Table: Necromancer Archetypes
Archetype | Prerequisites | Description |
Dollmaker | — | In place of raising the dead, there are sometimes attempts made to replicate the living in the form of life-like dolls, be they souls in mourning or simply those fascinated by the humanoid body they devote their work in creating life-like constructs, hoping to one day make living dolls. |
Gravewalker | — | Some necromancers forgo summoning undead creatures to do their bidding. They would rather become undead to relish the satisfaction of tearing some unfortunate souls’ flesh to pieces and feasting on them. |
Incorporeal Stalker | — | Incorporeal stalkers are conflicted necromancers who use the powers of the incorporeal undead even while seeking out and banishing the corruption of undeath from plagued communities. |
Necromaster | — | Those who seek to raise an unyielding obedience from the dead willingly tread the path of necromancy. |
Necrotic Healer | — | As their name suggests, necrotic healers focus much of their energy on healing. Many of their healing abilities center on taking others’ pain into themselves in order to negate it. Necrotic healers tend to be caring, compassionate, and self-sacrificing individuals. |
Skullshield | — | Rather than summon a bone commander to serve by his side, the skullshield fuses his bone commander’s body to his own. Instead of two creatures, the bone commander is a fusion of the necromancer and bone commander into a single being. |
Spectre Caller | — | The spectre caller seeks the occult and esoteric truth about life, death, and the passage beyond, using her spectre as a guide and tool. The connection with her spectre allows her to harness the powers of life and death, thought and nightmare, shadow and revelation. |
Vampire | — | While these particular necromancers do not experience the hunger of a vampire, they do enjoy power that originates from a necrotic taint that entered their bloodline sometime in the past. They have mastered the art of treading so close to undeath—particularly the children of the night—that they nearly have become one of the cursed themselves. |
Warlock | — | Born of a supernatural bloodline, a warlock seeks to master the perilous magic that suffuses his soul. Unlike black mages, who approach arcane magic through the medium of spells, a warlock invokes powerful magic through nothing more than an effort of will. By harnessing his innate magical gift through fearsome determination and force of will, a warlock can perform feats of supernatural stealth, beguile the weak-minded, or scour his foes with blasts of eldritch power. |
Non-FF Archetypes
The following archetypes are based off of pop-culture references outside of Final Fantasy and may not fit within the theming of your campaign. Consult your DM before using them.
Table: Non-FF Necromancer Archetypes
Archetype | Prerequisites | Description | Reference |
Blood Mage | — | The luckier wielders of the arcane arts forgo the years of studying ancient tombs and mastering subtle finger flicks and exact annunciation. They are born tapped into the unknown from which magic is generated. These necromancers often credit their bloodline with this innate gift. Blood mages believe that it is the blood itself that holds the power. Blood mages do not just feel magic within their veins, they channel it. Sometimes called sanguinists or sanguinomancers, these masochist mages are willing to drain their own life energy, converting it into magic. | Vanguard: Saga of Heroes |
Bonedancer | — | Some necromancers rely more on their bone commanders to handle combat situations, allowing them to control a few minions of their own. | Dark Ages of Camelot |