Best BG3 Necromancer Build – Summon the Undead!

Welcome to the Best BG3 Necromancer Build. The Necromancer is a subclass of the Wizard Class and is a very skilled spellcaster with access to plenty of Necromancy spells. You will be able to animate the dead and bend them to your will.

This build transforms the Wizard from a mere scholar into a Deathlord, capable of siphoning the life force of enemies to fuel an unstoppable army of the undead.

Table of Contents for the BG3 Necromancer Build:

• Necromancer Build Overview
  • Wizard Class Summary
  • Necromancy Subclass
• Necromancer Character Creation (Level 1)
  • Best Race
  • Cantrips
  • Spells
  • Background & Skills
  • Abilities
  • Prepare Spells
• Necromancer Leveling Guide (2-12)
  • Early Game (2-4)
  • Mid Game (5-8)
  • Late Game (9-12)
• Necromancer Build Equipment
  • Early-Game
  • Late-Game
• Necromancer Build Extra Info
  • Necromancy of Thay Book & Dans Macabre Spell
  • Best Party Composition
  • Tips & Tricks
  • Illithid Powers (Optional)

Please visit our Best BG3 Builds overview page for more builds. If you are interested in more Wizard subclass builds, check our BG3 Wizard Builds category page. To get an overview of all classes, please visit the BG3 Classes overview page.

BG3 Necromancer Build Overview

Here is a quick overview of the Wizard class and the Necromancy School subclass. If you’re already familiar with them, please skip this section.

Subclass Selection: We will select the Necromancy Subclass at Level 2.

Wizard Class Summary

The Wizard is the most astute spellcaster in Baldur’s Gate 3, with access to a huge array of spells. It makes the perfect starting point for a Necromancer Build.

Necromancy School Subclass Summary

The Necromancy subclass provides a mix of turn-based efficiency, survivability, and massive buffs to summoned units.

As a reminder, we can select the Necromancy Subclass at Level 2.

Character Creation (Level 1) – BG3 Necromancer Build

In this section, we will walk you through the Character Creation for your BG3 Necromancer Build, including the best Race, Background, Skills, Abilities, Spells and Cantrips.

Subclass Selection: We will select the Necromancy Subclass at Level 2.

Top 5 Necro Races

You can use any race for the BG3 Necromancer Build; the differences between the races are quite mild. However, there are a few that are a little more useful than average. The table below summarises the best five Necromancer races.

To optimize your Necromancer, look for races that offer utility beyond raw stats, such as:

Race	Strengths	Info
Wood Elf	Proficiency in Stealth and Perception Extra Weapon Proficiencies: Shortswords Longswords Shortbows Longbows Fey Ancestry Advantage against Charmed Immune to Magical Sleep Darkvision Fleet of Foot – 1.5 metres of extra Movement Speed	Wood Elves are one of the best races in BG3, thanks to their increased Movement Speed which can give you an upper hand in many situations. Their immunity to Sleep is especially useful in the early-game, where your low HP will cause you to fall victim to enemy mages who love to cast the Sleep spell. You can also choose Wood Half-Elf, which comes with many of the same benefits.
High Elf	Proficiency in and Perception Extra Weapon Proficiencies: Shortswords Longswords Shortbows Longbows Fey Ancestry Advantage against Charmed Immune to Magical Sleep Darkvision Choose an extra Cantrip (cast with Intelligence)	Very similar to Wood Elf, but missing the Stealth Proficiency and doesn’t get extra Movement Speed. You can choose an extra Cantrip to learn, which is handy but not super important.
Duergar	Can wear Medium Armour Can wield axes and hammers Dwarven Resilience Advantage against Poisoned Resistance to Poison Damage Superior Darkvision Duergar Resilience Advantage on Saving Throws against illusions Advantage against Charmed and Paralysed Duergar Magic Enlarge (Level 3) Invisibility (Level 5)	With their wide choice of armour and weapon proficiencies, and resistances to poison, charm, and paralysis, Duergar are one of the strongest races in BG3. The only downside of Duergar is their small stature – this reduces their base Movement Speed to 7.5 metres per turn (most races get 9 metres).
Lolth-Sworn Drow	Perception Proficiency Fey Ancestry Advantage against Charmed Immune to Magical Sleep Superior Darkvision Drow Magic Dancing Lights (Level 1) Faerie Fire (Level 3) Darkness (Level 5)	Drow have similar bonuses to other Elves, but also come with a couple of extra Spells and Superior Darkvision. You can choose Seldarine Drow instead if you want; they are functionally identical but have a different backstory to their Lolth-Sworn brethren.
Deep Gnome	Gnome Cunning Advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma Saving Throws Superior Darkvision Stone Camouflage Advantage on Stealth Checks	The Deep Gnome does a good job of shrugging off a variety of hostile conditions, thanks to its Gnome Cunning. They can also see in the dark. However, their small size means that they have reduced Movement Speed, like the Duergar.

