Homebrew: Necromancer

CLASS TRAITS

Role: Controller. 

Power Source: Arcane. 

Key Abilities: Intelligence; Constitution

Armor Proficiencies: Cloth.

Weapon Proficiencies: Dagger, quarterstaff.

Implement: Orbs, staffs, wands

Bonus to Defense: +2 Will.

Hit Points at 1st Level: 10+ Constitution Score.

Hit Points per Level Gained: 4

Healing Surges per Day: 6+ Constitution Modifier.

Trained Skills: Arcana. From the class skills list below, choose 3 more trained skills at 1st level.

Class Skills: Arcana (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Dungeoneering (Wis), History (Int), Insight (Wis), Nature (Wis), Religion (Int).

Class features: Curse of Undeath, Unholy Might, Necromancer's Spellbook, Necromancer Cantrips.

A necromancer is a wizard specialized in the dark arts of raising and controlling dead corpses. While a mage specialized in the necromancy school might come close to harnessing this power, a necromancer focuses on the creation of undead rather than the use of necromancy in regular spells.

    Although necromancy has a bad reputation, as the very word conjures up pictures of villains and evil masterminds hellbent on taking over or destroying the world, not all necromancers are so. A few of those that study the arts of raising the dead and commanding them to do one's bidding travel the land as any other adventurer might - but with the added company of walking dead. Such a wizard lacks the flexibility and focus that an arcanist or mage might have, but makes up for it either by sending large numbers of undead towards their foes, or by crafting a single powerful servant to aid them.

    Few schools teach necromancy openly, and fewer still train young apprentices in the arts with which to conjure up the dead, so most necromancers are either self-taught, trained by a single master with maybe a few other students, or a combination of the two. Some necromancers are wizards who found forbidden tomes in ancient tombs, or adventurers who turned apprentice once they discovered sympathy for the necromancer they were tasked to destroy. Still, necromancers are a competitive bunch, and most will do anything to gain new power as well as to protect that which they already have.

    Necromancers are scattered across the continents, and few such practitioners of the dark arts ever meet. Some necromancers band together in city guilds or cults to Vecna or Orcus, but most travel the world without meeting another of their kind very often. Settlements with large graveyards, or those close to ancient battlefields or natural crossings to the Shadowfell, are where most necromancers are found nowadays.

WIZARD (NECROMANCER) CLASS FEATURES

CURSE OF UNDEATH

You gain resist 5 necrotic per tier.

As a necromancer, you can either focus on amassing hordes of undead minions, or to focus your powers on creating a single undead champion. Choose one of the following class features:

