NIGHT HAWK NECROMANCER
Now with more boom!
Introduction/Changelog- Patch 2.10 Buffs hawks even further than their 2.9 numbers, fixed their confusing tooltip (tooltip damage is much closer to actual damage dealt now instead of some weird fractional math), fixes the bug that caused them to occasionally deal zero damage, AND introduces the oskill gloves for some big qol.
- Patch 2.9 Brings big buffs to Summon Necromancer's single-target skill; Night Hawks, as well as some very nice survivability the spec has been really needing.
The goal of this guide is to teach players how to boss with a summoner; something that has been long misunderstood, and attempt to explain the nuances of how the skill is played. It's an intermediate level guide that assumes you have some knowledge of the game mechanics, but we'll try and be as descriptive as we can, where possible.
Pros/Cons► Show Spoiler
Pros- Strong single target damage on a minion skill
- Comfortable playstyle with good regen, high max life, and plenty of quality of life
- Nuanced skill with a flexible skill ceiling
- Minions auto target
Cons- Slow farming capability on full damage setup (can farm, will just have to do so slowly)
- Point starved (if you want faster clearing you may have to move some points around)
- Minion AI can suck and need micromanagement
About Night Hawks► Show Spoiler
Night Hawks are not your average minion- Unlike the rest of the minions at the necromancer's disposal, Hawks are un-killable by anything but themselves. Their sole purpose in life is to die, as soon as possible. They attack in a small area around them before doing so. This damage is considered "weapon damage"(based on internal minion stats we cannot see) and thus is affected by minion attack rating, like most other minions.
They come with a host of benefits and some oddities- Minions have the unique advantage of being able to kill from safe distances, around corners, etc. As long as you have line of sight, you can summon hawks over gaps, or through doors, and they'll clear out a room. Kill enemies in places they may not even reach you!
- Though they are invincible, Hawks are still target-able. This means you can use them to pull aggro, and keep enemies distracted (though monsters can and will still hit you, so don't assume this is foolproof).
- Hawks have the unique ability to be affected by Grim Vision (the aura provided by Blood Skeletons) without blood skeletons actually being present to provide the aura. Quite a useful synergy. They can of course be affected by the Evocation Aura provided by the Necromancer uber skill Rathma's Chosen (Note: Although the deadly strike and attack speed from this summon are nice for minions, they're beaten out by having Veil King (VK), another Necro uber skill and the one we'll be taking).
Their damage calculation is... weird- The damage number you see on your skilldesc (the info box you see when looking at the skill on your bar) Is their total weapon damage. This is not actually how much damage they're dealing. They attack with a skill that deals 50% of their weapon damage, but hits an average of 2-3 times. These hits then check minion attack rating and deadly strike (through grim vision) and thus have a chance to miss, or deal double damage. Confused yet?
Skills and Stats Skills Summon- Blood Skeleton: 1
- Grim Vision: MAX
- Night Hawks: MAX
- Violent Immolation: MAX
- Resurgence: MAX
1 point in all travel skills. We will be maxing
Night Hawks, and all of the damage passives that affect them.
CrossbowLife From Death Changes effectiveness based on the path you take in the crossbow tree. The fire side gives Potion effectiveness and duration; which stacks very well with the
Chemistry mastery, while the physical side provides much needed physical resistance. With the addition of
Graveyard, Necros of all specs get some much needed regen, which means you can afford to take the physical side if you have trouble capping it elsewhere
(Note: it's actually slightly more point efficient than the Tenacity Mastery) The choice depends on how you want to play. When you're done maxing your summon tree you can place the required points to get 1 point in this skill, then dump into it later with whatever you have left.
Mastery- Meditation: 3**
- Chemistry: MAX
- Specialization: MAX
- Tenacity/Endurance: MAX**
Specialization is needed to push the skill level of your hawks by 5 more base levels.
Chemistry is a very strong source of sustain for high-life pool characters. For the leveling process you will 100% need
Meditation, but as you start stacking high energy and get more mana regen from
Embalming, you can afford to spec out of Meditation and into either
Tenacity or Endurance: I recommend Tenactiy as it's hard to cap phys resists on this character.
Reward- Veil King: MAX
- Graveyard: 1
Max
Veil King for the large bonus to minion damage
(NOTE: you get this bonus whether the veil king is alive or not) and
no more than 1 Point into
Graveyard. This skill has a fixed duration and points only increase it's damage, not the effectiveness of the regen it gives (1 per 2% minion damage)
(Note: the Regen from Graveyard snaphsots, meaning it will provide regen based on the higher of the two stats at the time of casting. Since poison has double the effectiveness of minion damage it is technically possible to wear high poison resist gear, cast graveyard, and swap to your minion damage setup. The duration of graveyard is long enough to make this possible, but short enough to make it annoying/not worth it. I wouldn't bother.)Deathspeaker- Embalming: DUMP
- Death Ward DUMP
- Famine: DUMP
This tree will be where you dump the rest of your free points. You will most likely be dumping Embalming at first as you desperately need the mana regen, and Famine for the maximum life. Once you've picked up some of the more stat heavy charms such as
Corrupted Wormhole
Corrupted Wormhole
Required Level: 100
Keep in Inventory to Gain Bonus
you may be able to move points out of these, and place them into Death Ward. Because we wear such heavy armors like
Goetia Plate
Goetia Plate
Full Plate Mail (Sacred)
Defense: (8467 - 9339) to (10376 - 11445)
Required Level: 100
Required Strength: 700
Item Level: 120
+3 to All Skills
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
+(151 to 200)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(51 to 75)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(172 to 200)% Enhanced Defense
+100 Life Regenerated per Second
+750 to Life
+375 to Mana
-4 to Light Radius
Socketed (6)
, MOing defense and increasing it in the tree is not a bad idea.
Stats Strength:- Enough for gear. Late game armor like
Goetia Plate
Goetia Plate
Full Plate Mail (Sacred)
Defense: (8467 - 9339) to (10376 - 11445)
Required Level: 100
Required Strength: 700
Item Level: 120
+3 to All Skills
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
+(151 to 200)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(51 to 75)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(172 to 200)% Enhanced Defense
+100 Life Regenerated per Second
+750 to Life
+375 to Mana
-4 to Light Radius
Socketed (6)
Dexterity:- None. You could try to run a shield and block, but my approach is high vit/regen.
Vitality:- Dump the rest of your points here when your str/ene needs are met
Energy:- Around 500 (no more than 1000) should be good depending on your regen. Veil king and hawks are costly spells so you'll definitely need some.
