Best undead to choose

[flappeercraft]

Right now im looking for any kind of undead I can control that is decently powerful and is either small or medium size. I do not need hordes of small and relatively weak undead like human zombies but more of something that can keep up with the characters in the group. We have a cleric from hextor so controlling it for the most part should not be much of a problem. Any suggestions for what should I get? At the moment we are 4th level close to 5th so suggestions we can use for low levels are best but it would also be useful to have suggestions for higher levels. If you need any extra information just ask.

[Inevitability]

Try finding and commanding a wight. It can create a limitless number of spawn, drains levels with a touch, and should be easy to control with only 4 HD and no turn resistance.

If no wights are available in your immediate vicinity, you can create one yourself by casting a Fell Drain cantrip at a random peasant.

[Khedrac]

Other good ones (if bit of glass cannon-y) is a shadow or allip.

Stat damage can take even the toughest opponent down quickly.
Incorporeality means nothing mundane can even hit them, and magic has a real problem.

[Inevitability]

Other good ones (if bit of glass cannon-y) is a shadow or allip.

Stat damage can take even the toughest opponent down quickly.
Incorporeality means nothing mundane can even hit them, and magic has a real problem.

Note that once you hit level 9, you'll be able to generate shadows using Summon Undead V. The summoned specimen may disappear after a minute or so, but its spawn will linger.

[Pugwampy]

I am huge fan of "Brain in the Jar"

[OldTrees1]

SRD Undead of note by Cleric level and divided by features (spawning is ignored)

12:
Allip - Incorporeal AbilityDrain
Ghast - Paraylsis

10:
Shadow - Incorporeal Ability Drain

8:
Wight - EnergyDrain
Ghoul - Paraylsis

[Jay R]

:xykon:: Flying zombies! I can't believe I never thought of it before! (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0193.html)
:redcloak:: It will revolutionize the industry.

[Ruethgar]

Grab Graveborn Warrior and then any undead you make can get a feat...a flaw is a feat, grab another flaw with your flaw, to grab three feats in total. Can make your minions a great deal more potent.

[Inevitability]

Grab Graveborn Warrior and then any undead you make can get a feat...a flaw is a feat, grab another flaw with your flaw, to grab three feats in total. Can make your minions a great deal more potent.

A flaw is most definitely not a feat.

[mabriss lethe]

At level 4, your ability to command even the lower rung of useful undead is dicey at best. The Wight is a stock example. At cleric level 4 with 4 HD, you'd have to get the maximum possible result, a 22 or better, on your turning check (1d20+ Cha mod) in order to command it. Assuming a cleric that's only marginally kitted out for rebuking, you have, for example, a Cha 14 and max ranks in Knowledge Religion, You'd still have to roll an 18 or better to command a wight, and it would be the only undead you could command via rebuke at level 4. Sure, if you could restrain a wight and keep it some place undisturbed, you could spend a few days burning through your rebuke attempts until you got it to stick.

Or you could have a squad of disposable skeletons effectively doubling your party's action economy in a fight. At the level you're at now, it's what I'd do. Your rank and file undead are perfect at this level.

[Pugwampy]

Dire Maggots . Coolest undead maggot in the Dnd universe .

[Âmesang]

DRAGON Magazine #340, page 76, has details on "The Black Cauldron (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chronicles_of_Prydain)." It can be used to boost evil, death, or necromancy spells and create a multitude of undead (including the "cauldron spawn").

[sleepyphoenixx]

If you want to have your cleric command undead that are actually useful he'll have to invest in gear that increases turning level.
Sacred armor/shield, Phylactery of Undead Turning, stuff like that. Otherwise the most he'll be able to command are undead with half as much HD as he has cleric levels.
Since undead tend to have high HD for their CR (unless you animate NPCs with class levels with a template) that means your commanded minions will be useful as weak meatshields at best.
You can get a whole bunch of skeletons or zombies with more HD than you with Animate Dead which you control automatically, so there's no point commanding those.
Any humanoid with levels in martial or non-int casters can be raised with Animate Dread Warrior, which are also automatically under your control

To get worthwhile targets for commanding look at Create Undead and Create Greater Undead, mostly at the templates. Most of those require mid-high levels though and you'll have to go book-diving, because the core options suck.
Bonesinger (Ghostwalk) turns a bard into an undead you can control while letting it keep all its class abilities.
The Defacer (MM4) is a 11HD undead that has Earth Glide, a fear aura and a stunning attack. It also prevents anything it kills from being ressurected or raised while it lives.
Juju Zombie (UE) get to keep their int and feats. CL 16
Bone Creature and Corpse Creature (BoVD) keep (Ex), (Su) and (Sp) abilities. Animate yourself a beholder or two and go to town.
Spectral Mage (LEoF) turns an arcane caster into an incorporeal undead, getting a few abilities and keeping casting.

You should also try to get a Slaymate (LM), but there's no information on how to create them, so you'll have to ask your DM.


At level 4, your ability to command even the lower rung of useful undead is dicey at best. The Wight is a stock example. At cleric level 4 with 4 HD, you'd have to get the maximum possible result, a 22 or better, on your turning check (1d20+ Cha mod) in order to command it. Assuming a cleric that's only marginally kitted out for rebuking, you have, for example, a Cha 14 and max ranks in Knowledge Religion, You'd still have to roll an 18 or better to command a wight, and it would be the only undead you could command via rebuke at level 4. Sure, if you could restrain a wight and keep it some place undisturbed, you could spend a few days burning through your rebuke attempts until you got it to stick.

Or you could have a squad of disposable skeletons effectively doubling your party's action economy in a fight. At the level you're at now, it's what I'd do. Your rank and file undead are perfect at this level.

Commanding undead doesn't work that way. The turning check is almost completely irrelevant.
You can only command undead that have half your effective cleric level in HD or less, so a level 4 cleric without feats or gear that boost turning level can command 2HD undead at most, and then only 2 of them.
So unless you have negative charisma it's pretty much impossible to fail a turning check to command, because a level 4 cleric automatically gets a 5 or better with 0 cha so he'll command 2HD undead every time. The odds only rise as you get more turning levels.