Introduction to the Diablo 4 Necromancer
The Necromancer was the fifth and final class [1] announced for Diablo 4. Staying with tradition, this version of the Necromancer becomes more powerful the more death is around it.
"As a Priest of Rathma, known by outsiders as a Necromancer - the word death evokes a sensation of power, even excitement when it graces their ears. These legendary summoners bend bone, blood, and darkness to their will, subjugating the ranks of undead to carry out their bidding."Blizzard Entertainment ·
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Necromancer highlights
- Book of the Dead: manage an undead army of Skeletons and a Golem
- Utilize Corpses: explode them for damage and consume them for Essence
- Magic diversity: harness Blood, Bone, and Darkness Skills
Necromancer stats
Necromancer starting Primary Stats
| Class | DEX | INT | STR | WILL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Necromancer | 7 | 10 | 7 | 8 |
| Barbarian | 8 | 7 | 10 | 7 |
| Druid | 7 | 8 | 7 | 10 |
| Rogue | 10 | 7 | 7 | 8 |
| Sorcerer | 7 | 10 | 7 | 8 |
Necromancer Primary Stat effects
| Attribute | Effect |
|---|---|
| Dexterity | +0.01% Dodge Chance per point 0.02%x Critical Strike Chance per point |
| Intelligence | +0.05% All Resistances per point 0.1%x Skill Damage per point |
| Strength | +1 Armor per point |
| Willpower | +0.1% Healing Received per point +0.25% Overpower Damage per point 0.3%x Resource Generation per point |
Necromancer Skills
Necromancer Skill Tree
See our dedicated page on 
Necromancer Skills.
Essence resource
The Necromancer uses a resource called Essence for its Skills. Essence slowly regenerates over time and with usage of Basic Skills.
Corpses
In addition to Essence, Corpses of slain enemies surrounding the Necromancer can also be considered a resource. These can be turned into undead minions or exploded with Corpse Explosion to harm nearby enemies. In some areas, Corpses will be plentiful, but in others, the Necromancer has a variety of Skills to generate them.
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Necromancer Book of the Dead
The Necromancer's unique class mechanic is called: Book of the Dead, which allows the player to customize their army of undead minions, including:
- Which minions to use
- Their attack behavior profile
- Which upgrade they get
Undead minion types
There's 3 types of minions that the Necromancer can summon:
- Skeletal Warriors
- Skeletal Mages
- Golems
Minion attack behavior profiles
Each minion type has 3 attack behavior profiles that dictate how the minions behave. The player can choose 1 of these. For example, a player might choose the Skeletal Warriors's "Defender" profile if they need more defense, or "Skirmishers" for more offense.
Minion upgrades
To further customize, each attack behavior profile has 2 upgrades (choice of 1) the player can select.
Sacrificing minions for bonuses
Players can choose to use all 3 minion types, some, or none. For minion types that the player doesn't wish to use, they can sacrifice them for a bonus (this can be undone).
In the Book of the Dead UI, the sacrifice option is always the 3rd choice in the list of upgrades:
"Next to each unit type in the Book of the Dead there's an extra option to sacrifice the ability to summon that unit in return for a personal, permanent buff. These buffs are carefully designed so players can mix and match having none, some, or all of the possible summoned units while still having relevant options to enhance their build."
Skeletal Warriors
Skirmisher Skeletal Warriors
Unlock:
- Level 5
Description:
- Sword-wielding skeletal minions that deal 30% increased damage, but have 15% reduced Life.
Upgrades (choice of 1):
- You can raise 1 additional Skirmisher Warrior
- Each time you Critically Strike, your Skirmishers Warriors's next attack Critically Strikes and deals 50%(x) bonus Critical Strike damage. Can only happen every 3 seconds.
Sacrifice option:
- Your Critical Strike Chance is increased by 5%[+], but you can no longer raise Skeletal Warriors.
Open Beta
Defender Skeletal Warriors
Unlock:
- Level 8
Description:
- Durable shield-bearers with 15% increased Life.
Upgrades (choice of 1):
- Every 8 seconds your Skeletal Defenders negate the next instance of Direct Damage they would take.
- Increase the amount of Thorns that Defender Warriors inherit from you from 30% to 50%.
Sacrifice option:
- You gain 15% Non-Physical Resistance, but you can no longer raise Skeletal Warriors.
Open Beta
Reaper Skeletal Warriors
Unlock:
- Level 15
Description:
- Wields a powerful scythe that has a special wind-up attack, dealing heavy damage every 10 seconds.
Upgrades (choice of 1):
- Reaper attacks against enemies who are Immobilized, Slowed, Stunned, or Vulnerable reduce the cooldown of their powerful wind-up attack by 8 seconds.
