Necromancy changes for summons

[Lexstrus]

Rain very nicely summarized a reasonable list of suggestions. I especially like the epic bone dragon spell, I thought to mention that myself but I thought it might be outside the scope of what was possible. In a similar way to how dragon Knight functions you could also double it's duration if cast by a pale master or other similar prestige class.

[Rinzler]

The SRD entries for ghosts, shadows, and greater shadows could be good sources of inspiration on undead buffs, I think. They're all forms of undead, and greater shadows seem particularly scary on account of being able to STR drain things to death.

Lexstrus gave me the idea by mentioning ghost buffs; I had a PnP session this week where a shadowdancer's shade inflicted a lot more damage than it ever could on BG, simply because it drained STR instead of punching things. That STR drain was pretty terrifying on Ravenloft, too...

Is adding an avenue for necromancers to summon higher HD undead true names something the dev team is considering? It doesn't really make sense for a necromancer to take Epic Gate, and I imagine the HD bonus you receive from ESF Necromancy doesn't apply to Gate either.

[metaquad4]

Just gunna throw in my hat here:

Suggestions:
1) New epic spell, create epic undead. Options could include:
a) A nightwalker (a pure fighter with vampiric regeneration)
b) A vampire lord (maybe an arcane caster/warrior?)
c) A mummy lord (maybe a divine caster/warrior?)
d) A lesser lich (a pure arcane caster)
e) A vampire witch (an upgraded vampire warlock)

2) Allow undead dusty tomes to be used with create undead, create greater undead, and the new create epic undead - depending on the HD. Some dusty tome ideas (probably leaning more towards epic):
a) An Alhoon, an Illithid Lich
b) A Death Tyrant, an Undead Beholder
c) A Lich
d) A Demilich
e) A vampiric dragon

3) Reinstate the warlock vampire into create greater undead. Add in dread wraiths to create greater undead (a STR/CON drain kind of undead).

4) Give the dead walk the ability to choose your flavour of undead and add in a weak incorporeal undead (maybe a shadow?)

5) Allow you to pick what kind of undead you want to summon for army of the dead.

[Dolorof]

Just gunna throw in my hat here:

Suggestions:
1) New epic spell, create epic undead. Options could include:


2) Allow undead dusty tomes to be used with create undead, create greater undead, and the new create epic undead - depending on the HD. Some dusty tome ideas (probably leaning more towards epic):

I like the first idea, i think create epic undead is a pnp epic spell already? I don't remember...
As for the second, i think its too outside the scope of what a conjuring or calling is. You can't summon creatures from the prime material, making the dusty tome system too outside the scope of the spells you mentioned. Nightwalkers are native from the plane of shadows so there is that in its favor.

[metaquad4]

Just gunna throw in my hat here:

Suggestions:
1) New epic spell, create epic undead. Options could include:


2) Allow undead dusty tomes to be used with create undead, create greater undead, and the new create epic undead - depending on the HD. Some dusty tome ideas (probably leaning more towards epic):

I like the first idea, i think create epic undead is a pnp epic spell already? I don't remember...
As for the second, i think its too outside the scope of what a conjuring or calling is. You can't summon creatures from the prime material, making the dusty tome system too outside the scope of the spells you mentioned. Nightwalkers are native from the plane of shadows so there is that in its favor.

Undead already exist in dusty tomes IIRC, idk which ones exactly. They need gate though - I believe they also use spell focus: necromancy? Someone else can comment on that maybe.

For RP, maybe Dusty Tomes can link to burial sites for the creature or something like that?

[Dolorof]

Just gunna throw in my hat here:

Suggestions:
1) New epic spell, create epic undead. Options could include:


2) Allow undead dusty tomes to be used with create undead, create greater undead, and the new create epic undead - depending on the HD. Some dusty tome ideas (probably leaning more towards epic):

I like the first idea, i think create epic undead is a pnp epic spell already? I don't remember...
As for the second, i think its too outside the scope of what a conjuring or calling is. You can't summon creatures from the prime material, making the dusty tome system too outside the scope of the spells you mentioned. Nightwalkers are native from the plane of shadows so there is that in its favor.

Undead already exist in dusty tomes IIRC, idk which ones exactly. They need gate though - I believe they also use spell focus: necromancy? Someone else can comment on that maybe.

For RP, maybe Dusty Tomes can link to burial sites for the creature or something like that?

Some undeads are outsiders, like the nightwalker.

[Lexstrus]

It has been some time since I checked this post but I am glad to see others getting excited for undead summons.

I haven't been online in game for months now but if changes like these suggestions were implemented or in the works I would definitely return.

[Eliasz_Kowalski]

Giving this a bump on the occasion of Velsharoon ascension to godhood. Still hoping Rain's suggestions will be implemented some day.

[EasternCheesE]

I believe this thread has lots of good ideas, it's just that no one on Dev staff yet feels brave enough to go doing it.
Thanks for bumping it so it doesn't get lost!

[Lockonnow]

you can find poison that drain any str or dex or con or int or wisdom but we cant make them i say there so many spiders out there let each spiders mandible create poison that can drain any attributes i have found all of poison but thier hard to find so i dont use them couse wont last long one or 2 rounds that is not much went it is hard to find how fun is that.

and yes there shadow elementals out there to find in dusty tome and shadow demons to god lock to find those dusty tome names.