Skeletonize - A Spell to Build the Dead and Burn the Living

Something a player I will always have at a table I GM for once told me something I found a little surprising. It really resonates with a GM and a person who brews Dungeons and Dragons content that this is an opinion they hold: “I honestly don't read the super high level stuff, as I feel like most characters don't get there.”

There's honestly a lot of truth to this. Most characters and campaigns, in my experience, meet a natural end between 13th and 17th level. It's more interesting to me when the PCs don't have phenomenal cosmic power, and their problems are much more grass roots. Then again, those immense powers are fun, and it's interesting to consider them in new ways.

Remixing the Classics

When I look at those unloved but powerful, high level powers, I look at the multitude of spells. There are hundreds from the multiple core books and supplemental titles released regularly.

The enemy is left crispy and obedient - Skeletonize by Karl Kopinski

One splashy but arguably forgettable spell is Finger of Death. I've seen it used in my games to absolutely zero effect. An immense load of damage did not turn the hobgoblin into a zombie, much to the dismay of the caster.

I'm interested in scaling this spell down a teensie bit. The effect is so powerful, and feels like a true necromancer at work. They die, and their kill rises again. In this little exercise, I really want to reskin the flavour, based on an equally forgettable Magic the Gathering card.

The original description for Finger of Death is a little unclear. Negative energy moves through a target? An engaged player may say it's swirls of black or deep purple swirling in and around their target, but it's not quite as punchy as a column of deep red fire which burns flesh, armour, and the very soul.

Taking the damage down a little is for the best. Perhaps the +30 could go? Taking it from an average 62 damage, to 32 is much more manageable. Fire damage is a must; even though more creatures are resistant to fire than necrotic, this helps bringing down the spell's level. Another thing that'd bring the spell's power down would be the undead creature it creates.

charred skeleton stats made with homebrewery

Skeletons are notoriously brittle compared to zombies. As a person would expect. Bones, especially charred by necromantic fire would leave them much more weak compared to zombies. Though for me, in the flavour we're going for, what if the fire provided either magical or integral powers to the skeleton itself. Lastly, this spell, just like Finger of Death, is ideal for Sorcerer, Warlock, and Wizard.

The charred skeleton stats I made should cover that just nicely.

Magical Manifestation

I believe that this kind of exercise, taking some established class power, item, monster, or spell is an absolutely essential practice for GMs. It helps you know so much more about the mechanics of the system you're playing if you've twiddled with it yourself. I'm proud of what we've made, and hope to see Skeletonize pop up in your games.

Now we want to hear from you. How would you rework or redesign spells? Which characters you play would use a spell to char the life from a poor sap? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

the finished Skeletonize Spell generated with homebrewery

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com, he writes about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out himself. On Youtube, he can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes, or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere. Follow his Twitter @IzzetTinkerer.