Get even more undead thralls in the Complete Necromancer!
Undead Thralls
Necromancers use the following creatures as their thralls: bonebeasts, gorgers, gravetouched ghouls, skeletons, spirits, visages, and zombies. Unless otherwise stated, no other Undead creatures can be animated as thralls. A Small or Medium Humanoid corpse can be animated into any of these Undead. Other than having a different size, your thralls’ statistics are unchanged.
A corpse can become a gorger, gravetouched ghoul, or zombie. A pile of bones can become a bonebeast or skeleton. The corpse of a creature that has been dead for no more than 1 hour can become a spirit or visage.
The Undead Thralls table can be used as a quick reference for thrall statistics.
| Name | CR | AC | HP | Movement | Traits |
| Bonebeast | 1 | 14 | 27 | 40 ft. | Keen Smell, Pack Tactics |
| Gorger | 1 | 8 | 36 | 30 ft. | Echolocation |
| Gravetouched Ghoul | 2 | 12 | 63 | 30 ft. | Regeneration |
| Skeleton | 1/4 | 13 | 13 | 30 ft. | — |
| Spirit | 1/4 | 15 | 7 | 25 ft., fly 25 ft. (hover) | Incorporeal Movement |
| Visage | 2 | 17 | 40 | 25 ft., fly 25 ft. (hover) | Incorporeal Movement, Magic Resistance |
| Zombie | 1/4 | 8 | 22 | 20 ft. | Undead Fortitude |
Sidebar: Many Thralls
When you have three or more thralls under your command of the same type, you can roll a single attack on a particular target for all your thralls, instead of rolling attacks separately. If this attack hits, you treat all your thralls as having hit; if this misses, all your thralls’ attacks miss. Thralls with different Action statistics and those that make attacks against different targets must roll separately.
Bonebeast
Constructed of haphazardly assembled humanoid bones, a bonebeast looks nothing like a man. Lumbering about on four legs with great boney fangs, the beast can run as fast as a bear and strike as viciously as a lion.
Medium Undead, Typically Neutral Evil
Hit Points 27 (5d8 + 5)
Speed 40 ft.
INT 5 (-3) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 5 (-3)
Condition Immunities poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages understands all languages it knew in life, as well as the languages of its creator, but can’t speak
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Pack Tactics. The bonebeast has advantage on attack rolls against a creature if at least one of the bonebeast’s allies is within 5 feet of the creature and the ally isn’t incapacitated.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (2d6 + 2) piercing damage.
Gorger
An unholy tangling of flesh, the gorger still vaguely resembles a humanoid in profile, except for the gaping, toothed maw in its chest. Its colossal teeth are little more than sharpened ribs, but its monstrous bite can easily decapitate.
Medium Undead, Typically Neutral Evil
Hit Points 36 (8d8)
Speed 30 ft.
INT 7 (–2) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 6 (–2)
Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, poisoned
Senses blindsight 10 ft., darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages understands all languages it knew in life, as well as the languages of its creator, but can’t speak
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d8 + 3) piercing damage.
Gravetouched Ghoul
Gravetouched ghouls, which are suffused with terrible necromantic energies, manifest various deformities on their undead bodies. Despite being undead, their flesh knits itself back together nearly as quick as a troll’s, with strength to match.
Medium Undead, Typically Neutral Evil
Hit Points 63 (14d8)
Speed 30 ft.
INT 9 (–1) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 8 (–1)
Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, poisoned
Senses blindsight 60 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages understands all languages it knew in life, as well as the languages of its creator, but can’t speak
Challenge 2 (450 XP)
Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (4d6 + 4) slashing damage.
Skeleton
The reanimated remains of humanoids long since dead, skeletons are puppets of bone held aloft by strings of magic.
Medium Undead, Typically Lawful Evil
Hit Points 13 (2d8 + 4)
Speed 30 ft.
INT 6 (–2) WIS 8 (–1) CHA 5 (–3)
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities exhaustion, poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 9
Languages understands all languages it knew in life, as well as the languages of its creator, but can’t speak
Challenge 1/4 (50 XP)
Shortsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage.
Shortbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, range 80/320 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage.
Spirit
A spirit is the scarcely tangible echo of a humanoid, a soul bound to the mortal realm by necromantic magic.
Medium Undead, Typically Chaotic Evil
Hit Points 7 (2d8 – 2)
Speed 25 ft., fly 25 ft. (hover)
INT 10 (+0) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 11 (+0)
Damage Immunities cold, poison, necrotic
Condition Immunities exhaustion, grappled, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, prone, restrained
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages understands all languages it knew in life, as well as the languages of its creator, but can’t speak
Challenge 1/4 (50 XP)
Grave Touch. Melee Spell Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 4 (1d4 + 2) necrotic damage and the target’s hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the necrotic damage taken. This reduction lasts until the creature finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its hit point maximum to 0.
Visage
Mournfully longing for the world of the living, a visage is the lingering soul of a departed humanoid. Their yearning for a life once lived binds them to the mortal realm, and drives mad those who see their terrible countenance.
Medium Undead, Typically Chaotic Evil
Hit Points 40 (9d8)
Speed 25 ft., fly 25 ft. (hover)
INT 10 (+0) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 11 (+0)
Condition Immunities exhaustion, grappled, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, prone, restrained
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages understands all languages it knew in life, as well as the languages of its creator, but can’t speak
Challenge 2 (450 XP)
Magic Resistance. The visage has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Horrify. Melee Spell Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 15 (5d4 + 3) psychic damage.
Invisibility. The visage magically turns invisible until it attacks or until its concentration ends (as if concentrating on a spell). Any equipment the visage wears or carries is invisible with it.
Zombie
A zombie is the rotting remains of the once living, held together and driven by dark magic.
Medium Undead, Typically Neutral Evil
Hit Points 22 (3d8 + 9)
Speed 20 ft.
INT 3 (–4) WIS 6 (–2) CHA 5 (–3)
Condition Immunities poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 8
Languages understands all languages it knew in life, as well as the languages of its creator, but can’t speak
Challenge 1/4 (50 XP)
Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d6 + 1) bludgeoning damage.