GameplayMinute to minute gameplay
- Is all about maximizing your output and maintining buffs. Stay as close to the minion cap (displayed on the skill) as possible, while trying not to over-summon. Replace Veil Kings near death, and keep Graveyard up. Micro-managing your hawks so that they die and are replaced by new ones as quickly as possible is the name of the game. You alternate between stutter-step casting them, targeting bigger enemies directly, and blowing them all up at once. This for me, is the fun of playing a birdmancer.
Disclaimer: Night Hawks is not a farming skill
However 
- Because they have a small-ish aoe (it's actually more of a star pattern; they fire projectiles that effectively work as an aoe, but as you get farther away the damage falls off because you're not hitting with multiple projectiles), Hawks are not completely useless in clear. Especially while leveling, they will be quite strong, but give way to a proper clear skill later on and take the throne as a single target skill. If you're into fast clear, you need to look into a traditional summoner or attempt to support this build with
Back To The Abyss
Back To The Abyss
Demon Head (Sacred)
Defense: 1448 to 1766
Chance to Block: 2%
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 100
Required Dexterity: 445
Item Level: 120
Abyss Knights Die After Being Summoned
+(2 to 3) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+150% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(101 to 150) to Energy
+200 Life Regenerated per Second
Decrease Maximum Life -10%
Physical Resist 20%
50% Magic Find
Socketed (4)
Archbishop Lazarus
Archbishop Lazarus
(Tribute Set)
Lazarus' Chasuble
Lazarus' Surplice Cap
Lazarus' Votive Lamp
Lazarus' Lamen
Set Bonus with 2 or more set items:
+25% to Summoned Minion Damage
+25% to Summoned Minion Resistances
Set Bonus with 3 or more set items:
+100% to Summoned Minion Life
+50% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
Set Bonus with complete set:
+1 Extra Veil King
+2 to Necromancer Skill Levels
+100% to Summoned Minion Life
+50% to Summoned Minion Damage
+50% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
- The minion AI for Hawks is wonky, and this can play into our favor, or against us. They can clump up together and move uniformly, or scatter all over the place, and this all depends on how you cast them, and how you move around while they're up. There are cases where you want to make use of both behaviours. Thankfully, we have several tools to manage this.
Warp Strikes and Teleports - The Necro comes innate with the teleport skill Bend the Shadows (BTS). This is a short range, short cooldown teleport that will be your bread and butter until later on. When the necromancer teleports, he brings all of his minions with him, and Hawks specifically will attack the target of your teleport (aka the closest enemy). If you have a particularly troublesome enemy you need dead and your hawks just wont seem to attack it, teleports will force them to do the job.
- This has nuance of backfiring or helping. If you miss your target with a teleport skill, your minions can scatter and not attack your target. This behaviour can be useful if you're being swarmed and you need 20+ tiny meat shields ASAP, so it's important to know when to teleport to group or scatter your minions.
- Later on, you can pick up a
Relic (Colosseum)
Relic
Required Level: 75
(11 to 15)% Block Speed
(11 to 15)% Hit Recovery
+(4 to 8) to Colosseum
- Until you get a colosseum relic, use the shortest cooldown/best teleport skill you can. BTS will be the fastest for a long time.
When in doubt, - Simply re-cast. The cap for the maximum amount of hawks allowed changes in different ways (skill level and gear). When your hawks are misbehaving, casting the skill again while at the cap will kill the oldest ones and replace them with new ones.
A Note on Veil King - The uber skill you take for hawkmancer Provides you with the bonus damage listed on his skilldesc regardless of whether or not he is alive. This means you can forego summoning him in boss fights where his existence is not welcome (fights like baal, or any fight where there is simply too much incoming damage to keep him alive) opt to distract bosses with hawks instead.
GEARLeveling► Show Spoiler
(See bottom for MO priority)WeaponLord of Thorns
Lord of Thorns
Marrow Staff (4)
Two-Hand Damage: 7 to 9
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 11
Required Strength: 37
Item Level: 10
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
1% Chance to cast level 5 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+1 to Necromancer Skill Levels
+(0 to 1) to Maximum Necromancer Minions
30% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +3%
+(21 to 25)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(11 to 13)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(16 to 25) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(11 to 15)%
Socketed (2)
Two-Hand Damage: 15 to 19
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 31
Required Strength: 56
Item Level: 31
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
2% Chance to cast level 9 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+(2 to 3) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+(0 to 1) to Maximum Necromancer Minions
50% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +(6 to 7)%
+(31 to 35)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(16 to 18)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(36 to 45) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(21 to 25)%
Socketed (4)
Two-Hand Damage: 25 to 32
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 51
Required Strength: 112
Item Level: 51
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
3% Chance to cast level 13 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+(4 to 5) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
70% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +(9 to 10)%
+(41 to 45)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(21 to 23)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(56 to 65) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(31 to 35)%
Socketed (5)
Two-Hand Damage: 29 to 38
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 59
Required Strength: 222
Item Level: 77
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
4% Chance to cast level 15 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+(5 to 6) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
80% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +(10 to 11)%
+(46 to 50)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(24 to 25)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(66 to 75) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(36 to 40)%
Socketed (6)
- Skill levels, minion damage, energy, resists. All things we really need.
Body ArmorAkara's Robe (1)
Akara's Robe
Quilted Armor (1)
Defense: 74 to 100
Required Level: 10
Required Strength: 10
Item Level: 255
+50 Defense
+(6 to 10) to all Attributes
+50 to Life
Elemental Resists +(11 to 15)%
Cannot be Upgraded
Socketed (2)
Akara's Robe (3)
Akara's Robe
Quilted Armor (3)
Defense: 496 to 599
Required Level: 50
Required Strength: 175
Item Level: 255
+1 to All Skills
+250 Defense
+(11 to 20) to all Attributes
+100 to Life
Elemental Resists +(21 to 25)%
Cannot be Upgraded
Socketed (5)
Akara's Robe (Sacred)
Akara's Robe
Quilted Armor (Sacred)
Defense: 2763 to 2831
Required Level: 80
Required Strength: 350 to 395
Item Level: 255
+1 to All Skills
+500 Defense
+(31 to 50) to all Attributes
+200 to Life
Elemental Resists +(31 to 40)%
Requirements -(21 to 30)%
Socketed (6)
- Akara's Robe is a quest reward chest that gives good stats (and +skills in later difficulties) but may be slightly beaten out by an Honorific.