• Horde Necromancer: You gain the Raise Minion and Undead Minion Attack powers.
• Raise Minion
• Raise Minion
• Wizard Utility
• You beckon to the corpse in front of you, and it rises to obey your commands.
• At-Will
• Arcane, Necromancy, Shadow
• Move Action
• Ranged 10
• Target: One suitable corpse
• Effect: The target rises as an undead minion under your control, and it moves or shifts as a free action.
• Special: You can use this power only once per round.
• Undead Minion Attack
• Undead Minion Attack
• Wizard Utility
• At-Will
• Arcane, Implement, Necromancy, Shadow
• Standard Action
• Close burst sight
• Target: One creature adjacent to each of your undead minions.
• Attack: Intelligence vs. AC (one attack for each of your undead minions)
• Hit: Intelligence modifier damage. If a single target is hit by two or more of these attacks, that target is slowed until the end of your next turn.
• Level 21: Twice Intelligence modifier damage. If a single target is hit by two or more of these attacks, that target is immobilized until the end of your next turn. If a single target is hit by three or more of these attacks, that target is instead restrained.
• Special: If the implement used with this power has an enhancement bonus, add that bonus to the damage.
• A suitable corpse is medium or smaller.
• Your undead minions do not have senses of their own; instead, you must have line of sight to a creature or object for one of your undead minions to attack it. You need not have line of effect to the target.
• Your undead minions do not have turns of their own. Your undead minions cannot make attacks of opportunity.
• Your undead minions are creatures, but do not count as allies for your allies, although they can be used to flank with each other.
• Your close and area arcane attack powers deal no damage to your undead minions.
• You can have a maximum of 2 undead minions. If you control your maximum amount of undead and you use this power, one of your older undead minions crumbles and dies.
• As a standard action, you can command each undead minion you are controlling to make a basic attack.
• As a minor action, you can command each undead minion you are controlling to either walk, shift, stand up, squeeze, or crawl.
• Each of your undead minions has your skills, speed and defenses, and a single hit point, and reducing it to 0 hit points destroys it. Your undead minions cannot be healed, but can gain temporary hit points as normal.
• Your undead minions are immune to disease and poison.
• Champion Necromancer: You gain the Raise Champion and Undead Champion Attack powers.
• Raise Champion
• Raise Champion
• Wizard Utility
• You beckon to the corpse in front of you, and it rises to do your dark bidding.
• Encounter
• Arcane, Necromancy, Shadow
• Standard Action
• Ranged 10
• Requirement: You must use this power during a short or extended rest. You must have at least one healing surge remaining.
• Target: One suitable corpse
• Effect: The target rises as an undead champion under your control. You lose one healing surge.
• Undead Champion Attack
• Undead Champion Attack
• Wizard Utility
• At-Will
• Arcane, Champion, Necromancy, Shadow
• Standard Action
• Melee weapon (using your champion as the origin square)
• Target: One creature
• Attack: Intelligence vs. AC
• Hit: 1d8 + Intelligence modifier damage.
• Level 21: 2d8 + Intelligence modifier damage.
• Special: If your champion is wielding a weapon with which it is proficient, replace each d8 with [W] and this attack gains the mundane weapon qualities of that weapon.
• Special: You can use this power as an opportunity attack.
• A suitable corpse is medium or smaller.
• Your undead champion does not have senses of its own; instead, you must have line of sight to a creature or object for your champion to attack it. You need not have line of effect to the target.
• Your undead champion does not have turns of its own.
• Your undead champion has weapon slots for both hands, but does not benefit from carrying a shield.
• Your undead champion is a creature but does not count as an ally for your allies, but you can use it to flank, and your champion can use you and your allies to flank.
• Your close and area arcane attack powers deal no damage to your undead champion.
• You can have only a single undead champion. If you already control an undead champion when you use this power, your old champion crumbles and dies.
• Your undead champion has your skills, speed and defenses, and hit points equal to your bloodied value. Your undead champion has no healing surges of its own, but if it would be allowed to spend a healing surge, you can spend one to allow it to regain hit points instead.
• Your champion is immune to disease and poison.
• Your champion has resist 10 necrotic. This increases to 15 at 11th level and 20 at 21st level.
• Your champion has vulnerable 5 radiant. This increases to 10 at 11th level and 15 at 21st level.
• Champion keyword:
• Attacks with the champion keyword are made by your champion.
• If your champion wields a magic weapon, you can add its enhancement bonus to the attack rolls and the damage rolls of champion attacks you make. If you have both a magic champion weapon and a magic implement, you choose before you use an attack power whether to draw on the magic of the implement or that of the champion weapon. Your choice determines which enhancement bonus, critical hit effects, and magic item properties and powers you can apply to that power. You can’t, for example, use the enhancement bonus of your implement and the critical hit effect of your magic champion weapon on the same attack.
• Each time you use your Raise Champion power, choose one of the following templates for your undead champion:
• Monstrosity: Your champion grows in strength and ferocity. A suitable corpse is large or smaller. Whenever your champion hits with an attack, it deals extra damage equal to your constitution modifier. Your champion is proficient with all simple melee weapons.
• Guardian: Your champion grows in durability and vigilance. Whenever your champion attacks a creature, it marks that creature until the end of its next turn. Your champion gains a +1 bonus per tier to all defenses, and resist all damage equal to your constitution modifier. Your champion is proficient with all simple and military weapons.
• Spectral: Your champion becomes ghostly. Your champion is incorporeal and gains phasing and a fly speed equal to your speed, but its hit points are reduced to two-thirds of your bloodied value. Whenever your champion hits with an attack while it has combat advantage, it deals extra damage equal to your constitution modifier. Your champion is proficient with all simple weapons.

UNHOLY MIGHT

At the levels below, you gain a class feature according to the choice you made for your curse of undeath.