Starting Cantrips

The BG3 Necromancer Build (Wizard) can select three Cantrips to start the game with. Cantrips are basic spells that do not consume a spell slot when cast, effectively meaning you can cast them as often as you like without limitations.

We recommend choosing the following Cantrips to start the game with:

Note that if you chose High Elf as your race, then you can choose Fire Bolt as your High Elf Cantrip and therefore get an extra Cantrip from the Wizard list. In that case, we also recommend choosing Bone Chill. It deals 1-8 Necrotic Damage, prevents an enemy from regaining HP and also inflicts Disadvantage on Undead Attack Rolls.

Starting Spells

The Necromancer Build (Wizard) lets you learn 6 Spells in Character Creation, but you will only be able to Prepare  (equip) 4 of them.

Wizards use a “Learn vs. Prepare” system. Here is the fast breakdown:

• Learned Spells: You pick 6 spells at Level 1, but these are just in your “library.”
• Prepared Spells: You can only use spells that are currently Prepared (initially 4 slots).
• Swap Anytime: Outside of combat, you can open your spellbook and swap your Prepared Spells for free.

With that in mind, we recommend Learning the following spells:

Recommended Spells to prepare:

• Mage Armour
• Magic Missile
• Thunderwave
• Chromatic Orb

This will give you a good spell for any situation. Please keep in mind that if someone else in your party already uses something similar, swap it out for something else!

Background & Skills

Your most important Abilities for the Wizard Necromancer are going to be Intelligence and Dexterity. For optimal results, you should choose your Background and Skills accordingly.

We recommend choosing the Sage Background, which gives you two Skill Proficiencies:

You can now choose two additional Skills to be Proficient with. Make sure you have these two covered:

Ability Points

Intelligence is your primary stat, but your survivability depends on Dexterity and Constitution.

• Intelligence (Primary): Increases your Spell Save DC and Attack Rolls. High Intelligence ensures your spells actually land and your enemies fail their saving throws.
• Dexterity (Defense): Since Wizards lack Armor Proficiency, Dexterity is your main source of Armour Class (AC). It also improves your Initiative, letting you summon minions before enemies move.
• Constitution (HP & Concentration): Increases your Max HP and helps you pass Concentration Checks. This is vital for maintaining powerful “ongoing” Necromancy spells after taking damage.

With all of this in mind, we recommend an ability spread something like this:

Important Tip:

• The “Even Number” Rule: In Baldur’s Gate 3, only even numbers (12, 14, 16) increase your actual modifier. An 11 is functionally the same as a 10, so we aim for even numbers to maximize efficiency.

Prepare Spells

Like we already mentioned in the Spells section of this BG3 Necromancer Build, learning and preparing spells are different mechanics.

• Learned Spells: You pick 6 spells at Level 1, but these are just in your “library.”
• Prepared Spells: You can only use spells that are currently Prepared (initially 4 slots).
• Swap Anytime: Outside of combat, you can open your spellbook and swap your Prepared Spells for free.

Recommended Spells to prepare:

• Mage Armour
• Magic Missile
• Thunderwave
• Chromatic Orb

This will give you a good spell for any situation. Please keep in mind that if someone else in your party already uses something similar, swap it out for something else!

