S-TIER | BUILD NECROMANCER Réanimation (@SKULM) | SAISON 13

📊 Build
⚔️ Pit Pushing
4.7
S
💨 Speed Farming
4.5
S
🛡️ Survivability
4.6
S
💰 Budget
4.5
S
GLOBAL TIER S
69 votes
Pit Pushing
Speed Farming
Survivability
Budget

ENDGAME | PIT PUSH NECROMANCIEN

Article by Kami

Build Overview

SKULM lands on Season 13 Lord of Hatred with a Summon Necromancer fully redesigned for endgame. This build goes all-in on the skeleton army (warriors + mages) and the Blood Golem to make even Boss Uber Lilith feel like a formality, while pushing Torment difficulty up to tier 12 and Pit tiers beyond 100.

The build's signature is the combination of the Radament's Desecration set in 5 pieces (35% of damage taken transferred to your minions + 60x minion damage) and the cooldown reduction mechanic via DecrepifyDecrepify, which lets you spam the Army of the DeadArmy of the Dead on a constant loop and keep DPS pressure up at all times. SKULM plays this version even without the mythic Undercrown — proof that the build is already S-Tier in "half-optimized" mode with non-maxed glyphs and unsanctified items.

The result: a tank Necromancer, simple to play (no frantic button-spamming), that deals billions of damage and stays usable by any player with even minimal experience on the class.

Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths

  • Massive skeleton army with top-tier Golem damage scaling
  • Outstanding survivability thanks to layered defenses (Fortification, Weaken, Aspect of Hardened BonesAspect of Hardened Bones)
  • Infinite cooldown on Army of the DeadArmy of the Dead via the upgraded DecrepifyDecrepify
  • Excellent scaling with Bloodied Sigils and Season 13 mythics
  • Versatile: pushes Pit 100+, farms Torment 12, viable for bossing and zone clearing
  • Flexible Book of the Dead setups depending on your needs (push vs. farm)

Weaknesses

  • Not a speed farm build — endgame push oriented above all
  • Heavily dependent on unique charms and the mythic seal to unlock its full potential
  • Attack Speed is missing — compensated through the mercenary Varyana
  • Several non-optimal slots until you have the full collection (Undercrown, Bloodless Scream, etc.)

Recommended Gear

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The helm Heir of PerditionHeir of Perdition is the offensive backbone of the build: it grants all skills boosted and a colossal damage multiplier that stacks with minion bonuses. On the chest, Tyrael's Might brings massive damage reduction and a barrier effect that fits perfectly with the build's tank philosophy. If you don't have Tyrael yet, any legendary chest with the Aspect of Heavenly StrengthAspect of Heavenly Strength works for the transition phase.

On the gloves, Deathgrip is the heart of the build: it lets the skeletons pull enemies and generates the cooldown reduction needed to fuel the infinite Army of the DeadArmy of the Dead cycle. The pants Blood Moon BreechesBlood Moon Breeches bring high Maximum Life and a direct boost to Skeleton Mages — exactly what you need for a summon build. On the main ring, Pact of Bone serves as an amplification generator, ideal alongside the Aspect of Amplified Damage on the second ring.

For the boots, the Aspect of the VoidAspect of the Void remains the best option: it applies WeakenWeaken to enemies hit by Darkness Skills, and since Skeleton Mages and Skeleton Warriors deal Shadow damage, you benefit from the damage multiplier against weakened enemies for free. On the amulet, the Hellbent Commander Aspect directly boosts Minion skills, and on the main weapon the Aspect of ReanimationAspect of Reanimation takes your skeletons to the next level by increasing their damage through duration scaling. For tempering, prioritize Maximum Life, Attack Speed, and Greater Affixes on offensive multipliers.

Horadric Seal S13

The Horadric Seal of Season 13 is the most powerful scaling lever in the build. SKULM runs the Radament's Desecration set in 5 pieces, which unlocks two monstrous bonuses: a 35% transfer of damage taken to your minions (excellent defensive layer) and a 60x multiplier on minion damage. The latter alone justifies sacrificing 5 charm slots for the set.

Until you get the mythic seal (which unlocks an additional unique charm slot), SKULM plays with 4 set pieces + rare unique charms when available. Once the mythic seal is in your bags, you can switch to 4 set pieces + 2 uniques (for example Bloodless Scream for roughly 125% additional damage multipliers, or a ring that turns your curses into auras).

