Justifying a Necromancer Heirophant

[deathbymanga]

So, I'm joining a campaign soon, dunno what i'll be playing as, just know i want to play a Drow and the starting lvl is 8, so I have 6 lvls to play with

I heard the group used to have a Dread Necromancer, and I like zombies, so I sugested to them that I dust off my Necromancer Arcane Heirophant. I immediately got insulted by one of the players for even thinking of it since apparently Druids HATE Necromancy because it's abnormal and unnatural.

which really confuses me. Spirits and zombies have spawned into existence without a necromancer's influence, which means undeath is perfectly natural. And even if it wasn't, Magic itself has existed for as long as the universe itself has, since Gods of magic existed before and if magic has existed since then, then it shouldn't be seen as any more unnatural than anything else.

Heck, the Plane of Negative Energy and the Shadow Plane are both related to necromancy. How can undeath be unnatural if the very planes of reality support it's existence?

[OldTrees1]

People rarely use the word Natural to refer to all of nature. People are always artificially constraining the Natural in order to create a division between these things and those things.

So to justify a Necromancer Druid to your friends first identify what division they are using. I am going to make the guess that they are thinking of the circle of life: Things are born, they live, they die, and they feed back into the cycle. Raise Dead & Create Undead (and to a lesser extent even Animate Dead) would be a breaking of this natural order.

Unfortunately avoiding this concern would remove your ability to use undead. So I would choose your fight. Either avoid using undead or justify yourself by talking about ALL life.

So I would start by talking about opposites. Dawn/Dusk, Summer/Winter, High/Low Tide & Beginning/End. Then talk about how Death is an often disrespected part of nature. It and everything related to it are cast as Evil and Wrong. This is understandable since we have survival instincts get us to avoid death by association with negative feelings like fear and grief. But Druids understand that Death is natural and comes to all things. [might stop here] But natural undead are just the same, they were born, will live, and eventually will die.

[deathbymanga]

People rarely use the word Natural to refer to all of nature. People are always artificially constraining the Natural in order to create a division between these things and those things.

So to justify a Necromancer Druid to your friends first identify what division they are using. I am going to make the guess that they are thinking of the circle of life: Things are born, they live, they die, and they feed back into the cycle. Raise Dead & Create Undead (and to a lesser extent even Animate Dead) would be a breaking of this natural order.

Unfortunately avoiding this concern would remove your ability to use undead. So I would choose your fight. Either avoid using undead or justify yourself by talking about ALL life.

So I would start by talking about opposites. Dawn/Dusk, Summer/Winter, High/Low Tide & Beginning/End. Then talk about how Death is an often disrespected part of nature. It and everything related to it are cast as Evil and Wrong. This is understandable since we have survival instincts get us to avoid death by association with negative feelings like fear and grief. But Druids understand that Death is natural and comes to all things. [might stop here] But natural undead are just the same, they were born, will live, and eventually will die.

They more specifically refer to how in the PHB it specifically says that " they hate that which is unnatural, including aberrations (such as beholders and carrion crawlers) and undead (such as zombies and vampires)." saying that because there's this in writing, Druids can't be necromancers.

[OldTrees1]

They more specifically refer to how in the PHB it specifically says that " they hate that which is unnatural, including aberrations (such as beholders and carrion crawlers) and undead (such as zombies and vampires)." saying that because there's this in writing, Druids can't be necromancers.

In that case ask the DM. The player is obviously going by "All fluff is by RAW unless DM says otherwise". So ask the DM about a Druid Necromancer and cite that section as a possible concern. Then pick a campaign appropriate character (aka not the Druid Necromancer unless the DM explicitly allows it).

Note: I said "ask" not "try to convince". You should be in "avoid being a problem player" mode.

[ExLibrisMortis]

Some (not-totally-canon) fluff (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21047845&postcount=8) here. It may help explain why undead are a form of life. Note that it doesn't necessarily need to be true, just believed by your character. This would work for any non-good druid.

Evil druids can also argue something to the effect of "life must be balanced by unlife, there is too much life at this time".

