Minionmancing with Neutral or Good undead.

[Hand_of_Vecna]

I'm not interested in debating the Necromancy/Undead = Evil issue. I'm planning on having fun with it in an upcoming game by playing an "oppressed" Good or Neutral Necromancer who has to fight anti-necromancer stereotypes. I'm primarily interested in mechanical synergy with a party member who buffs allies, but only non-Evil ones.

[Rubik]

Take Leadership and Undead Leadership and fluff it as having friends with the templates that result in relatively alive-looking undead, like necropolitans and half-vampires. Avoid anything that is rotted or otherwise gives people the creeps, such as cobbled-together corpses.

I'd use savage progression ghost psion/thrallherd (with all the LA bought off) myself, and use undead as my thralls and believers. Make sure you can possess your thrall, and make sure he has the Human Heritage feat to render him immune to all forms of undead control.

Start a carnival you call the Circus of the Damned and keep your minions as entertainment?

[INoKnowNames]

I don't at all intend to have the rules down for it, but I was under the assumption there were a new type of undead in Eberron, Deathless or something like that, which were something like Positive Energy Spirits that lingered onward after death, and still maintained their own sentience while still also being... well, dead. I'd look there if I were you, see how much of that you can use. Allies might question using corpses and producing monsters, but maybe not as much if those beings are more or less whole, consenting to the process, and willing to aid you.

Heck, I kinda wanna investigate this now. Imagine a hero leading an army of soldiers so devoted to the cause that they stand side by side with their own fallen brothers, not even letting a silly thing like dying get in the way of their mission. Fate/Zero's Rider [Alexander the Great] would be proud.

[LTwerewolf]

Deathless are in book of exalted deeds.

[Red Fel]

Deathless are in book of exalted deeds.

And in the Eberron Campaign Setting. (Citation (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ebee/20060220a). Yes, it's about Libris Mortis, but it cites ECS.)

[INoKnowNames]

Deathless are in book of exalted deeds.


And in the Eberron Campaign Setting. (Citation (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ebee/20060220a). Yes, it's about Libris Mortis, but it cites ECS.)

I'm not sure which came first, but I do know that Eberron has far more information on the Deathless than the Book of Exalted Deeds does. Spells for creating them and commanding them and such, along with additional different versions of them and what not, show up there, while I don't think as much showed up in BoED.

[LTwerewolf]

And in the Eberron Campaign Setting. (Citation (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ebee/20060220a). Yes, it's about Libris Mortis, but it cites ECS.)

That may be, but BoED is the later book, so if there are any changes, BoED would override.

[Red Fel]

That may be, but BoED is the later book, so if there are any changes, BoED would override.

... Say again? Isn't BoED 2003, and ECS 2004? Or do I have my years wrong?

[LTwerewolf]

... Say again? Isn't BoED 2003, and ECS 2004? Or do I have my years wrong?

No you're correct, I'm wrong. I switched ECS with FRCS which was 2001.

[Coidzor]

INoKnowNames: The only problem with Deathless is actually being able to make them in the first place. Taking control of existing Deathless basically runs into the same issue as being an Enchanter or Telepath Psion and making people into Mindslaves!TM



OP: A bard with optimized inspire courage/dragonfire inspiration/song of the legion(Warchanter, IIRC) and the Requiem feat(Libris Mortis, lets bardic music effect undead) is a great buffer for an army of undead.

The redeemer of regrets (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=9994058&postcount=14) is a nice little homebrew PrC in this vein if the DM isn't houseruling the Animate Dead = Evil spell thing.

Frank and K had a couple of nice feats to get a small number of minions without needing to cast necromancy spells as well, plus their Tome of Necromancy has some useful suggestions for altering the game to be more consistent about the morality of necromancy one way or another.

[Taveena]

Ah, but Channeling Positive Energy is always a Good act, even if you're using it to enslave Deathless.
Ain't D&D grand?