- Long ago, when my beloved Gerard was still alive, we used to ride into the most distant hills of our estate during the cool weeks after Greengrass, accompanied only by our most trusted retainers. One day, when we camped near a rustic town called Soulbar, the burgers told us of a wyrm that had been ravaging caravans up and down the Trade Way for the past several months.
- This dragon, which the villagers had named Shadow-spawn, only attacked after nightfall and left behind not a trace of its victims—nor their goods, for that matter. It was as if the unfortunates had been snatched up or swallowed by the very night, or so the villagers claimed. Weeks after the attacks began, some of the dragon's victims were spotted by woodcutters in the Forest of Wyrms, but these were only animated shells, mere zombies of the victims which had been raised up by the dragon for her perverse pleasure and then cast loose into the forest once they ceased to amuse her. This much the town had learned when Soulbar's clerics called back the victims' spirits from the zombie remains, asking them about their murderer.
- Thus warned, my husband I returned home, for we were ill-equipped to deal with a draconic necromancer. I later learned that several adventuring companies had gone up against the beast (and been added to the undead wandering the forest) before a victorious band of hunters put an end to that loathsome abomination. Those few who survived claimed that the dragon employed many spells of criminal necromancy against them.
- With suitable monetary encouragement, I was ultimately able to purchase the dragon's spellbook from the triumphant Blades. The grimoire was an enormous, iron-bound book inscribed with notes that revealed a frightening understanding of the Art, surpassing in many ways my own knowledge! How that creature accomplished such mastery in relative isolation is beyond my comprehension. Perhaps a human wizard passed along his secrets to the wyrm or it discovered the key in some erudite tome of necromantic lore. My heart trembles at the thought of other creatures like Shadowspawn, with but a fraction of its talent for necromancy!
- —From the diary of Doctor Ellandra Tolbert
Although human wizards constitute the overwhelming majority of necromancers, exceptions do occur and can make for a nasty surprise for adventurers. Certainly members of other races can learn necromantic spells—but in general, only humans can specialize in the Art. However, as an added twist for an adventure or campaign, the nasty DM may decide to create unique NPC necromancers of the select few, evil monster races that employ magic.
Certain humanoids (specifically orcs), drow, dragons, and githyanki all have the potential to specialize in necromancy. In orcish witch doctors, this inherent potential is only realized by a scant few members of their race, constituting a tiny minority. Among the warlike drow and the githyanki—two races with a powerful talent for magic—necromancers tend to be as common as among humans. Finally, a few varieties of magic-using dragons—especially the shadow dragon—possess both the talent and interest to specialize in the Art.
All of these monsters are suitable for powerful NPC nemeses, providing suitable challenges for an experienced party of adventurers. Dragons make an excellent example of standard monsters that can be given a new twist by allowing them to focus their inherent magical talents in necromancy. The DM may extend the practice of necromancy to other magic-using creatures (like the shade) or possibly even create new monsters that exclusively practice the Art.
Humanoid Necromancers[]
Humanoid cultures, such as the orcs, bugbears, gnolls, hobgoblins, and goblins, embrace violence and death, surpassing even humans in this respect. Their societies are usually organized along tribal lines, with the clan chief ruling as the undisputed leader in temporal affairs. The clan priest or shaman takes care of the tribe's spiritual matters.
Finally, the tribal wizard (a member of the Savage Wizard kit from the WH) oversees the purely magical rituals and protections for the tribe. In most cases, the role of the shaman conflicts with that of the witch doctor, since at low levels the powers of a wizard can hardly compare with those of a priest. Indeed, few humanoid races have much talent for wizardry, making the witch doctor's role almost superfluous unless the shaman is absent.
Many of the humanoid races are widely known to have witch doctors as permanent members of a tribal community. Witch doctors almost never rise above the 4th level of experience, but rare individuals capable of casting 3rd-level spells have been reported in the more heavily populated humanoid areas, like the Sword Coast in the Realms.
As noted earlier, the odds of randomly generating a human necromancer with the requisite ability scores are at least 2%. Among orcs, this probability would be even lower. According to the Monstrous Manual, the odds of encountering an orcish witch doctor (let alone a necromancer witch doctor) are 5 in 1000! Except in a major orcish city, the likelihood of encountering an orcish necromancer is small indeed.
Drow Necromancers[]
The elegantly evil race of dark elves make perfect candidates for necromancers. Unlike their surface- dwelling cousins, the drow embrace death and necromancy to the very core of their mainstream society, enshrined in the worship of their sinister mother-goddess Lolth. Wizardry is one of the few avenues for male advancement and prestige in the matriarchal theocracy of the dark elves. Necromancy is a popular school of magic among drow specialists (others favorites include invocation and alteration). Drow necromancers adopt either the Archetype, Philosopher, or Undead Master kits.
The dark elves are unquestionably a magically talented race. Even the most mundane citizen has innate magic resistance and some sort of minimal talent with wizardry, so it perhaps not surprising that they can advance as far as humans in this regard. Certainly, every drow city can boast of at least one archmage capable of casting the most powerful spells.
All drow wizards (necromancers included) either operate strictly within the matriarchal confines of their society or live completely outside them. Those drow who remain in their own communities emerge into outer layers of the Underdark (or more rarely, to the surface) only for training or war parties. Wizards chosen for these missions are thus rarely more powerful than 9th to 11th level of experience (and usually far weaker).
The most powerful drow necromancers place themselves above such petty tasks, residing exclusively in subterranean cities where they serve the constantly broiling, internecine quarrels relished by the various noble houses. The most powerful wizards, who choose to remain above the political maneuvering, still must serve the community by teaching in the colleges of sorcery. These institutions play a fundamental role in the training of young drow warriors and priests.
To question their role in the female hierarchy spells certain disaster for male drow wizards. The priesthood ruthlessly twists any progressive free thinkers into hideous driders. These half-arachnid, half-drow monstrosities retain their former command of necromancy and are usually between the 6th and 8th level in experience.
Those lucky enough to escape such punishment flee deep into the bowels of the Underdark, forsaking all protection by their house and society. Life as a rogue mage is far from easy. The priesthood sends relentless war parties to eliminate such mavericks lest their example be emulated by others, and the horrific denizens of the Underdark can be much less than hospitable to a single, traveling drow. Rogue necromancers among the drow must therefore be extremely powerful and resourceful in order to survive alone for long in the harsh environment (at least 12th level).
Draconic Necromancers[]
The dragon symbolizes power, magic, and destruction, so it should not difficult to imagine them gaining mastery over necromancy, given their eonic life spans. Draconic culture and religion is highly advanced, focusing primarily on greed and acquisitiveness. Dragons also embrace many of the same concepts as human society, including a fascination with death.
Certain dragons worship a unique death god called Null the Reaver, also known as the Deathwyrm or Guardian of the Lost. This deity embraces not only the destructive and evil aspect of taking life, but also the protective function of shepherding draconic spirits to their final destination in the afterlife. Thus, it might be possible for dragons to be either necromancer wizards or death priests.
Restricting our discussion to wizardry, not all dragons possess the intellect, magical ability, and self-discipline necessary to specialize in the Art. Silver and gold dragons have quite developed magical abilities, but their good nature makes them unlikely candidates for necromancy (except as Deathslayers). Blue, brown, deep, green, red, and yellow dragons possess the necessary wit and brutal nature to learn black necromancy, usually adopting the Archetype kit. Amethyst, myst, and steel dragons make excellent Philosophers. Finally, shadow dragons have the greatest inherent mastery of the Art, favoring the Undead Master kit. All of the remaining draconic races have neither the intelligence nor the slightest care to specialize in necromancy.
Dragons specializing in necromancy are entitled to the usual saving throw bonuses, additional spell per spell level, special abilities, and hindrances (including Dark Gifts and prices) of their regular human counterparts. The main difference is that the dragon's spells are learned as inate abilities and are not memorized, like a human wizard's or cleric's. In addition, dragons cast their spells completely differently from humans. Draconic spells can be triggered solely by an act of will. Humans need complex and lengthy verbal, somatic, and material components.
The biggest disadvantage to specializing in necromancy (from the dragon's perspective) involves restricted spell access. Draconic necromancers, like their human counterparts, are restricted to certain permissible schools of magic (as dictated by their specific kit). More importantly, however, these dragons lose all ability to cast priest spells. Instead, this spell potential is transferred over to additional wizard spells of the same number and level. For example, Shadowspawn—the shadow dragon mentioned earlier in Dr. Tolbert's diary—can normally learn (Wiz 2 2 2 2 2/Pr 2); if it specializes, the dragon could only learn (Wiz 5 3 3 3 3), taking into account the bonus spell per spell level and the shift of the 1st-level priest spells to wizardry.
Githyanki Necromancers[]
The Githyanki are a militant and xenophobic race, descended from humans, that dwell on the Astral Plane and pay eternal homage to an undying necromancer queen. In their strictly regimented society, organized into martial hierarchies of command, specialized wizards—including necromancers—play an important role. Every githyanki command structure, from the smallest platoon to the mightiest citadel, contains at least one necromancer capable of devastating opponents on the field or manipulating the dead to fight for the living.
Unlike the wizards in drow society, githyanki necromancers have a respected rank and high status in their civilization. Githyanki wizards tend to be female in honor of their lich-queen. Although of slightly inferior rank to an acting captain, they are independent of the military chain of command and lend their support in a battle where it is needed.
On the Prime Material Plane, githyanki necromancers are always encountered supporting a larger war party consisting of at least 2–7 other individuals. The party might be hunting for sport, engaging in a serious training mission (human blasting), performing reconnaissance for an upcoming outpost or stronghold, or seeking to recover a lost necromantic artifact (probably a silver sword capable of severing a mortal's silver cord in the Astral Plane). Like other members of their race, actively serving githyanki necromancers vary in power from the 4th to 11th levels of experience. However, once they reach the 12th level, githyanki are brought before their paranoid and pitiless queen, who greedily devours their life force in a solemn ritual known as “retirement.”
In addition to their magical and racial powers, all githyanki possess powerful psionic abilities which vary according to class and level of ability. Table 6 presents a suggested regimen of psionic abilities for githyanki wizards. The mental strength of such mages increases with level, starting with a base 150 Psionic Strength Points (PSPs) and increasing by 10 PSPs per level (maximum of 250 PSPs at 11th level).
| Level | Discipline | Science | Devotion |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Metabolism | Energy Containment | Body Weaponry Flesh Armor Mind Over Body |
| 2nd | Graft Weapon Displacement | ||
| 3rd | Telepathy | Life Draining | Contact ESP |
| 4th | Double Pain | Adrenaline Control | |
| 5th | Death Field | Cell Adjustment | |
| 6th | Metapsionics | Splice | |
| 7th | Metamorphosis | Convergence | |
| 8th | Psionic Sense | ||
| 9th | Stasis Field | ||
| 10th | Psychoportation | Teleport | Dimension Door |
| 11th | Empower | Time Shift |
Githyanki necromancers can make devastating opponents, especially when supporting a contingent of comrades. Individually, they prepare for battle by initiating flesh armor, adrenaline control (to boost constitution), and displacement (wizards of 6th level and above can do this in a single round using splice). Along with the knights (see MM), githyanki wizards of 8th level or higher have the responsibility of seeking out psionic threats in combat (with psionic sense) and eliminating them.
Wizards initiate psychic contests in combat. Once contact has been established with an opponent's mind, wizards will use id insinuation to quickly stun their adversary, employing spells on subsequent rounds to finish off their helpless opponent. An organized band of githyanki fortified by a necromancer in their midst can decimate even a powerful, well-balanced party of adventurers.