You can also theurge Blighter and DN, but that's pointless, because Blighters suck. An alternative is the Talontar Blightlord, which is an evil druid PrC. I'd take just two levels. It turns your animal companion into a plant, and then an undead plant (can you say 'immunities'?), along with +8 str, +2 dex, -- con, -4 int (min. 1), -2 wis, +3 NA, DR 5/slashing, immunity to electricity (and magic missile, woopwoop!), a climb speed, Improved Initiative, Power Attack, and Toughness (must meet prereqs). That's a pretty neat pile of stuff for an undead-focused druid (but note that your AC will be two levels behind, as the class doesn't advance it - take Natural Bond if you want to fix that). The levels are full casting, and add some spells to your list as well, but nothing too great.

[deathbymanga]

Some (not-totally-canon) fluff (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21047845&postcount=8) here. It may help explain why undead are a form of life. Note that it doesn't necessarily need to be true, just believed by your character. This would work for any non-good druid.

Evil druids can also argue something to the effect of "life must be balanced by unlife, there is too much life at this time".

You can also theurge Blighter and DN, but that's pointless, because Blighters suck. An alternative is the Talontar Blightlord, which is an evil druid PrC. I'd take just two levels. It turns your animal companion into a plant, and then an undead plant (can you say 'immunities'?), along with +8 str, +2 dex, -- con, -4 int (min. 1), -2 wis, +3 NA, DR 5/slashing, immunity to electricity (and magic missile, woopwoop!), a climb speed, Improved Initiative, Power Attack, and Toughness (must meet prereqs). That's a pretty neat pile of stuff for an undead-focused druid (but note that your AC will be two levels behind, as the class doesn't advance it - take Natural Bond if you want to fix that). The levels are full casting, and add some spells to your list as well, but nothing too great.

Hmm, i like your justification, and the Blightspawn/Juju Zombie templates for my Companion sound awesome. my biggest problem though is that unless I actually grab Arcane caster levels or cleric levels to get raise dead, all i'll be doing is using the Fell Animate Metamagic to create undead, which can be really annoying at higher levels, bein forced to rely on my Produce Flames to make my zombies.

However, if I go Blightspawn, i'll be using my companion to make my zombies for me, except i don't see anywhere yet on how many juju zombies i can control. but if I'm relying on my companion so much, wouldn't it be better to go Arcane Heirophant in order to get access to the Familiar bonuses.

Not to mention I'll only be 8th level. which means if I want to grab 1 lvl in the PrC, i'll be forced to use all my levels just to qualify for it. and multiclassing into wizard is difficult since it requires years of practical study to become a wizard. Not to mention i want to play a Drow, which means +2 LA.

Not to mention I'd be forced to worship some random god, and grab weapon proficiency in a weapon i'll never be using since I'm planning on using my companion for melee combat

But if I go Arcane Heirophant, I'll be able to go 2 levels for Drow, 3 for Druid and Wizard, and next level begin grabbing levels in AH.

[Dayaz]

I forget what book it was in, but there was a type of undead that the elves made that weren't evil or created through 'foulest blacke majik'. They basically took pieces of positive energy and used those to animate dead bodies (though I think it was mainly used to animate ancestors?)

[Big Fau]

Direct said friend to the Golgari of Ravnica (the lore about them, specifically). It isn't natural in D&D by default, but it is very possible to flavor it as natural.

Edit: Dayaz is thinking of Eberron Elves. They outright worship the Undying Court; their "undead but not undead" ancestors.

[deathbymanga]

Direct said friend to the Golgari of Ravnica (the lore about them, specifically). It isn't natural in D&D by default, but it is very possible to flavor it as natural.

Edit: Dayaz is thinking of Eberron Elves. They outright worship the Undying Court; their "undead but not undead" ancestors.

I can't be about Deathless Ones, because 1. it's Eberron, not FR, and 2. I can't very well justify making Undying Ones out of non-elves to fight for me

[Zanos]

If you're talking about the Moonshae game you just joined, it's a Faerun game. And the DM is pretty serious about RAW.

[Big Fau]

I can't be about Deathless Ones, because 1. it's Eberron, not FR, and 2. I can't very well justify making Undying Ones out of non-elves to fight for me

The only good Undead I can think of that's FR-specific is the Elf Lich thing in MoF (or was it CoV?). The Undying also appeared in the BoED, although Eberron has an expansion on them.

[deathbymanga]

If you're talking about the Moonshae game you just joined, it's a Faerun game. And the DM is pretty serious about RAW.

yeah, its me. I posed the question to the DM, awaiting a response. the thing is, is that even if its a flavour thing, Druids have no penalty against gaining the Fell Animate Metamagic, so they already have the ability to raise the dead, even if i never grab a necromancy spell.

