LoD Poison Scythe Necromancer Skills and Runes (2024)

Last updated on Apr 10, 2024 at 09:00by Deadset21 comments

On this page, we explain how to choose and use your skills when playingLoD Poison Scythe Necromancer in Diablo 3. Updated for Patch 2.7.7 andSeason 31.

Active Skills
Grim Scythe Cursed ScytheDeath Nova Blight1Simulacrum Blood and Bone2Bone Spear Blighted Marrow3Blood Rush Potency4Bone Armor Dislocation
Passive Skills
Stand AloneSwift HarvestingEternal TormentSpreading Malediction

The build begins runs by summoning Simulacrum; due to the rune Blood and Bone you will get two minions at your side, and you need to bediligent in their upkeep as a large part of your DPS relies on them (you donot need to worry about their duration however — Haunted Visionsmakes them last indefinitely). If you find it hard to keep track of them inthe thick of a fight, simply check with a cast of a spender (i.e. Bone Spear) somewhere outside the cluster of monsters; if two morespears shoot in that direction, you are set.

Rotate between your poisonous skills at your discretion; you only goal isto stay at your maximum Nayr's Black Death stacks at all times. You canthrow Bone Spear to draw monster attention, Death Nova Blight toreduce incoming damage, or Grim Scythe to restore Essence for Aquila Cuirass upkeep. Right as your Convention of Elementsrotation finishes the Physical cycle and reaches Poison, you want to pop Bone Armor to trigger the stun of Dislocation, which willmaximize your Krysbin's Sentence damage bonuses during your burst cycle.After that, simply swing Grim Scythe Cursed Scythe alongside your Simulacrums and enjoy the devastation; once the Poison cycle is over,you can resume the rotation of Nayr upkeep and drawing monster attention intobig packs for the next cycle of mayhem.

A major skill slot will be devoted to Simulacrum, one of theNecromancer's longest cooldowns — thankfully, with the power of therevised Haunted Visions, now made permanent minions at your side. Youwill be taking the "double summon" rune Blood and Bone, since you wantto maximize the mimicking of your own skills.

You will be using a primary skill that will both stack Nayr's Black Death and also bring the signature poisonous devastation ofthis build. Grim Scythe Cursed Scythe is one of the most utility-loadedskills in the Necromancer arsenal. By default, it has a chance to apply thebase effect of all three curses — Decrepify, Leechand Frailty — without the need to slot them on your bar. Thisprimary gets boosted further by the worn Trag'Oul's Corroded Fang,ensuring the curse application and amplifying damage against affected targets.When you factor in the Simulacrums spamming this skill alongside you,it pushes the build to endgame potential.

You will also be using a duo of Essence spenders — Bone Spear Blighted Marrow and Death Nova Blight — again,simply for their Poison stack for Nayr's Black Death. As such, only usethem to refresh the duration of the Nayr buff — their damage and utilityis too limited to matter.

In a LoD build, Bone Armor simply acts as a damage reduction buffer,easily maximized in densely packed rifts. The more important half of the skillcomes from the chosen rune, Dislocation — its 2-second stun willprovide a moment of respite in the thick of battle, as well as an additionalsource of Nayr's Black Death, Krysbin's Sentence and Ancient Parthan Defenders (in the group version of the build) procs.

Swift Harvesting is the most logical addition to a primaryattack-focused build, increasing the Attack Speed of both Grim Scytheand Siphon Blood with an impressive 15% bonus.

Since this spec falls into the category of low summoning builds, you canmake use of the Stand Alone passive and its massive Armor bonuses withminimal losses.

Two interconnected passives — Eternal Torment and Spreading Malediction — will work off each other, with the formermaking curses applied by Cursed Scythe last indefinitely, and thelatter — increasing your damage for each afflicted enemy with noapparent cap.