?

There isn't going to happen anything.