Not to mention, the only ways a Druid loses their powers are: A druid who ceases to revere nature, changes to a prohibited alignment, or teaches the Druidic language to a nondruid loses all spells and druid abilities

I can still "revere nature" and be a necromancer. Such as was previously mentioned, seeing my own necromancy as providing a balance to life by adding Unlife to the world around me. The thing with abilities and mechanics restricted by roleplaying, is that if you are playing a particular character, restrictions that appear to be absolute can suddenly become paper thin


The only good Undead I can think of that's FR-specific is the Elf Lich thing in MoF (or was it CoV?). The Undying also appeared in the BoED, although Eberron has an expansion on them.

Alignments aren't a problem. there's already a couple evil people as i understand

[Big Fau]

yeah, its me. I posed the question to the DM, awaiting a response. the thing is, is that even if its a flavour thing, Druids have no penalty against gaining the Fell Animate Metamagic, so they already have the ability to raise the dead, even if i never grab a necromancy spell.

Not to mention, the only ways a Druid loses their powers are: A druid who ceases to revere nature, changes to a prohibited alignment, or teaches the Druidic language to a nondruid loses all spells and druid abilities

I can still "revere nature" and be a necromancer. Such as was previously mentioned, seeing my own necromancy as providing a balance to life by adding Unlife to the world around me. The thing with abilities and mechanics restricted by roleplaying, is that if you are playing a particular character, restrictions that appear to be absolute can suddenly become paper thin

Keep in mind that, while the Dread Necromancer class does focus heavily on creating undead, there's more to Necromancy than just dead bodies.

[Honest Tiefling]

If it's Faerun, you need a druid god to get druidic powers. I believe all of the druid gods (even Malar) are kinda against undead, so that's a bit of a problem. Unless you're using the rules of a different edition.

But are you REALLY sure you want to be in a game where a player's first reaction is to insult your character? That sounds like a red flag. I'm all for setting cohesion, but the proper response is 'The concept isn't bad, but doesn't mesh with this world'.

[deathbymanga]

Keep in mind that, while the Dread Necromancer class does focus heavily on creating undead, there's more to Necromancy than just dead bodies.

"Druids were primal spellcasters of considerable power and versatility, who gained their power through being at one with nature or through a connection to a powerful deity[1] or nature spirit." -- Forgotten Realms wiki.

I can be a druid with a god OR just being at one with nature.

And true. If I'm honest, my favorite Necromancy spell isn't Raise Dead, but rather Necrotic Cyst., which is an amazing collection of spells.


If it's Faerun, you need a druid god to get druidic powers. I believe all of the druid gods (even Malar) are kinda against undead, so that's a bit of a problem. Unless you're using the rules of a different edition.

But are you REALLY sure you want to be in a game where a player's first reaction is to insult your character? That sounds like a red flag. I'm all for setting cohesion, but the proper response is 'The concept isn't bad, but doesn't mesh with this world'.

SHRUG. I just met them, and finding a good 3.5 campaign is hard imo. I'll play a few sessions see how thye are in-game before i make a verdict on the players

[Honest Tiefling]

"Druids were primal spellcasters of considerable power and versatility, who gained their power through being at one with nature or through a connection to a powerful deity[1] or nature spirit." -- Forgotten Realms wiki.

Last I checked, the wiki was 4th edition. It's probably 5th edition right now, so I wouldn't use that as a source for a 3rd edition game. If you check the Campaign Setting or Player's Handbook, you HAVE to have a god, especially if the DM is running things by the book as was previously mentioned.

[Zanos]

But are you REALLY sure you want to be in a game where a player's first reaction is to insult your character? That sounds like a red flag. I'm all for setting cohesion, but the proper response is 'The concept isn't bad, but doesn't mesh with this world'.
The OP's first character concept was a swashbuckler with leadership for a pocket artificer. The OP and the player in question were already arguing about leadership being overpowered, so relations were not great before a Druid Necromancer was presented.

I'm actually not super clear on Faerun lore, but I'm pretty sure Undead are anathema to druids in pretty much every setting, barring a couple of bizarre sects. Negative energy tends to have pretty awful affects on nature.

