Skeleton Mage Necromancer - Witch/Necromancer

Quick Summary: Summons skeleton mages that fire elemental projectiles at enemies. Excellent scaling, strong bossing, and smooth mapping once properly geared. Dead Eye cluster makes this build exceptional.

Build Overview

Identity

• Primary Skill: Summon Skeletons (with Dead Reckoning jewels for mages)
• Damage Type: Cold/Fire/Lightning (Elemental)
• Playstyle: Minion Summoner
• Budget Tier: Medium Budget (2-10 divine to feel good)
• League: 3.27 | Patch: 3.27.0 | Updated: 2025-11-16

Path of Building

PoB Link: [To be added]

Description

Skeleton Mage Necromancer is a powerful summoner build that uses Dead Reckoning jewels to convert Summon Skeletons into ranged mage variants. These skeleton mages fire elemental projectiles (fire, cold, or lightning) that deal high damage and can shotgun bosses.

The build excels at both mapping and bossing once you acquire the necessary jewels and clusters. With proper investment, skeleton mages can achieve millions of DPS while maintaining good survivability through a large minion army tanking hits.

This build requires some specific items to function (Dead Reckoning jewels, clusters) but scales incredibly well with investment. It’s one of the strongest minion builds for endgame content.

Pros & Cons

Strengths ✅

• ✅ Exceptional single-target DPS - melts bosses
• ✅ Great scaling - improves dramatically with investment
• ✅ Safe playstyle - minions tank while you position
• ✅ All content viable - handles everything well

Weaknesses ❌

• ❌ Requires specific jewels - Dead Reckoning mandatory
• ❌ Slower early mapping - need to resummon skeletons
• ❌ Moderate budget requirement - 2-5 divine to feel smooth
• ❌ Cast speed dependent - need to summon mages quickly

Performance Matrix

Content Ratings

Budget Benchmarks

Skills & Tree

Ascendancy

Necromancer

Gem Setups

6-Link (Primary Damage):

Summon Skeletons (L21)
├─ Spell Echo - Double casts
├─ Minion Damage - More damage
├─ Elemental Army - Exposure
├─ Hypothermia/Elemental Focus - More damage
└─ GMP/Predator - Coverage or single-target

4-Link #1 (Utility):

Vaal Skeletons + Spell Echo + Minion Damage + Predator

4-Link #2 (Defense):

Bone Offering + Cast when Damage Taken + Desecrate + Spirit Offering

Gear Roadmap

Phase 1: Budget Start (2-5 divine)

Priority Order:

1. Dead Reckoning Jewels (2x): REQUIRED - converts skeletons to mages
2. 6-Link: Tabula Rasa or budget 6-link
3. Resistances: Cap all to 75%
4. Life: 4000+ HP

Phase 2: Medium Budget (5-15 divine)

Key Upgrades:

1. Medium Clusters: Blessed Rebirth, Life from Death
2. +Skill Gems: Wand/Shield with +1/+2 to minion skills
3. Better 6-Link: Rare chest with life + res

Phase 3: Endgame (15+ divine)

Build-Defining Upgrades:

1. Perfect Clusters: Large minion clusters with Renewal + Feasting Fiends
2. +3 Minion Wand: Crafted wand with +3 to minion gems
3. Awakened Gems: Awakened supports

Leveling Path

Acts 1-10 Strategy

Skill Progression:

• Acts 1-4: Summon Raging Spirit or Absolution
• Acts 5-10: Transition to skeletons (non-mage) until you get Dead Reckoning

Important: This build requires Dead Reckoning jewels to function properly. Level with other minion skills until you can afford the jewels (usually in maps).

Build Scaling

How to Improve DPS

Priority Investments:

1. Dead Reckoning Jewels (2x): Essential (1-2div each)
2. +Gem Levels: +1-3 to minion skills (5-10div)
3. Medium Clusters: Blessed Rebirth (2-5div)
4. Awakened Gems: Level 5 supports (3-5div each)

Map Mods Reference

Cannot Run

• ❌ Players cannot regenerate life, mana, or ES: Build relies on regen

Dangerous/Rippy

• ⚠️ -Max Resistances: Rippy for player
• ⚠️ Minions deal less damage: Annoying but doable

Free/Easy

• ✅ Physical Reflect: Elemental damage build
• ✅ No Leech: Don’t rely on leech

FAQ & Resources

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I league start this? A: Not recommended. Requires Dead Reckoning jewels which cost 1-2 divine each. Better to start with a different build and transition.

Q: How many Dead Reckoning jewels do I need? A: 2-3 jewels. Each jewel converts up to 5 warriors to mages.

Q: What’s the DPS ceiling? A: 15-20M DPS with full investment (50+ divine).

Changelog