Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide for Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred (Season 6)
Last updated on 06/10/2024
DIablo 4 Builds
General Notes
General Notes for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide in Vessel of Hatred
Note: This leveling guide is optimized for Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred (Season 6).
The beloved Minion Necromancer has finally become a really strong build in Diablo 4. But that wasn't always the case, because only in the 4th Season your minions received many important buffs that made them a serious alternative.
My Summoner Necro is the perfect choice for a relaxed leveling experience and is still extremely strong, both against groups of monsters and bosses. Just sit back and watch your minions at work!
Until when is this leveling build playable? You can play this and all my other leveling guides on Vitablo.com for as long as you like. Some of them still perform well at Torment difficulty 4, others have their limit at Torment difficulty 3. As soon as your build no longer feels strong enough, you can switch to one of my endgame builds.
Playstyle
Playstyle for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
- Against small groups of monsters, all you have to do is relax and watch your minions beat up your enemies. I recommend a bag of popcorn and a cold, refreshing drink of your choice.
- For elite enemies, you should use Iron Maiden and Corpse Tendrils to pull them together. Once this is done, you can use Blight to increase your minion's damage.
- If you want to farm dungeons even faster, you should use your Golem's active skill as often as possible so that he jumps into enemy groups, and so you don't have to wait for your minions.
- You can save Army of the Dead for particularly large groups of enemies or bosses. You can also use the ability to revive all your minions, even if there are no corpses nearby.
- If you have used Blight too often and have no Essence left, you can use Iron Maiden on enemy groups to regenerate it.
- If you want your minions to deal even more damage, you can use your Raise Skeleton skill to summon Skeleton Priests. This allows you to consume corpses and benefit from some passive skill buffs and Paragon nodes.
Skills
Skills for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
Note: Level up all your active skills first and work your way down to your Key Passive as quickly as possible. If you are missing skill points to progress on your way through the skill tree, you can invest them in some passive skills. As soon as you have leveled up all active abilities and your Key Passive Ability, continue with the missing passive skills.
Skill tree notes:
- If you have problems with survival, you can replace Iron Maiden with Decrepify.
Specialization
Specialization for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
Skeletal Warriors → Reapers → Upgrade 1
Wind-up attacks now reduce one of your active Cooldowns by X seconds.
Skeletal Mages → Shadow → Upgrade 1
You deal X% increased damage for each active Shadow Mage.
Golem → Iron → Upgrade 1
Every 2nd Iron Golem attack causes a shockwave, dealing X% damage to the primary enemy and to enemies behind them.
Aspekcts
Aspects for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
Aspect of Hardened Bones
You and your Minions gain X% increased Damage Reduction.
Coldbringer's Aspect
Every X seconds, your Skeletal Mages cast a blizzard that deals X Cold damage and continuously Chills enemies for X% over X seconds.
Aspect of Grasping Veins
Gain X% increased Critical Strike Chance for X seconds when you cast Corpse Tendrils. You deal X% bonus Critical Strike Damage to enemies for X seconds after they are damaged by Corpse Tendrils.
The aspect also increases the damage of your minions.
Blood Getter's Aspect
Your Skeletal Priests now also empower you at X% effectiveness.
The aspect also increases the damage of your minions.
Aspect of Metamorphosis
When you Evade you turn into a cloud of bats, becoming Unstoppable for X seconds. Enemies along your path take X Physical damage and are inflicted with Vampiric Curse. Evade's Cooldown is increased by X seconds.
Aspect of Occult Dominion
Your maximum number of Skeletal Warriors and Skeletal Mages is increased by X.
Unyielding Commander's Aspect
While Army of the Dead is active, your Minions gain X% increased damage and take X% reduced damage.
Aspect of Frenzied Dead
Each time one of your Minions damages an enemy, they gain X% Attack Speed for X seconds, up to X%.
Aspect of Reanimation
Your Minions gain increased damage while alive, up to X% after X seconds.
Aspect of the Great Feast
Your Minions deal X% increased damage, but each one drains X Essence from you per second. If you have no active Minions, the damage increase applies to you instead, and you lose X Essence per second.
