4 S-tier Meta Necromancer builds to try in Diablo 4 Season 11

While a variety of Paladin builds are dominating Diablo 4 Season 11, there are still S-Tier Necromancer builds that are thriving in the current meta. Tier lists of course differ from player to player, and from the types of objectives it’s focused on. This is a general, pushing through endgame content focus, so we’re going to target the builds that are currently being successful. This could, of course, change if Blizzard drops a balance patch.

These are also my opinions, but also informed by how the community and season is shaking out. While Necromancer might not be the class with the most S-tier builds in Diablo 4 Season 11’s meta, I think it has just enough flavor and variety.

---

What are the best S-Tier Meta Necromancer builds in Diablo 4 Season 11?

1) Golem Necromancer

Gravebloom is the reason this build even works at all (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Golem Necromancer is really kind of a new thing in Diablo 4 Season 11, but I think it stands up as a powerful S-Tier option. Instead of a swarm of incredibly aggressive skeletons, you sacrifice your Warriors (Defenders) and Mages (Cold), to increase the power of your Golem.

Naturally, this is thanks to the new Unique, Gravebloom, which, instead of giving you one mighty Golem, gives you three smaller Golems. Success does sort of depend on how easily you can Corpse Tendrils+Bone Prison, and also requires a good Soulrift cast, but that’s easy. It does require several Uniques though, such as Blood Moon Breeches and Gravebloom to get the most out of it. Godslayer Crown is a nice option, too.

You just trap enemies, pop Soulrift, and use your Golems to pummel enemies into pieces. Its only real weakness is in bossing, but it’s great at everything else in Diablo 4.

---

2) Blood Wave Necromancer

Kessime's Legacy is a powerful tool for Blood Wave users (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Somehow, against all odds, Blood Wave Necromancer never really dies out. Blood Wave Necromancer remains an S-Tier pick in Diablo 4 Season 11. Every season I think it’s going to go away, and I’m always wrong. By combining the right Shadow and Blood talents/passives, you get a Blood Wave that deals incredible shadow damage.

We’re also finally adding ranks to Blood Wave to get amazing damage multipliers. Like most powerful builds, it has requirements, and they aren’t as bad here. You need Kessime’s Legacy Unique, and Fastblood Legendary Aspect (Iron Hold dungeon in Hawezar). Personally, I’m not a fan because it’s a build that sacrifices all of your minions, and that seems counterintuitive to being a Necro.

It’s not especially difficult to play though, because you Blood Wave, Corpse Explosion, Blood Mist, rinse and repeat. You just need to make sure all your Blood Waves are hitting targets, and that you’re picking up Blood Orbs to reset Rathma’s Vigor.

The tricky part is looking at your Rathma’s Vigor stacks. If you’re at 15, don’t use Blood Mist, because it will consume the proc, which you use to get a guaranteed Overpower with the Blood Wave.

---

3) Shadowblight Necromancer

Shadowblight isn't a DOT, so it can crit, so keep that in mind! (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Another S-Tier Necromancer build that sacrifices minions in Diablo 4 Season 11 is the Shadowblight Necromancer. It’s popular though, because you can easily get tons of Shadowblight procs without much effort, and it doesn’t require any Uniques for it to function properly.

Blood Moon Breeches/Godslayer Crown are nice, but not required. You also really want to hunt down Cursed Aura Legendary Aspect so you can constantly curse enemies. The rotation might take some work to get used to, though. You Soulrift, Reap to make a corpse, Corpse Tendrils, and then you Blight.

Then you mix up your Corpse Explosion/Blight casts to start pumping those Shadowblight stacks. If you’re fighting a boss you may need to use Sever (Supernatural) to get that first corpse going. It’s a little bit of a tricky build, but it’s incredibly powerful.

---

4) Minion Necromancer

Minion Necromancer is still quite powerful, though it's squishy and dangerous (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Everyone might not agree, but I think the Hand of Naz/Mendeln Minion Necromancer is still S-Tier in Diablo 4 Season 11. It’s probably one of the squishier builds you can pl ay, but your minions will almost never die, it’s incredibly easy to play, and your Shadow Skeleton Mages pile on tons of damage.

As you can imagine, it does require the Hand of Naz and Ring of Mendeln to really get moving. I also think Blood Moon Breeches are a must have for the build. All you really do in terms of gameplay is Blight to get more damage, Corpse Tendrils to bundle up enemies, vigorously use the Raise Skeleton ability for the buff, and Soulrift.

It’s not a hard build to pilot in Diablo 4, but you do need to be aware of where you’re standing, so you don’t accidentally get one-shot. That’s really it’s only weakness for me, except it’s a bit weaker on bossing than other Necromancer builds if your minions somehow die.

---

Check out our other Diablo 4 guides and features

• Diablo 4 Season 11: Hadriel’s Divine Missive walkthrough
• Diablo 4 Season 11: Call of the Paladin walkthrough (Path of the Paladin)
• Diablo 4 devs walk back major Masterworking change ahead of Season 11
• Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred DLC: Release date, known features, and more
• Diablo 4: What to do with Unique Purified Essences?

Edited by Jason Parker