HelmUmbaru's Jinx
Umbaru's Jinx
Mask (4)
Defense: (116 - 126) to (195 - 209)
Required Level: 7
Required Strength: 30
Item Level: 10
+(0 to 1) to Necromancer Skill Levels
15% Hit Recovery
+(6 to 10)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(21 to 40)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(31 to 50)% Enhanced Defense
+(51 to 100) Defense
Poison Length Reduced by (11 to 20)%
Physical Resist 1%
(6 to 10)% Bonus to Defense
Socketed (1)
Defense: (416 - 448) to (546 - 587)
Required Level: 24
Required Strength: 60
Item Level: 31
+(0 to 1) to Necromancer Skill Levels
30% Hit Recovery
+(11 to 15)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(41 to 60)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(61 to 80)% Enhanced Defense
+(151 to 200) Defense
Poison Length Reduced by (21 to 30)%
Physical Resist 2%
(11 to 20)% Bonus to Defense
Socketed (3)
Defense: (927 - 994) to (1163 - 1249)
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 210
Item Level: 51
+(0 to 2) to Necromancer Skill Levels
45% Hit Recovery
+(16 to 20)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(61 to 80)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(91 to 110)% Enhanced Defense
+(251 to 300) Defense
Poison Length Reduced by (31 to 40)%
Physical Resist 3%
(21 to 30)% Bonus to Defense
Socketed (4)
Defense: (1422 - 1515) to (1759 - 1876)
Required Level: 50
Required Strength: 420
Item Level: 77
+(1 to 2) to Necromancer Skill Levels
60% Hit Recovery
+(21 to 25)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(81 to 100)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(121 to 140)% Enhanced Defense
+(351 to 400) Defense
Poison Length Reduced by (41 to 50)%
Physical Resist 4%
(31 to 40)% Bonus to Defense
Socketed (4)
- Watch out for the +skills roll. Otherwise, this helm has minion damage and AR, both big for us.
Gloves- Honorific
- There are no TU gloves that give minion damage. If you really find yourself struggling you can take
Witching Gloves
Witching Gloves
Heavy Gloves (4)
Defense: (16 - 19) to (32 - 37)
Required Level: 3
Required Strength: 26
Item Level: 1
1% Chance to cast level 1 Banish on Death Blow
+(3 to 5)% to Spell Damage
+(21 to 40)% Enhanced Defense
Regenerate Mana +15%
Fire Resist +(6 to 10)%
Poison Resist +(6 to 10)%
Socketed (1)
Defense: (132 - 149) to (164 - 185)
Required Level: 20
Required Strength: 52
Item Level: 31
2% Chance to cast level 4 Banish on Death Blow
+(7 to 10)% to Spell Damage
+(51 to 70)% Enhanced Defense
Regenerate Mana +18%
Fire Resist +(15 to 20)%
Poison Resist +(15 to 20)%
Socketed (2)
Defense: (355 - 395) to (424 - 471)
Required Level: 38
Required Strength: 183
Item Level: 51
3% Chance to cast level 8 Banish on Death Blow
+(12 to 15)% to Spell Damage
+(71 to 90)% Enhanced Defense
Regenerate Mana +22%
Fire Resist +(21 to 25)%
Poison Resist +(21 to 25)%
Socketed (3)
Defense: (548 - 631) to (660 - 761)
Required Level: 46
Required Strength: 366
Item Level: 77
4% Chance to cast level 12 Banish on Death Blow
+(15 to 20)% to Spell Damage
+(91 to 120)% Enhanced Defense
Regenerate Mana +25%
Fire Resist +(26 to 30)%
Poison Resist +(26 to 30)%
Socketed (4)
Vilehand
Vilehand
Leather Gloves (4)
Defense: 6 to 8
Required Level: 1
Required Strength: 25
Item Level: 1
+(3 to 5)% Bonus to Poison Skill Duration
+(6 to 10)% to Poison Spell Damage
Poison Length Reduced by (31 to 35)%
Socketed (1)
Defense: 70 to 75
Required Level: 17
Required Strength: 50
Item Level: 31
+(0 to 1) to All Skills
+(6 to 8)% Bonus to Poison Skill Duration
+(11 to 15)% to Poison Spell Damage
Poison Length Reduced by (36 to 40)%
Socketed (2)
Defense: 176 to 184
Required Level: 34
Required Strength: 175
Item Level: 51
+1 to All Skills
+(8 to 10)% Bonus to Poison Skill Duration
+(16 to 20)% to Poison Spell Damage
Poison Length Reduced by (41 to 45)%
Socketed (3)
Defense: 243 to 258
Required Level: 43
Required Strength: 350
Item Level: 77
+1 to All Skills
+(11 to 13)% Bonus to Poison Skill Duration
+(21 to 25)% to Poison Spell Damage
Poison Length Reduced by (46 to 50)%
Socketed (4)
Belt- Honorific
- Same situation as gloves. No minion damage or useful stats for us. Hono will be great here.
Boots- Honorific
- Same for boots as belt/gloves.
Rings- Rare
- All skills and minion damage. Fill with resists and other MOs as needed.
Amulet- Rare
- All skills, minion damage. Both unique rings and amulets have the ability to roll above average +all skills, but unless you happen to find one that works for you organically, don't bother crafting any. Save your Arcane Crystals (AC) for other things.
Honorific MO Priority- 1) Minion damage
- 2) Energy (until you have enough to cast comfortably)
- 3) Life Regeneration
- 4) Resists as needed
- 5) Strength to assist with gear checks (and avoiding points in it)
- 6) Defense becomes more valuable later as you can wear some quite heavy armors and get good scaling from the tree
General MO Info- Minion damage everywhere, on everything. They can be applied to all gear slots, and you should do so liberally.
- Mana Regen is extremely important. Even though we get it from our class, you'll need more. Take it second if you have space.
- Resists on Jewlery are much higher than on armor, but if you have space try to fill armor first, as there are some valuable jewlery-only MOs
- Physical damage reduction (PDR) Becomes especially useful later on in the game, as you'll be taking high amounts of physical hits, and mitigating that is huge.
- Flat life is self explanatory, as necros get % scaling from a couple places.
- Flat defense is useful as we have % defense scaling, but apply it absolutely last, as you won't get high enough defense to make a big impact later in the game.