[eggynack]

I've never really bought the notion that druids blanket shouldn't use undead and such. As you point out, it's just a thing that exists, like any other, and it's a great way to get full utility out of the dead. Sure, one can consider dead bodies a natural part of life, but it's not strictly the only way of seeing things. Beyond that, there are two major issues with the claim that druids can't do this. First, of course, is that there is no absolute restriction on the ability to create and/or control undead. If this were such a big restriction, then it would be an actual restriction in the rules, cause there's a place in the rules where that could be. The second is that druids can kinda make undead already. There's tons of stuff like that, from animate with the spirit for weird undead/outsider hybrids, to plant zombies from myconid sovereign or yellow musk creeper form, to using blackwater tentacles until a creature is drained to zero levels. With the plant zombies especially, I don't see too much difference between those and normal zombies from a "removing creatures from the circle of life" perspective.

Also, separate shorter claim, as was stated, aberrations are also generally disliked by druids. It's alien to nature or whatever. And yet, aberration wild shape is very much a thing. Therefore, that text isn't a complete restriction by any means. If a druid can make heavy use of aberrations, then I don't see why they can't make heavy use of undead, especially if it's from a different source.

[deathbymanga]

I'm actually not super clear on Faerun lore, but I'm pretty sure Undead are anathema to druids in pretty much every setting, barring a couple of bizarre sects. Negative energy tends to have pretty awful affects on nature.

Actually, found a god that might not have a problem with the Undead: Silvanus. His schtick is maintaining absolute balance in the world. he hates disease and violence, but is all about careful manipulation and protecting forests.

If one is about the absolute balance between everything, he'd have a lot more leniency on Undeath, since if Life is Positive, and Death is 0, you can't have balance without Negetives as well. So if my character believes in protecting nature at all costs, even by using corpses as soldiers, it should be no problem

[Extra Anchovies]

A druid who ... teaches the Druidic language to a nondruid loses all spells and druid abilities

Does creating a non-druid creature which understands Druidic count as teaching Druidic to a non-druid? If so, Animate Dead is entirely out of the question, as are any parallel effects.

[eggynack]

Does creating a non-druid creature which understands Druidic count as teaching Druidic to a non-druid? If so, Animate Dead is entirely out of the question, as are any parallel effects.
I'm super doubtful. You're not really teaching anything so much as just creating a creature that happens to know druidic. Creating a druid doesn't seem like it'd be against the rules at all, and so neither would be this. I also don't think the undead even really knows druidic so much as it just understands language in general. Besides, are we claiming that all animated dead just happen to know druidic here, or only druid animated dead? In the latter case, do you need to speak druidic for the animated dead to understand druidic? Either way, it's something intrinsic to the creature, so no knowledge is being imparted here.

[Extra Anchovies]

First, relevant rules text:
A druid also knows Druidic, a secret language known only to druids, which she learns upon becoming a 1st-level druid. Druidic is a free language for a druid; that is, she knows it in addition to her regular allotment of languages and it doesn’t take up a language slot. Druids are forbidden to teach this language to nondruids.
This spell turns the bones or bodies of dead creatures into undead skeletons or zombies that follow your spoken commands.
Now, let's take two perfectly functional rules elements and grind them together until a disfunction pops out :smallbiggrin:

I'm super doubtful. You're not really teaching anything so much as just creating a creature that happens to know druidic. Creating a druid doesn't seem like it'd be against the rules at all, and so neither would be this.

Well, a character who becomes a Druid learns Druidic after taking their first Druid level (and while applying class features of the Druid level), so teaching a character Druidic is not necessary to help them become a Druid. Animate Dead is creating a creature which understands your spoken commands, including any that are uttered in Druidic. So I think they aren't comparable situations.


I also don't think the undead even really knows druidic so much as it just understands language in general.

Hm. That's definitely a solid counterpoint - an interpretation that animated dead parse and carry out spoken commands without understanding the individual words in those commands, now that I think about it again, seems more likely than the interpretation that they know the languages in which the commands are delivered, given that these undead are mindless. It'd be something akin to a calculator, able to receive instructions and deliver corresponding results without really knowing what the number 9 is - when given the input that we know as "9", the calculator does not parse it as "9", but rather as "1001" (or, more precisely, yes-no-no-yes), because it has to shift inputs to binary-variable sets before processing them into outputs.

I did not expect to consider whether a calculator knows numbers when I started exploring these rules.


Besides, are we claiming that all animated dead just happen to know druidic here, or only druid animated dead? In the latter case, do you need to speak druidic for the animated dead to understand druidic?

