Animated VS Summoned

[Zombie]

The names of abilities and spells that summon undead tend to have names that imply creating them from corpses and remains, while the descriptions and the floaty name say the undead are summoned.

Pen and paper descriptions of the abilities are clear that the necromancer needs to have some remains and animates those remains.

I assume that on Arkaz all undead that a PC can summon via Animate Undead, Create Greater Undead and Palemaster abilities are ‘summoned’? Which is a shame because quite frankly the idea of Malik being attacked by a pair of pirates, slaying one with PM touch attack, animating the remains as zombie and then laughing as said zombie beats the remaining pirate to death fills me with a warm villainous glow.

Essentially necromancy is just summoning?

Can a caster ‘animate’ an undead using the spell if a DM says its ok? Killing an NPC and then having everyone else gasp in horror as you ‘animate’ them as a skeleton and all their flesh falls off in a gory pile of giggle again gives me that special little glow.

Just wondering really as I don’t want to do some descriptive writing of Malik up to no good and animating a corpse, only to find that all he can ever do is summon an undead and then I look like a n00b. And its also always fun to be able to put hand on ‘heart’ and say you don’t create undead, only summon them and as such there is no moral implication…… summoning isn’t evil… right, right?


Bonus question:
Can you disguise a summon by emoting dressing it up in a robe and hood? I assume the answer is ‘No, not without a DM present and stop being a dick, Zombie’

[ForsakenPlague]

I assume that on Arkaz all undead that a PC can summon via Animate Undead, Create Greater Undead and Palemaster abilities are ‘summoned’? Which is a shame because quite frankly the idea of Malik being attacked by a pair of pirates, slaying one with PM touch attack, animating the remains as zombie and then laughing as said zombie beats the remaining pirate to death fills me with a warm villainous glow.

Essentially necromancy is just summoning?

I think you'll be pleasantly surprised, Zombie, Undead that appear via Animated Undead, Create Greater Undead, Palemaster abilities and more really are created rather than summoned via Conjuration.

Characters are free to 'create' Undead summons from fallen bodies, but please keep in mind the fine line between role play and cheese.

ForsakenPlague

[Kali]

oh... but if there aren't any bodies around, can we 'summon'?