► Show Spoiler
SetsArchbishop Lazarus
Archbishop Lazarus
(Tribute Set)
Lazarus' Chasuble
Lazarus' Surplice Cap
Lazarus' Votive Lamp
Lazarus' Lamen
Set Bonus with 2 or more set items:
+25% to Summoned Minion Damage
+25% to Summoned Minion Resistances
Set Bonus with 3 or more set items:
+100% to Summoned Minion Life
+50% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
Set Bonus with complete set:
+1 Extra Veil King
+2 to Necromancer Skill Levels
+100% to Summoned Minion Life
+50% to Summoned Minion Damage
+50% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
Satanic Mantra
Satanic Mantra
(Necromancer Summoner Set)
Till We Have Heaven In Sight
Through Death's Veil
Lend Me Thy Light
Archangel Dark Angel
Set Bonus with 2 or more set items:
+75% to Summoned Minion Life
+200% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
Set Bonus with 3 or more set items:
+2 to Necromancer Skill Levels
+50% to Summoned Minion Damage
Set Bonus with complete set:
+3 to Necromancer Skill Levels
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
+17 to Dark Power
+25 to Void Archon
+100% to Summoned Minion Life
- Summon Necros have access to 2 sets, unlike most specs. Hawkmancer doesn't take much from these sets in the end game, but it's important to know of their existence, as quite often one or multiple pieces from the sets will be better than what you have until you find your big upgrade. For our use case, the armours stand out as good "filler" pieces before you can get your BIS. It's also worth noting that the Laz/tribute set is a common set for labbing. Dual VK is quite good.
Weapons- 1)
King's Desire
King's Desire
Grim Wand (Sacred)
One-Hand Damage: 39 to 44
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 100
Required Dexterity: 172
Item Level: 105
Dexterity Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Dexterity)%
Veil King: +25% Total Damage
Night Hawks: +10% Total Damage and +2 Extra Hawks
+(1 to 4) to Necromancer Skill Levels
25% Cast Speed
+(16 to 30)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+100 to Strength
+(501 to 1000) to Life
Physical Resist -5%
Socketed (2)
Coincidentally the best weapon we can get, and also obtainable the earliest. Must be paired with a good offhand to win-out over the other options in this category, so if you find something that feels like a temporary upgrade, don't sig this. Note that the +2 "extra" hawks is actually +2 maximum alive, and not extra per cast.
- 2)
Shadowfiend
Shadowfiend
Marrow Staff (Sacred)
Two-Hand Damage: 45 to 49
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 100
Required Strength: 275
Item Level: 120
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
+8 to Necromancer Skill Levels
(50 to 70)% Cast Speed
+100% to Summoned Minion Life
+(125 to 200)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(25 to 50)% to Summoned Minion Resistances
+(100 to 130) Life after each Kill
10% Reanimate as: Random Monster
Socketed (6)
Very high minion damage and ~okay +skills roll. Very good for providing regen via Graveyard.
- 3) Angelic Staff-
With a max level +skill and minion damage roll will be a very close competitor to Shadowfiend
Shadowfiend
Marrow Staff (Sacred)
Two-Hand Damage: 45 to 49
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 100
Required Strength: 275
Item Level: 120
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
+8 to Necromancer Skill Levels
(50 to 70)% Cast Speed
+100% to Summoned Minion Life
+(125 to 200)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(25 to 50)% to Summoned Minion Resistances
+(100 to 130) Life after each Kill
10% Reanimate as: Random Monster
Socketed (6)
- 4)
Grim Visor
Grim Visor
Wand (Sacred)
One-Hand Damage: 35 to 36
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 100
Required Dexterity: 249
Item Level: 105
Dexterity Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Dexterity)%
Grim Vision: Aura Level Increased by 5
+(1 to 2) to All Skills
+(0 to 1) to Maximum Necromancer Minions
+(31 to 60)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(11 to 25)% to Summoned Minion Resistances
+(101 to 150)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(1001 to 2500) Defense
(21 to 25)% to Vitality
-2 to Light Radius
Requirements +50%
Socketed (2)
is of note because it provides +5 to Grim Vision, which in turn buffs Hawks. Some minion AR and a couple +skills make this wand a respectable choice if you can't find anything else, or you happen to get lucky and find a Back To The Abyss
Back To The Abyss
Demon Head (Sacred)
Defense: 1448 to 1766
Chance to Block: 2%
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 100
Required Dexterity: 445
Item Level: 120
Abyss Knights Die After Being Summoned
+(2 to 3) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+150% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(101 to 150) to Energy
+200 Life Regenerated per Second
Decrease Maximum Life -10%
Physical Resist 20%
50% Magic Find
Socketed (4)
- 5)
Dagda
Dagda
Necromancer Staves
'ChamIoIst'
Runeword Level: 83
3% Chance to cast level 1 Lifeblood when Struck
+(6 to 7) to Necromancer Skill Levels
15% Cast Speed
+(26 to 35)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(110 to 130)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(31 to 40) to all Attributes
Maximum Life +5%
Maximum Mana +20%
19% Gold Find
10% Magic Find
is a good runeword and a solid upgrade for most of the early ubers
Offhands- 1)
Back To The Abyss
Back To The Abyss
Demon Head (Sacred)
Defense: 1448 to 1766
Chance to Block: 2%
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 100
Required Dexterity: 445
Item Level: 120
Abyss Knights Die After Being Summoned
+(2 to 3) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+150% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(101 to 150) to Energy
+200 Life Regenerated per Second
Decrease Maximum Life -10%
Physical Resist 20%
50% Magic Find
Socketed (4)
+All skills, high minion damage, some extra regen, and a helpful orange text for converting Abyss Knights into a similar skill as hawks, but more clear oriented.
- 2)
Grim Silhouette
Grim Silhouette
Gargoyle Head (Sacred)
Defense: (3694 - 4389) to (4792 - 5617)
Chance to Block: 2%
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 100
Required Dexterity: 443
Item Level: 105
Veil King: +100% Life and Damage
+(3 to 5) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+(31 to 60)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(75 to 150)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(130 to 180)% Enhanced Defense
+(500 to 1000) Defense
Maximum Cold Resist +(1 to 2)%
Elemental Resists +(15 to 25)%
Socketed (4)
Nothing really remarkable about this shield, but it's available at 105 and is a good piece to wear before you can get BTA.
- 3) Angelic Shield-
They can roll with decent all skills, and although they can't get minion damage, worth checking out if you can't do anything else yet.