The spell text says that the undead "follow your spoken commands", so the undead that may know Druidic are all Druid-controlled undead. And yes, this interpretation would require speaking druidic to command the animated dead at least once.


Either way, it's something intrinsic to the creature, so no knowledge is being imparted here.

But what if our hypothetical Druid gains control of the undead from another character? The skeletons go from not understanding spoken Druidic to understanding spoken Druidic due to the action of the Druid - and causing a creature to learn a language would, I think, qualify as teaching a language even if they do not learn the language directly from you, e.g. giving a character a Common-language book on how to speak and read Druidic.

That being said, the druid has no native means of undead control via ACFs or spells, and losing Druid features by using the features of another class makes some sense even if it is for an odd rules reason.

Another interesting question comes to mind: how much Druid can be shared before you count as having taught someone Druidic? Does even one single word's worth of instruction break the vow? Does it only count if you've taught every word of Druidic you know to the other character? Where's the balance point?

[eggynack]

Well, a character who becomes a Druid learns Druidic after taking their first Druid level (and while applying class features of the Druid level), so teaching a character Druidic is not necessary to help them become a Druid. Animate Dead is creating a creature which understands your spoken commands, including any that are uttered in Druidic. So I think they aren't comparable situations.
Nah, I mean like creating a 5th level druid out of thin air or something. I dunno what the mechanism would look like (though, actually, I suppose you could do it with deepspawn form, meaning that my ridiculous hypothetical situation is an actual druid thing, which is awesome), but the point is that, at worst, you're creating something that knows druidic, rather than teaching something that doesn't know druidic druidic. Or, actually, consider an even more absurd scenario. A druid is lying dead on the ground. Being all corpsified, said druid can not speak, read, or understand druidic. Does it qualify as teaching a creature druidic if you then reincarnate that druid, given that said game object once did not know druidic and now does know druidic?




The spell text says that the undead "follow your spoken commands", so the undead that may know Druidic are all Druid-controlled undead. And yes, this interpretation would require speaking druidic to command the animated dead at least once.

But what if our hypothetical Druid gains control of the undead from another character? The skeletons go from not understanding spoken Druidic to understanding spoken Druidic due to the action of the Druid - and causing a creature to learn a language would, I think, qualify as teaching a language even if they do not learn the language directly from you, e.g. giving a character a Common-language book on how to speak and read Druidic.
That's not necessarily the underlying operation. Maybe animated dead can just follow all existent languages natively. A common speaking wizard may make undead that happen to know druidic to this extent, but never be able to use that utility. Critically, should that wizard learn druidic through some means, the animated dead would presumably be able to understand it without undergoing any sort of mechanical alteration.


That being said, the druid has no native means of undead control via ACFs or spells, and losing Druid features by using the features of another class makes some sense even if it is for an odd rules reason.
There's always the weird plant forms, myconid sovereign and yellow musk creeper, though I don't think either form operates with this weird language based rule.


Another interesting question comes to mind: how much Druid can be shared before you count as having taught someone Druidic? Does even one single word's worth of instruction break the vow? Does it only count if you've taught every word of Druidic you know to the other character? Where's the balance point?
Offhand, I'd think the resolution would come from a division between druid the class and druid the concept. The way it could work is that the not-druid apprentices themselves to a druid, and then they're officially some sort of druidic initiate, and at that point they can legally be taught druidic. The zeroth level druid would ascend to first level at the same time that they learn the druid tongue.

Edit: Thought up two other ways to "teach" something druidic, kinda. First, create lantern archon. You're making a creature, and it's one that can do everything druidic, by virtue of having the tongues spell. Most such effects have you summoning the creature or something, but you're making druidic speakers out of nothing. By extension, the second option is the spell tongues, or, more accurately, the spell speak with anything from masters of the wild, cause that's the one on the druid list. It's targeted at you, but that doesn't preclude casting the thing on your animal companion, and if the lack of intelligence is a problem then it's one that can easily be solved with exalted companion or something. Behold my basically entirely native ability to do weird stuff with druidic.

[OldTrees1]

Hm. That's definitely a solid counterpoint - an interpretation that animated dead parse and carry out spoken commands without understanding the individual words in those commands, now that I think about it again, seems more likely than the interpretation that they know the languages in which the commands are delivered, given that these undead are mindless. It'd be something akin to a calculator, able to receive instructions and deliver corresponding results without really knowing what the number 9 is - when given the input that we know as "9", the calculator does not parse it as "9", but rather as "1001" (or, more precisely, yes-no-no-yes), because it has to shift inputs to binary-variable sets before processing them into outputs.

