Epic Wizards

[Babale]

So, I'm making a Necromancer/Master Specialist/Archmage. Those are the exact classes, can't change them.

Now, I have 27 levels. How do I break them up?

And what are good feats and skills?

Finally, except for intelligence, what are the most important stats?

[Flickerdart]

Quicken Spell metamagic is a feat you will swear by. Maximize is good too, for those Split Ray Maximized Twinned Enervations.

[Babale]

Levels are what I need most now. Level breakdown please?

[Yuki Akuma]

Max out both PrCs and then take the rest of your levels in Necromancer. PrCs don't really give much after their final level.

Feats and skills? Definitely max Knowledge: Arcana and take Epic Spellcasting. Just try not to make your DM hate you by cheesing it out too much. At level 27, you'll have 30 ranks in Know: Arcana, giving you three epic spell slots.

Improved Spell Capacity is also very nice if you're going to be using metamagic feats. And you are going to be using metamagic feats, right?

For a necromancy specialist, Dex is a good ability score to keep high-ish, due to all the rays.

[quick_comment]

So, I'm making a Necromancer/Master Specialist/Archmage. Those are the exact classes, can't change them.

Now, I have 27 levels. How do I break them up?

And what are good feats and skills?

Finally, except for intelligence, what are the most important stats?

It depends entirely on what your GM will give you for epic master specialist. If he is willing to give you more caster level increases (or even epic esoterica) then I would say you should go Necromancer 5/Master Specialist 10/Archmage 5/Epic Master Specialist 7. If he wont give you anything for epic master specialist, then go Necromancer 10/Master Specialist 7/Archmage 5/Necromancer 11-15. This nets you an extra metamagic feat, in exchange for the high level master specialist stuff (which for necromancy is meh)

[Babale]

So, are you saying spend it all on metamagic?

And what about barred schools? I'm going to lead an undead army, but will need at least a few damaging spells, in addition to a TON of necromancy spells.

[Yuki Akuma]

Ban Evocation - Necromancy and Conjuration will provide all the offensive magic you'll ever need. You can take Craft Contingent Spell (Complete Arcane, p. 77) if you can't live without Contingency. And if you really need an Evocation spell... well, Shadow Evocation and its big brother do it better if you have a high Int score.

You could get by without Abjuration, too, if you have a cleric in the party. He can do that just fine.

[Babale]

No party, I'm playing the villain. But I'll have a nice little cleric at a high enough level.

[Yuki Akuma]

Leadership is a nice feat too. :P

[quick_comment]

I would ban evocation and enchantment. Enchantment wont affected your undead minions, or anything you are likely to fight at level 27.

[Babale]

OK, I was thinking of banning Evocation too.

But what about Illusions?

[Yuki Akuma]

Illusion is your backup "Oh Gods I really need an Evocation spell!" school. Plus, it has some of the best defenses in the game.

(Miss chance is better than AC.)

[Babale]

OK.

Any suggestions on great non-core spells I'd most likely miss, but could come in handy?

[quick_comment]

For your epic feats, take epic spellcasting, followed by improved spell level + improved metamagic as many times as you can. (I would take improved meta 3 times to get quicken down to +1 and persistent down to +3).

I would take multispell at least twice if you get quicken down to +1, just because you can then quicken just about anything.

[Babale]

And magic items? Obscure, but useful, spells to kill an adventuring party/buff up zombies?

[Douglas]

It depends entirely on what your GM will give you for epic master specialist. If he is willing to give you more caster level increases (or even epic esoterica) then I would say you should go Necromancer 5/Master Specialist 10/Archmage 5/Epic Master Specialist 7. If he wont give you anything for epic master specialist, then go Necromancer 10/Master Specialist 7/Archmage 5/Necromancer 11-15. This nets you an extra metamagic feat, in exchange for the high level master specialist stuff (which for necromancy is meh)

If your DM follows the guidelines for epic progressions, Epic Master Specialist will be better than more Wizard. If your DM gives you essentially nothing for class features, then you should be getting epic bonus feats every 3 levels. At this level that means 2 of them, with a lot more flexibility than pre-epic wizard bonus feats and unquestionable RAW ability to spend them on epic feats. There's no way wizard levels can compete with that. If your DM's version of epic Master Specialist has bonus feats every 4 levels, that's still one epic bonus feat plus whatever class features the DM gives you to compensate.

Necromancer 5/Master Specialist 10/Archmage 5/Epic Master Specialist 7 is just plain better than any other possible split of those three classes unless your DM ignores the RAW guidelines and existing epic progressions when writing up Master Specialist's epic progression.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

And magic items? Obscure, but useful, spells to kill an adventuring party/buff up zombies?

Buff up zombies? Toss in an undead Bard (with the feat that lets bardic music affect Undead) into the mix to give your minions all kinds of bonuses. Then hand him a red coat. Because every Bard who deals with Undead has to have one.

[Babale]

Wait... I can have undead with character levels? How?

[lsfreak]

Wait... I can have undead with character levels? How?

Libris Mortis gives rules for making monster-classes into character levels. There's also just things like liches, vampires, ghosts, that all have LA and are suitable for PC's or cohorts as-is.
EDIT: Oh, and how could I forget the necropolitan? Become undead for a thousand gold.

[Yuki Akuma]

Vampires. Get a vampire, find a high-level bard, have your vampire kill said bard...

As a bonus, the bard doesn't even count against your HD limit for controlling undead - he's under the vampire's command, not yours!

Just make sure his sire doesn't get ganked.

[Babale]

He he he... Looks like me and an army of vampires up to my HD limit will go raid an adventurer's guild soon...

[Sinfire Titan]

Do not ban Abjuration. Go into Incanatrix after maxing out Master Specialist and Archmage (banning Illusion, unless you can talk your DM into allowing you to ban Divination, which would be amazing for you to do). After that, Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil. You are now something beyond GOD.

[Yuki Akuma]

Do not ban Abjuration. Go into Incanatrix after maxing out Master Specialist and Archmage (banning Illusion, unless you can talk your DM into allowing you to ban Divination, which would be amazing for you to do). After that, Initiate of the Sevenfold Veil. You are now something beyond GOD.

First post.

So, I'm making a Necromancer/Master Specialist/Archmage. Those are the exact classes, can't change them.

Also:

He he he... Looks like me and an army of vampires up to my HD limit will go raid an adventurer's guild soon...

Shadows and wights are also good. Get a couple, then sic 'em on a village - and have your vampires eat any adventurers that try to intervene.

[Babale]

Any monsters that make good HUGE zombies?

I'm thinking Hydras, for the huge amount of attacks, even with only 1 standard action.

[Yuki Akuma]

The best zombies (and skeletons) are probably dragons - get yourself a copy of the Draconomicon, because they get special rules.

[Babale]

I was gonna ask about Undead Army makeup, but that is probably best for a separate thread.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

I am going to break my streak and recommend not banning Evocation. There's a feat, Lord of the Uttercold, that turns your Cold spells into half neg energy, half Cold. Snag that and Energy Substitution:Cold, and now you can drop Walls of Fire(Cold[Uttercold]) that deal your minions 2d6+20 points of healing eachg time you step through, and hit enemies for the same amount. Toss either Necropolitan or Tomb-Tainted Soul on yourself so that you can walk through them as well.

[Yuki Akuma]

Alternatively: Vampire Clerics.