Body Armor- 1)
Thelema
Thelema
Body Armors
'LewIuHel'
Runeword Level: 110
+4 to All Skills
55% Cast Speed
+(80 to 95)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(200 to 250)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(172 to 200)% Enhanced Defense
+(120 to 150) to Vitality
15% to Vitality
+(101 to 125) Mana when Struck by an Enemy
The best chest for our purposes* (see Goetia) for a majority of the game.
- 2)
Goetia Plate
Goetia Plate
Full Plate Mail (Sacred)
Defense: (8467 - 9339) to (10376 - 11445)
Required Level: 100
Required Strength: 700
Item Level: 120
+3 to All Skills
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
+(151 to 200)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(51 to 75)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(172 to 200)% Enhanced Defense
+100 Life Regenerated per Second
+750 to Life
+375 to Mana
-4 to Light Radius
Socketed (6)
Has lower rolls in virtually everything Thelema
Thelema
Body Armors
'LewIuHel'
Runeword Level: 110
+4 to All Skills
55% Cast Speed
+(80 to 95)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(200 to 250)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(172 to 200)% Enhanced Defense
+(120 to 150) to Vitality
15% to Vitality
+(101 to 125) Mana when Struck by an Enemy
- 3) Angelic Armor-
Can roll above average +all skills and top tier defensive mods. Can be blessed with a (intensity-ed) minion damage shrine. May even pull ahead of Goetia if crafted correctly.
- 4) Rare Crafted Armor-
Can be rolled with +2 all skills, with a minion damage shrine. Likely your first upgrade from TUs.
Helms- 1)
Soulsplitter
Soulsplitter
Coronet (Sacred)
Defense: 605 to 684
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 100
Required Dexterity: 327
Item Level: 120
Summon One Extra Necromancer Minion With Each Cast
+3 to Necromancer Skill Levels
-20% to Enemy Lightning Resistance
-20% to Enemy Cold Resistance
+(40 to 50)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(25 to 30)% to Summoned Minion Resistances
Maximum Mana +20%
Socketed (4)
High +skills, and the ability to summon an extra minion with each cast. Self explanatory.
- 2)
Rathma's Blessing
Rathma's Blessing
Circlets
'OrtGlaThulGla'
Runeword Level: 100
+(2 to 3) to All Skills
+50% to Summoned Minion Life
+25% to Summoned Minion Damage
+50% to Summoned Minion Resistances
Lightning Resist +25%
Cold Resist +50%
+10 Cold Absorb
(15 to 20)% Magic Find
Good all-around minion helm. Easy to make once you can start clearing Teganze. May pull ahead of option 1 in some cases.
- 3) Angelic Helm-
Look for +skills, and big defensive mods.
- 4) Rare Crafted Circlet-
As above; look for skills, and minion damage
Gloves- 1) Soulbinder Gloves-
If you're lucky enough to find a pair, hounfor for single target or sinners for clear (before you can start building the exodia relics sinners are a huge aoe boost.
- 1)
Aiwass
Aiwass
Gloves
'ZodKa'
Runeword Level: 105
+15% Malice Skill Damage
+3 to Necromancer Skill Levels
+293 Defense
(21 to 35)% to Strength
+(1 to 100) to Life
Regenerate Mana +(5 to 10)%
Maximum Elemental Resists +1%
+15 Life after each Kill
- 2)
Lorekeeper
Lorekeeper
Light Gauntlets (Sacred)
Defense: (1018 - 1179) to (1159 - 1342)
Required Level: 80
Required Strength: 300
Item Level: 120
+3 to All Skills
20% Combat Speeds
+(5 to 10) to Firedance
+(90 to 120)% Enhanced Defense
Regenerate Mana +(40 to 60)%
Requirements -50%
Socketed (4)
- Beats out Aiwass in certain scenarios. Lorekeeper provides Firedance, a sorc buff which creates a large ring of fire that buffs weapon damage when you (or your minions) are standing in it. If you can reasonably keep your minions inside the circle (like during boss fights), go for Lorekeeper.
- 3) Angelic Gloves-
Are we sensing a theme here? 
Belts- 1) Angelic Belt-
Belts don't really favour summoners that much, but the new Angelics have higher of the usual rolls, can be blessed, and have open sockets. Find the highest rolled angelic belt you can.
- 2) Rare Crafted Belt-
Follow the same guidelines as the other crafted items.
Boots- 1)
Overseer's Slippers
Overseer's Slippers
Boots
'HemIo'
Runeword Level: 105
Abyss Knights: Chance to cast Chaos Nova on Kill Doubled
4% Chance to cast level 11 Force Blast when Struck
+1 to Necromancer Skill Levels
Attacker Flees after Striking 10%
+(25 to 30)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(31 to 40)% to Summoned Minion Resistances
+50% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+200% Enhanced Defense
-111 Defense
+(200 to 250) to Energy
(25 to 30)% Magic Find
- 2) Angelic Boots-
As above, so below. They roll high all skills, etc etc.
- 3)
Spirit Walker
Spirit Walker
Heavy Boots (Sacred)
Defense: 696 to 737
Required Level: 100
Required Strength: 550
Item Level: 120
+1% Physical Resist per 18% Mana Regeneration
+2 to All Skills
+(50 to 100) Spell Focus
(10 to 40)% Movement Speed
Jitan's Gate Cooldown Reduced by 1 seconds
+35% to Physical/Magic Spell Damage
-15% to Enemy Elemental Resistances
Socketed (4)
Is a solid backup option as we get a lot of mana regen and can take advantage of the orange text on this item.
Rings- 1)
Witchcraft
Witchcraft
Ring
Required Level: 100
Item Level: 120
+2 to All Skills
20% Cast Speed
-5% to Enemy Elemental Resistances
Maximum Mana (-5 to 5)%
20% Bonus to Defense
High all skills, + some other benefits, not a bad idea
- 2) Rare Rings-
All skills, Minion damage, fill with other defensive mods you're missing out on.
- 3)
Der Nebelring
Der Nebelring
Ring
Required Level: 110
Item Level: 105
+(20 to 30)% to Summoned Minion Life
+15% to Summoned Minion Damage
+1000 Defense
+400 to Life
Physical Resist (4 to 6)%
+(40 to 50) Life after each Kill
+2 to Light Radius
less than ideal, but still an option.
Amulets- 1)
Lamen of the Archbishop
Lamen of the Archbishop
Amulet
Required Level: 110
Item Level: 120
Orb Effects Applied to this Item are Doubled
+4 to All Skills
Pray to Laz for a lucky +skill (via oil of luck, for +5 total), and MO as needed.
