Best Minion Necromancer build in Diablo 4 Season 4: Skills, itemization, paragon board, and glyphs

Minion Necromancer is so horrifyingly strong in Diablo 4 Season 4. Loot Reborn, alongside improving equipment, also offered a wealth of balance adjustments. Many of these came to the Minion build, with the Seasonal Journey offering those players equipment built for their adventure. That means players won’t have to worry about changing their build up or relearning the class once they start hitting end-game content.

Since Minion Necro is the best class this season, I wanted to figure out which is the best way to play it. You can go a few ways, but ultimately, I was torn between Blight and Plagued archetypes. I think Blight is the best way to go, covering tons of ground in that grey, goopy murk, while also dealing tons of damage.

Here are some tips on how to set yourself up for success.

How to play Minion Necromancer in Diablo 4 Season 4

Minions are so powerful right now - time to take advantage of that (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

This particular Minion Necromancer build in Diablo 4 Season 4 is built around a few useful skills. In particular, Blight and Corpse Explosion. We use Decrepify to weaken and slow targets, Corpse Tendrils to pull in big targets, and we want to have Blight under our foes at all times.

Of course, we want Raise Skeleton and Golem to deal lots of non-stop damage. You also want to keep the Raise Skeleton buff going, so make sure to cast it even if you have a full army up.

When you aren’t doing anything else, you cast Corpse Explosion to deal even more damage for this Diablo 4 Season 4 Minion Necro build. While Blight/Decrepify/Tendrils set everything up and are important, Corpse Explosion is the real star.

However, if you’re having trouble with content, swapping Golem for Blood Mist makes life safer, but you lose a significant amount of damage that way. Below is your list of skills to take:

Skills to choose

Reap: 1/5 (Enhanced)
Blight: 1/5 (Enhanced, Supernatural)
Hewed Flesh: 3/3
Corpse Explosion: 5/5 (Enhanced, Blighted)
Skeletal Warrior Mastery: 3/3
Grim Harvest: 1/3
Fueled by Death: 3/3
Decrepify: 1/5 (Enhanced, Abhorrent)
Amplify Damage: 3/3
Death’s Embrace: 3/3
Skeletal Mage Mastery: 3/3
Corpse Tendrils: 1/5 (Enhanced, Plagued)
Reaper’s pursuit: 1/3
Gloom: 3/3
Crippling Darkness: 3/3
Terror: 3/3
Golem Mastery: 3/3
Inspiring Leader: 3/3
Hellbent Commander: 3/3
Bonded in Essence: 1/3
Shadowblight: 1/1

Picks for Book of the Dead

Reaper Skeleton
Shadow Skeleton Mage
Blood Golem

Ideal Itemization for Diablo 4’s Minion Necromancer in Season 4

Helm	Maximum Life, Intelligence, Skeletal Mage Mastery, +Crippling Darkness, +Corpse Tendrils Size	Hardened Bones
Chest	Maximum Life, Intelligence, Skeletal Mage Mastery, +Crippling Darkness, +Corpse Tendrils Size	Aphotic Aspect
Gloves	Skeletal Mage Mastery, Maximum Life, Critical Strike Chance, Skeletal Mage Damage, Decrepify Size	Grasping Veins
Pants	Intelligence, Maximum Life, Skeletal Mage Mastery, Decrepify Size, +Crippling Darkness	Juggernaut's Aspect
Boots	Skeletal Mage Mastery, Maximum Life, Movement Speed, Corpse Explosion Size	Occult Dominion
Amulet	Hellbent Commander, Gloom, Critical Strike Chance, Movement Speed, Crippling Darkness	Blighted Aspect
Rings	Critical Strike Chance, Critical Strike Damage, Intelligence, Chance for Projectiles to Cast Twice, Skeletal Mage Damage	The Damned, Frenzied Dead
Weapons	Intelligence, Critical Strike Damage, Attack Speed, Chance for Projectiles to Cast Twice, Skeletal Mage Damage	Reanimation

The Aspects needed for Diablo 4 Necromancers are significantly different from the last time I covered the class. There are some really interesting choices this time. We get a bigger army that also deals Shadow Damage, which is amplified by Aspect of the Damned which is available in the Codex of Power. It increases Shadow Damage to any target afflicted by a Curse - which we certainly have plenty of.

There’s also the brand-new Aphotic Aspect, which makes your Skeletal Priests empower your Skeletal Warriors’ attacks to deal Shadow Damage and have a chance to Stun enemies.

When stacking gems, you want Ruby for your Armor, Sapphire for your weapons, and Diamonds for your jewelry. Below, you’ll also see the ideal stats you should keep an eye out for on your equipment. Of course, you won’t always be lucky enough to get the best stats every time, but these are some of the most optimal picks.

Paragon Board loadout for Minion Necromancer in Diablo 4 Season 4

A look at what your Paragon Boards will look like, courtesy of Wowhead (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Filling out a paragon board is a massive undertaking, and you have to pay close attention to what board you fit where to make sure you get the most out of it.

Instead of putting all 225 points down in a list, here’s a suggested list of boards, glyphs, and where you should fit them together:

Paragon Board Locations

Starting Board (Glyph: Scourge): North into Cult Leader
Cult Leader (Glyph: Deadraiser): West into Flesh Eater
Flesh Eater (Glyph: Amplify): North into Wither
Wither (Glyph: Control): West from Flesh Eater into Hulking Monstrosity
Hulking Monstrosity (Glyph: Darkness): North into Bone Craft
Bone Craft (Glyph: Golem): South from Hulking Monstrosity into Bloodbath
Bloodbath (Glyph: Essence)