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Necromancers retain their identity as summoners and grim magic casters, wielding blood, blight, and bone as one of the five playable classes in the launch ofDiablo 4. They haven’t changed too drastically from their iterations, but even veteran fans of the franchise might have trouble getting a good build going.
The early portions ofDiablo 4are fairly tame as far as difficulty is concerned. Many players can breeze through the campaign using whatever they feel like using. However, things do start to slow down at around the Level 35 mark, and Necromancers might start running into issues when it comes to surviving and dealing damage. Here are three builds designed for pre-Level 50 Necromancers with limited resources.
Updated Jun 07, 2025 by Marc Santos:Necromancers have seen several changes to some abilities before and after the launch of the Vessel of Hatred expansion. Some leveling builds have fallen out of favor, while others have taken over their place, and existing ones have become even better. The leveling builds in this guide have been updated to better fit into the current state of the game, and a new one has replaced the previous Blood Lance build.
The following guide displays only the most important skills and passives needed for the respective builds to work. All leftover skill points can be safely spent on whatever players prefer, but be sure to prioritize Active Skills over Passives.
Necromancer Minion Build
Minions have been on the butt-end of several nerfs and buffs overDiablo 4’sdevelopment. Luckily, Skeletons have landed on a fairly decent spot after the launch build of the game, and even more so in Season of Loot Reborn. Players can safely build down this path in the early game for some startling success.
Book of the Dead
Iron Golem
Every 2nd Iron Golem attack unleashes a shockwave.
Decompose and Skeletal Magesare your main sources of damage with this build. The former deals decent damage for a Basic Skill, but it’s mainly here to create Corpses and apply Vulnerable. The DPS of Shadow Mages early in the game is extremely high, and they’ll help you power throughDiablo 4’sreworked difficulty levelswith relative ease.
Cast Iron Maiden, Corpse Explosion, and Blight for extra damage-over-time and damage buffs, then continuously cast Decompose at a target while your mages blast them with Shadow magic.Skeletal Defenders and Iron Golemcan keep the pressure off you and your mages. If you’re having trouble managing aggro, use Bone Golem instead for the taunt.
Main Aspects
Out of all the Aspects, you should always have these equipped. Again, these are here to further improve the DPS of Shadow Mages. Use whatever else you have for the rest of your gear slots. To get the most out of this build, Temper your equipment to have bonus Skeletal Mage Damage.
Overpowering Blood Surge Build
This build uses themany built-in Overpower passivesin the Necromancer’s Blood skills to disintegrate entire rooms full of monsters in a few Skill casts. Blood Surge is the star of this show, and every ounce of the following setups is designed to make it reliable in almost every situation.
Skeletal Defenders taunt enemies every 6 seconds.
Cold Mages
Gain 3 Essence when Cold Mages deal damage with their primary attacks.
Bone Golem
SACRIFICE - Gain +15% Attack Speed
Paranormal Blood Surgegreatly increasesthe consistency of Overpower procs, and even more so with the Rathma’s Vigor Key Passive. We takeAcolyte’s Hemorrhagefor the increased attack speed and chance to form Blood Orbs, which will fuel Blood Surge and the Rathma’s Vigor.
Skeleton Defenders will keep your enemies distractedwhile youbuild your Essence together with Cold Mages. With Acolyte’s Hemorrhage and a sacrificed Bone Golem, your attack speed should be significantly increased, helping you generate more Essence for Blood Surge.
The following are the primary Aspects you should be using for this build. Use whatever else you have for your other equipment slots:
Expectant is astapleDiablo 4Offensive Aspectthat’s great for many builds, and if you pair it with guaranteed Overpower procs from passive skills and the Blood-boiling Aspect, you’ll be able to clear hordes of enemies with a single button press. This build is particularly great for leveling via Helltides or the Kurast Undercity.
Sever Build
The following is an off-shoot of the Minion build above. This time, instead of relying solely on your Skeletons and Golems to deal damage, players will have a more active role by using the Sever Core Skill that’s empowered to deal as much damage as possible over a larger area.
Iron Golem slams also pull enemies in.
Afflictiondoes a number of things. First, it makes you deal 15% more damage against enemies that are affected by Crowd Control, Vulnerable, or Shadow Damage Over Time effects. We can apply these via Sever, Cold Mages, Corpse Tendrils, and our Iron Golem’s slam attacks. Second, it turns Iron Maiden into an AOE nuke when used on enemies affected by Affliction.
Sever itself is an excellent damage skill, and when paired with minions, you’ll be able to handle most enemies with ease, including large hordes and bosses. you may strengthen this build even further with the following core Aspects:
