Animate Dead Hit Die [closed]

Question

I have built a Necromancer and recently came into possession of about 150 Gnoll bodies. Looking at the animate dead spell it seems the best I can do with these is turn them into skeletons that are only HD 2 and CR 1/2, while having 150 Gnolls at my command is still fun is there anything better I can do with them? Can I increase their HD in any way?

Due to flavor reasons, my character only makes skeletons and will not fiddle with souls (make intelligent undead). Is it possible to make any of the create undead creatures without messing with souls or am I stuck with only having low-HD skeletons running around?

I am not just looking for stronger undead options, for example, I found a mob template but it's 3rd party, is there anything official from Paizo that could produce similar results?

The character is an Exploiter wizard lvl 11, Dhamphir with the favored class bonus of +1/4 CL when casting necromancy spells, he had the Undead Master feat.

Related question

Answer 1

Your Skeletal Options

You can create bloody skeleton and burning skeleton variants (but they cost double HD) you may also with the DMs approval create gnoll (or other creature) skeletons with the skeleton template (2 HD for a CR 1 in the gnoll skeleton case). It is noted in Battle of Bloodmarch Hill page 84. that with animate dead and an available dead vermin exoskeleton you can raise it with the exoskeleton template (I think this fits well with your only skeletons theme and technically vermin are not intelligent anyway, so you can argue that there is no torture of souls, however as the dark wanderer pointed out vermin RAW have a soul in PF).

Two more things in line with your bonomancer theme could be the Bonestorm (CL 19 Create Greater Undead) and the Wyrmskull template from The End of Eternity page 89. (It says “An undead creature created from the enslaved mind and spirit of a powerful dragon” but you may be able to have their consent to this as they can retain their alignment in their new undead form; the example has a chaotic good alignment)

Mohrg (CL 18 Create Undead) can be another skeletal option but I think it is starching your ‘skeleton raising is not evil house rule’ too far.

Non Skeletal Option

Another thing that you can petition for your character is to have an undead type similar to the deathless from 3.5 Eberron Champaign Setting page 275. in the world.

undead represent a mockery of life and a violation of the natural order of life and death, the deathless merely stave off the inevitability of death to accomplish a righteous purpose

They are the good aligned version of undead (animated with positive energy and not negative) and you might justify their creation by raising victims of a great evil for example and letting them fight against it to save their still alive family or their loved homeland.

Edit: About the mob template you have a few option. You can use the Creature Swarm or the Hivemind Swarm (may involve souls) template or if you want something more battle squad-like you can use the Troop rules to make something like that, but you should ask the DM for an approval.