Build Variants

This guide covers the endgame push version of the build, but SKULM mentions two interesting variants depending on your goal:

  • Speed farm — Replace the Golem with Sever and use Iron MaidenIron Maiden to clear zones faster. You lose the unstoppable side of the Golem but gain much better movement and AoE. This variant is available on SKULM's leveling planner (select "Speed Farm").
  • Tower / Pit push — A more optimized version for the Towers and Pit 100+ is coming soon, with a different Paragon layout and more Attack Speed on gear.
  • Night King — Alternative variant geared toward pure Shadow damage scaling, based on the unique Night Eternity and Mage summon charms.

Gameplay Tips

The rotation is intentionally simple. You apply DecrepifyDecrepify on the Boss or elite pack (cooldown reduction + healing via the upgraded blood curse), then you spam your active summons through Deathgrip and the Army of the DeadArmy of the Dead which comes back every 6-8 seconds thanks to the cooldown cycle.

Your Resolve and Aspect of ReanimationAspect of Reanimation passives stack automatically — no need to track stacks. Hellbound Commander and Amplify DamageAmplify Damage are the carrying passives of the build: they turn your minions into damage machines. During Boss phases, the Blood Golem activates its ability to fortify (10% of your Maximum Life converted to Fortification) — you become near-immortal against Bosses on the level of the Blood Seekers.

The glyphs aren't yet maxed out on the video version (57 and 60 on some, 74 on Deadraiser). Prioritize leveling Deadraiser then Warrior, which directly boosts Skeleton Warriors — your main source of Shadow damage.

Talent Tree

Mercenary

SKULM hires Varyana as the primary Mercenary to fill the Attack Speed gap that this summon build has on its gear. Her skill BloodthirstBloodthirst applies +15% additional damage to enemies hit, and her passive Intimidated reduces incoming damage — an ideal defensive/offensive combo.

For reinforcement, Aldkin is chosen for his Field of Anguish ability that triggers on every spell cast: a zone that further reduces enemy damage by 20%. This additional defensive layer stacks on top of WeakenWeaken, the Blood Golem's Fortification, and the Aspects of Hardened Bones and Heavenly Strength to make you nearly indestructible.

Paragon and Glyphs

SKULM's Paragon path revolves around five boards and five essential glyphs. On the starter board, AbyssalAbyssal is prioritized for its scaling on Shadow Skills. The Cult Leader board comes second with DeadraiserDeadraiser at the center — this is the most important glyph in the build, scaling directly the duration and damage of Skeleton Warriors.

The Frailty board with WarriorWarrior reinforces your minions, the Wither board carries the EssenceEssence glyph for regeneration, and the Flesh-eater board hosts GravekeeperGravekeeper which closes the loop. SKULM mentions that he's still missing one legendary board in his current version — the final build version on the planner will likely contain a sixth board to add even more scaling on minions.

Book of the Dead

The Book of the Dead is central to this build and conditions your damage directly. For Skeleton Warriors, choose Skeletal Reapers with a +50% damage upgrade — the upgrade that turns the Reaper into a Darkness Skill is crucial because it synergizes with all your Shadow damage multipliers via the Aspect of the VoidAspect of the Void and the Hellbound Commander passive.

For Skeleton Mages, go with Shadow Mages with the barrier upgrade. This variant automatically applies a barrier to your character on every cast, and since Shadow Mages also deal Shadow damage, you benefit from the same scaling multiplier. Combined with DecrepifyDecrepify applying WeakenWeaken (enemy damage reduction), you get a defensive wall that re-applies itself.

For the Golem, the Blood Golem is mandatory in this build: its active ability fortifies you for 10% of your Maximum Life — it's your main source of Fortification, and therefore of damage reduction. Avoid life drain on your minions, they need to stay alive to carry your DPS.

Shadow Damage Synergies

What pushes the build into S-Tier is the stacking of Shadow damage multipliers. Every attack from a Mage or Skeletal Reaper deals Shadow damage, which:

  • Activates the bonus from the Aspect of the VoidAspect of the Void (Weaken at 100% on the target)
  • Stacks the GloomGloom buff that increases Shadow damage dealt (up to 4 stacks for 2 seconds)
  • Benefits from the curse scaling of DecrepifyDecrepify upgraded by Resolve
  • Benefits from the Hellbent Commander Aspect which boosts Minion Skills

This massive stacking is what allows SKULM to deal "billions and billions" of damage doing nothing more than placing his curses and sending his minions. Once you have your unique charms and the mythic seal, this stacking will explode even further.

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