Fighting Undead in D&D 5e: A Complete Guide

Undead are everywhere in D&D. Skeletons in ruins. Ghouls in graveyards. Liches in towers. Vampires in castles. Every campaign has an undead encounter or ten.

Here's how to handle them.

Common Undead Types

Skeletons (CR 1/4)

• Reanimated skeletons.
• Vulnerability to bludgeoning.
• Low HP, moderate damage.
• Common low-level mobs.

Zombies (CR 1/4)

• Slow but resilient.
• Undead Fortitude: when hit to 0 HP, roll Con save; on success, drop to 1 HP instead.
• Reasonable HP pool.

Ghouls (CR 1)

• Paralyzing bite.
• Group tactics.
• Mid-low level threat.

Ghasts (CR 2)

• Stronger ghouls.
• Stench aura (Con save or poisoned).

Wights (CR 3)

• Life drain attack (reduces max HP).
• Raise corpses as zombies.
• Can drain levels in some rulesets.

Specters (CR 1)

• Ethereal. Immune to non-magical damage.
• Life drain.

Wraiths (CR 5)

• Incorporeal. Phase through walls.
• Life drain at range.

Mummies (CR 3)

• Mummy rot: disease.
• Fear attack.

Vampire Spawn (CR 5)

• Claws and bite.
• Regeneration.

Vampires (CR 13)

• High CR. Regeneration, dominate, charm, blood drain.
• Legendary actions.

Liches (CR 21)

• Most powerful common undead.
• Spellcasting up to 9th level.
• Phylactery grants immortality.

Key Weaknesses

Radiant Damage

Most undead are resistant to necrotic damage (their native type) and often vulnerable or especially damaged by radiant.

Radiant sources:

• Divine Smite (Paladin).
• Sacred Flame (Cleric cantrip).
• Guiding Bolt (1st level).
• Spirit Guardians.
• Flame Strike (half fire, half radiant).
• Dawnbringer weapons and similar magic items.

Sunlight

Some undead (vampires, wraiths) take damage or have disadvantage in sunlight.

Bludgeoning

Skeletons are vulnerable to bludgeoning damage. Breaking brittle bones.

Turn Undead

Cleric Channel Divinity. 30-ft radius. Undead make Wisdom save. On fail, they flee for up to 1 minute.

At level 5, Destroy Undead: undead of CR 1/2 or lower are destroyed outright on fail. CR 1 at level 8, CR 2 at level 11, etc.

Paladins of Devotion have Turn the Unholy, similar effect.

Specific Tactics

vs. Skeletons

Bludgeoning weapons. War priests. Cheap AOE.

vs. Zombies

Radiant damage to kill. Undead Fortitude makes them durable.

vs. Ghouls

Resist paralysis (Elves immune). Kill them fast.

vs. Wights

Ranged combat. Avoid melee to prevent life drain. Radiant damage.

vs. Specters/Wraiths

Magical weapons or magical damage. They phase through walls, so line of sight matters.

vs. Mummies

Cure disease options ready. Protection from Evil and Good for fear resistance.

vs. Vampires

Sunlight. Running water. Stakes through the heart (campaign detail). Radiant damage.

vs. Liches

Dispel Magic on their buffs. Counterspell. High-level party. Focus on phylactery to prevent reanimation.

Classes That Excel vs. Undead

Cleric

Turn Undead, Sacred Flame, Spirit Guardians, Guiding Bolt. All-purpose undead hunter.

Paladin

Divine Smite on undead = +1d8 extra damage. Aura of Courage resists fear. Strong class vs. undead.

Blood Hunter (Order of the Ghostslayer)

Rite of the Dawn auto-crits on undead. Designed for this.

Ranger (Monster Slayer, non-SRD)

Anti-undead features.

Classes That Struggle vs. Undead

Necromancer Wizard

Ironic. Your spells often do necrotic damage, which undead resist.

Rogues (non-magical)

Without magical weapons, you can't damage incorporeal undead.

Undead in Campaigns

The Shattered Crown has undead elements.

Brightvale has undead from the Umbra and various death magic threats.

Sandbox campaigns can have whatever you want.

The Endlessness and Undead

Our AI Dungeon Master runs undead with full mechanical accuracy: Undead Fortitude saves, life drain effects, incorporeal damage resistances, Turn Undead mechanics.

For related reads, our cleric guide, paladin guide, and combat rules cover more.

Final Takeaway

Undead require prep. Radiant damage. Disease prevention. Magical weapons for the ethereal types.

Start a Cleric or Paladin on The Endlessness and cleanse the undead.