Necromancer Gaining Undead

[Chuck Mount]

So, I'm playing a dhampir necromancer in a message board game. First time playing a dhampir and first time playing a necromancer in Pathfinder. I'm already second level and I was wondering if anyone could tell me the soonest I could get some undead to control. I assume, I'll have to get a wand of animate dead or maybe a couple of scrolls every time I need to replenish my supply. Can anyone tell me if I'm missing anything? I haven't taken any traits to help and the feat I took is Blood Drinker. Plus, he's a Cruoromancer, so no special abilities for that, there. Is there a feat I can get to help at third level or should I just plan on buying scrolls or wands? I don't plan on multiclassing, either. It won't fit the character concept.

[Weirdo]

Lesser Animate Dead is a 3rd level wizard spell, so it becomes available to you at level 5.

You could certainly get a scroll or wand earlier than that, but I'm not sure it's worth the extra resources. I'm also not sure how to handle the variable material component cost - you'd probably have to decide ahead of time how many HD of undead the specific scroll or wand was intended to create.

If you chose Command Undead as your bonus feat for the Power Over Undead school ability, you can use that to control any undead you happen to come across.

You might even be able to hire a 3rd level cleric to cast Lesser Animate Dead (60gp plus cost of Onyx) or a 5th level cleric to cast Animate Dead (150gp plus Onyx) and then use Command Undead on those undead.

[Tacticslion]

Dot!

[tonyz]

Also, the command undead spell, which is a 2nd level spell you can get at 3rd level, would let you take control of any undead you meet or arrange to have created.

Clerics are generally better undead-creators than wizards (wizardly necromancy is more focused toward debuffs).

[Dasrak]

Lesser Animate Dead is kinda useless IMO, and you're better off using a Scroll of Animate Dead. When you use Lesser Animate Dead you still need to pay the material components costs, and you need to repay them every time your minions die and need replacing. By using a Scroll of Animate Dead you can create Bloody Skeletons which are very difficult to permanently kill. This reduces the frequency at which you need to replace them, and which will ultimately pay for the cost of the scroll.

The Command Undead spell is the way to go with a low-level Wizard or Sorcerer. You can't create them reliably, but you can certainly enslave any you find.

Having access to the Desecrate spell is also very useful, since it makes the undead you create a bit stronger.

[Coidzor]

Lesser Animate Dead isn't too terrible if you have False Focus, since most of the things you'll kill that are Medium or smaller aren't going to have that many HD anyway, and any of the really nice bodies you'll want to skeletonize with Decompose Corpse and stash for later or the aforementioned Scroll of Animate Dead.

As a bonus, the disposable cannon fodder you can make for free with False Focus and Lesser Animate Dead make for great raw material for your first Necrocraft if you can recover and store the destroyed bodies.

Still, compare what you get against the time and monetary expense of buying a 24 gp Yak, getting it to have a Helpful attitude toward you, getting 40 gp Leather barding for it, learning the Carry Companion spell, and being able to carry them around in suspended animation as statuettes. Alternatively, with Bestow Weapon Proficiency and Anthropomorphic Animal you could look into a DIY minotaur with 20 gp Leather armor and a 40 gp greataxe.

Actually it's not a half bad idea to look into Yaks anyway, because once they inevitably kick the bucket or you decide it's time to eat them and then make them into undead, bloody skeleton yaks are pretty nice, being able to punch above their weight class due to their Trample and Stampede abilities.

[Shorticus]

Yakkity yak.

[Chuck Mount]

As a necromancer I can channel negative energy (works out to 6x/day) to command undead. They get a Will save DC14, right now.

I've never seen False Focus. What book is that from? I may have just skimmed over it because I didn't have a need for it.

I like the idea of hiring a cleric to create the undead for me until I can afford a wand or scrolls. Maybe buy a single scroll for use in the field, but have a cleric create them when I get back to town. By the way, we're in Longacare (Hell's Vengeance), so I may not have a problem with getting a priest to do that. Though, even in Cheliax, necromancy is pretty much frowned on. LOL Luckily, there's a cleric in the group who can help me out when we get higher level. PLus, he can use desecrate for me... or I can have some item made that radiates that spell. That would be pretty cool and annoying for the good guys.

Thanks for all the great advice! I might give the Lesser Animate Dead a try when I'm higher level, though probably won't be crafting an kilted yaksmen. I do like the idea though. LOL

[Coidzor]

False Focus appears in Inner Sea Magic, possibly on page 10 if Archive of Nethys is to be believed.

Basically it lets you buy a holy symbol or other divine focus (or make one) that can be worth up to 100 gp. Once you have that, if you cast a spell with a costly material component, you get to ignore the cost, provided the cost is equal to the value of your divine focus in gp or lower. So buy or make a 100 gp holy symbol, be able to make 4 HD of skeleton for free.

Or, when you're higher level, make 4 HD of Plague Zombie for free so that you just need a nice pit to lower people into so they get turned into plague zombies that you then destroy and use the bodies to make Necrocraft.

It applies to other spells too, and while I'm sure that someone has compiled a list of such spells somewhere by now, I don't know where offhand, sorry.

Off the top of my head, I can only think of Full Pouch, Wall of Iron, and Masterwork Transformation(but only for MW Tools). Maybe the Silver and Cold Iron uses for Heart of the Metal.

Probably not too many Yaks in Cheliax, I suppose, though cows would either have Aurochs or Bison stats anyway, and those are either 10 gp as a trade good per CRB or 50 gp as cattle per Ultimate Equipment.

There are definitely worse ways to get raw materials to use in making Necrocraft than arranging for the bones from slaughterhouses to end up in your possession, certainly. Buying them, slaughtering them, and selling off the meat and hide yourself or using minions in your employ/thralldom isn't too bad, either, though ideally you'd have enough bodies coming in from who and what you're killing as part of this AP.

[Chuck Mount]

False Focus sounds pretty useful. My character is a devout worshiper of Urgathoa, so I might take that feat next level.

Thanks! You guys have been an immense help!