Level	Horde	Champion
7	Growing Horde: You can now have a maximum of 3 undead minions. Whenever you use an encounter attack power that has a level, each of your undead minions can shift 2 squares as a free action.	Speed of the Dead: Whenever you use an encounter attack power that has a level, your champion can shift its speed as a free action.
11	Quick Reanimation: You can now use Raise Minion as a minor action.	Reliable Champion: Your allies can now use your champion to flank.
15	Paragon Hordemaster: You can now have a maximum of 4 undead minions. Your undead minions gain their own senses and darkvision. You and your undead minions share all senses.	Paragon Champion: Your champion gains its own senses and darkvision. You and your champion share all senses. Monstrosity: Your champion gains an unarmed reach of 2. Your champion is now also proficient with all military weapons. Guardian: Whenever your champion hits a creature, that creature is immobilized until the end of your next turn. Your champion is now also proficient with all superior weapons. Spectral: At the end of each of your turns, if your champion did not attack this turn, it becomes invisible until it attacks. Your champion is now also proficient with all military weapons.
18	Resilient Horde: When one of your undead minions dies, you can attempt to reanimate it as an immediate reaction. If you do so, make a saving throw. If you succeed, your undead minion stands up as a free action with 1 hit point.	Vigilant Champion: Your champion can make an opportunity attack once per combatant's turn while you are unable to take opportunity actions because of a condition. If your champion has made an opportunity attack this turn, you cannot take other opportunity actions.
22	Epic Hordemaster: You can now have a maximum of 5 undead minions. Whenever one of your undead minions dies, its corpse can be used later as a target for your Raise Minions power.	Resilient Champion: At the end of your turn, end all effects on your undead champion. As long as you have line of sight and effect to your champion, you can use your powers using its space as the origin square.
25	Improved Resilient Horde: If you fail a saving throw made from your Resilient Horde class feature, you regain the use of an immediate action this round.	Improved Vigilant Champion: Your champion has its own opportunity action during each combatant's turn, whether or not you are able to take opportunity actions.
29	Ultimate Hordemaster: You can now have a maximum of 6 undead minions. You can now Raise Minion to target an amount of suitable corpses equal to your maximum amount of undead minions.	Epic Champion: Monstrosity: A suitable corpse is huge or smaller. Your champion gains threatening reach. Whenever your champion hits a creature, that creature takes ongoing 10 damage (save ends). Guardian: A suitable corpse is large or smaller. Whenever your champion hits a creature, you can choose for that creature to be restrained instead of immobilized for the duration of the effect. Spectral: A suitable corpse is large or smaller. Whenever your champion makes an attack, that attack is against the lowest of the target's defenses instead of against AC.

NECROMANCER'S SPELLBOOK

As you gain levels, you add spells to your spellbook according to the Spells Added To Spellbook table below.

    At the end of each of your extended rests, you can prepare encounter attack powers, daily attack powers, and utility powers from your spellbook. These are the powers that you can use during that day, in addition to your at-will attack powers, cantrips, and nonwizard powers, such as a racial power. If you do not prepare powers from your spellbook after an extended rest (for example, if you do not have access to your spellbook), you can use the same powers you had prepared on the previous day.

    Find your level on the Spells Prepared per Day table. The row corresponding to your level indicates how many encounter attack powers, daily attack powers, and utility powers you are allowed to prepare each day. You cannot prepare more than one encounter attack power, daily attack power, or utility power of any given level on the same day. For example, a 14th-level necromancer can prepare three encounter attack powers per day. Her spellbook contains multiple encounter attack powers at various levels. She can prepare three powers from any of the levels, as long as none of the prepared powers are of the same level.

SPELLS ADDED TO SPELLBOOK

Level	Encounter	Daily	Utility
1	1	2	—
2, 6, 10, 16, 22	—	—	2
3, 7, 13, 17, 23, 27	1	—	—
5, 9, 15, 19, 25, 29	—	2	—

SPELLS PREPARED PER DAY

Level	Encounter	Daily	Utility
1	1	1	—
2	1	1	1
3-4	2	1	1
5	2	2	1
6	2	2	2
7-8	3	2	2
9	3	3	2
10-15	3	3	3
16-21	3	3	4
22-30	3	3	5

NECROMANCER'S CANTRIPS

Your gain two wizard cantrips of your choice.

MAGIC MISSILE

You gain the magic missile power.