Showin' the Corpse Gatherer some love!

[TheCountAlucard]

I rather like the concept behind the corpse gatherer from Monster Manual II. The corpse gatherer is a hill-sized, humanoid-shaped mass of dirt, rock, and corpses. However, one of the things that bugs me about it is that it's Neutral-aligned.

"A corpse gatherer is an animated graveyard empowered by a mean intelligence and a greed for more bodies. It exists only to increase its own size and power by devouring more dead bodies."
-Monster Manual II

This sounds fairly evil to me. It doesn't even have the zombie's excuse of being unintelligent (an argument for the zombie being Neutral). Plus, the souls of a person absorbed by a corpse gatherer really are trapped. Also, when the corpse gatherer dies, it turns into a big ol' mass o' zombies, which are evil.

Thus, I'm changing things up just a bit; in my games, the corpse gatherer is evil.

Also, I'm making a new Necromancy spell involving the corpse gatherer...

Animate Graveyard
Necromancy (Evil)
Level: Clr 9, Sor/Wiz 9
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 hour
Range: Close (25 feet + 5 feet/2 levels)
Area: 20-foot-radius emanation
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistence: No

This evil spell animates the very graveyard soil beneath you, creating a 30-HD corpse gatherer (MMII, p. 52). The corpse gatherer is not automatically under the control of its creator; if you are capable of commanding undead, you may attempt to command the undead creature as it forms.

This spell must be cast on a moonlit night, in an area with at least thirty buried corpses.

Material Component
The remains of a sentient undead creature, and black onyx gems with a total value of 1,500 gp.

...So how's this sound?

[ThePhantom]

Seems okay, but the cost of the gem seems a little low to me.

[Lochar]

Create Undead requires onyx worth 50gp per HD of the undead to be animated, so that's actually right.

[Revanmal]

"A corpse gatherer is an animated graveyard empowered by a mean intelligence and a greed for more bodies. It exists only to increase its own size and power by devouring more dead bodies."
-Monster Manual II

This sounds fairly evil to me. It doesn't even have the zombie's excuse of being unintelligent (an argument for the zombie being Neutral). Plus, the souls of a person absorbed by a corpse gatherer really are trapped. Also, when the corpse gatherer dies, it turns into a big ol' mass o' zombies, which are evil.
...So how's this sound?

I don't know about it being evil. Selfishness isn't evil unless it harms others, and the corpse gatherer is actually doing a service by ridding people of dead bodies. It's intelligent, but it's probably not smart enough to realize it's hurting the people it absorbs. I think it depends more on if it's hostile or not. If it's outright attacking any living creature to get bodies, that's evil, but if it only gathers corpses, it's more neutral.

[FlyMolo]

I always thought of alignment this way:

Good: Hurts self to help others. Selfless service, healing people, working towards the good of the community whether or not it benefits the good creature. Greatest priority is the greater good, not individual benefit. Never hurts the weak. Helps a traveler by the side of the road.

Neutral: Cold, calculating self interest. Will help the community if the benefits outweigh the outlay. Working for money only. Hurts the weak only if necessary. Ignores a traveler by the side of the road, unless they have money or might be helpful later.

Evil: Sadism. Stabs a traveler by the side of the road, then takes his stuff. Works against other people, even when detrimental to his own interests. We're talking spite here, people. Lots of it.

[TheCountAlucard]

I don't know about it being evil. Selfishness isn't evil unless it harms others, and the corpse gatherer is actually doing a service by ridding people of dead bodies. It's intelligent, but it's probably not smart enough to realize it's hurting the people it absorbs. I think it depends more on if it's hostile or not. If it's outright attacking any living creature to get bodies, that's evil, but if it only gathers corpses, it's more neutral.

Well, it actually doesn't distinguish between the living and the dead when it goes out to gather "corpses." Plus, it has an Intelligence score of 10, so it's assumed that the corpse gatherer is just as intelligent as the average human.

[JoshuaZ]

Also, I'm making a new Necromancy spell involving the corpse gatherer...

Animate Graveyard
Necromancy (Evil)
Level: Clr 9, Sor/Wiz 9, Dread Necro 9
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 minute
Range: Close (25 feet + 5 feet/2 levels)
Area: 20-foot-radius emanation
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistence: No

This evil spell animates the very graveyard soil beneath you, creating a 30-HD corpse gatherer (MMII, p. 52). The corpse gatherer is not automatically under the control of its creator; if you are capable of commanding undead, you may attempt to command the undead creature as it forms.

This spell must be cast on a moonlit night, in an area with at least thirty buried corpses.

Material Component
The remains of a sentient undead creature, and black onyx gems with a total value of 1,500 gp.

...So how's this sound?

I'd either remove the undead remains requirement or remove the onyx requirement. Having both as material components strikes me as onerous.

Also, note that you need to be careful about the class lists for the spell. Since a Dread Necromancer automatically has access to their entire class list and casts spontaneously adding spells to their class list increases their power in a way it does not for the other classes .I'm not sure this is so much of an issue since the DN is weaker than a cleric or a wizard but it is something to keep in mind.

[The Necroswanso]

Needs a longer casting time. Such as a ritualistic casting time.

[TheCountAlucard]

I'd either remove the undead remains requirement or remove the onyx requirement. Having both as material components strikes me as onerous.

Well, I decided on the whole "remains and onyx" thing after some thought. After all, Create Undead requires a pot of water and onyx, and the MMII entry on the corpse gatherer mentions the remains of a sentient undead as part of its creation.

Also, note that you need to be careful about the class lists for the spell. Since a Dread Necromancer automatically has access to their entire class list and casts spontaneously adding spells to their class list increases their power in a way it does not for the other classes.

I figured that the DN would just pick it up from his Advanced Learning if it wasn't already on his list.

Needs a longer casting time. Such as a ritualistic casting time.

Bumped it up to an hour.

[Lady Tialait]

Very good, I like it...*runs off to draw up a Necromancer that has this spell as a contengent spell on his zombies...muhahaha..* I love epic necromancers....

[JoshuaZ]

Well, I decided on the whole "remains and onyx" thing after some thought. After all, Create Undead requires a pot of water and onyx, and the MMII entry on the corpse gatherer mentions the remains of a sentient undead as part of its creation.

That makes sense. I didn't realize that the MMII entry listed sentient undead remains as part.

I figured that the DN would just pick it up from his Advanced Learning if it wasn't already on his list.

The DN is that they can only use Advanced Learning on a limited number of spells (5 in total) and only one 9th level spell, which they don't get until 20th level. Thus, if they choose this spell they can't choose another spell. Again, this isn't the end of the world, but it is an issue if one adds more than a few spells to the class list.

[TheCountAlucard]

That makes sense. I didn't realize that the MMII entry listed sentient undead remains as part.

Hehe, it's just flavor, but still...

"These creatures are thought to spawn from the burial of a sentient undead creature (such as a vampire) in unconsecrated ground. The lingering taint of undeath somehow permeates the earth, causing the entire graveyard—corpses, tombstones, and all—to coalesce into a raveningundead monster."
-Monster Manual II

Again, this isn't the end of the world, but it is an issue if one adds more than a few spells to the class list.

I see your point, though.

...So, everyone else, what do you think? Is it halfway-balanced?