Necromancer from Conjuration

[AnimeTheCat]

OK GitPers,

I have faith in the community. I need to play a conjuration specialist wizard.

My problem is that I want to be a necromancer. It is flavor reasons so the conjuration specialist wizard is NON-NEGOTIABLE.

Now that that's out of the way, I know I will be forbidding enchantment and evocation. The focus is to summon, raise, or command a handful of undead minions, use them to control the battlefield, use debuts to reduce the combat effectiveness of the enemy, and let the fighter, evil cleric, and black guard mop up. I provide the tank and debuff, everyone else provides the spank.

The questions I have:
1. How do I maximize the number of undead I control with the selected class?
2. How do I maximizes my DCS for save or suck/die spells (primarily necromancy)
3. How does augment summoning interact with summon undead?
4. What are the best feats to be taking for such a build? (I know this will tie in to some above questions)
5. Lastly, RED FEL RED FEL RED FEL, oh great evil one, take me in to your unholy embrace and teach me in the ways of evil.

[Bullet06320]

3. How does augment summoning interact with summon undead?

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#augmentSummoning

Each creature you conjure with any summon spell gains a +4 enhancement bonus to Strength and Constitution for the duration of the spell that summoned it.

pretty straight forward, bolded for emphasis
undead don't gain the con bonus tho, just the strength bonus

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/specialistWizardVariants.htm#conjurerVariants
Rapid Summoning (Ex)
Any time a conjurer using this variant casts a summon monster spell, its casting time is 1 standard action rather than 1 full round. (Creatures so summoned can only take a standard action in the round they are summoned.) Conjurers using this variant gain the normal benefits from enhancing a summon monster spell with the Quicken Spell feat.

RAW it only works with summon monster line, but summon undead is basically the same spell with a different creature list. We house rule it that it works with summon monster and summon undead, and summon natures ally if you can get it as an arcane spell. definitely ask your DM about that one

Dragon Magazine 302, Summoner's Circle article has rules for adding different creatures to you list of summonable creatures

[AnimeTheCat]

Thanks for #3, I was verifying with the raw gods on that one, just to be sure. DM was saying that they thought it wouldn't apply at all, I thought it would only grant bonus strength.

I didn't catch the bit with the rapid summoning bit only applying to summon monster spella. I'll definitely have to double check with DM. In that same vein, does the master specialist class feature allow you to cast summon spells as a swift action? It's capstone ability for the conjuration school allows you to cast conjuration spells with a casting time of standard action as swift actions. Does rapid summoning allow summon spells to use this?

[Bullet06320]

all summoning spells are conjuration spells, so the capstone for master specialist would apply to all conjuration spells that qualify, including those modified by rapid summoning

[Red Fel]

5. Lastly, RED FEL RED FEL RED FEL, oh great evil one, take me in to your unholy embrace and teach me in the ways of evil.

Evil Embrace?

http://orig08.deviantart.net/682b/f/2013/338/b/f/alucard_give_me_a_hug_gif_by_shh_its_all_a_lie-d6wq6jb.gif

So... What can I do for you, exactly? Kind of an open-ended question. I don't do well with those. Are you asking how to do Necromancy Evil? Undead Evil? Stupid sexy vampire Evil? Spandex and cape?

http://i.imgur.com/rn3kbPI.gif

Give me something to work with here.

[ExLibrisMortis]

I recommend Lord of the Uttercold. It's a +0 metamagic feat that changes your [cold] spells, causing them to deal half negative energy damage, which heals undead. Skeletons are immune to cold damage, and they are also undead. Draw your own conclusions :P.

[AnimeTheCat]

Evil Embrace?

So... What can I do for you, exactly? Kind of an open-ended question. I don't do well with those. Are you asking how to do Necromancy Evil? Undead Evil? Stupid sexy vampire Evil? Spandex and cape?

Give me something to work with here.

What are some evil backstories, acts, etc. that you normally see/use/enjoy when playing an evil character that focuses on the raising of the dead? I've never played a necromancer before so I want to have something fun and flavorful that I can really role play. I usually play the exalted good saintly vassal of the good powers, but this time I really want to give evilness a go and who else to better guide me than evil it's self?

