Musing: Making Undead Hordes

 I love undead

    The idea of controlling a massive horde of corpses and bones is a badass image of power and control. Undead are typically my favorite type of monster from any media. But what about in a role playing game like D&D? Let's take a look.

The Subject

    Animate Dead is a 3rd level spell that requires no concentration that lets you target any type of corpse and turn it into a minion. If a high level player were to only create undead, they can have an actual army of minions, which is insane. Players can even gift them magic items if they don't require attunement, which makes them all the more powerful. Spellcasters can then mentally command them using a bonus action, which means they can still cast a spell on top of having an army. This is why I personally believe the Necromancer Wizard is a better damage dealer than the Evocation Wizard. Who cares if I can add my +3 Intelligence to the damage of a fireball when I can command 12 undead skeletons to fire at a range all dealing 1d6 + 2 damage? They even act as bodyguards and can prevent or hinder movement towards you.

 

The Problem

    Commanding 12+ minions is a complete slog when it comes to combat. Not to mention you have to roll both hits and damage for each and every one, while also keeping track of their individual hit points. That's an absolutely insane amount of extra work that removes from the badass feeling. It may be worth it to some people, but what about everyone else at the table? They're all waiting for you to finish your 20 minute turn.

 

Solution?

     Look. I don't have an actual solution, unfortunately. I would certainly like to find one. Wizards Of the Coast seems to try to solve this issue with new spell summon undead. I think it's a pretty decent middle ground, but there's an issue: I'm not controlling 12+ minions anymore, and thus there is no army. But what about the "Handling Mobs" section within the Dungeon Master's Guide? That's another good solution. It doesn't allow the necromancer to break the "action economy" nearly as easily and you still feel like you're controlling an army because you're rolling lots of attack rolls. You still need to keep track of their hit points, but could that be simplified as well? I don't have an immediate solution, but I feel there is. Even if you don't summarize their hit points, you've drastically reduced the time and effort needed to keep track.

 

     Within the future, I'd like to ensure this simplicity is a mechanic of undead within the tabletop game I want to make. It's not worth it if I don't feel like I'm controlling multiple undead.

 

- Red