With this Aspect you will lose Essence and can use Blight less often. If you want to use the Aspect, you should search for Essence per Second on items.
Items & Affixes
Items & Affixes for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
General tips about your Gear
- Armor: You need a maximum of 1,000 armor. Anything above that is useless and has no effect. If you haven't reached your armor cap yet, adjust your equipment, gems and paragon talents accordingly.
- Resistances: You need at least 70% to all resistances. If you have not yet reached these values, adjust your equipment, gems and paragon talents accordingly.
- Affixes: Each item type has different properties (affixes) that are useful for this build. Some of these are mandatory, others are optional. Please pay attention to the following symbols:
Helmet
- Ranks to Skeletal Warrior Mastery
- Life
- Intelligence
- Cooldown Reduction
- Armor as Required
- Resistances as Required
- Aspect of Hardened Bones
Profane Innovation
- Corpse Explosion Size
- Corpse Tendrils Size
- Curse Size
- Curse Duration
You need both at 100%, so you can take whichever you hit first.
Worldly Endurance
- Maximum Life
- Total Armor
- Dodge Chance
Until Torment 1 Life, after that Armor.
Chest Armor
- Ranks to Golem Mastery
- Life
- Intelligence
- Armor as Required
- Resistances as Required
- Coldbringer's Aspect
Profane Innovation
- Corpse Explosion Size
- Corpse Tendrils Size
- Curse Size
- Curse Duration
You need both at 100%, so you can take whichever you hit first.
Worldly Endurance
- Maximum Life
- Total Armor
- Dodge Chance
Until Torment 1 Life, after that Armor.
Gloves
- Critical Hit Chance
- Intelligence
- Attack Speed
- Critical Hit Damage
- Vulnerable Damage
- Aspect of Grasping Veins
Summoning Finesse
- Summoning Damage
- Skeletal Mages Damage
- Golems Damage
Profane Innovation
- Corpse Explosion Size
- Corpse Tendrils Size
- Curse Size
- Curse Duration
You need both at 100%, so you can take whichever you hit first.
Pants
- Ranks to Skeletal Mage Mastery
- Life
- Intelligence
- Armor as Required
- Resistances as Required
- Blood Getter's Aspect
Profane Innovation
- Corpse Explosion Size
- Corpse Tendrils Size
- Curse Size
- Curse Duration
You need both at 100%, so you can take whichever you hit first.
Worldly Endurance
- Maximum Life
- Total Armor
- Dodge Chance
Until Torment 1 Life, after that Armor.
Boots
- Movement Speed
- Ranks to Skeletal Warrior Mastery
- Life
- Intelligence
- Aspect of Metamorphosis
Profane Innovation
- Corpse Explosion Size
- Corpse Tendrils Size
- Curse Size
- Curse Duration
You need both at 100%, so you can take whichever you hit first.
Necromancer Motion
- Movement Speed
- Movement Speed for X Seconds After Killing an Elite
- Movement Speed during Blood Mist
Amulet
- Ranks to Hellbent Commander
- Intelligence
- Critical Hit Chance
- Cooldown Reduction
- Movement Speed
- Attack Speed
- Aspect of Occult Dominion
Summoning Finesse
- Summoning Damage
- Skeletal Mages Damage
- Golems Damage
Necromancer Efficiency
- Ultimate Cooldown Reduction
- Golem Active Cooldown Reduction
- Bone Spirit Cooldown Reduction
- Ranks to Rapid Ossification
Rings
- Critical Hit Chance
- Intelligence
- Attack Speed
- Life
- Unyielding Commander's Aspect
- Aspect of Frenzied Dead
Summoning Finesse
- Summoning Damage
- Skeletal Mages Damage
- Golems Damage
Necromancer Efficiency
- Ultimate Cooldown Reduction
- Golem Active Cooldown Reduction
- Bone Spirit Cooldown Reduction
- Ranks to Rapid Ossification
2H Scythe
- Intelligence
- Life
- Damage
- Criticla Hit Damage
- Vulnerable Damage
- Aspect of Reanimation
Summoning Augments
- Chance for Army of the Dead to Deal Double Damage
- Chance for Skeleton Mages Attacks to Cast Twice
- Chance for Skeleton Warriors to Hit Twice
- Chance for Golem to Hit Twice
Summoning Finesse
- Summoning Damage
- Skeletal Mages Damage
- Golems Damage
Ring of Mendeln
Resistance to All Elements
Shadow Resistance
Intelligence
Damage
Minion Attack Speed
Ranks to Skeletal Warrior Mastery, Skeletal Mage Mastery, and Golem Mastery
Every 6th attack from each Minion is empowered, exploding for X Physical damage.
