Undead with 5 Special Abilities

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1

Hi,

I noticed in L&E (p 148) it lists the number of special abilities an undead creature can have as 2d6-7, for a max of 5. However, in ACKS Core (p 123) under the rules for ritual Necromancy, the number of special abilities a character can create intelligent undead with is limited to 1+Int, which with a maximum of 18 Int for a +3 bonus would only amount to 4 special abilities. I have checked the errata and found nothing to settle this apparent discrepancy, which has lead me to a few possible conclusions.

Option 1: Unintelligent undead raised through a spell can have up to 5 specials, while intelligent undead are limited to 4 (this would seem to imply that intelligence is weighted similarly to a single special ability). Mechanically feasible, but seems lacking in flavor - generally I would think of intelligent undead being both more competent and more powerful.

Option 2: The spell vigor can grant +1d3 Str up to a maximum of 19 for a +4 Str bonus. A custom spell could be researched to grant +1d3 Int up to 19 for an indefinite duration (or perhaps a daily duration reapplied each day) to allow a character to artificially boost their Int for the purposes of Magic Research. This has interesting implications on why every caster hasn't already researched this spell.

Option 3: I misinterpreted something and have no idea what I'm talking about.

Thanks!

2

I think you accidentally the whole post.

3

Thank you, sorry. It's fixed now.

4

Not all undead necessarily need to be created by modern mortal wizards.

5

You've overlooked the rules for magic experimentation in the Player's Companion, which state that a minor, major, or revolutionary breakthrough can result in an newly created undead gaining 1, 2, or 3 additional special abilities over and above the special abilities a necromancer can grant a created undead by virtue of his or her intelligence bonus. (It's not explicitly specified whether these extra special abilities can cause a monster to have more than the five-ability limit specified on page 147 of Lairs & Encounters.)

6

Thanks! That makes a lot of sense. I think the specials ability maximum in L&E are not theoretical maximums (I don't think constructs even have a theoretical maximum), so I'm not overly worried about being able to exceed the listed limit, just with reaching it. Thank you!