Necrotic Armor

5th-level necromancy (Cleric, Pale Master)


  • Casting Time: 10 minutes
  • Range: Touch
  • Components: V, S, M (A suit of medium or heavy armor that is transformed in the casting)
  • Duration: Permanent

You cast a kind of permanent animate dead on a piece of armor, radiating high levels of both evil and magic.

When the necrotic armor is placed on a dead body, it animates the remains into a skeleton or zombie (depending on the state of the body's decay) under your control. The skeleton or zombie has the maximum hit points of its type, gains an AC of 16 (regardless of the armor's original bonus to AC), it cannot be Turned, and has a +5 Proficiency Bonus due to the vile nature of the armor. In addition, any other undead will gain benefits against Turn Unead while within 50 ft of the armor:

  • they receive advantage on their efforts to resist Turning
  • if they were Turned and move within range, they can roll a second time (at advantage) to resist the Turning

The necrotic armor-wearing undead is entirely under your control, and will remain so regardless of your condition. It can be given commands to carry out like any other undead, and will do so to the best of its ability, but it is not intelligent and can only carry out orders. It can understand any languages you speak, but cannot speak in turn.

If a living creature dons the armor, that creature suffers 3d6 hit points of damage per turn until dead (a Wisdom save against your Spellcasting DC halves the damage). The damage appears as dead skin on the wearer's body. If the armor kills a living wearer, it instantly reanimates the body as a zombie as above.

Undead created by the armor may remove the armor, but must remain within 50 ft. of the armor or become unanimated. They can re-don the armor at any time, but the undead lose all of the benefits listed above without the armor on.

Any attempts other than a wish to remove this spell from the armor is a contested check against your Spellcasting DC.