Necromancer variant?

[Rama_Lei]

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/cl...rdVariants.htm

Take a look at the necromancer variants, in particular the one that grabs you a skeleton familiar. From how I'm reading, isn't this pretty great trade-off for a familiar? Will it much? No, but it's got a juicy d12 hit die, and a decent natural armor bonus... Plus, it can make for some sweet fluff.

[TSGames]

Take a look at the necromancer variants. From how I'm reading, isn't this pretty great trade-off for a familiar? Will it much? No, but it's got a juicy d12 hit die, and a decent natural armor bonus... Plus, it can make for some sweet fluff.

I have never played one myself but I do consider it to be a very good trade off for merely eliminating the standard familiar. The fact that there is no XP loss when the skeleton is destroyed, combined with the fact that you are already a necromancer make it a substantial upgrade. With the corpsecrafter feats or several spells from the Spell Compendium, you can have a very mean companion. Personally, I would prefer to awaken the skeletal minion, allowing it make fairly intelligent decisions on its own. No matter what you do with the variant, it is almost always guaranteed to be more useful than a standard familiar.

[EDIT]
Forgot a verb.
[/EDIT]

[Rama_Lei]

Awaken doesn't work on undead...But it'd still be pretty sweet.

[giblina]

If you're trying to make a necromancer, that variant is better than the base necromancer specialist.

Better than that though, is the dread necromancer class from heroes of horror. It's a hybrid of evil cleric, sorcerer, and necromancer specialist, that's focused solely on making small armies of undead.

You'd pick up rebuke undead, which is great for replenishing your supply of minions (and cheaper... the material components for animating dead get pricy when done en masse). You also get this negative energy burst thing which is useful for healing them, and a small list of undead focused spells n such.

Regarding rebuke undead, keep characters with rebuke undead can start massing skeletons from level 1 (with improved turning feat). A standard arcane necromancer would have to wait until character level 7 (apart from the 1 minion you get if you opt for the ariant you linked).

[Jack Mann]

Awaken doesn't work on undead...But it'd still be pretty sweet.

Which is why you would use Awaken Undead from the Spell Compendium.

[Duke Malagigi]

In the 2nd Edition supplement the Complete Book of Necromancers five then new necromancer kits (2nd Edition class variants) were introduced. They were the Archetype, Anatomist, Deathslayer, Philosopher and Undead Master. A good idea would be to either convert them to 3rd Edition or find someone else who can or has done the job for you. The variants can be found here. That's my two cents.

[brian c]

Which is why you would use Awaken Undead from the Spell Compendium.

Rules of D&D, #423: Whatever you're looking for, there's a spell for it in the Spell Compendium.

[Rama_Lei]

Which is why you would use Awaken Undead from the Spell Compendium.

I don't have the spell compendium. Is it pretty much the same as awaken?

[Jack Mann]

Not quite. For one thing, they don't get quite as much intelligence. Lower roll, and they can never become more intelligent than an average member of their starting race. So, a zombie dog can't have a higher intelligence than 2, an orc than 8, a human than 10.

But it's the same basic idea. Take a mindless undead and give it some intelligence.