BG3 Necromancer Leveling Guide (2-12)

We will now walk through the process of leveling up your Necromancy Wizard in Baldur’s Gate 3. For ease of reading, we’ve split this part up into early, mid, and late game leveling sections.

We’ve listed what we think are the strongest or most useful spells and cantrips to unlock at each level, but don’t shy away from experimenting with other spells.

1. Early Game (2-4)
2. Mid Game (5-8)
3. Late Game (9-12)

Early-Game Leveling Process (2-4)

We’ll start with the early game, at levels 2-4.

Level 2 (Subclass Selection)

At Level 2, you need to choose your Subclass. The Wizard class has a total of 9 different subclasses (Abjuration, Evocation, Necromancy, Conjuration, Enchantment, Divination, Illusion, Transmutation and Bladesinging). For this build, we’ll be going with the Necromancy Subclass.

At this level, your Necromancer gains:

Learn 2 more Spells:

Level 3

At Level 3, the Necromancer build gains another Arcane Recovery charge, increasing the number of Spell Slots they can replenish without needing a Long Rest.

You gain 1 level 1 slot and two level 2 slots. We recommend learning the following Spells:

Level 4

At Level 4, it’s time to choose a Feat to unlock for your Necromancer Build in BG3.

You can also select another Cantrip; we recommend:

You’ll be able to Learn 2 more Spells here, too.  We recommend picking up the following Spells:

Mid-Game Leveling Process (5-8)

We’ll now go through the mid-game leveling, at levels 5-8.

• Level 5
• Level 6
• Level 7
• Level 8

Level 5

Level 5 is the definitive turning point for the Necromancer. This is where you finally can start raising undead because of the Animate Dead spell.

You also unlock Third Level Spells at this level, too. Some First and Second-Level spells can be upcasted to the Third Level to make them more powerful.

As usual, you can choose two spells to Learn. We recommend:

Level 6

At Level 6, your Necromancer finally gets some Necromancy subclass-specific features. You can animate more dead, and they will become more powerful.

You get to learn two additional Spells:

Level 7

At Level 7 for your Necromancer Wizard Build, you unlock the following:

Learn two more Spells. We recommend choosing:

Level 8

At Level 8, you can choose another Feat.

You can Learn two more Spells, as usual. Good options are:

Since you increased your Intelligence to 20, this time around you’ll get two new slots for Prepared Spells, instead of the usual one.

Late-Game Leveling Process (9-12)

We’ll now go through the end-game levels for the Baldur’s Gate 3 Necromancer Build, Levels 9-12.

Level 9

At Level 9 of your BG3 Necromancer Build, you gain access to even more powerful magic. You’ll unlock the following features here:

• Arcane Recovery Slots increased to 5.
• Another Fourth Level Spell Slot, giving you three in total.
• One Fifth Level Spell Slot, and the ability to Learn and Prepare Fifth Level Spells.

Learn two more Spells. We recommend:

Level 10

At Level 10, you unlock the following:

Learn two more Spells. We recommend:

Level 11

At Level 11 you’ll gain access to the most powerful magic available in Baldur’s Gate 3, making your necromancer build even stronger.

At this point, you’ll get:

• Another Arcane Recovery Charge that brings your total number to 6.
• One Sixth Level Spell Slot, and the ability to learn Spells of this tier.

Learn two more Spells. We recommend choosing:

Level 12 – Max Level

Congratulations, you reached level 12 with your BG3 Necromancer Build.

At Level 12, your Necromancer unlocks the following:

Learn two more Spells. We recommend:

BG3 Necromancer Build Equipment

The Necromancer Build for Baldur’s Gate 3 also benefits from some cool equipment you can get.

We have included both an early game and a late game section for equipment, so you can use this build no matter how far through the game you are.

Don’t worry if you don’t have all of the listed equipment, and feel free to try out different items and combinations too. This is just a guideline and the build can still work great with some of the equipment changed.