[KillingAScarab]

I recommend Lord of the Uttercold. It's a +0 metamagic feat that changes your [cold] spells, causing them to deal half negative energy damage, which heals undead. Skeletons are immune to cold damage, and they are also undead. Draw your own conclusions :P.As evocation will be barred, you could apply it to Kelgore's grave mist, which is a conjuration/necromancy spell from Player's Handbook II, but the cold damage is only 1d6. Doom scarabs, however, is a considerably better conjuration/necromancy spell from the same book but wouldn't benefit from that feat. Hm... I wonder how mindless undead work with dimension step and dimension shuffle. Being able to quickly move anything you don't summon seems useful.


Evil Embrace?I don't understand this evil, Beetlegeuse reputation you seem to have. After all, I found you quite helpful when you replied to that character concept I had where the backstory needed... a devil. Huh.

Edna Mode is pretty great. :smallwink:

[Red Fel]

What are some evil backstories, acts, etc. that you normally see/use/enjoy when playing an evil character that focuses on the raising of the dead? I've never played a necromancer before so I want to have something fun and flavorful that I can really role play. I usually play the exalted good saintly vassal of the good powers, but this time I really want to give evilness a go and who else to better guide me than evil it's self?

Flattery will get you everywhere. Okay, let's begin. Here are a few examples of motivation for someone who wields the power of undeath:
Necrophobe. Death is terrifying. Take a moment and imagine just how fleeting your existence really is. Think about how much you have left to do, and how suddenly your time to do it could be cut short. Now, think about undeath - a promise that you can go on living long after the universe has decreed otherwise. The Necrophobe raises his armies of the undead, it's true, but that's only in pursuit of his own aim - immortality. He chases undeath because he's running from death. The Necrophobe is motivated by fear, which can render him Evil (he is willing to ruthlessly cut down others to avoid his own peril) or simply Neutral (everything stems from his simple pursuit of immortality), as you like.
Toolbox. People are tools. They're useful, sometimes. You can get them to do things for you. Problem is, they have that annoying "free will" stuff. A nuisance. Undeath solves that. You have an army of obedient tools. Fight your enemies. Clean your house. Work the fields. Carry your palanquin. You're not pursuing this from a perspective of Evil per se, but simply a desire to have everything you could want, via your army of sleepless, perfectly obedient minions. The Toolbox is primarily motivated by selfishness, therefore, which can be Evil or Neutral, depending on how you play it.
Zealot. Life is an abomination, and your character is insane. The Zealot believes that all life is a perversion, and must either be killed or "repurposed" (read: reanimated). He is motivated by his madness, and seeks to bury all life under undeath, by way of his army of hungering monsters. He's pretty much straight-up Evil.
Scholar. Life is fascinating, and needs to be studied. But you can't just study a thing, you must also study its absence and its antithesis to get a full grasp of the subject. The scholar spent his early life studying life itself; now he studies death and undeath, via his minions. He is motivated by his scientific curiosity, and tends to lean more Neutral than Evil.
Basically, playing an Evil character in general, or a Necromancer specifically, boils down to understanding who he is as a person. Why does he do what he does, and why does he use Necromancy to do it?

After that, you work it backwards. You know who he is as a person, what motivates him and makes him tick. Now, you figure out what made him that way. If he is a Necrophobe, did he see a lot of death in his early life? If a zealot, what kind of dark fantasy caused his mind to be gripped by delusion? If scholar, follow his academic career - perhaps an early career with promise, a dark twist leading into obsession, and into the present. And so forth.

Remember that a Necromancer, Evil or otherwise, has a particularly unique take on interacting with people, because he has a particularly unique take on personhood. He knows - knows, for a fact - that the body is little more than an animated sack of meat and bone. He knows this, because he has animated meat and bone. So what differs between the living and the undead, if anything, is the force that moves them. This will define how he interacts with people.


I don't understand this evil, Beetlegeuse reputation you seem to have. After all, I found you quite helpful when you replied to that character concept I had where the backstory needed...

