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Animate Dead, Lesser

School necromancy [evil]; Level cleric 2, sorcerer/wizard 3

Target one corpse

Duration instantaneous

This spell functions as animate dead, except you can only create a single Small or Medium skeleton or zombie. You cannot create variant skeletons or zombies with this spell.

As the spell states that it functions as animate dead and the components are not listed I assume that they are the same as animate dead, but I am not sure.

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Yes, the phrase “as spell” means anything you don’t see explicitly called out in the spell description remains the same. That includes the components of animate dead in this case.

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    \$\begingroup\$ I feel like this should have a citation attached, because it also seems reasonable to interpret "this functions as spell" in the effect description as meaning indicating you cast a variation of that spell for an entirely different and separate cost. Citation would clarify this; without citation this is equivalent to "some guy I googled on the internet said so". \$\endgroup\$
    – doppelgreener
    Apr 6, 2017 at 13:29
  • \$\begingroup\$ @doppelgreener Ultimately, if you tried to do that, you wouldn’t get anywhere because it would leave lesser animate dead incomplete—if you don’t use animate dead’s components, you now have nothing telling you what its components are. \$\endgroup\$
    – KRyan
    Apr 6, 2017 at 13:30
  • \$\begingroup\$ Well, we do have a target of one corpse for Lesser Animate Dead, and it's not like the onyx is explicitly used anywhere in the effect of Animate Dead -- it's just a material component cost. \$\endgroup\$
    – doppelgreener
    Apr 6, 2017 at 13:31
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    \$\begingroup\$ @doppelgreener All spells are required to have a components line (even if it’s just to say there are none). So if lesser animate dead doesn’t list any, and you don’t use animate dead’s, you’re left without enough information to actually cast the spell, the description and rules are incomplete. \$\endgroup\$
    – KRyan
    Apr 6, 2017 at 13:33
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    \$\begingroup\$ Ok. I suggest adding that reasoning to the answer as the basis for indicating Lesser Animate Dead should also inherit Animate Dead's components line. Citations or solid reasoning like that are what separate us from Yahoo Answers & make our site more reliable than "some guy said on the internet" sites. \$\endgroup\$
    – doppelgreener
    Apr 6, 2017 at 13:34

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