- 2) Rare/Crafted Amulet-
The Soulforge makes getting good amulets less of a pain. You can also try for a good crafted amulet (the material for which is dropped by the Infernal Machine in Hell, and used on set amulets)
► Show Spoiler
JewelsWhen Making runewords, always do so in gear with the maximum possible sockets, and fill the slots BEFORE the runes with jewels. Jewels can roll 6-8% minion damage, which is higher than even the
enchanted runes. Aside from finding Xods, use jewels with as high minion damage as possible with a couple other beneficial mods, and you're set. Notably, minion damage mods roll with a reasonably low level requirement that shouldn't really hurt your MO space all that much.
UMOsSet your sights on
Kara's Trinket
Kara's Trinket
Mystic Orb
Right-Click to Apply
3% Cast Speed
+5% to Summoned Minion Life
+5% to Summoned Minion Damage
+5% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+10 Required Level
s and apply them to your
Lamen of the Archbishop
Lamen of the Archbishop
Amulet
Required Level: 110
Item Level: 120
Orb Effects Applied to this Item are Doubled
+4 to All Skills
(there are others like
Monsterball
Monsterball
Mystic Orb
Right-Click to Apply
+5 to Summon Shock Beast
+10% to Summoned Minion Life
+3% to Summoned Minion Damage
+2% to Summoned Minion Resistances
+10 Required Level
and
Heart of Frost
Heart of Frost
Mystic Orb
Right-Click to Apply
+5% to Cold Spell Damage
Weapon Physical Damage +9%
+3% to Summoned Minion Damage
+10 Required Level
, but these are only slightly better than regular vendor MOs). After this, you're free to prioritize regular minion damage orbs, and the rest can be defensive and/or follow the MO priority in the leveling section. Neat.
RelicsThere are a couple different setups to consider for your relics.
Relic (Night Hawks)
Relic
Required Level: 75
+3 Extra Night Hawks
+(15 to 30) to Night Hawks
+(11 to 20)% to Summoned Minion Damage
Relic (Blood Skeleton)
Relic
Required Level: 75
Blood Skeleton: +5 to Grim Vision Aura
+(13 to 25) to Blood Skeleton
+(5 to 10)% to Summoned Minion Resistances
Relic (Colosseum)
Relic
Required Level: 75
(11 to 15)% Block Speed
(11 to 15)% Hit Recovery
+(4 to 8) to Colosseum
Relic (Summon Frostwalker)
Relic
Required Level: 75
+(9 to 16) to Summon Frostwalker
Maximum Cold Resist +1%
Gain Exodia while Carrying All Summon Trio Relics
(Summon Frostwalker - Summon Glowing Fungus - Summon Sinner)
Exodia
Summon One Extra Minion With Each Cast
+100% to Summoned Minion Damage
+100% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+666 to Life
Relic (Summon Glowing Fungus)
Relic
Required Level: 75
+(9 to 16) to Summon Glowing Fungus
Maximum Lightning Resist +1%
Gain Exodia while Carrying All Summon Trio Relics
(Summon Frostwalker - Summon Glowing Fungus - Summon Sinner)
Exodia
Summon One Extra Minion With Each Cast
+100% to Summoned Minion Damage
+100% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+666 to Life
Relic (Summon Sinner)
Relic
Required Level: 75
+(9 to 16) to Summon Sinner
Maximum Fire Resist +1%
Gain Exodia while Carrying All Summon Trio Relics
(Summon Frostwalker - Summon Glowing Fungus - Summon Sinner)
Exodia
Summon One Extra Minion With Each Cast
+100% to Summoned Minion Damage
+100% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+666 to Life
- As I've covered all of the best damage relics above, the final slot (unless you opt for exodia) is up to you. Take your pick from the range of utility, buff, or survivability relics that are at your disposal.
Misc?Bless with minion damage shrines where possible.
PROGRESSION AND UBER QUESTSLet's get to the actual guide.Early Leveling► Show Spoiler
This guide will be operating under the assumption that you are playing Hawks the entire time. If you wish to play a more traditional summoner, you may need to consider another guide.Levels 1-10- I recommend playing the first 5-10 levels of the game as melee necromancer. You can level as a summoner from start to finish, but Blood skeles are currently a very slow skill to start, and hawks need about 3-5 points (when they start summoning more per cast) to really take off.
- Kill some stuff in Blood Moor and put 1 point into parasite and dump all your stats into Strength until your first respec. Clear the den of evil. Remember that respecs at Akara are free until level 50 in Median (as in, they do not consume your "1-per-difficulty respec").
Level 10-25- When you think you have enough points you can swap out of melee (or whichever path you took up to this point) into pure hawks. Place 3 points into Meditation (your mana regen Mastery) and then as many points into Hawks as possible*. If you have an extra point or 2 you can start developing your passive tree as well.
- All of your points will be going into energy for now. You can toss maybe 20-25 worth into strength to help early gear requirements, but after that, every point goes into energy. You will need it until much later in the game.
- * Hawks are extremely mana intensive and stay that way for the entire playthrough. Doing what you can to deal with this is recommended. Thankfully, with the buff to their damage at all levels, you don't need more than 15 points into them for pretty much all of normal. I recommend stopping around base level 10 at MOST until you really need more damage.