Early-Game Equipment

Early-Game equipment is available in Act I and the earlier parts of Act II. It is generally less powerful than the late-game version of the build.

Slot	Icon	Item	Effects	Location
Head		The Shadespell Circlet	When obscured in Shadow, gain +1 Spell Save DC	Sold by Omeluum in the Underdark, after helping him to investigate the Parasite
Cloak		Cloak of Protection	+1 to Armour Class and Saving Throws	Purchased from Quartermaster Talli in Last Light Inn
Chest		The Protecty Sparkswall	+1 to Spell Save DC +1 to Armour Class and Saving Throws if you have at least 1 Lightning Charge	Looted from a gilded chest at the far end of the trapped bridge in Grymforge
Gloves		Bracers of Defence	+2 to Armour Class, if you have no armour or shield equipped	Looted from a gilded chest in the secret area of the Apothecary’s Cellar
Boots		Boots of Genial Striding	You cannot be slowed down by Difficult Terrain	Sold by Blurg in the Myconid Colony
Necklace		Pearl of Power Amulet	Recover a Spell Slot up to Third Level, once per Long Rest	Sold by Omeluum in the Myconid Colony
Ring 1		Ring of Protection	+1 to Armour Class and Saving Throws	Steal the Sacred Idol in Druid Grove (quest)
Ring 2		Crusher’s Ring	+3 metres Movement Speed per turn	Dropped by Crusher in the Goblin Camp
Main Weapon		The Spellsparkler	Gain 2 Lightning Charges when you deal damage with a Spell or Cantrip Each charge has a +1 bonus to Attack Rolls and +1 bonus Lightning Damage on attacks Reaching 5 charges consumes them all to deal 1d8 bonus Lightning Damage	Rescue Counsellor Florrick from the fire in Waukeen’s Rest
Second Weapon		Any	You can equip any Ranged Weapon that you have Profiency with We’ll usually use Cantrips, so won’t get much use out of this weapon	N/A

Late-Game Equipment

The table below shows the recommended late-game setup for the Necromancy Wizard. In the late-game, we will be putting a little more emphasis on improving the Spell Save Difficulty Class stat, making it harder for enemies to succeed their Saving Throws against our spells.

Slot	Icon	Item	Effects	Location
Head		Hood of the Weave	Gain +2 Spell Save DC at all times	Sold by Mystic Carrion in Philgrave’s Mansion
Cloak		Cloak of the Weave	+1 to Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Rolls	Sold by Helsik at the Devil’s Fee, once her special stock is unlocked
Chest		Robe of the Weave	+2 Armour Class +1 Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Rolls Whenever you succeed a Saving Throw against a spell, restore 1d6 HP	Inside a Globe of Invulnerability in Ramazith’s Tower
Gloves		Helldusk Gloves	+1 to Strength Saving Throws +1 to Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Rolls Rays of Fire (Unique Cantrip)	Dropped by Haarlep in the House of Hope.
Boots		Helldusk Boots	You cannot be forcefully moved by enemy Spells or Actions You’re immune to Difficult Terrain You can use a Reaction to succeed a Saving Throw that you were about to fail	Looted from a locked gilded chest on the top floor of Wyrm’s Rock Fortress
Necklace		Spellcrux Amulet	Recover a Spell Slot of any level, once per Long Rest Can be used in combat, and only requires a Bonus Action	Looted from the Warden in Moonrise Towers Prison
Ring 1		Ring of Protection	+1 to Armour Class and Saving Throws	Steal the Sacred Idol in Druid Grove (quest)
Ring 2		Crypt Lord Ring	Lets you cast Create Undead without needing a Spell Slot, once per Long Rest	Rewarded by Mystic Carrion for finding his servant, ensuring that Thrumbo survives
Main Weapon		Markoheshkir	+1 to Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Rolls Arcane Battery – Cast any spell for free, once per Long Rest Kereska’s Favour, once per Long Rest	Found inside a Globe of Invulnerability in Ramazith’s Tower
Second Weapon		Any	You can equip any Ranged Weapon that you have Profiency with We’ll usually use Cantrips, so won’t get much use out of this weapon	N/A

Markoheshkir Additional Info

A Legendary quarterstaff, Markoheshkir is one of the strongest weapons in the game for “full spellcaster” characters. It gives several bonuses:

• +1 bonus to Spell Save DC and Spell Attack Rolls
• Arcane Battery: Once per Long Rest, remove the Spell Slot cost of your next spell.