Beast in the Ice
Necromancer
Heir of Perdition
Damage to Angels and Demons
Critical Strike Chance
Lucky Hit Chance
Movement Speed
Ranks to Core Skills
Succumb to hatred and earn Mother’s Favor, increasing your damage dealt by X%. Briefly steal Mother’s Favor from Nearby allies by slaughtering enemies.
Duriel, Andariel, Tormented Bosses
All Classes
Runewords
Runewords for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
Note: If you are missing the required Runes, you can use Gemstones in the meantime.
1st Runeword: Neo + Gar (Chest Armor)
Neo
Gain: 200 Offering
Deal damage after not taking any within X seconds. (Resets if Invulnerable.)
Gar
Required: 25 Offering
Cooldown: 1 Second
Gain X% Critical Strike Chance for X seconds, up to X%. (Overflow: Gain Multiple Stacks)
Note: If you already have sufficient critical hit chance (> 80%), you can replace the Gar Rune with a Yom Rune to trigger the Druid's Ultimate Skill Petrify.
Yom
Required: 500 Offering
Cooldown: 5 Seconds
Evoke the Druid's Petrify, Stunning enemies and gain Resource.
2nd Runeword: Lith + Ohm (2H Weapon)
Lith
Gain: 25 Offering
Stand still for X seconds.
Ohm
Required: 600 Offering
Cooldown: 2 Seconds
Evoke the Barbarian's War Cry, increasing your damage dealt. (Overflow: Increased Duration)
Gemstones
Gemstones for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
WaffenEmerald
Weapons: Critical Strike Damage
Armor: Dexterity
Jewelry: Poison Resistance
RüstungTopaz
Weapons: Basic Damage
Armor: Intelligence
Jewelry: Lightning Resistance
JewelryGems and Skulls
You'll need at least 70% to all resistances. If you haven't reached those numbers yet, change your gems accordingly. If you have too many resistances on your items, you can also use skulls, but you shouldn't exceed the armor cap of 1,000.
Paragon Board
Paragon Board for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
General tips about the Paragon-Board
- Glyph Radius: To increase the radius of your Glyphs, you have to level them in the Pit. The starting radius is 3 boxes. At level 15, it increases to 4 boxes and its Additional Bonus is unlocked. At level 45, the radius is 5 boxes and the Glyph receives its Legendary Bonus.
- Skill Order: The Essential Layout shows you the most important Glyphs and Nodes that you should skill first. As soon as you're finished, you can switch to the Final Layout and fill in any missing Paragon Nodes or adjust the board layout and Glyphs as required.
Amplify
Rare Glyph "Amplify"
Grants X% bonus to all Magic nodes within range.
Additional Bonus: Enemies affected by Curse Skills take X% increased damage from you and your Minions.
Legendary Bonus: You deal X% increased damage to Injured enemies.
Legendary Node "Cult Leader"
Your Minions deal X% increased damage for each X% of Attack Speed Bonus they have, up to a maximum of X% Attack Speed Bonus.
Rare Glyph "Deadraiser"
Paragon nodes within range gain X% bonus to their Minion damage and damage reduction modifiers.
Additional Bonus: Whenever your Minions deal damage to an enemy, that enemy takes X% increased damage from you and your Minions, up to X%, for X seconds.
Legendary Bonus: Increase Minion damage by X%.
Legendary Node "Hulking Monstrosity"
Your Golem has X% increased Maximum Life and deals X% increased damage.
Rare Glyph "Gravekeeper"
Grants X% bonus to all Rare nodes within range.
Additional Bonus: You deal X% increased damage, up to X%, for every Close Corpse.
Legendary Bonus: You deal X% increased damage to Healthy enemies.