- Reapers have a 15% chance to carve the flesh off enemies, forming a Corpse.
Sacrifice option:
- You deal 10%(x) increased Shadow Damage, but you can no longer raise Skeletal Warriors.
Open Beta
Skeletal Mages
Shadow Skeletal Mages
Unlock:
- Level 15
Description:
- Shadow Mages wield power from the beyond, dealing moderate Shadow damage.
Upgrades (choice of 1):
- Shadow Mage attacks have a 10% chance to Stun for 2 seconds. This cannot happen on the same enemy more than once every 5 seconds.
- Shadow Mages fire an additional shadow bolt every 6th attack.
Sacrifice option:
- Your maximum Essence is increased by 15, but you can no longer raise Skeletal Mages.
Open Beta
Cold Skeletal Mages
Unlock:
- Level 18
Description:
- Cold Mages will chill enemies, eventually Freezing them in their tracks.
Upgrades (choice of 1):
- Each time your Cold Mages damage enemies with their primary attack, you gain 2 Essence.
- Enemies who are Frozen or damaged while Frozen by your Cold Mages' primary attack are made Vulnerable for 3 seconds.
Sacrifice option:
- You deal 15% increased damage to Vulnerable enemies, but you can no longer raise Skeletal Mages.
Open Beta
Bone Skeletal Mages
Unlock:
- Level 22
Description:
- Bone Mages use their bodies as projectiles, doing heavy damage at the cost of their own Life.
Upgrades (choice of 1):
- Reduce the Life cost of your Bone Mages' attacks from 15% to 10%. After being alive for 5 seconds, Bone Mages deal 40% increased damage.
- Each time a Bone Mage dies from its own attack, it leaves behind a Corpse and Fortifies you for 11% of your Base Life.
Sacrifice option:
- Your Overpower damage is increased by 30%, but you can no longer raise Skeletal Mages.
Open Beta
Golem
Bone Golem
Unlock:
- Level 25
Description:
- A horrid protector that taunts enemies, forcing them to attack the Golem.
Upgrades (choice of 1):
- Each time the Bone Golem takes up to 20% of its Maximum Life as damage, it sheds a Corpse.
- Your Bone Golem gains 10% Maximum Life and the amount of Thorns they inherit from you is increased from 30% to 50%.
Sacrifice option:
- You gain 10% increased Attack Speed, but you can no longer summon a Golem.
Open Beta
Blood Golem
Iron Golem
How to access the Golem
Whereas Skeletal Warriors and Skeletal Mages automatically spawn on the battlefield, the Golem doesn't. Hopefully, Blizzard will improve this before release.
To access the Golem, players must treat it as a Skill by:
- Opening up the Necromancer's Skills menu ('S' hotkey)
- Clicking the "Skill Assignment" button at the bottom of the menu
- Dragging the Golem icon to a Skill slot below
- Casting the Golem using the associated hotkey, like a Skill
Skeletal Priest
The Skeletal Priest minion appears when the player attempts to summon a Skeleton when the max amount of Skeletal Warriors and Skeletal Mages are already on the battlefield. This minion temporarily buffs all nearby minions and then disappears.
TOPNecromancer items
Necromancer Unique items
| Name ▲ | Slot | Skills | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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Black River | Scythe - 1H | Corpse Explosion, Fueled by Death | |
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Blood Artisan's Cuirass | Necromancer | Bone Spirit | |
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Bloodless Scream | Scythe - 2H | Darkness Skills | |
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Deathless Visage | Helm | Bone Spear | |
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Deathspeaker's Pendant | Amulet | Blood Surge, Coalesced Blood | |
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Greaves of the Empty Tomb | Boots | Sever | |
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Howl from Below | Gloves | Corpse Explosion | |
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Ring of Mendeln | Ring | n/a |
Class-specific Weapon
- Scythe (1-hand and 2-hand versions)
Necromancer Weapon configurations
- 1-handed Weapon + Off-hand
- 2-handed Weapon
Necromancer Legendary Aspects
See our dedicated sections on:
Necromancer media
Necromancer class videos
Necromancer screenshots
Necromancer artwork
Xiphoid has been playing Diablo since the original's release in 1997. He made one of the largest Age of Empires sites in the late-'90s and early-'00s. Now, he runs MythicDrop.com, a premier Diablo 4 fansite.
Sources
| Article | Source | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Diablo IV Developer Gameplay Showcase | Blizzard |
Changelog
| Ver | Change | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
1.0 | Refreshed guide with Release Necromancer information | |
|
Beta | Refreshed guide with Open Beta Necromancer information | |
|
Alpha | Added higher resolution images to screenshot section | |
 |
Alpha | Published original |
