The Necromancer is a hero class in Diablo 4 that allows players to harness the powers of the dead and spirits to defeat their enemies. These followers of Rathma utilize a wide array of spells, curses, and minions to their advantage in battle. They are able to manipulate the corpses of fallen enemies for a variety of effects, from creating explosions to summoning additional minions. Moreover, they can wield the power of blood to both deal damage and heal themselves in combat
Table of Contents
Role and Abilities of the Necromancer
The Necromancer serves as a versatile spellcaster class that excels at area-of-effect (AoE) damage and crowd control. Necromancers can summon an army of skeletons, which not only deal damage but also draw enemy aggro away from the caster, allowing them to freely cast spells. This gives the Necromancer incredible survivability and the ability to deal substantial amounts of damage to single-target enemies or groups alike. They also have abilities that manipulate blood for both offensive and defensive purposes. As such, they can be tailored to a variety of playstyles and party roles
Understanding the Necromancer
Necromancer’s Skillsets
The Necromancer’s skillset revolves around three main themes: summoning minions, manipulating corpses, and using blood magic. Their minions act as both offensive and defensive tools, dealing damage and diverting enemies. Corpse skills allow them to utilize the bodies of defeated foes for a variety of effects, such as creating explosions or summoning more minions. Blood skills allow them to use their own health or the blood of enemies to deal damage, control crowds, or heal themselves. Each of these themes can serve as the basis for a unique build, providing a wide array of options for Necromancer players
Strengths and Weaknesses of the Necromancer
Strengths: Necromancers are highly versatile, capable of adapting to various situations and roles depending on their chosen build. Their minions provide a constant source of damage and diversion, allowing them to handle large groups of enemies with relative ease. Their blood and corpse skills also offer a wide range of effects, from high damage to healing and crowd control, giving them a high degree of survivability and control in combat
Weaknesses: Despite their strengths, Necromancers also have some weaknesses. Their heavy reliance on minions and corpses means they can struggle when these resources are not readily available. Furthermore, while their blood skills are potent, they often come at the cost of the Necromancer’s own health, requiring careful management to prevent self-inflicted death. Additionally, their defensive stats tend to be lower than other classes, making them more susceptible to burst damage
Necromancer Builds
Summoner Build
This build focuses on the Necromancer’s ability to summon an army of minions to deal area-of-effect (AoE) damage. The core idea behind the build is to let your summoned minions do most of the fighting while you cast supporting spells from a safe distance. The minions not only act as a shield, taking the brunt of enemy attacks, but also deal significant damage to enemies themselves. This makes the Summoner build an excellent choice for both solo and team play, as it provides both damage and crowd control.
Blood Surge Build
The Blood Surge build revolves around the use of blood skills to deal large amounts of damage to enemies while also healing the Necromancer. The key to this build is balancing the use of health as a resource for casting spells with the healing provided by those same spells. This makes the Blood Surge build a high-risk, high-reward playstyle that requires careful management of resources and positioning. This build is recommended for players who prefer a more active and engaging playstyle
Corpse Explosion Build
The Corpse Explosion build combines the use of blood and corpse skills to create a deadly combination of AoE damage and healing. By utilizing the corpses of fallen enemies, the Necromancer can unleash a barrage of explosions that devastate enemies while also replenishing their own health. This build shines in situations where enemies are plentiful, making it an excellent choice for clearing dungeons and other high-density areas.
