Strengths
- Strong AoE: Corpse Explosion is a strong AoE spell that snowballs after getting enemy kills or when a corpse is generated.
- Lots of Debuffs: The Necromancer has several debuffs at their disposal such as Slow, decrease damage dealt, Immobilize, Vulnerable, etc.
- Can deal damage while moving: Summons from Book of the Dead allow you to focus on kiting the enemy while doing damage.
Weakness
- Lack of Mobility: Unlike classes such as Sorcerer, Necromancer does not have access to a mobility skill to let them reposition or move around the map quickly.
- Skeletal Summons have low health and tend to die when fighting World Bosses.
Equipment
The Necromancer can use a 2 Handed Weapon that gives a 100% Aspect bonus when imprinted or a 1 Handed Weapon + Focus/Shield that allows both items to have two different Aspects.
The choice of whether to use a 2 Handed Weapon or 1 Handed Weapon + Focus/Shield will depend on your choice of build, as a 1 Handed Weapon + Focus/Shield allows for more flexibility if more Legendary Aspects are required in the build. When choosing an off-hand equipment note that Shields provide better defensive utility but cannot use offensive Aspects.
Necromancer Equipment Slots:
- Helm
- Chest
- Gloves
- Pants
- Boots
- Amulet
- Ring x2
- 2 Handed Weapon
- 1 Handed Weapon + Focus/Shield
Skills
Basic Skills
Bone Splinters: Fire 3 bone splinters, dealing damage each. Each subsequent time an enemy is hit by the same cast of Bone Splinters, you gain 1 Essence.
- Enhanced Bone Splinters: Bone Splinters has a 30% chance to fire 2 additional projectiles if cast while you have 50 or more Essence.
- Acolyte's Bone Splinters: Hitting the same enemy at least 3 times with the same cast of Bone Splinters grants Critical Strike Chance for 4 seconds.
- Initiate's Bone Splinters: Bone Splinters has a 20% chance per hit to make enemies Vulnerable for 2 seconds.
Hemorrhage: Burst an enemy's blood, dealing damage. Hemorrhage has a 20% chance to form a Blood Orb.
- Enhanced Hemorrhage: After picking up a Blood Orb, your next Hemorrhage also deals damage to enemies around your target and grants 2 additional Essence per enemy hit.
- Acolyte's Hemorrhage: Hemorrhage gains an additional 20% Attack Speed while Healthy.
- Initiate's Hemorrhage: Hemorrhage grants 0.64% Base Life as Fortify each time it hits an enemy, and has a 1.5% chance per enemy hit to Fortify you for 100% Base Life.
Decompose: Tear the flesh from an enemy, dealing damage per second and forming a usable Corpse with the flesh every 2.5 seconds.
- Enhanced Decompose: If an enemy dies while being Decomposed, you gain 10 Essence.
- Acolyte's Decompose: You and your Minions deal 10% increased damage to enemies who are being Decomposed.
- Initiate's Decompose: Decompose Slows enemies by 30%.
Reap: Sweep an ethereal scythe in front of you, dealing damage. Hitting an enemy with Reap increases your Damage Reduction by 15% for 2 seconds.
- Enhanced Reap: If an enemy hit by Reap dies within 2 seconds, you gain Attack Speed for 3 seconds.
- Acolyte's Reap: Reap forms a Corpse under the first enemy hit. Can only occur every 5 seconds.
- Initiate's Reap: Reap instantly kills targets below 5% Life.
Core Skills
Bone Spear: Conjure a bone spear from the ground, dealing damage and piercing through enemies.
- Enhanced Bone Spear: Bone Spear breaks into 3 shards when it is destroyed, dealing 10 damage each.
- Supernatural Bone Spear: Bone Spear makes the first enemy hit Vulnerable for 3 seconds.
- Paranormal Bone Spear: Bone Spear has a increased Critical Strike Chance. If Bone Spear's primary projectile Critically Strikes, it fires 2 additional bone shards upon being destroyed.
Blood Lance: Throw a blood lance that lingers in an enemy for 3 seconds, dealing damage to the enemy and all other lanced enemies.
- Enhanced Blood Lance: Blood Lance pierces through enemies who are currently lanced, dealing 15% reduced damage to subsequent enemies after the first.
- Supernatural Blood Lance: After casting Blood Lance 8 times, your next cast of Blood Lance is guaranteed to Overpower and spawns a Blood Orb under the first enemy hit.
- Paranormal Blood Lance: While at least 2 enemies or a Boss are affected by Blood Lance, you gain 10% Attack Speed and Blood Lance's Essence cost is reduced by 1.
Blood Surge: Draw blood from enemies, dealing damage, and expel a blood nova, dealing damage. Blood Surge's nova damage is increased by 10% per enemy drained, up to 50%.
- Enhanced Blood Surge: Blood Surge Heals you for 1% of your Maximum Life when drawing blood from enemies. If 4 or more enemies are drawn from, then Heal for an additional 1% of your Maximum Life.
- Supernatural Blood Surge: Each time an enemy is hit by Blood Surge's nova, you are Fortified for Base Life. While you have Fortify for over of your Maximum Life, Blood Surge dealsincreased damage.
- Paranormal Blood Surge: If an enemy is damaged by Blood Surge's nova while you are Healthy, then gain 1 stack of Overwhelming Blood. When you have 5 stacks of Overwhelming Blood, your next Blood Surge Overpowers.
Blight: Unleash concentrated blight that deal damage and leaves behind a defiled area, dealing damage over 6 seconds.