Penny's in the air...


a devil. Huh.

Penny drops.


Edna Mode is pretty great. :smallwink:

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g246/sey115/tumblr_ly4numCtJR1qzgc80o2_500_zps29280365.gif

[ExLibrisMortis]

As evocation will be barred, you could apply it to Kelgore's grave mist, which is a conjuration/necromancy spell from Player's Handbook II, but the cold damage is only 1d6. Doom scarabs, however, is a considerably better conjuration/necromancy spell from the same book but wouldn't benefit from that feat. Hm... I wonder how mindless undead work with dimension step and dimension shuffle. Being able to quickly move anything you don't summon seems useful.
That's right, I forgot about that. The PHB is very light on damaging conjuration spells, and throwing orbs at your skeletons isn't exactly efficient. However, the Spell Compendium has some instantaneous conjurations that deal 1d6/level in an area, of various damage types. You need Energy Substitution anyway, so that's easily cold damage, and being instantaneous, these spells can damage things inside an antimagic field. That should be a nasty surprise for those undead hunters who thought they'd blocked negative energy influx.

Spells: acid breath, acid storm, arc of lightning, blast of flame, vitriolic sphere.

You could make a nice gnome necromancer with Shadowcraft Mage, using illusory summon undead spells and illusory uttercold cold-substituted walls of fire.

[Gildedragon]

I, myself, am more attracted to good necromancers: undead have a lot of things that can benefit society.
A) mided undead serve to preserve knowledge, and give guidance and advice to future generations.
A.1) the dead have a lot of knowledge, from intended recipients wills to answers to murders to secrets of criminal organizations. One could use magic to get their bones to speak
B) mindless undead are a cheap unceasing labor force with few requirements; they are an immediate form of automatization
C) negative energy has in it the fundament of antiseptics, food preservation, deparasitation...

Backatories are, in order:
A) Survivor (or witness) of a cataclysm that scourged knowledge from the world; esp if the knowledge was oral. Sees in undeath the means to prevent destruction of wisdom in such a scale from ever happening.
A.1) the necromancer uses the speak with dead spell to solve mysteries and murders; and if that doesn't work, he uses ghosts and the like to bring the wrongdoer to confess.
B) humanitarian industrialist. Sees the burden of labor on the poor, on the underclasses -underfed, undereducated, servants to the pleasure of the few-, and sees in the dead an army to secure the wellbeing of humanity. The silent majority provide the work, while the living enjoy their life, their youth, and are free to pursue higher callings while they have use of reason. Death brings about a cease of thought and reason, then one can engage in drudgery without trying or getting bored or sick. Skeletons are probably the ideal form as they are more sanitary
C) Healer that sees that the cycle of life and death is fundamental to the wellbeing of ecosystems and creatures. Is a rudimentary germ-theorist. Has seen how water exposed to large doses of negative-energy leads to fewer disease outbreaks, how treating a wound with darksand prevents gangrene or infection from spreading. Might suspect spells like Heal and Cure Disease would be more effective if they added negative energy components; seeks to produce [healing] spells that draw on both planes, or are necromancy [healing]. If using undead this necromancer is also an anatomist. Sees necromancy as a wrongly maligned discipline... And might see its misuse by ordinary necromancers and fiends as part of a conspiracy to taint the name of the school of magic that could do the most for humanity

Either way all of them abhor spawn-generating undead; and seek to cure the intelligent undead of their cravings, and destroy mindless destructive undead (and minded undead that will not cease their depredation on the living)

[KillingAScarab]

That's right, I forgot about that. The PHB is very light on damaging conjuration spells, and throwing orbs at your skeletons isn't exactly efficient. However, the Spell Compendium has some instantaneous conjurations that deal 1d6/level in an area, of various damage types. You need Energy Substitution anyway, so that's easily cold damage, and being instantaneous, these spells can damage things inside an antimagic field. That should be a nasty surprise for those undead hunters who thought they'd blocked negative energy influx.