- By the end of A2 you should have 2 ac, enough to make your first TU;
Lord of Thorns
Lord of Thorns
Marrow Staff (4)
Two-Hand Damage: 7 to 9
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 11
Required Strength: 37
Item Level: 10
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
1% Chance to cast level 5 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+1 to Necromancer Skill Levels
+(0 to 1) to Maximum Necromancer Minions
30% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +3%
+(21 to 25)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(11 to 13)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(16 to 25) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(11 to 15)%
Socketed (2)
Two-Hand Damage: 15 to 19
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 31
Required Strength: 56
Item Level: 31
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
2% Chance to cast level 9 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+(2 to 3) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+(0 to 1) to Maximum Necromancer Minions
50% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +(6 to 7)%
+(31 to 35)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(16 to 18)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(36 to 45) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(21 to 25)%
Socketed (4)
Two-Hand Damage: 25 to 32
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 51
Required Strength: 112
Item Level: 51
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
3% Chance to cast level 13 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+(4 to 5) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
70% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +(9 to 10)%
+(41 to 45)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(21 to 23)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(56 to 65) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(31 to 35)%
Socketed (5)
Two-Hand Damage: 29 to 38
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 59
Required Strength: 222
Item Level: 77
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
4% Chance to cast level 15 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+(5 to 6) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
80% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +(10 to 11)%
+(46 to 50)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(24 to 25)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(66 to 75) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(36 to 40)%
Socketed (6)
Act 3-4- Unless you happen to get really lucky with unique drops, progress through the game as normal. Wear the best rares you can find. With
Lord of Thorns
Lord of Thorns
Marrow Staff (4)
Two-Hand Damage: 7 to 9
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 11
Required Strength: 37
Item Level: 10
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
1% Chance to cast level 5 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+1 to Necromancer Skill Levels
+(0 to 1) to Maximum Necromancer Minions
30% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +3%
+(21 to 25)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(11 to 13)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(16 to 25) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(11 to 15)%
Socketed (2)
Two-Hand Damage: 15 to 19
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 31
Required Strength: 56
Item Level: 31
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
2% Chance to cast level 9 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+(2 to 3) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+(0 to 1) to Maximum Necromancer Minions
50% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +(6 to 7)%
+(31 to 35)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(16 to 18)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(36 to 45) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(21 to 25)%
Socketed (4)
Two-Hand Damage: 25 to 32
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 51
Required Strength: 112
Item Level: 51
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
3% Chance to cast level 13 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+(4 to 5) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
70% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +(9 to 10)%
+(41 to 45)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(21 to 23)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(56 to 65) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(31 to 35)%
Socketed (5)
Two-Hand Damage: 29 to 38
(Necromancer Only)
Required Level: 59
Required Strength: 222
Item Level: 77
Strength Damage Bonus: (0.06 per Strength)%
4% Chance to cast level 15 Spike Nova when Struck by a Missile
+(5 to 6) to Necromancer Skill Levels
+1 to Maximum Necromancer Minions
80% Cast Speed
Hit Causes Monster to Flee +(10 to 11)%
+(46 to 50)% to Summoned Minion Life
+(24 to 25)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(66 to 75) to Energy
Elemental Resists +(36 to 40)%
Socketed (6)
- After killing the council in A3 (if not then, after Mephisto) you hopefully have enough AC to make your second TU;
Umbaru's Jinx
Umbaru's Jinx
Mask (4)
Defense: (116 - 126) to (195 - 209)
Required Level: 7
Required Strength: 30
Item Level: 10
+(0 to 1) to Necromancer Skill Levels
15% Hit Recovery
+(6 to 10)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(21 to 40)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(31 to 50)% Enhanced Defense
+(51 to 100) Defense
Poison Length Reduced by (11 to 20)%
Physical Resist 1%
(6 to 10)% Bonus to Defense
Socketed (1)
Defense: (416 - 448) to (546 - 587)
Required Level: 24
Required Strength: 60
Item Level: 31
+(0 to 1) to Necromancer Skill Levels
30% Hit Recovery
+(11 to 15)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(41 to 60)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(61 to 80)% Enhanced Defense
+(151 to 200) Defense
Poison Length Reduced by (21 to 30)%
Physical Resist 2%
(11 to 20)% Bonus to Defense
Socketed (3)
Defense: (927 - 994) to (1163 - 1249)
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 210
Item Level: 51
+(0 to 2) to Necromancer Skill Levels
45% Hit Recovery
+(16 to 20)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(61 to 80)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(91 to 110)% Enhanced Defense
+(251 to 300) Defense
Poison Length Reduced by (31 to 40)%
Physical Resist 3%
(21 to 30)% Bonus to Defense
Socketed (4)
Defense: (1422 - 1515) to (1759 - 1876)
Required Level: 50
Required Strength: 420
Item Level: 77
+(1 to 2) to Necromancer Skill Levels
60% Hit Recovery
+(21 to 25)% to Summoned Minion Damage
+(81 to 100)% to Summoned Minion Attack Rating
+(121 to 140)% Enhanced Defense
+(351 to 400) Defense
Poison Length Reduced by (41 to 50)%
Physical Resist 4%
(31 to 40)% Bonus to Defense
Socketed (4)
- You may have some hiccups, especially in act 4. Your primary source of sustain will be potions but your damage will still be amazing. You can choose to run through the content with potions up pretty well constantly, or take a slower approach and kill everything with hawks as you go. The limiting factor is really your patience.
Level < 50 - Act 5- When you get to act 5 normal, you hit your first major power spike (if you weren't already destroying content, the game becomes a cakewalk from here). Take the opportunity to rush the Frigid Highlands and get the waypoint. You'll need to kill Shenk the Overseer 3-4 times to get the material to craft your honorifics. You can do so now with t1 bases if you wish (t4 bases will have more defense but this is up to you. Refer to the leveling gear section for upgrade priority.
- You may need to start putting more points into Hawks by now, if you haven't already. You can also pick your path in the Crossbow tree (fire or phys) and take which upgrade suits you; either potion effectiveness or a bit of phys resist. If you haven't by now, start maxing all of your damage passives in the necro tree. Preferably before hawks for mana efficiency.
- Don't forget to do your level challenge just before Baal.
Nightmare- You should hopefully be able to cruise through Nightmare comfortably now. Upgrade all your gear as necessary, and put more points into hawks as long as you have the mana to sustain it. When you hit level 25 base level (or close to it) and your mana sustain seems to feel good, you can stop putting points into energy and start placing them into vitality.
- Your quality of life will dramatically improve as you start crafting more regen on your gear, if you haven't already done so.
- By the end of nightmare you can kill Shenk until ~level 100 to prepare for hell. If you successfully unlocked your uber skill after killing mephisto (Remember; slow and steady), take Veil King. His mana cost is extremely high. Moreso than your hawks, so make sure you have enough mana to cast him. Thankfully you only need to re-summon him once in a while.
The majority of Median takes place in hell. By now I will assume you are familiar with the questing process and will outline Charms you need to look out for, strategy for certain areas of the game, and big milestones.
- Gearing at this stage is entirely dependant on luck and a bit of smart farming. Note the Item level (Not The required level to wear it), and find out if the zone you want to farm drops that base commonly enough, and farm there. This will mostly happen in Duncraig but farm anywhere comfortable that drops the base corresponding to the item you want. In Teganze you can find runestones and essences, in our case to make
Rathma's Blessing
Rathma's Blessing
Circlets
'OrtGlaThulGla'
Runeword Level: 100
+(2 to 3) to All Skills
+50% to Summoned Minion Life
+25% to Summoned Minion Damage
+50% to Summoned Minion Resistances
Lightning Resist +25%
Cold Resist +50%
+10 Cold Absorb
(15 to 20)% Magic Find
- My personal early-hell leveling strategy is campaign to ~105-110 (or sunless sea if needed) → Cows/Torajan Jungles to 115 → Tran Athulua or High Heavens until 120. At 120 your options begin to open up, but first lets talk about charms and ubers; ones to target asap will be underlined.
