Necromancy

Description: This powerful school involves spells dealing with death and the dead. These spells drain vitality from living creatures and restore life functions to unliving creatures. Bones, blood, spirits, and apparitions are all associated with the magical energies shaped and controlled by the specialists of this school.

Specialist Name: Necromancer.

Allowed Races: As in the school of invocation/evocation, only the spirits of humans incorporate the energies necessary to master the spells of necromancy. Therefore, only humans are eligible to become necromancers.

Ability Requirements: Since only the most enlightened, strong-willed, and intuitive wizards can become specialists of this school, necromancers must have a minimum Wisdom of 16.

Saving Throw Modifiers: All opponents modify their saving throws by -1 when attempting to save against a necromancy spell cast by a necromancer, or against an attack from an undead creature either created or controlled by a necromancer. A necromancer adds a +1 bonus when saving against necromancy spells, or against any attacks made by undead creatures.

Bonus Spells and Acquired Powers: A necromancer can memorize an extra spell at each spell level, providing that at least one of the memorized spells is from the school of necromancy. When a necromancer reaches 17th level, he adds another +1 bonus when saving against necromancy spells or against any attacks made by undead creatures. With his natural +1 bonus, this effectively raises his saving throw bonus to +2.

When a necromancer reaches 20th level, he gains the ability to cast a special form of speak with dead once per day. To cast the spell, the necromancer must merely point to the subject and concentrate for one round; no verbal or material components are necessary. The spell enables the necromancer to ask questions of a single dead creature and receive answers according to the knowledge of that creature. The creature can not have died more than 100 years ago, and the caster must be able to converse in a language that the dead creature formerly used. The necromancer can converse with the dead creature for one full turn and can ask up to four questions.

Regardless of the creature's level or alignment, it receives no saving throw against this spell. However, the creature will be as evasive as possible, tending to give brief and sometimes cryptic answers.

Additionally, the creature's knowledge is usually confined to what it knew in life (it cannot convey information about what may have happened to it after its death).

Oppositional Schools: The necromancer cannot learn spells from the schools of illusion and enchantment/charm.

Spell Analysis: Though the school of necromancy has a relatively small number of spells, they are among the most potent available to any of the specialists. In terms of sheer power, the necromantic spells compare to those from the school of invocation/evocation.

Necromantic spells can be sorted into three general groups. One group includes spells that imbue the caster or a person of the caster's choice with special abilities similar to the effects of certain enchantment and alteration spells. Chill touch, enervation, death spell, and finger of death are examples of this type of spell. The majority of this group are extremely powerful offensive spells; death spell and finger of death in particular are effective against a wide range of opponents. A necromancer armed with a repertoire of these spells bolsters his party's offensive capabilities considerably. Reincarnation can be considered part of this group, since it imbues the subject with a special ability; namely, a second chance at life.

A second group of necromancy spells includes those that create creatures or physical forces to fight on the caster's behalf. Spectral hand and animate dead are examples. Summon shadow is also included in this group, although in this case, an actual creature is summoned rather than created. Since these spells enhance the caster's ability to inflict damage on opponents, they can be considered offensive spells.

A third group of necromancy spells enables the caster to affect the actions of other creatures, usually undead. Hold undead, contagion, and control undead are examples. Since these spells inhibit the attack capabilities of the affected creatures, they can be considered defensive spells, although in the case of control undead, the affected creatures can also be used to attack enemies.

The majority of the necromancer's spells probably won't come from just one of these groups. More likely, he will acquire a number of spells from each of these groups over the course of his career. Though all of the necromancy spells are extremely powerful, in most cases, the offensive spells are his best choices, since their power has no parallel in spells from other schools (for instance, it would probably take a 9th-level wish to duplicate the effects of a 6th-level death spell ).

The necromancer doesn't exhibit much magical strength until he reaches the higher levels. A low-level necromancer of 6th level or lower might contribute little to a party's defensive or offensive capabilities. A low-level necromancer requires extra protection from his companions; he must also adopt a realistic attitude about his effectiveness in combat and avoid taking unnecessary risks. However, once the necromancer gains access to the middle-level and higher-level spells (at 6th-level and above), his capabilities increase at a rapid rate. He needs only to live long enough to get there.

Most Desirable Spells:

Low-Level: The low-level spells are somewhat weak, although chill touch, spectral hand, and vampiric touch are all good offensive spells. Hold undead and detect undead will be invaluable if the wizard or his party will be venturing into catacombs, burial grounds, or other places where such creatures are likely to be encountered.

Medium-Level: All of the spells in this group are exceptionally strong. Magic jar and reincarnation are unique in their utilities, their powers comparable only to that of a wish. Death spell, enervation, summon shadow, animate dead, and contagion all have a variety of uses on the battlefield.

High-Level: There are only a few high-level necromancy spells, but all of them are extremely potent. Control undead, finger of death, and energy drain can make the mightiest opponents tremble. Wizards planning to employ clone should carefully consider the time it takes to use; though the casting time is only a single turn, it can take up to eight months for the clone to grow.

Ethos: The necromancer exhibits a fascination with life and death that borders on the obsessive. He is typically brooding, humorless, and withdrawn. Casual acquaintances consider him to be cold and hostile, but those who befriend the necromancer may come to know him as a caring, complex individual whose emotions run deep. The necromancer can be a valued and trustworthy companion, but he is also prone to bouts of depression so extreme that it becomes difficult for him to interact with others to any meaningful degree.

Continual exposure to forces associated with undead creatures can have a corrupting effect on wizards with even the slightest inclinations toward evil. Consequently, the number of evil-aligned necromancers is rumored to far outweigh the number of those of good alignment. Neutral necromancers are virtually non-existent; in general, a necromancer either has a will strong enough to resist the lure of darkness, or he submits to the corruption and devotes himself to a life of evil.

Befriending a necromancer will try the patience of even the most understanding character. Since necromancers prefer solitude to companionship, and silence to conversation, it is little wonder that few of them have spouses; the best mate for a necromancer is another necromancer.

In spite of their reticence, most good- aligned necromancers are unshakable in their determination to confront and extinguish evil and will join like-minded individuals to undertake these types of missions. Understandably, necromancers make poor leaders, but they are valuable additions to adventuring parties. Not only do necromancers wield unmatched power, their familiarity with the world's dark forces makes them virtually fearless. On the other hand, much to a leader's chagrin, a necromancer does not always follow orders automatically; a necromancer who disagrees with his party's strategy may simply strike out on his own.

Necromancers live as far from civilized regions as they can, establishing residences in ancient castles, deep caverns, or even abandoned crypts. They spend most of their time engaged in arcane research, reading, studying, and writing.

Necromancers seldom have careers, though they occasionally earn money as teachers and mercenaries. High-level necromancers simply order undead creatures to fetch them treasure when funds are low

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