Spells: acid breath, acid storm, arc of lightning, blast of flame, vitriolic sphere.

You could make a nice gnome necromancer with Shadowcraft Mage, using illusory summon undead spells and illusory uttercold cold-substituted walls of fire.If you do go with damaging conjuration spells, then ignore my suggestions for the dual-school spells. They can't benefit twice from, say, spell focus.


I, myself, am more attracted to good necromancers: undead have a lot of things that can benefit society.
A) mided undead serve to preserve knowledge, and give guidance and advice to future generations
B) mindless undead are a cheap unceasing labor force with few requirements; they are an immediate form of automatization
C) negative energy has in it the fundament of antiseptics, food preservation, deparasitation...Good necromancy and good death can be a fun topic. As much as I like Kelemvor from Forgotten Realms for his outlook on his role as a death god, he doesn't play well with undead. There's this lovely piece in the Homebrew forum on Wee Jas (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?450352-Wee-Jas-the-First-Lich). The nation of Karnath in Eberron has an undead army. For Pathfinder, I have had an idea in my head since I first read the elves of Golarion that live among humans are specifically Forlorn. It hasn't come out well on paper, yet, but an elf who has seen generations die who wants to do something about it is an interesting idea for a necromancer in my mind. But, this is a topic for an evil necromancer.

[AnimeTheCat]

That's right, I forgot about that. The PHB is very light on damaging conjuration spells, and throwing orbs at your skeletons isn't exactly efficient. However, the Spell Compendium has some instantaneous conjurations that deal 1d6/level in an area, of various damage types. You need Energy Substitution anyway, so that's easily cold damage, and being instantaneous, these spells can damage things inside an antimagic field. That should be a nasty surprise for those undead hunters who thought they'd blocked negative energy influx.

Spells: acid breath, acid storm, arc of lightning, blast of flame, vitriolic sphere.

You could make a nice gnome necromancer with Shadowcraft Mage, using illusory summon undead spells and illusory uttercold cold-substituted walls of fire.

I'm far less worried about direct damage spells and more concerned with Save or Suck/Die spells. The other members in my party can dish out damage juuuust fine without me squandering my precious spells per day on simply doing damage. The cleric is using a homebrew class based on Radiant Servant of Pelor only its the Shadow Vassal of . He slings inflict spells and is not focusing on buffs/debuffs at all. Necromancy has loads of those so I've go no problem with it.


After that, you work it backwards. You know who he is as a person, what motivates him and makes him tick. Now, you figure out what made him that way. If he is a Necrophobe, did he see a lot of death in his early life? If a zealot, what kind of dark fantasy caused his mind to be gripped by delusion? If scholar, follow his academic career - perhaps an early career with promise, a dark twist leading into obsession, and into the present. And so forth.

Remember that a Necromancer, Evil or otherwise, has a particularly unique take on interacting with people, because he has a particularly unique take on [I]personhood. He knows - knows, for a fact - that the body is little more than an animated sack of meat and bone. He knows this, because he has animated meat and bone. So what differs between the living and the undead, if anything, is the force that moves them. This will define how he interacts with people.

What do you think of someone who was an apprentice wizard but lost their spouse to some catastrophe and is now obsessed with gaining the knowledge to bring them back, regardless of the cost on the rest of the world? It blends two of your archetypes and seems like it would be quite fun to role play, teetering on the edge of neutrality and evil before fully plunging into the darkness.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Adding Fell Drain and Chain Spell would be an excellent combo on an orb of cold. Damage and negative levels on several foes combined with a buff for your cold-immune skeletal minions sounds pretty good to me.

[Gildedragon]

If you do go with damaging conjuration spells, then ignore my suggestions for the dual-school spells. They can't benefit twice from, say, spell focus.

Good necromancy and good death can be a fun topic. As much as I like Kelemvor from Forgotten Realms for his outlook on his role as a death god, he doesn't play well with undead. There's this lovely piece in the Homebrew forum on Wee Jas (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?450352-Wee-Jas-the-First-Lich). The nation of Karnath in Eberron has an undead army. For Pathfinder, I have had an idea in my head since I first read the elves of Golarion that live among humans are specifically Forlorn. It hasn't come out well on paper, yet, but an elf who has seen generations die who wants to do something about it is an interesting idea for a necromancer in my mind. But, this is a topic for an evil necromancer.