Legendary Node "Frailty"
Cursed enemies take X% increased damage from you and your Minions, increased by X% each second they are Cursed, up to X%.
Rare Glyph "Golem"
For every 5 Willpower purchased within range, Golems gain X% increased damage.
Additional Bonus: Golems deal X% increased damage.
Legendary Bonus: Increase Minion damage by X%.
Legendary Node "Flesh Eater"
Consuming X Corpses grants X% increased damage for X seconds.
Rare Glyph "Eliminator"
Grants X% bonus to all Normal nodes within range.
Additional Bonus: You deal X% increased damage to Elites.
Legendary Bonus: You deal X% increased damage to Elites.
Noch in Arbeit.
Mercenaries
Mercenaries for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
Primary Mercenary: Varyana
Massacre
You and Varyana stack Massacre together on kills. Certain stack thresholds grant Movement Speed. Massacre resets after X seconds of not killing an enemy.
Cleave
Varyana swings two axes in an arc in front of her, dealing X% Physical damage and X% Bleeding damage over X seconds.
Selecting a Mercenary Core Skill alters their wielded Weapon and Basic Attack.
Weapon: Dual Axes
Basic Attack: Double Strike
Varyana slashes enemies with dual axes, dealing X% Physical damage. She has a X% chance to also deal X% Bleeding damage over X seconds.
Hysteria
You gain X% Attack Speed for X seconds whenever Varyana damages an enemy, up to X%.
Recklessness
Varyana's Cleave inflicts Vulnerable on enemies for X seconds.
Shockwave
Varyana slams the ground for a brutal shockwave in front of her, dealing X% Physical damage and Knocking Down enemies for X seconds.
Selecting a Mercenary Core Skill alters their wielded Weapon and Basic Attack.
Weapon: Two-Handed Mace
Basic Attack: Heavy Strike
Varyana batters enemies with a mace, dealing X% Physical damage with X% increased Critical Strike Chance.
Crushing Force
When Varyana deals damage to an enemy, she has a X% chance to Knock them Down for X seconds.
Reprisal
If you become Crowd Controlled, Varyana leaps towards the enemy that inflicted it, dealing X% Physical damage and Knocking Down surrounding enemies for X seconds on impact. This can only occur once every X seconds.
Bloodthirst
Varyana enters Bloodthirst, gaining X% Attack Speed, X% Movement Speed, and Unstoppable for X seconds. Varyana's Bloodthirst grants X% Attack Speed to you for the same duration.
Intimidated
While Varyana has Bloodthirst, enemies around her deal X% reduced damage.
Bloodlust
Varyana's Bloodthirst further increases your Attack Speed by X%.
Whirlwind
Varyana spins violently in a line, repeatedly dealing X% Physical damage and X% Bleeding damage over X seconds.
No Escape
Varyana's Whirlwind Pulls In enemies every X seconds and gains X% Size.
Taste of Flesh
When you or Varyana deal direct damage to an enemy inflicted with any of her Bleeding effects, you Heal for X% of your Maximum Life.
Earth Breaker
Varyana crushes the ground with her mace, leaving a tremor that deals X% Physical damage over X seconds and Knocks enemies Down repeatedly.
Rampage
You deal X% increased damage to enemies afflicted by any of Varyana's Crowd Control effects.
Dismembering
Enemies damaged by Varyana's Earth Breaker are left exposed, causing your next hit against them within X seconds to be a guaranteed Overpower. This may only occur on the same target once every X seconds.
Ancient Harpoons
Varyana launches three harpoons ahead of her, piercing enemies for X% Physical damage. She then rips them back, Pulling In and Stunning enemies for X seconds.
Annihilator
Varyana's Ancient Harpoons additionally Slow enemies by X% for X seconds. During this time, you gain X% Lucky Hit Chance against those targets.
Iron Grip
Varyana's Ancient Harpoons travel X% farther and reduce enemies' Impairment Resistance by X% for X seconds.
Reinforcement: Raheir
Supports you with:
Crater
Is triggered by:
Blight
Video Showcase
Video Showcase for the Minion Summoner Necro Leveling Guide
Changelog
- 10/02/24 – Optimized for Vessel of Hatred (Season 6)