Manufactured weapon attack clarification?

[LucasB]

So I was reading up on a skeleton. I wanted to create a skeleton but my DM said that they are not proficient with armour or weapons. I was a little perplexed by this as we have fought many skeletons before who had weapons ect... and seemed to be using them fine with no problems.

So is this some form of double standard where the game allows player created undead to not use weapons or armour and game content undead to circumvent this issue?

I also was not sure by what does manufactured weapon attacks mean? Does that mean say a slain 1st level fighter who used a long sword before he died and is raised as a skeleton can use a long sword?

So I have gathered some corpeses to make a necro crafted medium undead zombie but my DM says he can neither use weapons not armour as they are not proficient in them. Is this correct in saying that undead zombies and skeletons can't use weapons or armour period?

Thanks folks for the help.

[Jeraa]

Being undead, they have some proficiency:

Quote:

Proficient with its natural weapons, all simple weapons, and any weapons mentioned in its entry.

Proficient with whatever type of armor (light, medium, or heavy) it is described as wearing, as well as all lighter types. Undead not indicated as wearing armor are not proficient with armor. Undead are proficient with shields if they are proficient with any form of armor.

Unless an undead creature entry says otherwise, all undead have those proficiencies. It is a function of their creature type.

Quote:

I also was not sure by what does manufactured weapon attacks mean? Does that mean say a slain 1st level fighter who used a long sword before he died and is raised as a skeleton can use a long sword?

Longswords, axe, maces, andso on are manufactured weapons. Claw, bites, tail slaps, slams, and so on are not manufactured weapons, they are natural weapons.

[lemeres]

can't use armor because they are not proficient?

I could see the argument with weapons (it is wrong, but it could at least make thematic sense), but you just have armor hanging off you. You don't actively use armor- it is just a mass of material that makes it harder to hurt you.

Armor proficiency merely prevents the armor check penalty from getting put onto attack rolls.

I get that your GM is antsy about you getting new meat shields, but still, this is a bit too much.