- Enhanced Blight: Blight Slows enemies by 25%.
- Supernatural Blight: You and your Minions deal 10% increased damage to enemies within Blight.
- Paranormal Blight: Blight has a 10% chance to Immobilize enemies for 2 seconds on impact.
Sever: A specter of you charges forward and attacks with its scythe for x damage then returns to you and attacks again for damage.
- Enhanced Sever: Sever damages enemies along its path for x of its initial damage.
- Supernatural Sever: Sever deals increased damage for each Minion you have upon cast.
- Paranormal Sever: Every 4th cast of Sever makes enemies Vulnerable for 2 seconds.
Corse and Macabre 1 Skills
Blood Mist: Disperse into a bloody mist, becoming Immune for x seconds. Your Movement Speed is reduced by x and you periodically deal x damage to enemies and Healing for x of your Maximum Life.
- Enhanced Blood Mist: Casting a Skill that Overpowers reduces the cooldown of Blood Mist by 2 seconds.
- Ghastly Blood Mist: Blood Mist leaves behind a Corpse every 0.95 second.
- Dreadful Blood Mist: Blood Mist Fortifies you for Base Life each time it hits an enemy
Corpse Explosion: Detonate a Corpse, dealing x damage to surrounding enemies.
- Enhanced Corpse Explosion: Corpse Explosion's radius is increased by 15%.
- Blighted Corpse Explosion: Corpse Explosion becomes a Darkness Skill and, instead of exploding, releases a vile miasma dealing Shadow Damage over 6 seconds.
- Plagued Corpse Explosion: Corpse Explosion deals increased damage to enemies that are Slowed, Stunned or Vulnerable. These damage bonuses can stack.
Bone Prison: Unearth a prison of bone with 12 Life that surrounds the target area for 6 seconds.
- Enhanced Bone Prison: If an enemy is trapped by Bone Prison, gain 3 Essence, plus an additional 5 per enemy trapped.
- Ghastly Bone Prison: Enemies inside of Bone Prison are Vulnerable.
- Dreadful Bone Prison: Fortify for 1.5% Base Life for each enemy trapped by Bone Prison.
Curse Skills
Iron Maiden: Curse the target area. Enemies afflicted by Iron Maiden take 10% damage each time they deal direct damage. Lasts 10 seconds.
- Enhanced Iron Maiden: Iron Maiden no longer costs Essence. Instead, gain 5 Essence for each enemy Cursed. Does not work with enemies who are already Cursed with Iron Maiden.
- Abhorrent Iron Maiden: Heal for 5% of your Maximum Life when an enemy dies while afflicted with Iron Maiden.
- Horrid Iron Maiden: When at least 3 enemies are afflicted by Iron Maiden, its damage is increased by 15%.
Decrepify: Curse the target area. Enemies afflicted by Decrepify are Slowed by 50% and deal 25% less damage for 10 seconds.
- Enhanced Decrepify: Lucky Hit: Enemies hit while afflicted with Decrepify have up to a 10% chance to Stun them for 2 seconds.
- Abhorrent Decrepify: Lucky Hit: Enemies hit while afflicted with Decrepify have up to a 15% chance to reduce your active Cooldowns by 1.5 second.
- Horrid Decrepify: When you or your Minions hit an enemy afflicted with Decrepify below 10% Life, they are instantly killed. Does not work on Bosses.
Corpse and Macabre 2 Skills
Corpse Tendrils: Veins burst out of a Corpse, Pulling in enemies, Stunning them for 3 seconds, and dealing damage to them. Does not consume the Corpse.
- Enhanced Corpse Tendrils: Enemies who are in range of Corpse Tendrils are Slowed by 50% before being Pulled.
- Blighted Corpse Tendrils: Corpse Tendrils has a chance when damaging enemies to drop a Blood Orb.
- Plagued Corpse Tendrils: Enemies damaged by Corpse Tendrils are made Vulnerable for 3 seconds.
Bone Spirit: Consume all of your Essence to conjure a spirit of bone that seeks enemies. Upon reaching an enemy, the spirit explodes, dealing damage to the target and all surrounding enemies. Damage is increased by 3% for each point of Essence spent casting Bone Spirit.
- Enhanced Bone Spirit: If Bone Spirit Critically Strikes, its Cooldown is reduced by 6 seconds. This effect can only happen once per cast.
- Ghastly Bone Spirit: Bone Spirit has an additional 10% Critical Strike Chance.
- Dreadful Bone Spirit: After Bone Spirit hits an enemy, you generate 30 Essence over the next 4 seconds.
Ultimate Skills
Blood Wave: Conjure a tidal wave of blood that deals 90% damage and Knocks Back enemies.
- Prime Blood Wave: Blood Wave Slows enemies by 50% for 4 seconds.
- Supreme Blood Wave: Blood Wave leaves behind 3 Blood Orbs as it travels.
Bone Storm:
A swirling storm of bones appears around you and your Golem, dealing 180% to surrounding enemies over 10 seconds.
- Prime Bone Storm: Your Damage Reduction is increased by 15% while Bone Storm is active.
- Supreme Bone Storm: Your Critical Strike Chance is increased by +2% while Bone Storm is active.
Army of the Dead:
Call forth the deep buried dead. Volatile Skeletons emerge over the next 7 seconds that explode when around enemies, dealing 30% damage.
- Prime Army of the Dead: When Army of the Dead's Volatile Skeletons explode, they have a 15% chance to leave behind a Corpse.
- Supreme Army of the Dead: Army of the Dead also raises your Skeletal Warriors and Skeletal Mages.