True; but why have their backstory start out as evil? The necromancer might have had the best of intentions but:
A) there is knowledge that is better off lost; there are lorekeepers best allowed to die... Either the knowledge corrupted the necromancer or their zeal to preserve knowledge led to killing some before their time (to undeadify) or undeadifying some against their will and keeping them as lore-slaves denied their death and rest. Or undeath doesn't suit the necromancer; ennui has set in, sensations are dim and boring, and more... Cruel knowledges are the only interesting thing
A.1) people suck. Solving murders, executing wills... It's shown the necromancer how terrible people can be. The rich banker left his fortune to a pro-slavery organization, and denied any gold to his estranged children, leaving them penniless; the scion of a rich family is spoiled and cruel, but gets a rich inheritance (from the parents he killed) while the staff of his familial house get nothing for years of service; murders where the murderer was in the right, but is jailed for doing what society needed; murders that turn the stomach in how depraved they are... Best for a moral necromancer to purge the wheat from the chaff: life isn't a right, it is a blessing, a gift, and the unworthy ought step aside.
B) even the laboring dead are not enough to cure and free humanity... Maybe more dead will help; maybe the living ought pay for the dead; maybe blood rites and unspeakable deeds make the undead stronger more capable workers; maybe with their leisure humanity preys even more on humanity. Maybe the abundance of undead are deleterious to mankind, but the necromancer refuses to see the cost of raising so many dead.
C) Research needs test subjects. One needs to see what the minimum lethal doses are; how death-energy works on the body if it is to heal...

[Efrate]

If you are taking the Johannes Cabal route, I recommend for RP being morbidly fascinated with death. Watch intently as your negative levels destroy something, examine corpses or things you ray of enfeeblement. Even consider putting point in heal to do forensics and examine bodies, or knowledge anatomy or somesuch. Make comments on how its intersting that XYZ happens to the body when you did this. Buy a pearl of power for your cleric friend to speak with dead things you kill with your spells and ask them how it felt and other things.

If you have the feat or a level(s) to spend, pick up the tenebrous vestige/a level in binder, which gives you rebuking. If you want an army you want rebuke undead. Anima mage is actually a decent PRC. Extra spells and free metamagic are never bad. Plus binding your soul to an immortal half life, whose sole purpose of granting you a bit of power for the sensations of life, really melds with a concept of figuring death and all its weird stages out, and any vestige would love to be a part of you as you figure out how to get life back from death in any stage.

[OldTrees1]

My problem is that I want to be a necromancer. It is flavor reasons so the conjuration specialist wizard is NON-NEGOTIABLE.

The questions I have:
1. How do I maximize the number of undead I control with the selected class?

Take the Extend Spell feat.
Buy a Lesser Chain Spell Metamagic Rod
Cast Animate Dead to create 20HD skeletons
Cast Extended Chain Command Undead
(Repeat to taste but not to excess)

[ExLibrisMortis]

Adding Fell Drain and Chain Spell would be an excellent combo on an orb of cold. Damage and negative levels on several foes combined with a buff for your cold-immune skeletal minions sounds pretty good to me.
In principle, yes, but that's normally a 9th-level spell. You could make an uttercold mailman, but that sort of build doesn't really come online until 15th level or so.