Very Easy
- Butcher- Should be quite easy, just stutter-step cast Hawks, and don't stop moving. Be sure to enter the arena with every summon up.
- Infernal Machine- Can be a bit tricky. Approach him from the outside, clearing as many (or all) of the minions as possible. When he starts to pulse with fire, run away. Cast on top of him to avoid hawks wandering off.
- Invasion I- Enter with all your summons up, avoid the lightning storms and burst down. This charm is good for us.
- Death Projector- Thankfully easy due to how our spec works. Pull 2 engineers from the edges of the arena, and walk around it in a circle, casting hawks directly on the machine
- Isle of the Sunless Sea- your first rift. Lots of invisible enemies here, so opt to cast hawks ahead of you. If you get swarmed, blink away or on the closest target to burst it down and give yourself some breathing room.
Easy
- The Binding of Baal/Tal Rasha- Enter with all of your minions up, and get to safety asap. Take down all of the minons that give Tal Rasha Invulnerability and then burst him down from afar. You'll want to avoid blinking on him as the point in the game you can fight him he's dangerous. Cast from afar and take it slow, keep casting until you're through all of his forms (of which he has multiple). He's annoying to get back to if you die.
- Jitan- Stay far away. You likely don't have even close to enough Physical damage reduction or resistance to be near him yet so if you get his attention, keep summoning hawks and running; ideally back the way you approached him, so you don't get overwhelmed by enemies,
- Torajan Jungles/Akarat- Your next major rift, and where you can farm signets for a while (aside from disenchanting sacred uniques) if needed. Akarat should go down just fine even in your leveling setup, but you may need to blink on him with a full group of hawks to ensure this.
Moderate
- Rathma Square/Primus- take it slow. You can hop over the ledge directly to him and burst him down. Keep your distance.
- Black Road/Buyard Cholik- Unlocks Graveyard, your black road skill. Extremely important.
- Azmodan/Heart of Sin-Stay away. You can cast Hawks over the gap to fight him for you, and the fight should stay mostly clean. Reposition as needed. +2 MR important.
- Invasion II- Standard Riftwalker 2 strategy, stay in the ice ring as it appears, avoid storms, cast hawks on riftwalker (and occasionally the shambler. +1 all sk important here.
- Kurast 3000 BA (K3K)- +2 all skills for necros, very important charm. I dont like farming this rift so I don't bother.
- Tran Athulua- Quite tough when you first get here but worth doing for xp if you can survive. Summon hawks way ahead, take it slow.
- High Heavens/Library of fate- Relatively easy, but the ear dropped by the bosses in the library is very important for doing Heroic High Heavens, and accessing Angelic Items at 125.
The strategy for clearing rifts from here on out is the same for every rift; keep as many hawks up as possible to distract monsters, and resummon as things die. You may want to consider a dedicated farming spec when it's time to stop bossing and level a bit. Videos of the rifts as pure hawks will come if requested. Remember that Veil king is helpfull (and easier to keep alive) in clearing scenarios, but is very hard to keep alive while bossing. Hawks will still do the job of distracting bosses, just not quite as well, so pay closer attention in these scenarios.
Hard
- Judgement Day/Malthael & Imperius- this uber can be really hard for some builds, but thankfully your minions should keep the Edyrems busy. Keep some around you, while trying to cast them on top of the bosses. The upgrade is good here.
- Quov Tsin- a bit of a difficult fight. He likes to blink around a lot and deals heavy damage, so casting minions on top of him is not easy. Opt to cast a bunch of hawks and blink on him, as his trinity beam deals less damage as you get closer.
- Kingdom of Shadow- very hard, but very important. Keep as many minions up as possible to pull aggro, and keep the zombies busy. BTS as often as needed to get out of hairy situations, and take the longer path to the boss if you have to.
- Banisher of Light/Kabraxis- Should actually be pretty easy as long as your damage is decent. Kabraxis will pounce on you if you get to far away from him, but you can use this to your advantage. move at a steady pace while continually summoning hawks, and he'll go down nice and smooth.
Very Hard
- Eve of Destruction/Baal- DO NOT SUMMON A VEIL KING FOR THIS FIGHT, LEST YOU BE SWARMED BY BOSS SUMMONS. Thankfully Hawks kill themselves, so Baal's summoning habit should be under control. Burst him down as quick as possible, and try not to get overwhelmed. It helps to pull boss summons away from baal and deal with them to avoid getting swarmed by too many.
- Lord of Lies/Belial- Use and abuse minion offscreening here. Keep summoning them and letting them clear while you're sitting a safe distance away, and this should be a cakewalk.
- Bremmtown- Cast Hawks ahead of you to bait the ghosts into attacking them. Move quickly. (Tip: if you find yourself with not enough time to upgrade, you can simply farm this area slowly for a good charm, and put it in your cube. Once you kill the Darkstar Dragon, open your inventory, open your cube and press 'C'- the default keybind for transmute. You need the PR from this charm, and it unlocks chemistry, so do this asap.
- Xazax- Unfortunately Xazax's minions are untargetable, and your hawks will prioritize Xazax. Try to cast them directly on top of him, or use teleport skills to blow them up on him.
- Astrogha- As long as you stay mobile and out of the way of his poison, this fight shouldn't be too bad. For maximum saftey, clear the towers first, and then keep summoning on astrogha to keep him occupied.
- Nymyr's Light/Atanna Khan- She hurts, but the strategy here is similar to Kabraxis; keep moving, keep summoning. Getting her down slowly is better than dying. (Note: for your sleep charm upgrade take Astrogha, and with your second one I recommend a defensive bonus like Viz-Jun, but this choice is up to you)
This build has been tested in the 2.10 beta and seems to be doing late game ubers just fine. Find me in the Median Discord as "magz" if you have any questions.
-Thanks to Wulf for letting me use his well-structured guides as a jumping off point for this one-
-And the MXL Team for their hard work (and buffing this spec) 
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Enjoy this AI attempt at generating a Hawk Necro 
Back To The Abyss
Relic