Necromancer Leveling Strategy
Stat Priorities
As a Necromancer, defensive stats and resource regeneration are of lower priority due to the class’s reliance on minions and non-resource spending skills. Instead, focus on increasing damage output by investing in Intelligence and critical strike chance. These stats will increase the effectiveness of your spells and minions, allowing you to clear enemies more quickly and efficiently
Leveling Activities
For faster leveling, it is recommended to choose the Veteran World Tier as it provides 20% more XP gain compared to the Adventurer difficulty. After finishing the Prologue, prioritize open-world events, Dungeons, and Side Quests for easy levels before tackling Main Quests, which give less XP and rewards. This strategy allows you to gain levels quickly while also acquiring valuable loot and resources
Group Play vs Solo Play
Necromancers excel in both group play and solo play due to their versatility. In group play, they can serve as a DPS (Damage Per Second) or a support role, providing crowd control and supplementary damage with their minions and AoE spells. In solo play, their minions act as a buffer between the Necromancer and the enemies, allowing them to handle large groups of enemies effectively. The choice between group or solo play largely depends on your preferred playstyle and the specific build you’re using
Necromancer Skills and Talents
Skills
Necromancers have a variety of skills at their disposal. These skills can be broadly categorized into three types: summoning skills, blood skills, and bone skills. Summoning skills allow the Necromancer to raise an army of undead minions to fight for them. Blood skills revolve around the manipulation of blood to deal damage and heal the Necromancer. Bone skills involve the use of bone spells to inflict damage and hinder enemies. The choice of skills is largely dependent on the specific build you’re using, and it’s recommended to focus on skills that complement your chosen build
Talents
Talents provide passive benefits that enhance the Necromancer’s abilities. Like skills, talents are also dependent on the specific build you’re using. For example, if you’re using the Summoner build, it would be beneficial to invest in talents that increase the effectiveness of your minions, such as increased minion health or damage. On the other hand, if you’re using the Blood Surge build, talents that increase your healing or reduce the health cost of spells would be more advantageous
Gear and Itemization
Stat Priorities
When it comes to gear, the main stats to focus on as a Necromancer are Intelligence and critical strike chance. Intelligence increases the damage of your spells, while critical strike chance increases the likelihood of your attacks dealing double damage. Other stats like Vitality (which increases health) and Armor (which reduces physical damage taken) are also important, but they are of lower priority compared to Intelligence and critical strike chance
Recommended Items
Specific recommended items will largely depend on the specific build you’re using, but in general, look for items that provide bonuses to Intelligence, critical strike chance, and other stats that are beneficial to your build. Additionally, items that provide bonuses to specific skills or talents can also be very beneficial. For example, an item that increases the damage of your minions would be very beneficial for a Summoner build
Endgame and Beyond
Fractured Peaks
Once you’ve reached the endgame, the Fractured Peaks is one of the places where you’ll be spending a lot of your time. This area is home to challenging content that provides high-level loot and experience. Regardless of your chosen build, your goal in the Fractured Peaks will be to clear enemies as efficiently as possible to maximize your loot and experience gain.
Paragon Levels
After reaching the level cap, you can continue to gain experience and increase your Paragon levels. Paragon levels provide additional stat points that you can distribute to further enhance your Necromancer. This provides an ongoing progression system even after you’ve reached the level cap
Endgame Builds
As you progress into the endgame and start gaining Paragon levels, you may need to adjust your build to accommodate the increased difficulty of
the endgame content. While the specific adjustments will depend on your build and playstyle, you may find it beneficial to focus more on survivability, crowd control, or area-of-effect damage, depending on the challenges you’re facing. For example, the Blood Surge build is capable of easily clearing the entire Fractured Peaks content and beyond, focusing on Blood skills and big AoE (Area of Effect) damage
Avoiding Common Mistakes
Not Utilizing Corpses
One common mistake that new Necromancer players make is not utilizing corpses effectively. Corpses are a key resource for the Necromancer, and many of their skills revolve around using corpses to deal damage, summon minions, or create beneficial effects. If you find yourself struggling, make sure you’re using your corpse-related skills as effectively as possible
Neglecting Defensive Stats
While offensive stats like Intelligence and critical strike chance are important for a Necromancer, it’s also important not to neglect your defensive stats. Vitality and Armor can greatly increase your survivability, and having a good balance of offensive and defensive stats can be the key to success, especially in higher-level content
Not Adapting to Different Situations
Another common mistake is not adapting your tactics to different situations. Different enemies and encounters may require different approaches, and it’s important to be flexible and adapt your tactics as needed. This can involve switching between different skills or talents, changing your positioning, or adjusting your focus during combat