I'm far less worried about direct damage spells and more concerned with Save or Suck/Die spells. The other members in my party can dish out damage juuuust fine without me squandering my precious spells per day on simply doing damage. The cleric is using a homebrew class based on Radiant Servant of Pelor only its the Shadow Vassal of [insert evil deity name here]. He slings inflict spells and is not focusing on buffs/debuffs at all. Necromancy has loads of those so I've go no problem with it.
In that case, maybe you can suggest Lord of the Uttercold to your cleric. Generally, inflict spells don't have great average damage (and absolutely terrible spell parameters, such as range), compared to 1d6/level blasting. For example, inflict critical wounds deals 4d8+7 (half a point more than 7d6) damage at minimum caster level, plus one per CL. A typical blasty spell will do at 7d6 damage at the same minimum caster level, plus 3.5 per CL. So essentially, at all caster levels past the minimum, an orb, fireball, or acid breath will deal more damage. Even the free empower and maximize won't help - you're getting 2d8+32+22 for inflict critical wounds (minimum CL is 15, because you need 10 Prc levels), equivalent to a 18d6 blast. Despite the slightly higher base damage (orbs capping out at 15d6), you will probably average a bit less damage, because inflict spells are melee touch, SR:Yes, and Save:Will half, unlike the orb, which has range, bypasses SR, and does not allow a save.

That said, I don't mean to discourage your cleric from playing their build. I'm just suggesting Lord of the Uttercold, especially for those persistent damaging spells (the famous persistent uttercold cold-substituted wall of flame).

[MaxiDuRaritry]

In principle, yes, but that's normally a 9th-level spell. You could make an uttercold mailman, but that sort of build doesn't really come online until 15th level or so.Hmm. A super-cheap alternative would be Sanctum Spell to turn orb of cold into a 3rd level spell, Fell Drain (which doesn't change the spell level), and a lesser rod of Chain Spell. Takes up a 5th level slot and a fairly cheap metamagic rod.

[AnimeTheCat]

so, unfortunately DM said no to the Rapid Summoning feature of the Conjuration Specialist applying to Summon Undead. That's truly sad, but its ok, I'll just go with the Necromancy Specialist and trade my extra spells for more powerful undead which DM said would apply to summoned undead (which seemed odd to me since you're summoning them not creating them). I'll be 4th level and probably Wizard (Necromancer) 4 at that. I'll have my full WBL to spend which isn't a ton, but should net me some extra spells known (via scrolls) and a few wands or a rod (maybe, I can't remember the cost of the lesser rods). Its looking less like a "lots of undead" build and more of a "strong select few" undead build, which is still ok as it doesn't seem to mess with the debuff side of the build.

DM also said Uttercold is out since it doesn't make thematic sense in the campaign setting, otherwise I would suggest it to the Cleric.

As far as backstory is concerned, I'll be starting Neutral then falling to evil later so that I don't clash with the party paladin immediately. He will be going blackguard at level 6 (planned between him and the DM) so that's why I want to focus on debuffs first, undead second. As far as backstory is concerned, my character suffered the loss of a loved one, became interested in the afterlife/undeath and is using his research in that field to fuel his desire to abolish slavery by using mindless undead. Its silly and that's why it won't work, but he has yet to realize this. Part of his fall to the "dark side" will be the realization that this goal is not a very good idea and won't work well. I mean... who wants plantation goods harvested by a zombie...

Thanks everyone for the amazing help and if you have any more ideas with this new concept, please let me know. I'm very interested in everything everyone has had to say!

[Red Fel]

What do you think of someone who was an apprentice wizard but lost their spouse to some catastrophe and is now obsessed with gaining the knowledge to bring them back, regardless of the cost on the rest of the world? It blends two of your archetypes and seems like it would be quite fun to role play, teetering on the edge of neutrality and evil before fully plunging into the darkness.

It... Doesn't quite work. Here's why.

Let me offer a comparison. Do you watch anime? There's one that deals a lot with spirits and souls and undead and stuff, called Shaman King. In it, there is specifically a necromancer - that is, a shaman who specializes not in manipulating spirits, but in reanimating corpses - named Faust VIII. His motivation is exactly what you describe - he was a gifted doctor, madly in love, blissfully happy. Until she died. Then he delved into his ancestor's texts on the Dark Arts in order to bring her back. Unfortunately, he could never actually bring her back - only skeletal puppets that, at best, looked like her. Later, one of the heroes who actually could bring back souls that had passed on brought her back for him, and he basically became their slave.