Kereska’s Favour

Gain a special elemental buff of your choice until your next Long Rest, unlocking a special buff and new abilities. This is especially good because it doesn’t require Concentration. You can choose from the following variants:

Sizzling Cataclysm

Gain 50% Resistance to Acid Damage. Can cast Melf’s Acid Arrow and Hunger of Hadar once per Short Rest. Acid Spells deal extra Acid Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you inflict 1 turn of Noxious Fumes, causing nearby creatures to take 1d4 Acid Damage per turn.

Deadlier than Arsenic

Gain 50% Resistance to Poison Damage. Can cast Cloudkill and Ray of Sickness once per Short Rest. Poison Spells deal extra Poison Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you inflict 1 turn of Poisoned on the target, causing Disadvantage on Attack Rolls and Ability Checks.

Bone-Shaking Thunder

Gain 50% Resistance to Thunder Damage. Can cast Shatter and Destructive Wave once per Short Rest. Thunder Spells deal extra Thunder Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you inflict 1 turn of Reverberation on the target, causing a -1 penalty to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution Saving Throws.

Bolts of Doom

Gain 50% Resistance to Lightning Damage. Can cast Chain Lightning and Lightning Bolt once per Short Rest. Lightning Spells deal extra Lightning Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you gain 1 Lightning Charge.

Frost of Dark Winter

Gain 50% Resistance to Cold Damage. Can cast Cone of Cold and Ice Storm once per Short Rest. Cold Spells deal extra Cold Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you inflict 1 turn of Encrusted with Frost, causing Disadvantage on Dexterity Saving Throws and possibly Freezing the target if they reach 7 stacks.

Flame of Wrath

Gain 50% Resistance to Fire Damage. Can cast Fireball and Wall of Fire once per Short Rest. Fire Spells deal extra Fire Damage equal to your Proficiency Bonus. When you deal Spell damage, you gain 1 turn of Heat, causing you to take 1d4 Fire Damage per turn but allowing you to use Heat Convergence to convert your Heat stacks to bonus Fire damage on your next attack.

Necromancer Build Extra Info

Below is some additional info that will help you to play the Necromancer Build, including how to use the Necromancy of Thay book to perfect your necromantic abilities.

Necromancy of Thay Book & Dans Macabre Spell in BG3

What would a BG3 Necromancer Build be without the Necromancy of Thay book. This is one of the items that will boost the power of your Necromancer once again. Because if you manage to finish the quest you can summon 4 Ghouls via the Dans Macabre spell.

The spell doesn’t require corpses and you can stack 4 Ghouls on top of your other summons! Make sure to read our in-depth guide on how to get and how to open the Necromancy of Thay book in BG3.

Best Party Composition

Your BG3 character will always perform better when they are in a party that synergises together nicely and works well as a team.

There are lots of awesome party compositions in BG3, with so many classes and subclasses, the possible combinations are almost limitless.

Here is a combo that works great for the Necromancy School Wizard:

If you want your Necromancer to be part of an evil-aligned party, you might also be interested in our Dark Urge Build, Minthara Build, Astarion Build or Lae’zel Build.

BG3 Necromancer Build Tips & Tricks

Maximizing the Necromancer requires balancing your own safety with the positioning of your horde.

Necromancer Build Illithid Powers (optional)

Illithid Powers are unlocked later in BG3 when you learn more about Mind Flayers and Tadpoles. By eating Jars of Mind Flayer Parasites you gain one point. This is another optional skill tree that you can get access to if you want. Here are some of the best Illithid Powers for the BG3 Wizard Build with the Necromancy School subclass:

More BG3 Builds & Guides: