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Necromancy

Raise Undead

Raises a horde of dead servants for the necromancer

Available Levels
357910

Raise Undead animates corpses as a mindless horde. Each becomes an undead (see 3) and requires a corpse of matching size and one emerald, which the spell consumes. Casting takes a Full action (3 ticks), and a body can be raised only once.

Undead Types

Each undead uses its bestiary entry at the column matching the spell level.

Raise Undead level Strongest available type
3 Skeleton
5 Zombie
7 Ghoul—fast and paralyzing
9 Wraith—incorporeal and life-draining
10 Bone Colossus—Large, about 10 corpses

Elite or Horde

  • Base: raise one undead per caster level of the strongest available type.
  • Quantity: for each spell tier above a type's entry level, double the number raised of that weaker type.

A level 7 casting can raise 1 ghoul per CL, ×2 zombies per CL, or ×4 skeletons per CL.

Control

The undead obey simple permanent orders. Changing an order requires voice and proximity. The necromancer can control up to CL × Intelligence modifier undead; beyond that limit, the oldest collapse.

Permanence and Destruction

Raised undead are permanent and consume no mana. Dispel Magic uses a caster level check against the necromancer's CL at casting. During the three-tick ritual it has no penalty; once the emerald is set, it is 25% harder. Individual traits appear in each creature entry.

Links from this spell

Referenced by