D&D... Isn't that. There are Clerics who can actually bring the dead back to life. As in, actually, not as undead, not as perverse corpse-puppets, actual living people. When a legitimate way to bring back your spouse exists, it seems highly irrational to say, "No, I'm not going to do that thing that works perfectly well, I'm going to do this other thing that's dark and disturbing and doesn't actually work." Even a basic examination of Necromancy reveals that unless you're raising intelligent undead, that's not the person you want; it's also a revolting corpse, so no time for love, Dr. Jones.

That's not to say it doesn't work at all. Maybe he went to a Cleric first, and it failed for whatever reason. Maybe he is a dedicated atheist and refuses to accept divine aid. (That might be problematic with a divine spellcaster in the party.) Maybe any number of reasons. But you have to explain why he didn't try for the obvious solution. (And don't say it's too expensive. He could work at becoming rich, rather than perverting nature.)

All that said, it can be a fun archetype, if you get the motivation right. It does teeter on the edge. This is a character so obsessed with one thing - namely, bringing back his love - that he has no qualms about doing absolutely anything to reach his goal. And having room for only that one emotion in one's heart means one can be completely sadistic towards anyone else. Again, look at Faust - even when reunited with his lost love, he's one twisted son of a gun.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Perhaps said love interest was already brought back as a necropolitan or other intelligent undead (that is quite probably her, rather than something that acts like her but probably isn't), and the process for doing so was lost when some self-righteous jerk ganked the guy who brought her back. Now, your character wants to help her in whatever way he can. He's studying necromancy to join her in undeath, in an eternity of love as non-rotting, non-Evil, intelligent beings that won't slowly go insane.

...It's a work in progress, obviously.

[Red Fel]

Perhaps said love interest was already brought back as a necropolitan or other intelligent undead (that is quite probably her, rather than something that acts like her but probably isn't), and the process for doing so was lost when some self-righteous jerk ganked the guy who brought her back. Now, your character wants to help her in whatever way he can. He's studying necromancy to join her in undeath, in an eternity of love as non-rotting, non-Evil, intelligent beings that won't slowly go insane.

...It's a work in progress, obviously.

This is a great idea, actually. It presents the character as desperate and a bit perverse, while maintaining certain human elements. For bonus points, you could take the Undead Leadership feat and have your Necropolitan lady-friend as your Cohort.

[Gildedragon]

... debuffs first, undead second. As far as backstory is concerned, my character suffered the loss of a loved one, became interested in the afterlife/undeath and is using his research in that field to fuel his desire to abolish slavery by using mindless undead. Its silly and that's why it won't work, but he has yet to realize this. Part of his fall to the "dark side" will be the realization that this goal is not a very good idea and won't work well. I mean... who wants plantation goods harvested by a zombie...
so the last bit makes little sense: Yeah people might have qualms of rotting flesh coming in contact with their fresh fruits but:
a) there's ways around it (skeletons, gentle repose, haunt-shifted into wicker armors/scarecrows)
b) the "historical" zombie was made, essentially as a plantation worker. Yeah it isn't a good match to the D&D zombie in a lot of ways (namely the rotting) but it is a good enough match to say "people don't generally care what their laborers are as long as they are cheap and hardworking"

But there's some good stuff there. Focus on debbuffs with a tangential interest in undead as a workforce, loss of a loved one...
Clearly the loved one was lost to slavers or died from exertion working, or disease in the serving quarters: it isn't the hunger of the undead that threatens mankind but man's hungers that will devour mankind.
The debuffs serve as a way to avenge those trod on, the undead as the means to free the oppressed... Buuuut revenge is a bit too much of the necromancer's agenda; necromancer is a bit too ruthless; and enjoys too much bringing down their foes. There is a clear neutral start there to sink into evil

Also losing a loved one to distance solves the point Red Fell brings up. They didn't die, they can't be brought back. They are just far far away...
Also who says the loved one is a romantic one: a parent that died of old age in chains or con loss from hard work or was level drained by a necromancer (maybe the one from whom the current necromancer stole his books from) so they were level 1 and thus not resurrect-able. Or necromancer's child (again only got to level one, was con damaged or level drained... Maybe died of old age after necromancer undeaded themselves.