I did not expect to consider whether a calculator knows numbers when I started exploring these rules.

Further evidence:
Nick is a Necromancer that only knows Common. Matt is a Blighter that still remembers Druidic. Nick animates Steve the skeleton. Then Matt teaches Nick Druidic. Now Steve will obey Nick even if Nick speaks in Druidic.

[Vertharrad]

I know people are gonna boo and hiss but, why don't you just make a wiz/clr/true necromancer? It's a PrC focused around theurging and necromancy...and I'm sure the players would have no problem with a non-druid being a necromancer. The natural order include all elements that tie together to progress life...undead stagnate life and include disease and violence(both things you said Silvanus was against). Undead hate the living which will work to destroy any resemblance of balance as they will attack any living creature. A druid should know this already. I would suggest you talk to your GM before bringing in this character. And if the GM green-lights it have a talk with the group as a whole. Just be prepared for the GM to possibly say no.

[deathbymanga]

I know people are gonna boo and hiss but, why don't you just make a wiz/clr/true necromancer? It's a PrC focused around theurging and necromancy...and I'm sure the players would have no problem with a non-druid being a necromancer. The natural order include all elements that tie together to progress life...undead stagnate life and include disease and violence(both things you said Silvanus was against). Undead hate the living which will work to destroy any resemblance of balance as they will attack any living creature. A druid should know this already. I would suggest you talk to your GM before bringing in this character. And if the GM green-lights it have a talk with the group as a whole. Just be prepared for the GM to possibly say no.

I want Arcane Heirophant because i want to play with the Familiar Companion. And I disagree about undead stagnating life. The undead hunt the living, yes, but that doesn't mean it stagnates life. it provides a check and balance towards it. Life cannot be overabundant, because it starts to choke other living things.

[kellbyb]

I want Arcane Heirophant because i want to play with the Familiar Companion. And I disagree about undead stagnating life. The undead hunt the living, yes, but that doesn't mean it stagnates life. it provides a check and balance towards it. Life cannot be overabundant, because it starts to choke other living things.

Is a familiar not sufficient? I personally have no problem with the druid route but I gotta ask.

[Calthropstu]

Dunno if it's relevant, but I once played a split personality cleric of pelor/necromancer. He was quite confused when he kept waking up in caves surrounded by undead.

He joined a group to destroy the source of the undead... and it actually was kind of fun.

[ShurikVch]

Note: in Libris Mortis example creature for Swarm-Shifter template is 13th-Level Mummy King Druid, who still have all druidic stuff - including even Animal Companion

About the possible patron deity: Osiris (http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Osiris) - if you are Lawful Neutral; or Talona (http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Talona) - if Neutral Evil

[AnimeTheCat]

If you're not dead set on undead, might I suggest vermin lord? Be a Druid that focuses on essentially spreading a "natural" blight around and then, once you can cast Giant Vermin (Druid, 4th lvl spell), start taking levels in Vermin Lord. After 10 levels you lose one spell casting level compared to Druid 3/Wizard 3, but you can cast at a nearly infinite sorcerer level, if you do some fondue tactics. If you don't, you can make a reasonably powerful arcane caster out of your hive mind without too much work at all. Focus on something like Wasp Swarms or something for your hive mind. It would be relatively easy to get both divine druid casting and arcane sorcerer casting from the capstone ability. I think it would be fun and doesn't go against the grain of Druid at all. No squeezing or cheesing anywhere.

[Norma]

I'm actually playing an Arcane Hierophant with a taste for necromancy in a D&D game. I simply asked my DM if I could refluff the Druid class into a Blighter, rather than taking the Blighter prestige class. I even came up with a custom corrupt spell to use for some actual necromancy on the druid side:

Animate Dead Animal

Necromancy [Evil]
Level: Corrupt 3
Components: V, S, Corrupt
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Targets: One or more corpses touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No


This spell acts as Animate Dead, except that it can only affect the corpses of animals, magical beasts, and vermin.

Corruption Cost: 1d6 Charisma damage
Note: This spell doesn't risk breaking a druid's oath. The corruption cost is the price paid instead.