[Efrate]

If you are starting at 4 unless you have other plans you are in prime position to be master specialist 1. You want to take it likely to level 7, but 10 isn't terrible if you get good undead.

[Troacctid]

When a legitimate way to bring back your spouse exists, it seems highly irrational to say, "No, I'm not going to do that thing that works perfectly well, I'm going to do this other thing that's dark and disturbing and doesn't actually work." Even a basic examination of Necromancy reveals that unless you're raising intelligent undead, that's not the person you want; it's also a revolting corpse, so no time for love, Dr. Jones.
Maybe I'm a little girl who just wants her father back, and I don't know a lot about magic, but I found this funny book in the library that's always dripping blood, and it says all I have to do to raise the dead is say the right words and make a blood sacrifice to someone called "Orcus". And that stupid Amanda is always making fun of me in school, so she deserves it anyway, and once daddy is back, none of the other girls will ever laugh at me again.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

This is a great idea, actually. It presents the character as desperate and a bit perverse, while maintaining certain human elements. For bonus points, you could take the Undead Leadership feat and have your Necropolitan lady-friend as your Cohort.Thank you, Fel of the Red. Please don't kill me.

Furthermore, the master necromancer willed his research notes and spellbooks and whatnot to you (as it was meant to help people and end world suffering, rather than the standard "muahahaha, I will kill everyone unto undeath, muahahaha" brouhaha), but most of it was destroyed by the aforementioned self-righteous jerk in a fiery inferno. You've got a spellbook filled with necromancy and other spells but no knowledge of how it fits into the ritual to become a necropolitan. It'd explain why you're studying so hard, as well as give you several plot points in your backstory for the DM to twiddle into the game.

[AnimeTheCat]

Hmm... All of this is making me think a little bit about tying in to the class features. I do remember Shaman King, and I really enjoyed it! I just didn't 1+1 properly. That being said, I could easily make a Fullmetal Alchemist style story where my Undead Familiar (ACF from Necromancy Specialization) is my loved one (haven't decided who the loved one is yet). I was young and I lost them and then foolishly tried to bring them back and instead created an abomination. As I grow up I learn more about magic and realize just how hopeless my situation was, but never the less I've tainted my soul with Necromancy. The more I learn the deeper I fall, trying to find a way to undo what I've done without killing what I've made. After all, I love that abomination, I can't just kill it and move on. Its not so much that I couldn't afford a real resurrection or something like that, maybe I just didn't know about it or perhaps the church simply turned me away (the churches in this world are... weird to say the least). I'll have to talk with my DM but I feel like that could work and it ties in to the class.

All that being said, I'm not enamored with this particular idea, it just kinda popped in to my head. I do like the other ideas about how the loved one was already raised, but I'll need to do the DM talk thing again. It will certainly be better if I can approach my DM with 3-4 versatile backstories as opposed to just one and then get bummed out when that won't work in the world.

[KillingAScarab]

I have considered a similar backstory incorporating the skeletal minion variant, but there are a few things I would like to point out about it. First, its a skeleton, but one which is going to be improving in strength and dexterity. Specifically, it is a human warrior skeleton, which means proficiency in all simple and martial weapons, since the skeleton template retains proficiency. Give your minion a good composite longbow.

For backstory, I was going to go with the minion being first made from a fellow rookie adventurer. They were going to get out of "that place" together, but only one of them made it out alive. Knowing who this minion was created from also means someone who wants to resurrect them has to destroy your minion, wheter you like it or not.

The ritual required to create the skeletal minion also has no detail, not even in regards to whether it can affect your alignment, so you aren't necessarilly evil for having one. You might also check with your DM if the enhanced undead variant can apply to your skeletal minion. After all, it may have as many hit dice as you, but if those are undead hit dice rather than warrior levels, it also has the same BAB as you.

Finally, if your minion ever is destroyed, you can create a different one, sure... but it wouldn't be the same. This last part was something I was going to explore with a character who had the shape soulmeld feat to create a soulspark, but never wanted to unshape it.